Mr. and Mrs. Pants' New England Adventure Summer 2024

[gixxerjasen]

Not a thought bubble, but MS Paint for the win. It's one of the basic shapes you can paste in.

[Hppants]

How to not sell calendars. Put pictures of pants in spandex in there. My eyes are burning enough. If we see a photo of Wheatey in spandex I'll have to cancel my account to this forum.

Hey - don't hate me 'cause ya ain't me!!!

I like the way my bike helmet gives me 3 or 4 mohawks (very thin Mohawks, to be sure). Kind of has a "Beavis/Butthead" vibe to it, no?

[Hppants]

July 29, 2024

More spandex today, but thankfully, no pics of it.

My wife was having some stomach issues, so I axed Plan A for us to go for a paddle and shifted gears to something more local. A quick peruse of the map, preparation of lunch, and I was off on another adventure.

Today, I'm gonna try a "Bike-n-hike". I'll ride the bike to a trail head and then walk into the woods from there.

I left the townhouse about 10:00 am, and eased my way through the neighborhood trails to warm up the legs, which were a little stiff from yesterday's ride. I get to Tripoli road and start climbing. This road is somewhat paved with old blacktop mixed in with sections of gravel held with a little soil cement. In the beginning, the incline is very gradual, so I'm moving fast enough for the knobbies on my MTB to make a little road hum. Soon, that changes as the grade steepens and my pace slows.

5 miles later, I get to the top of the mountain and check the map. I'm still another mile or so from the trail head. So down hill I go, thinking that after I hike the trail, I'll have to make this route back, climbing. Oh well, I'll worry about that later.

I get to the East Pond Trailhead, secure my bike, and grab a water bottle for the backpack.



On the bigger map, this entire place is like a itsy bitsy dot. You really have to be looking for it. There is no one here.

I start walking. I knew it would be about 1.5 miles, all uphill, and about 1,000 feet of climb. This is going to be a workout.



The trail starts out smooth, but like most I've seen, as you get higher, it gets steeper and more rocky. This is the part where I talk to the only person who will listen - me. I'm telling myself:

"Remember - you are by yourself, Pants. You do something stupid and it's gonna be a long time before help comes."

"Watach where you step, Pants."

"Slow the F&&K down, Pants. This is not a race."

"Damm, Pants. You sure got a good life....."

About halfway up, I have to cross this creek. Someone before me put this wonderful bridge here, and I couldn't pass up an opportunity to have a snack.



Second (or third) wind received, I continued uphill toward the prize. And when I got there, I was not disappointed. At about 2,700 feet elevation, this is the East Pond.



It is magnificent! I walked along the edge a bit and I think this is a natural mountain top lake. I can't find any control struture for it. I go back to the shoreline where I entered, and have lunch.



There's a light breeze blowing some white noise in the trees. The water is absolutely perfect temperature - not too cold, not warm. It's crystal clear - I waded to about thigh deep and could see my toes like they weren't even in water.

Back at the shore, I saw something that made me wonder.



I saw many of these creatures - I think they are leaches, but I can't be sure. They didn't gravitate to my exposed skin, but It kind of gave me pause for the cause, so I got out of the water and took a nap on a big shoreline flat top granite rock.

I considered doing the entire loop trail, which would add another 2-ish miles to the hike. But I forgot to check the elevation gain on the "Little East Pond" segment. I started remembering that I've still got another bike MTB climb to get home. My legs felt good, but let's not over due it. I'll save the LEP for another day.

No where else outside the White Mountains have I seen so many trees literally growing around rocks.



The walk down was easier on the lungs, a bit harder on the legs (always is). I get back down to the bicycle and take a short break. Then I get back on Tripoli road and start climbing. The grade going this way is a bit steeper, or at least it feels that way. I'm down to granny gear and not moving any faster than a walk pace. I learned something in the Georgia mountains about bicycling - one way to "soften" the climb is to wiggle back and forth across the roadway in a shallow "Zig zag" formation. It's easier to go across the mountain, then climb it directly. So - I'm zigging and at some point, I hear something from behind that startles me. A Tesla unintentionally snuck up behind me. I quickly moved over to the right, and then turned around and mouthed "I'm sorry" at the windshield. The car then eased next to me with the window down:

(Tesla) "Would you like a ride up to the top of the mountain?"

(Pants, panting) "That's not really the point of this."

He chuckled and moved on slowly, so as not to stir up much dust.

After what seemed like forever, I got back to the top and took a short break. Then it was "YEE HAA!!!" down the mountain back toward home. Since i'm on smoother, more predictable terrain, I let the reins loose a bit more and really enjoyed flying in the wind.

I took the longer way through the neighborhood to see if anything is going on. Nope - not much. Only 1 familiar couple playing golf. A few people in the town square, but clearly, the weekenders have all gone home. Our version of Sherriff Andy is creeping down main street in his patrol unit with the window down. "Good Afternoon Officer", I say. He looks bored - what a welcome site. The swimming pool at the gym looks quite inviting. I bet those stuck up desk workers wouldn't like me jumping in with my bike shorts - better pass. Well - things look pretty quiet, think I'll head to the ABB. There's one more left over IPA from home - that sounds good.

Another terrific day.



Stay thirsty, my friends...

[fontanaman]

Enjoy life Joey. Great ride/hike report. I like how you see and discuss thing most take for granted such as clear water, a bridge etc. Hope your wife is feeling better.

[bungie4]

Wrt: trees growing on top of rocks. If your lucky and pay attention, you'll find trees that have grown through the rock.

[spklbuk]

Dear Mrs. Pants,

For your daydreams on a rainy day.

