First tracks of the season

 

Yesterday it snowed and the doggies and I went for our first ski of the year. In the morning I noticed that it was 'slushing' at the house. So out to the barn I went to prep my metal edged cross country skis. I figured there would not be enough snow for full on downhill gear.

I was a little surprised how much snow there was on the mountain. There was even snow at the parking lot and a full one 1/2 foot of new dry snow in the jibber. But still there was no base and the rocks were right there on the surface. I was glad I took my backcountry cross country skis. The dogs and I did some exploring and it turned into a complete whiteout just after some friends took the top picture of the dogs and I.

It snowed some more last night and is supposed to snow more today. So today I think I might just take up some downhill rock skis!

Patrick

Clean Beach

 

For the last couple of days I have taken the dogs for their walk on Buskin Beach. The beach is finally clear of dead fish and safe for dog walking.

From late July on the Buskin Beach becomes a dead fish zone. All the spawning salmon die and float down the river to get redeposited on the beach. In July it is not so bad, but the dogs do tend to jump into the water chasing live fish and disturb the fishermen. But later in the summer the ubiquitous smelly fish is appalling and the dogs just love to roll in them and also eat them. Horrific smells. 

And so I do not go to the beach until all the fish have been washed away. I went a couple of weeks ago in October and most of the fish were gone. There were no stinky ones left on the beach but there were still fish bones that the dogs could not resist.

And now come November it is finally clean. The doggy sprint flats are now open for the winter.

Patrick

Maine for a day

 

South End of Dyer Long Pond

After the wedding Stuey and I met my sister and her husband at our old place in Jefferson. She wanted to check and see if a really old white pine was still alive. While there we checked out the old place. This is where we scattered my dad's ashes and also where his memorial stone resides. It was a very sombre moment when I showed Stuey his granddad's gravestone.

The great old white pine was not quite as big as we remembered it. I guess as we get older the things we remember as HUGE get a little smaller. Still it is a VERY large white pine and there is a strand of barbed wire running through the middle of it. It has been a part of that fence line for a long, long time.

Later on we all went to Polly's house for dinner. My final vacation meal, and time for Stuey to go back to school. Sadly enough our break was over.

Patrick

Dinner at Polly's

My Mom's apple that the deer like to eat

My dad's Memorial stone

Super big white pine

My mom in her kitchen

More Maine Fall Colors

 

Bates College campus colors

While I was in Maine the colors were so spectacular that I just had to do two posts to show all the pretty pictures. As I said in the earlier post, my mom told me that I had missed the peak color by a week. However, this year it was also a little better than usual. And this year the oak trees even have good color. Usually the oak trees keep their leaves until the last and then they just turn brown and fall off. This year the oaks had their own late show and turned mostly orange with some yellow.

Patrick

My mom's magnolia tree

exotic maple 

crab apples

Some oak leaves on the right

my mom's backyard pond

Our Wedding Destination

 

 

The whole reason I went out East was to attend a wedding. My oldest friend's daughter (and God daughter) was getting married, and the wedding was to be in Newport, RI. It is actually the first wedding I have been to where I also went to the parents wedding. Anyway, I decided to combine the wedding with a quick Stuey visit. 

So I flew to Portland, Maine and picked up a rental car. I drove to Bates and had a quick visit with Stuey, but he had a big test the next day. So I drove on to my mom's house and went for a walk. Polly and her family came for dinner. The next day I hung out until afternoon and then drove to pick up Stuey after his test. We left Bates around 2:45 in the afternoon and drove all the way to Newport, RI. That is a LONG drive and the last part was on crowded freeways at night.

We made it to Newport in time for the rehearsal dinner. And then we checked into our fancy hotel. The next day there was time to explore Newport (see previous post) and then the wedding. The reception was up on the hill above the harbor where all the fancy mansions are located. I was very impressed with the wedding and Anna had written every single person a handwritten card.

Stuey and I had a great time at the wedding. The food was excellent. In particular we liked the fried oyster appetizer with a special sauce on top. We also knew a surprising number of people. A lot of them were the same people we go to a picnic with every year during the summer on North Haven in Maine (click here for a picnic blogpost).  We also met a lot of new people.

Then in the morning it was time to drive back to Maine. We left early so that we could drive the whole way in the sunshine. We met my sister at Jefferson to look at a big white pine (story to follow). And then it was on to Polly's house for another family dinner. 

Finally on the last day, I had to leave in the dark to drop off Stuey at Bates before classes started, and then make my way on to the airport in Portland. Quick, East coast whirlwind trip complete!

Patrick

Stuart and namesake Stewart

My handwritten note from the bride