Taos and the Super Bowl – February 2024

It all began in the sandbox in kindergarten, many moons ago, when Diana and I became friends.  What a marvelous friendship it has been and one that I have cherished for, lo, these many years.

As fate would have it Diana and her family lived in the Carson Valley when I moved here in 2013 and they welcomed me into their fold. It became a habit to watch Sunday Night Football together and when they moved to New Mexico, I invited myself to watch the Super Bowl with them. I wanted to see their new place and get to know their environs. What a beautiful, historical place this valley is. Technically, they live in El Prado, a small community outside of Taos, but they are in the same valley.

First things first.  Food!  Orlando’s might look like an old Taco Bell or something akin to that from the outside, but the ambiance and food inside certainly aren’t.

There is a reason why people line up before the 5 pm opening to get in on the first seating. My mouth waters just thinking about those vittles.

This is La Hacienda de Los Martinez, built in 1804 that eventually contained 21 rooms and two placitas (courtyards).  The two-foot-thick adobe construction and windowless exterior walls was designed to serve as a refuge for family and neighbors.  In a sense, it was like a small fort, containing living quarters, blacksmith shop, weaving room, chapel and other needed areas. 

La Cocina (kitchen). People could sleep on the platform above the floor area working area.

The weaving room

Escarpines (wool stockings), an important trade item in the 1800s.  The hacienda served, in part, as a small factory with workers washing, carding, spinning and knitting the wool.  The entire process took about 30 hours to make one pair of socks.

An horno.  The “h” is not pronounced in Spanish.  So, we say “orno.”   These ovens are in countless yards throughout the area. The same silent “h” goes for hacienda = acienda.

I’m including some websites for those who are interested in learning more about the sites we visited.  Otherwise, I would write way too much for the casual visitors. You’ll be able to see more pictures if you click on the URLs.http://www.aztecnm.com/fourcorners/newmexico/taos/HaciendaDeLosMartinez.htm

Another place we visited is the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.  Yes, it’s the same Rio Grande that flows between Texas and Mexico.  The gorge is massive and deep, making it a bit nerve wracking to walk out on it.  If you’d like more info, click on this link. https://taos.org/explore/landmarks/gorge-bridge/

Jim, me, and Zoe on the bridge

Looking toward the Rio’s source, way off in the distance. https://www.americanrivers.org/river/rio-grande/

 Looking down 650’

Just a few miles from the Rio Grande Bridge, is the Earthship Biotecture area.  A very interesting, self-sustaining, off-the-grid community. Google Earthship, Taos, if you would like to learn more. My server wouldn’t let me include their website.

An Earthship house

An Earthship wall.  If you’ve visited ghost towns around the West, you may have seen some bottle houses.  Maybe those old pioneers were into recycling before its time (except for the tires)

Descending into the Rio Grande Gorge north of the scary bridge to see another bridge…the John Dunn Bridge.

It crosses the Rio Grande near the confluence of the Rio Hondo. It was built in 1908 by John Dunn who transported travelers and mail into Taos and housed travelers overnight at his hotel near the bridge.

Jack and I getting ready to hike to the hot springs a short distance down by the river.

Two guys who took our photo. The interesting person in the photo is the dude behind the guys.  He had just finished bathing in the hot springs and came up the trail with no shirt on. (It was COLD in the shadows!)  Hanging from his belt were beautiful pelts that he had tanned himself (a raccoon and a pine marten that he had named). They were roadkill, so at least we don’t have to feel sorry for the critters.  Sorry that I didn’t get a front on photo of him.

Jack going down the trail to the hot springs.  We had to really watch our step.

Man in the hot spring.  He said it was about 99º and was quite comfortable. (He does have shorts on in case you’re wondering)  I have no idea what those “eyes” or spots are in the photo. They were not visible to us.

People left their names on rock even in 1925.  The spider to the right is not an old petroglyph.

