Truckin' Santa

Not the traditional mode of transport ...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

🎄  🎅🏼  🎄  🎅🏼  🎄

Mt Washington - Part 2

In the Mt Washington - Part 1 post I mentioned that both the Cog Railway and the Mt Washington Observatory would play a big role in our White Mountains adventure.

Our plan was to hike up the Valley Way Trail, taking the AMC shuttle bus from the Highland Center Lodge to the trailhead in the morning. We'd spend the night at the Madison Spring Hut and cross over to Mt Washington the next day. And we'd spend the night at the Lakes of the Clouds Hut. And then make our way back down to the Highlands Center Lodge.

As they say about the best laid plans ...

The weather forecast for our hike up called for torrential downpours. Highly non-optimal. The next day called for thunderstorms. Quite undesirable for a stroll above the tree line. What to do?

It was Patty who figured it out. Take the Cog Railway up! But how to get there? The shuttle bus! The bus does not go to the Cog Railway. But it does go to a nearby trailhead. Where nearby was less than a mile. Problem solved. We canceled our stay at the Madison Hut, booked another night at the Highlands Lodge, and enjoyed a day of local hiking and relaxing at the lodge.

On our walk up to the railway station we passed the original coal powered engine, Peppersass. It is occasionally fired up for a ride to the top.

Our train had a biodiesel engine. Much more efficient and environmentally friendly.

It was popular. Three trains, all filled up. With hourly departures. We arrived early enough to take the 10 o'clock train, despite having tickets for the 11 am trip. We got the last two seats.

Our seats were separated, Patty in the front row, me in the second. Which meant we could hear the conductor as he narrated the journey, mixing history with what was happening. Here we are approaching a switch for passing lanes. In the distance is a water tower. The coal engines would need to stop and refill there. The new engines just roll on by.

I mentioned in the Part I post that the average temperature at the top was 35° F. The conductor told us this, and that the record high was 72° F. As we headed up it was already 66° F. Alas, a new record was not set.

Our friend Liz sent this picture from when she rode the train to the top, not quite as warm that day.

Image courtesy Liz Schaefer.

The ticket is a round trip, but we planned to spend the night and walk down.

Bye bye train!

The "white splotch" just right of center is train station from where we started. And while warm, you can see it is still cloudy.

The building in the distance is where we are headed, our home for the night. And yep, shorts and t-shirt weather.

Our path to the Lakes of the Clouds Hut. A bit on the rocky side.

The night at the lodge was a warm one. I slept in the bunk closest to the window, and the window was open all night. And I slept in shorts and a t-shirt. Outside my sleeping bag most of the night.

The next morning was a clear day! Woo hoo! That's Mt Washington in the background. It was a very nice, albeit quite humid, hike back to the Highlands Center. But that's a story for another time.

Hiding Place

As Winter approaches, and is now here, we shut down the filter system for the fish pond. Cutting off the water to the waterfall.

And this Song Sparrow promptly found a nice little hidey-hole. It spent quite a bit of time pecking at the "seaweed" on the rocks of the now still waterfall.

Yummy

Our trip to New Hampshire and Maine would not be complete without a lobster roll (or several ...).

Our friend Marie recommended this place, the name of which escapes me at the moment (and no doubt for many other moments to come).

The food was yummy.

The view on the other hand ...

🦞  🦞  🦞  🦞  🦞

Winter Home

So the other day as I lay down in bed I spotted a dark spot in the corner, where the two walls meet the ceiling. "What is that?" I wondered. So I grabbed my glasses and saw this ...

If you bigafy the image you'll see if is a group of Lady Bugs. They've been there over a week now. I think this is their home for the winter.

We'll see what happens over the winter. Kinda cool if you ask me.

Polar Bird Club

Prior to the Fish Pond Waterfall being shut down for the winter, our resident Hermit Thrush decided to go for a dip.

Crazy. It's been in the 20's Fahrenheit most mornings. Yet this critter seemed to actually enjoy its splash about.

Crazy.

THIS

Used with permission from XKCD.com

For more geeky humor like this visit XKCD.com and enjoy!

Mt Washinton - Part I

Our plan after our stay at Franconia Notch and doing the Ridge hike, was to do a three day trek up and across the Presidentials. And on our way to the Appalachian Club's Highland Center Lodge, our start and end point, we passed Mt Washington. And we decided to drive on up. Yep, we got one of the those "This Car Climbed Mt Washington" bumper stickers. No it is not on my car.

It was a scary drive up and down.

And as with the Ridge hike the view from the top was obscured by clouds.

But we were able to watch the Cog Railway as it traveled up and down the mountain.

Mt Washington is one of the most severe weather locations on Earth, with an average daily temperature of 35° F. Yet here we see Patty, who is always cold, wandering about in shorts. Our attempts to flee the hot and humid August New Jersey weather a complete and utter failure.

