Flume Gorge and Conway Scenic Railroad

The Flume Gorge is a natural gorge extending 800 feet high at the base of Mount Liberty in Franconia Notch State Park, New Hampshire. We walked the 2-mile loop to the top.  They warned that it would be uphill with lots of stairs and they weren't kidding!  The high humidity that day didn't make the hike any easier.

The Flume was discovered in 1808 by 93-year-old "Aunt" Jess Guernsey when she accidently came upon it while fishing. At first she had trouble convincing her family of the marvelous discovery, but eventually persuaded others to go and see for themselves.

The drive to the Flume was very scenic

The Pool is a deep basin in the Pemigewasset River.  It is 40 feet deep and 150 feet in diameter.

2 views of the Pool

Walking the loop trail

Up, up up we go

Conway granite forms the walls of the Flume

The red covered bridge is one of the oldest in the state.  It was built in 1886 and has been restored several times.  Such bridges were often called "kissing bridges" because of the darkness and privacy they provided.  This bridge was built across the Pemigewasset River.

A 2nd bridge on the trail

Wolf Den is a narrow, one-way path that involves crawling on your hands and knees and squeezing through the rocks.  The exit is about 20 yards back. 

The next day was spent riding the Conway Scenic Railroad.  We took the Notch train from North Conway to Fabyan through the Crawford Notch.  The trip covered 51 miles and lasted 5 1/2 hours which included a 45 minute layover at the Fabyan Station. We opted for a late lunch in the Hattie Evans dining car.  This included complimentary cheese and crackers and a 3 course meal.  We had our choice of pasta, fish or turkey dinner with all the trimmings.  We chose turkey for the entrée and ice cream sundae for dessert!   The food was delicious and the staff did a great job of serving in such a confined space.  We spent the ride back from Fabyan in the dining car and had an enjoyable time with our lunch mates Diane and Gary from Wisconsin.

Some memories from our train ride...

The Conway Station

All aboard!

Our complimentary cheese and crackers

Along the way we saw old telegraph poles from the late 1800's

Going through cuts in the mountain--granite walls were oh so close!

Stretching our legs at Fabyan Station

Small lake across the street from station

Path around the lake--careful not to fall in!

We stopped on the way home to take a picture of beautiful Mount Washington Hotel.  It is now owned by Omni Hotels.

Such a beautiful backdrop for a lovely hotel

It seems the warm weather has found us.  With highs in the low to mid 80's we're going to take a few days off before we continue sightseeing.  Funny how I now think 83 is hot! Thankfully we have a shady campsite so even in the middle of the afternoon sitting outside is enjoyable.  It actually gets chilly around 6 pm and we have to grab a light jacket or build a campfire!

Twin Mountain, New Hampshire

On Saturday, September 16 we arrived at our home for the next 2 weeks, KOA Holiday Campground in Twin Mountain, NH.  As we drove from Vermont the landscape slowly became more mountainous.  The leaves in New Hampshire have a lot more color than in Vermont. Our campsite has a paved patio, patio furniture, a fire pit, and a potted flowering plant.

Our first sighting of New Hampshire mountains

Beautiful tree at our campsite

These cards were at the registration desk. BEARS! Oh my...

Enjoying a nice warm fire on a cool night.

First up on our list of things to do is ride the Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway. The tram is an 80-passenger cable car that makes the ride to the 4,080' summit of Cannon Mountain in under 10 minutes.  On a clear day you can see  New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, and Canada--or so we were told because when we were there clouds obscured much of the views.  They drifted in and out so sometimes we could see the tops of the mountains but we never saw the other states.  At the summit there was a scenic walking path leading to an observation deck.  On the way up the tram operator said that recently a bear had been spotted on a nearby ski slope.  Believe me, we made sure to walk with other tram riders--safety in numbers!

Here are some photos from our tram ride...

It was clear on the summit when we arrived

As we were walking on the path clouds blew in...

and in...

and out...

It was clear on the path but clouds often obscured the view...

The firs and spruce trees smelled wonderful!

Believe me, there are mountains behind me!

Clouds moving across the mountain tops

Getting ready to go back down--look at the clouds now!

But halfway down there were no clouds.

Even though the clouds spoiled our 4 state views, it was still very pretty at the summit and we enjoyed our visit.

Grand Isle, Vermont - Part 2

Burlington is Vermont's largest city with a population of around 43,000.  It is home to University of Vermont and Champlain College.  Church Street Marketplace is a downtown pedestrian mall with over 100 shops, art galleries, and restaurants.  More than 70% of the businesses are locally owned. 

Just to the west of the marketplace along the Lake Champlain shoreline is Waterfront Park.  The Burlington Bike Path runs along its eastern border.  In the park there are a community boathouse, a sailing center, and a museum.  Along the promenade there are benches and swings under trees providing a cool relaxing place to sit and enjoy the views of the lake.

Here are some photos of Burlington Waterfront Park...

Apartments with a lake view

Taking a break in the shade...it was very muggy that day!

The park had some info on the rail line bike path.  It begins south of the waterfront.

Grand Isle State Park is north of our campground on the island.  We went there looking for a walking/hiking path.  We found one but it was only 1 mile long.  It was a pretty, shady walk.

No visit to Vermont would be complete without a visit to Ben & Jerry's.  We stumbled across their creamery on the way to Stowe to buy beer.  Mmmm! Delicious!

Wha!!? Ben & Jerrys ice cream caused me to grow cow ears!!!

In the Stowe/Waterbury area we saw the sign below, but did not see a moose!

On September 16 we left Apple Island RV Resort on Grand Isle, Vermont and headed to our next destination, Twin Mountain, New Hampshire.  We'll miss Vermont...

...the rolling hills and farmland

...Vermont cows

...but NOT the organic fertilizers on their fields.  Such a horrible smell!

...corn!

...old buildings.  One day I hope to paint some of the buildings we've seen.

...Apple Island Resort

...our view of Lake Champlain

Next post in 2 weeks from New Hampshire.  Thanks for reading!