Diana is a docent at the Couse-Sharp Historic Site.  I tagged along on one of her tours to learn more about Couse and Sharp as well as the Taos Society of Artists.  Diana kept us engaged for the entire two hour tour.  There’s a lot to see!
http://couse-sharp.org/
https://www.taosartmuseum.org/taos-society-of-artists.html

During a snow day, we all watched “Oppenheimer,” an Oscar nominated movie and that led to curiosity about Los Alamos and what goes on there today.  Research labs are still in Los Alamos and military is still present guarding secure areas.  We visited the Bradbury Museum that was amazing and overwhelming.  So much to see and not enough time.  The Los Alamos Historical Museum was also enlightening. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g60730-Activities-Los_Alamos_New_Mexico.html

J. Robert Oppenheimer, me, and General Leslie Groves -both primary figures at Los Alamos during WWII.

Near Los Alamos is the Bandelier National Monument where ancestors of present-day Pueblo Indians have lived in and around for thousands of years and continue to do so today. The ladder leads to a cavate dwelling, which, I believe, was a natural indentation in the rock and then hallowed out more from the soft volcanic rock. https://www.nps.gov/band/index.htm

View from inside the cavate.

All too soon, it was time to hop on the plane in Santa Fe and go home.  But not, before I captured this sunset view of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains from the Jacobs’ living room

My thanks to the Jacobs’ hospitality and Zoe’s vitality and love for making this a very special adventure

P.S. My little coyote family carved from pine in Taos.

The Earl of the Backyard – 10/23

This is how my backyard squirrels think of my BIRD feeding area. Their own personal supermarket with a complete squirrel menu just for them. This is not totally true, though. There are no acorns here; just wild bird seed, suet, fresh water and occasional apple peelings from apple pie or applesauce creation. All my critters love this feast.

Earl Squirrel shinnies up the pole and makes the loooong stretch the the seed house.

Occasionally, Earl’s back feet slip and he hangs on for dear life while he balances himself to adjust his grip. Note the mama quail in the background watching Earl’s antics.

Then Earl hangs on while stuffing his cheeks with tasty wild bird seed. He is a muscular, strong dude to be able to hang on for more than a minute or two. The quail is still watching.

Finally, Earl tires and/or gets his fill of that flavor and decides to climb the nearby tree for a dessert of suet. This is not once in a lifetime event for Earl Squirrel. I have watched him and his friends do this time after time.

The crows and starlings love to eat the suet, too, when they visit the suet tree. Some are a tad smarter than Earl as one crow or starling will peck and peck, trying to get good bites while their friends wait down below for the suet crumbs to fall. They don’t have to flap their wings and work so hard to get their snacks. All of these antics bring me much joy and amusement to watch my critters go through their daily survival routine. It’s fun living here.

First Kayak Adventure of 2023

This past winter was long and hard and it seemed like forever that there was still snow and ice prohibiting any kayaking whatsoever.  Around the first of May, Jerri and I took a ride up to Silver Lake to check out conditions.  What we saw made us believe that we would not be able to kayak at our beautiful Caples or Silver Lakes until July.  It turns out we were correct.

Prevalent sign on Highway 88

Hwy 88 in avalanche area

Silver Lake with some water going out the dam. Technically, Silver Lake is part of the El Dorado Water Irrigation and Recreation Areas that stores water for thirsty Californians.  Logically, the lake level goes down as the summer wears on.  For you techies, the lake is at 7200’ elevation and, when full, covers about 525 acres.  Its outflow is the South Fork, American River.  Couldn’t find the depth, but I’m sure parts of it are 100’ deep

Under all that snow is a road beside that Kit Carson sign. It is the one we take to our favorite beach.

he avalanche area going the opposite direction. Everything is looking good! That white patch to the left is a wall of snow. Sorry the photo is blurred somewhat. The road isn’t very smooth.

Silver Lake is ready for us! 

Jerri is already picking up speed to get out there and zip around the lake. Actually, we don’t zip. We take our time to check out the scenery and enjoy the moment.

We checked out our favorite beach…it was flooded.  Do you see the yellow stuff on the water?  That is pollen.  The pine trees are loaded!

It was a lovely day!

5 Canada geese.  They generally cruise around the circumference of the lake or perhaps their special area looking for vittles.  It was a good day for critters.  We saw 2 deer, mergansers (a type of duck), a vulture, many blue jays, chipmunks and golden mantle squirrels.  We know bald eagles and ospreys inhabit Silver Lake but did not happen to see them on this trip.                             