The Cog Railway was completed in 1869 and has been running ever since. It would play an important part in our visit.

As would this structure, and the folks who work there. The Mount Washington Observatory. A weather station on the summit.

And incase you were wondering, as I type this it is 6° F, with sustained winds of 75 MPH and gusts up to 97 MPH, for a wind chill of -29° F. A bit chillier than when we visited. 

More to come ...

Swinging Bridge

After spending several days on Mount Desert Island, we headed on down the road towards home. But there were stops along the way.

Including the Androscoggin Swinging Bridge.

Built in 1892 by the John A. Roebling company, the bridge is now a park. All but the suspension cables have been replaced.

The view from mid-span.

The view of Patty mid-span.

🌉  🌉  🌉  🌉  🌉

John A Roebling is perhaps better known for another bridge, one often for sale, and named after the place where I was born. The Brooklyn Bridge. Designed by the senior Roebling, the completion was overseen by his son, Washington Roebling, who, like me, has a degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. 

And also lived for a time in Troy, NY and Burlington County NJ.

It's That Time of the Year

Needle Ice time.

These needles were in the parking area and I spotted then when I got my car.

So, on a cold day after a warm-ish wet day, look around on the ground for Needle Ice.

I think it is cool (pun!). 

Walking

Among the perks of working from home is that I can go walking at lunch time. 

And of course I have my phone, which is also a camera.

I've mentioned before that we live directly across from Budds Bogs, a cranberry farm. And cranberry farms need water.

I like the cloud reflection framed by the water control structure.

This old structure has the feel of a rainforest, helped no doubt by the spiky plant in the lower right.

🚶🏼‍♂️  🚶🏼‍♂️  🚶🏼‍♂️  🚶🏼‍♂️  🚶🏼‍♂️

Being able to wander about in the time of the plague has been wonderful for my sanity. I can't imagine what it is like living in an apartment in an a city (ok I can, but only because I've colleagues who do so).

I hope you too have found a way to deal with this.

Back By Popular Demand

The Winter Solstice Bonfire Yule Log Spirit Animal Music Jam.

That's what's back, after a one year hiatus due to the plague.

Our friend Russel once again provided the music in the Music Jam ...

... this time accompanied by my brother-in-law Dano on guitar.

Fire ...

... friends ...

... and food (and drinks!).

It doesn't get any better than this.

Everyone enjoyed being back together. 

And we all enjoyed getting our spirit animal.

For this coming year, mine is a zebra.

🔥  🔥  🔥  🔥  🔥

So, maybe some year I'll remember to get the camera before the event starts, and get some pictures of the Yule Log ceremony. 

A very big thanks to our friend The Goddess for introducing us to the Yule Log ceremony, providing the Yule Log each year, and leading the ceremony. 

It Is Balloon!

I had to take my car in for service today, to get the electronic system upgraded. The STARLINK system uses the 3G cellular network and that network is being retired.

But this post is not about car service issues that didn't exist when I got my first car. Which for the record was a Chevy Chevette that did not come with a radio. 

No, it is about what I saw as I was retuning the loaner car.

This:

It Is Balloon!

I would occasionally see these floating in the distance out my kitchen window when I lived in my condo. Now I occasionally see them form the other side when I'm out and about, although I've not seen them from our place ... yet. Maybe someday one will float over while I'm sitting out on the deck.

Pretty cool to see.

🎈 🎈 🎈 🎈 🎈

The title is from an episode of a TV show that I watched over and over as a kid, as it was shown over and over on channel 11, and I, and my siblings, would often watch TV when we got home from school. The show was F Troop. And this was the scene from the episode. I have no idea why this bit stuck in my memory. But it did.

Pinelands CBC

Once upon a time skill with a rifle meant food on the table. And birds were food.

And as with anything humans do, that skill was turned into a contest. And that contest became a team game, seeing which team could shoot the most birds in a day.

A skill useful to survival, putting food on the table, became one of excess and needless death, most of the birds (and other critters) shot in these contests left to rot.

A stream at our fist stopping point.

Then at the start of the 20th century Frank M. Chapman proposed a different activity. Instead of killing birds let's count how many birds we can see. And thus the Christmas Bird Count (CBC) was born.

And for over a hundred years folks have been going out around Christmas time and counting birds. An incredible scientific resource, a database of bird population changes over the years.

Image courtesy Patty Rehn

A Golden-crowned Kinglet, one of four at this site, 

taken by Patty with her phone.

Patty and I have been adding to the database, for Area C of the Pinelands Christmas Bird Count for the seven years we've been here, including this past Sunday, when saw 35 different species (in line with previous years) and 986 individual birds (a bit on the low side, it was windy).

There is still time to get in on the fun. Here is a link to find a CBC near you. So get out and count some birds! It's fun, and it's science!