The Adventures of Kinky Reggae: A Vagabond for Beauty

VH1 used to have this “news” show where they would try to determine who was having the “Best Week Ever,” and I feel like I could have been on that show and won for best day ever in New Hampshire.  I was at Polly’s Pancake Parlor eating gingerbread pancakes by 7 a.m. (It gets light at 4:50 a.m. here, which means I’m up early, and I actually really like that!) I think this place is kind of famous, and it’s well-deserved.  Then, I was on a mission to see waterfalls. Here’s what I learned about New Hampshire: the mountains are bigger than the Appalachians I gave previously experienced. There’s more exposed rock, more views about tree line... they’re awesome. And the rivers here are like rivers in the Pacific Northwest- waterfalls for days, perfectly clear water, and most of them have places were you’d want to swim. Oh, and that’s another great thing about New Hampshire- these places are FREE (even the state parks) and they don’t have a million restrictions. I could swim or rappel if I want

It’s only been a few days since New Hampshire, and I already don’t remember it all! This is why I need to blog every day.  On Tuesday, I began my time in New Hampshire visiting Sculptured Rocks Natural Area. Such a cool spot (a little slot canyon in the making), but clearly this was a place to visit with your friends and your swimsuit and a cooler.  (Fun with Instagram) Next, I drove to the top of Mount Washington, the highest point in the Northeast. I felt like such a loser! When I was in line to take my picture at the summit I was chatting with these two guys who were probably in their 50’s and had done the hike and it was embarrassing to be just another regular tourist who hadn’t worked for the summit at all. But they didn’t seem to be judging me. And I will confess... even if I wasn’t having hip problems, I wouldn’t want to do that hike. Why do a hike that climbs over 4,000 feet when you can go for a leisurely, narrated drive? (They give you a cd to listen to during the drive.) 

Everything in Vermont is just beautiful. Every view looks like it should be on a postcard. This is one of the first things I saw after crossing into Vermont: Then I passed this place, and obviously had to stop and get some syrup: I also pulled over for this old cemetery.  There were tombstones from the 1700’s.  The scenery in Vermont was all green hills and red barns and white farmhouses with black shutters and old churches.  I finally made it to the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller Historic Site. I didn’t tour the house (I feel like I’ve done enough of those for awhile), but I did walk around the estate. I have to admit, I felt kind of jealous. I would love to live on a huge estate with a mansion and stables and formal gardens and a greenhouse and nature trails and waterfalls.  (The greenhouse with a pool out back) I didn’t realize it at the time, but this adorable covered bridge is the second longest in the country and takes you from Vermont into New Hampshire. When I arrived at Saint-Gaud

Saturday was off to a bad start. I hadn’t slept well the night before because my hip was sore. I wasn’t excited about waking up at 5:30 that morning. And it was supposed to rain all day.  I spent most of the day hanging out in my car, reading. But I did go see a few more waterfalls. ( wasn’t sure how this one was considered a waterfall, but the covered bridge was nice...) (This one reminded me of the Pacific Northwest.) (The Ausable River) And I did go for a short hike to a lake, which was very pretty, but the mosquitoes were swarming all around me, and it started raining when I got to the lake, so my plan of hanging out there and reading was definitely not happening.  It was just kind of a blah day, but I figured Sunday would be better.  Nope. I woke up covered in mosquito bites. Like, my whole shoulder is one massive welt. My eye was all red and gross (Maybe I scratched it somehow? It better not be pink eye!) I must be allergic to something here, because my allergies are out of contr

My first day in the Adirondacks was fabulous! Well, other than having to get a last minute hotel room because the low that night was going to be 35. But other than that, everything went smoothly! I started out with a hike to the top of Cascade Mountain. It was not an easy hike! I mean, it wasn’t the hardest hike ever, but 2,000 feet of elevation in 2.4 miles is respectable. The hike itself wasn’t great; it was all just trees. But the view from the top... One guy described it as an “all-you-can-see” buffet because of the 360 views. That’s another thing that made it great- everyone at the summit was so friendly! Like, we were all bonding over this epic view. I took a lot of people’s pictures. But, according to everyone I met, this was like, the BEST hike in the area. They talked about another nice peaks, but said the summits are below the tree line, so all you see is trees. (I can’t decide which pics I like best, so I’m just going to post a bunch. 😳) (Looking up at the summit) (On the s