Looking at Silver Lake from “our special lagoon.”  We love this place because as time passes, our lagoon becomes shallower and much warmer.  It is so much fun to play in, take a dip or just sit on some rocks with our feet in the water.  During this trip, the water was rather cool and deep (maybe 6 to 8’).  No dipping this time.   No photo either. It only looks like an arm of the lake, not a lagoon.

I think this is Alpine Penstemon.  There was quite a bit of it near where I took the previous photo.  Other flowers were still in bloom as well.

Our camp site with new towels.  We are so blessed to be able to get out and enjoy what nature offers us.  Can’t wait to go again next week

 

Home Means Nevada – Sister Trip 14 – 2023

The Sister Trip was to go to Washington, D.C. and we were SO excited about it.  BUT, the night before departure, we received a text that advised us our early morning flight was canceled and we couldn’t get on a flight until two days later.  Major disappointment was in the air.  We recalculated and opted to take a trip that has been on my bucket list for several years.  This new trip turned out to be one of the best ever.  SO much fun!

Our first night was in Tonopah, more in the south-central portion of the state. We stayed at the Mizpah, an historic hotel dating from Tonopah’s early 1900’s boom times. It is haunted but all I felt was the bed shaking in the middle of the night. I do know people who have seen and/or felt presences.

East-West highways are few in Nevada and that is why we went south in order to go east. As most of you know, we had a long, cold winter and rainy spring. That weather brought us gorgeous desert flowers, lots of greenery and…road construction. It’s practically a season here in Nevada.

A view from one of our construction stops. If you look closely on the bottom right corner, you will see some yellow flowers.

A dead juniper with flowers growing among its roots

Even NDOT got into the ET spirit using far out font for this sign. Nary an ET did we see, but we did see the old shack and a lizard sitting on top of an old tire.

Cathedral Gorge is like visiting an alien planet. The dramatic landscape of eroded soft bentonite clay creates all sorts of small slot canyons in which one can play and explore.

Looking up in one of the slots

Looking down on a Nevada rest stop for weary travelers. While there are some very nice stops, we did see more than one like this one. 🙂

During the first few years of Pioche, NV, boom days, it is said that 72 men “were buried with their boots on” before anyone died of natural causes.

This is a long view of Boot Hill Cemetery in Pioche, NV.    Supported by towers, the cable and buckets are part of a transport system taking ore to a smelter.  It went over Boot Hill.

We have always wanted to see a bristle cone pine tree and almost had a chance after we visited the Lehman Caves. But the road was still snowed in and we did not have any snow gear in which to climb a trail that we couldn’t see. So, we settled for a fake shot in the Lehman Caves Visitor Center.

The Lehman Caves were extraordinary! A fabulous tour with bats and all! (We saw only a couple of bats near the entrance as that is where they roost)

Every turn, we saw new formations and interpretations.

Looking east from the entrance of the Lehman Caves

Mr. Wheeler, Nevada’s second highest peak at 13,063′

The Ward Charcoal Ovens, used to burn wood into charcoal for use in nearby smelters.

After only 3 years of operation, the boom waned and there was no more need for charcoal. Later, the ovens provided shelter for prospectors, stockmen and outlaws. They are now part of a state park.

Our next major stop was Ely and the Nevada Northern Railroad, a 56-acre complex that has become a living museum (and also a Nevada State Museum and a national historic landmark).

We really enjoyed visiting the museum, seeing steam and diesel engines plus many pieces of original equipment. All of these artifacts, large and small, are maintained by volunteers.

A rotary snow blower.

Our first stop along Nevada’s “Loneliest Highway.” This was our only stop on it for a couple of days because we toured other areas. Then we went home on that “lonely” highway, which isn’t quite a s lonely as they would have you believe.

The next day was a real treat.  We visited the Ruby Lake Wildlife Refuge that lies along the eastern foot of the Ruby Mountain Range.  Getting there was a blast.  We were on a dirt road that wound its way through idyllic ranch land with lots of visual candy.

Lots of cattle on the road, wandering in and out of pastures. Apparently they like the grass alongside the road.

Who you lookin’ at?

Wetlands filled with fish, ducks, other critters, flowers, tules and other reeds.

This is the best illustration I have seen of our Native Americans using tules to build their canoes/boats to use in the wetlands. Tules were also used to make baskets, decoys, sleeping mats and more. Our local people did this also in wetlands about 60 miles east of us.

This pronghorn stood and posed for us for quite a while. This was taken from inside the truck because we were besieged with mosquitoes.

It was like being attacked by “The Birds!” There were hundreds of them all over the windows. Oddly enough, there were none on the other side of the wetlands where people were fishing. Obviously, they knew something we didn’t.

Yellow-headed blackbird also taken through the window.

These signs are all over the place on dirt and regular roads where it is open range.

This little guy didn’t want to move and Mama was beginning to snort and move toward us. We edged away as quickly as we could

On a shortcut across the Ruby Mountains heading toward Elko. A very pretty drive.

Lamoille Canyon – formed by a glacier and then water

The 12 mile long Lamoille Canyon Road cut short by an avalanche…not just one, several.

Standing on the first avalanche while looking at the second.  Since we didn’t have proper shoes and were slipping a lot, we turned around and thought of the old saying “Discretion is the better part of valor.”

Continuing the Highway 50 saga

As it was Sunday and almost everything was closed, we did not spend much time in Austin.

These creatures ( aka – katydids or Mormon crickets) greeted us in Elko and also in Austin. They literally cover the road and make it look as if it has become an ugly red river of some sort. We saw signs in Elko that said to be careful of slick roads because so many has been run over. I don’t think they bite but they are scary looking, eat all they can and crawl over everything. I saw a few that were maybe two inches long. Ick! This one is a female.

Petroglyphs at Hickison Recreation Area on Highway 50.

We continued on Highway 50 through Fallon, Fernley, Dayton and then home. The Churchill County Museum in Fallon is very well done and worth the visit. I learned quite a bit there. Dayton’s museum is in an old schoolhouse and also very interesting with many donations from local residents and other donors.

Since Nevada is well known for its wild horses, you may be wondering why there are not cool photos of them. We must have seen at least 50 of them during our almost 1500 mile adventure. They were always quite a distance away and they are very skittery if one tries to get closer. These two were sort of close to the highway but continued to shy away from us. This is the best shot we got and, as you can tell, it is the end!

    

The Stephanie Way Flood 3/23

Snow began to fall New Year’s Eve, 2022, and has continued off and on since then. This is my backyard filled with snow, broken limbs, sagging bushes and a gorgeous sunrise. The Pine Nuts Range is visible in the distant background. This is what January 2 looked like. Remember: This snow all has to go someplace.

January 17, 2023. Lake Stephanie has begun to form. We call it that because Stephanie Way (to the left out of the photo) is one of the main streets to get into the Johnson Lane area. It is created each year we have run off from the Pine Nuts. Interestingly enough, there are no snow telemetry instruments in the Pine Nuts. Ergo, we do not know how much snow is in the mountain range. We are concerned as we know there is too much snow to be totally absorbed into the ground.

It has begun. Warm rains have melted a lot of snow and Lake Stephanie has begun to breach its bank (Stephanie Way). There is no way to control it, save a million sandbags.

I turned around from the previous photo to watch a torrent of water rush into a gated community that is a mere 250 yards from my house.

This is usually an area where people walk on a paved path that circumvents the gated community. I am positive those houses beyond the second fence were flooded to some degree.

This is Heybourne Road, normally a dirt road that connects Stephanie Way to Johnson Lane. I am pretty sure this water is at least 12 to 18″ deep as this is the western side of Lake Stephanie. All of this is a natural drainage path from the Pine Nuts that would naturally drain to the Carson River. But streets, a railroad bed, sometimes willy-nilly construction have all contributed to the natural drainage being dammed. Meetings have been held, solutions discussed and few actual projects have actually been accomplished.

At least we do not have to worry about this much snow and runoff. This is down south near Mammoth that has also had near record or record snow. I’m very glad I don’t have to shovel that snow! As I look at these pictures and marvel at nature and its power, I wonder what my uncle, the flood control expert, would have said and done about our situation.

Icicles

After a snow storm I can look out my kitchen window and see icicles forming on my neighbor’s eaves. I get a kick out of watching them grow to extraordinary lengths. Don’t forget that you can click on a photo to enlarge it.

Icicles, generally speaking, don’t form on my house because of my rain gutters being in the way. This last storm disproved that theory. There was a lot roof top snow that also filled the gutters, thus giving the icicles a way to form.  This was fun to watch because some of them even bent to conform to the gutter’s shape. My longest ‘sicle was 29”

The longest icicle was in back of the house where a drainpipe was overworked. The ice stretched all the way to the ground. Is that really an icicle? I’m not sure.

Even a drainpipe had a few icicles.

I began to notice icicles all around my property. Here is one under one of my birdbaths.

Tiny icicles on a bird feeder.

They were in trees. This one reminds me of an oil can spout that railroaders used to use with steam engines.

There was even a frozen bee in front of the house.

The chimney was not to be left out.

All this beauty and looking for fun things in the snow must come to an end sooner or later.  We have a relatively warm rain today that is quickly melting the snow.  Most of you know an “atmospheric river” hit the West Coast and California’s Central Valley very hard yesterday.  It’s now in our area.  We are also concerned for floods as this melted snow must find its way to the Carson River and other waterways in Western Nevada.  So right now, at this minute, I’m hoping the forecasters are right in saying we will have snow on the valley floors tonight, thus saving some of the area from flooding.

Check the photos below. You are able to use the arrows to wipe back and forth to contrast the photos of basically the same area.

Here is a contrast of right after our last storm and today as of 9:57 am. Yes, it looks as though there is still a lot of snow on the ground. That’s true, but there was a lot more yesterday. It also looks like a lot because I had to pile up snow to make a driveway for a vehicle.

This is what I call Lake Stephanie that is no more than 200 yards from my house as the crow flies. It’s created by drainage from the Pine Nuts range you see off in the distance. This water will sit here for months or until it dries up or eventually seeps over to the Carson River. Normally it is very as a bone. It’s here again and looks just like this except it was ice yesterday. (Taken in 2017)

This is also from 2017 but shows you what floods can do to our Carson Valley. Taken from Kingsbury Grade on the way up to Lake Tahoe. The Pine Nuts are in the horizon.

Still, this area has a special hold over me and my psyche. As I’ve said before, I love this place with all its quirks. It keeps me going.

Twelve Inches of Sierra Cement

Last Friday was a beautiful, wonderful day. Some rain and a gorgeous double rainbow. I don’t think anyone was griping about the rain as we need the precipitation so much. It was still raining Saturday morning (New Year’s Eve) and there was some minor flooding in my backyard. The newly reconstructed drainage system was on overload. Not to worry. I knew everything would be ok. The double rainbow was a good omen. 

 Quail and white crowned sparrows in the rain. 

                                                           

About mid-morning, as I was typing a long email, I looked up and the rain had turned to huge, fluffy snowflakes. No big deal, I thought, because it was 40º outside and the snow wasn’t sticking to the ground. Then, right before my eyes, the temp began to drop and the snow began to stick. It was the beginning of the biggest snowstorm since I’ve lived in Minden…almost 10 years.

This is what the backyard looked like a couple hours later. The birds look for seed and suet no matter the weather. Please note the big bush in front of the Christmas tree. It does not look like that New Year’s Day.

New Year’s Eve looking toward the neighbors and where the rainbow was. Needless to say, I did not go anywhere that night.

New Year’s Day has dawned bright and cheery, giving all of us here in the Carson Valley a fine view of the Sierra Nevada. Here are the views from my front porch.

Looking toward my neighbor’s house with the Sierra Nevada in the background.

Twelve inches of Sierra Cement

You might be wondering about the term “Sierra Cement”. It means the snow has a high water content and is very heavy when it piles up. You can see evidence of that cement effect on the bush directly in front of the Christmas tree. The snow has weighted down the limbs to flatten it some. You can’t see it but there is a pile of snow in the center of the bush, covering one of the birds’ water dishes. A limb has broken from the tree into the bush on the left. I couldn’t find the second water dish and had to get another one for the birds. Those lumps beyond the fence are snow covered sage brush and other native plants. The Pine Nuts are under the clouds in the back.

More Sierra Cement effect. If you remember the last Buzzard Notes, there was a photo of quail feeding in front of where that hole in the snow is. That was a tall lilac bush with a butterfly bush nearest the camera.

Inside looking out early New Year’s Day. I love this place…with its beauty, weather drama, temperature extremes, nature, and lots more.

Beautiful Hunter and Prey

Quail were crossing the neighbor’s driveway into my yard as I pulled into the driveway and into my garage.  I knew those puffed up (from the cold) little bodies were on their way to my backyard where they would enjoy their daily repast along with other feathered friends.  I hurried into the house and to my kitchen window because I like to look down and watch them scurry by the house.  They are so cute with their little feet churning as fast as they can.  It seems to me that quail seldom walk.  BUT, they never came by the window.  I decided something must have scared them and they were hiding under a juniper in the front yard.  

This handsome Cooper’s Hawk was the culprit. He was sitting on the fence about 15 feet from my kitchen window. Quail are one of his favorite meals and I’ll bet he was very hungry because hunting has been difficult with it being so cold.

He became frustrated with me taking his portrait and flew to this pine tree also in my front yard. The quail generally pass right under where he was sitting. He perched there for quite a while until his patience waned.

Hours later, I finally glimpsed the quail emerging from their hiding places and zooming toward the side of the house. I went to the kitchen window to see if they would stop for a bite of seed that I had put down about 6 am that day. As you can see, they did stop for a minute or two. Twelve total stopped for a bite and then hurried on to the backyard area. If you count, you won’t see 12 birds because they might feed together but they don’t scurry together. It is generally a single file type of procession. Perhaps it is a survival technique.

This photo was not taken the day of seeing the Cooper’s Hawk, but a few days earlier when there was more snow. You get the general idea, though. The quail like to arrive from the sage brush beyond the fence you can see in the back and also from a neighbor’s house that has a juniper hedge and also a huge blue spruce that is ideal for hiding. There have been days when I have counted more than 50 feeding at the same time. There are so many that it looks as if the ground is roiling with them in constant motion. These little dramas are another reason why I love living here in Nevada. They give me joy.

A Never-ending Saga

It begins in the spring with beautiful blossoms on the non-fruit bearing pear tree. I love this tree. So pretty and so well shaped even if the trunk is slanted due to strong winds.

It is very green in the summer and provides a lot of shade…then fall arrives with the changing of colors.  Still, it is a beautiful tree, still providing shade.

Frosts happen and then 40 to 60 mph winds blast the poor tree, causing it to lose many of its leaves.  A thick carpet of leaves coats the lawn to the point of not being able to see the lawn.  Finally, it was warm enough to get out to begin the raking.

Yes, it’s been down to single digits, causing the birdbaths and water tins to freeze solid. It was warm enough yesterday to extract these disks. I like it when the leaves get frozen in the disks and add a bit of artistic value to the disks. 

It becomes imperative to rake the leaves because with the ice, snow and maybe some rain, the leaves spoil and hurt the lawn. It did this around the edges before I could get out to rake.  Yes, I know many little bugs and other creatures live in the leaves.  But there are still many leaves in the rocks under which they can live.

Two and 3/4 trash bags stomped on and crushed to make more room in the bags.  The trash barrel was filled as I went around the corner where more leaves had secreted themselves.

All done in the yard. No, it is not spotless. Note the leaves still on the tree. I know strong breezes will hit us again today and more leaves will fall, thus creating another raking job. The pear tree is very reluctant to let go of the remaining leaves as if it knows it will be bare soon and doesn’t want to be totally naked in the coming very cold weather. But it will lose its battle against Mother Nature.

Leaves are falling again, but they are not apparent in this photo.  You can see the beginning of the lawn being covered once again, thus continuing the raking saga that occurs every fall.

Boston & Environs – Sister Trip Minus 1 Sister

Here we are looking for Jerri and wondering where she is. Actually, this is a put-up photo. Jerri got sick the day before we were to leave and it turned out that she had covid for the second time (It was a blessing in disguise that she got sick before we left). The building in the background is Salem’s Old Town Hall. The gilded frame was there for all to take photos.

Jolee posing in the JFK Library. It is quite an education to visit the library and interact with some of the exhibits.

The Mayflower II was our next destination. We enjoyed that tour and were glad we weren’t among the Pilgrims looking for a new place to live and worship. 102 Pilgrims lived for three months plus crammed into the “tween deck”, seldom getting to go up to the main deck for fresh air.

Burial Hill, resting place for many of the early Pilgrims.

The Plimouth Plantation, a living history museum that brings to life Wampanoag and Pilgrim stories through the 17^th century English Village and Wampanoag Homesite.  I just happened to catch a view when no one was in the main path.  We met characters living the part of settlers and the Wampanoag.  Working gardens, livestock and crafts are created and used in this depiction.

Fall River, MA: Lizzie Borden house where the famous murders were committed. We took the house tour and were glad we didn’t have reservations to spend the night in the house. TOOOO creepy! Did Lizzie Borden commit her father’s & step-mother’s murders? We think not. We think the uncle did it in cahoots with the maid (who disappeared shortly after the trial and turned up later with quite a bit of money and a ranch in Montana). Sorry about the photo. We failed to take a picture of the house

What an enjoyable dinner we had at the Tipsy Toboggan, on the Fall River waterfront.

Ready for Halloween at the Tipsy Toboggan!

From Fall River, we headed north and visited Lexington, where the first shots of the American Revolution were fired.

The image I have when I think of Walden Pond and Henry David Thoreau.

Fooling around at Walden Pond. This would be a lake in Nevada!

Ropes House, built in 1727 in Salem, MA, that was used in the Hocus Pocus movie

A very tasteful tribute to the “witches” killed in 1692.

Part of a memorial for the 19 killed for being witches in 1692

House of Seven Gables was the model for Hawthorne’s book of the same name. The tour was interesting and we even got to enter the secret room.

Playpen in Hawthorne’s birth home across the way from the 7 Gables house. Whoever used it must have felt like he was in prison!

My future home? The Home for Aged Women presented by Robert Brookhouse, 1861. Somehow this doesn’t fit with the witchy décor in other parts of downtown Salem

Part of the purpose of this trip was to see the vivid fall colors in New England. It turns out that we were about 10 days ahead of the spectacular display. This is Lake Winnepesaukee, a charming lake, but little to no color.

Merry Meeting Marsh in New Hampshire. The best we could do with the colors

A delightful sculpture in a public park in Kennebunkport, NH.

Part of the Kennebunkport marina.

It wasn’t really very cold in Kennebunkport, but Jolee and I were not used to the damp cold. I needed to get a heavy sweatshirt!

Jolee spotted this interesting item while we were walking early one morning after breakfast. We were wondering if it was testing the weather, asking for help or just sayin’ “What’s up, Dude?”

Waiting for the T. This is the greatest thing and the best way (in my opinion) to get around Boston. No muss, no fuss and no looking and paying for parking. We did get our steps in every day we used it though.

Us at Bunker Hill Monument. We were bummed that it wasn’t open. It turns out that U.S. Government run sites weren’t (at that time) open on Monday and Tuesday. Just our luck. We had looked forward to climbing to the top.

Jolee taking a photo of the entire Bunker Hill obelisk

Jolee’s photo

Cemetery near Bunker Hill and the Old North Church (which we did not visit because we were too cheap to pay a fee just to sit in the pew

For those of you wondering, we did walk the Freedom Trail and the Black Heritage Trail (14 historic sites that are former residences, schools, businesses, churches of this thriving black community as well as several stations on the Underground Railroad, along which escaped slaves fled from the South to freedom in the North and in Canada). This is the home of Lewis Hayden –a fugitive slave and leading abolitionist among other life highlights. His home was also a station of the Underground Railroad.

We also rode the Boston Red Trolley (hop on and hop off tour) and learned of more places.  We visited the USS Constitution museum (the actual ship was closed for tour because it also was closed) We were disappointed but enjoyed the museum and also some fascinating artwork

Our last day in Boston found us doing a bit more touring and then visiting the “Eleanor,” a ship that was loaded with tea in 1773. This was a time when the Colonists were upset with the taxes levied by the British to help pay for the French and Indian War. The Sons of Liberty protested and were leaders of the “tea party.” We got to participate in the tea party by participating in a town hall meeting and then going to the “Eleanor” to toss the tea into the harbor.

Jolee is doing her share to help the Sons of Liberty.

All in all, 342 chests of tea were tossed into the harbor. That is about 92,000 pounds of tea… worth in about $1.7 million in today’s money.

The view from our room looking out on Quincy Bay, south of Boston proper.  (We found out Quincy is pronounced Quin-zee, not Quin-cee)  Learn something new every day.
We were sorry to leave that hotel… nice room, good pub, and extremely courteous, helpful staff.