West Virginia has been selected as one of National Geographic’s “Best of the World” Top 20 Travel Experiences for 2024.

https://governor.wv.gov/News/press-rele ... again.aspx

https://wvtourism.com/

https://greenbrierwv.com/

https://fayettevillewv.gov/board/fayett ... rs-bureau/

https://pocahontascountywv.com/

https://elkinsrandolphwv.com/

https://www.visitmountaineercountry.com/

I have tried. Mr. Pants is too thick to hear me. Perhaps you might.

I hope you are feeling well.
My stomach would have troubles too if I had to see a mohawk spandex Mr. Pants on a recurring basis.

[Festus]

Shhhh....let's keep WV a secret, please

[spklbuk]

Mrs. Pants, as I was on a big trip 'around the block' with the Head of Security to pick up the mail (life is very fast paced here), it occurred to me that I would be remiss without this link:
https://gettuckered.com/
The previous set of links were chosen as a sort of WV sampler. Tucker County should have been included.


I am admittedly biased to Greenbrier County environs. If for no other reason (among 100s), the WV State Fair is here and is a quintessential old-fashioned agriculture fair second to none. https://statefairofwv.com/


Almost Heaven is a for real thing.
Y'all come and stay a spell. We hope to see you soon. Ms. Reesee is savin' some of this for ya.

[El Toro Joe]

Shhhh....let's keep WV a secret, please

That cat has been out of the bag for a while...back to the Mr. and Mrs. Pants show

[Hppants]

A few more observations of this region:

1. As previously mentioned, there is NO crime here. In Plymouth (closest "city" of any size), no one at Walmart checking receipts. The "expensive" stuff at Walmart is not locked in a clear case.

2. I rode my bicycle to the public safety office here to introduce myself and find out if the town has a emergency text msg service (they don't and never thought to get one). We chatted about how crime free this place is. To elaborate his point, the officer told me that on incident reports, his is on case number 24-065. For non public safety peeps, that is significant on 2 levels. First, on this August 1st, there have only been 64 police "incidents" thus far this year, an astronomically low number. And second, the case number system only has three (3) digits in it - meaning there isn't a snowball's chance in hell it will ever get to 1,000 in a year. At home, our city PD uses 5 numbers.

3. In the countryside, people have gone through great lengths to build rock fences that are relatively low (like less than 3 feet high, and lower in some places). I finally had an opportunity to talk to an old timer at the hardware store. I took a chance and asked him if he lived here long - good luck, all of his 80+ years. So I asked him about the rock fences. Turns out, row crops don't do well here, but after the first time the forest was clear cut, the settlers tried to grow food. When you clear land, you end up with a lot of rocks here. Having to do something with them, they build property line fences. After many decades of failed crops, the settlers were desperate. About that time, the industrial age was starting and things like textile mills were becoming a thing. So, they partially dammed the rivers and built mills. Although food crops don't do so hot, as it turns out, the hay/grass they grow here is very nutricious. And there's a wool producing sheep (I can't remember the name of it - starts with a M) that also thrives here. Apparently, sheep won't hop even a low fence. So - in the late 1800s, this region was a textile meca.

^^^ that old dude was fun to talk to.

[gixxerjasen]

I wouldn't figure Joey to be the outgoing type to talk to strangers. Odd, learn something new every day.

[danh600]

I wouldn't figure Joey to be the outgoing type to talk to strangers. Odd, learn something new every day.

Joey doesn't talk to strangers causes he has never met one.

[bungie4]

Additional fun fact about why cross font grow there. Ok northern boreal forests all the nutrients are in vegetation, not the soil.

Same thing happens here. If your gonna plant a garden you'd better lay down some serious fertilizer for a few years first.

[Hppants]

August 1, 2024

Today, Mrs Pants and I are going paddling. Last week, Lake Winnie with the kids was a bit of a disappointment. Too big, too many powerboats, no public lakeshore to speak of. So I looked over the map and picked Lake Pemigewasset, about a 25 min drive from the townhouse.

Now this is promising.



There were a few powerboats, but for the most part, this lake is pretty quiet. The problem was the road noise coming from Hwy 104. Lots of big trucks and other vehicles making noise. Oh well - we are here.



Tammy loves the Kayak. She likes being aound water and paddling around the lake is pretty peaceful.



There's an uninhabited island in the center of the lake. We paddled to it and found a nice big shaded rock to pull the boats on and have a picnic lunch.





We brought our swim floats and after lunch, we took a dip. The water was quite pleasant - not too cold, not to hot. Just right.



On the other side of the island, the road noise was unnoticable.



We paddled around the rest of the lake and pulled out of the water about 2:00 pm. Today, instead of ice cream, we chose a different afternoon snack.



A fresh apple cider donut at a local farm. This was surprisingly good and the flower garden in our view was beautiful.



There are literally dozens of lakes and ponds to paddle around here. We will try another one next week.

Stay thirsty, my friends.....

[spklbuk]

Where is yo' fishin' pole Pants!? Fresh perch and chain pickerel for supper...unlike you to pass that up.

[Hppants]

August 2, 2024

Today, I rode the FJR about 300 miles. An old buddy from way back in my Honda Nighthawk days lives just outside of Boston. We've kept in touch over the years, and when he found out I was in New England, we decided to get together and ride. Dan has several motorcycles, but chose the VFR800 today. I rode down almost to Concord to meet him and then turned around and led him north.

Hwy 132 is a good road that parralels I-93.





We stopped for lunch in Holderness (good Italian subs), and then turned north on Hwy 113 and Hwy 113A - these two are among my favorite roads to ride on around here.



IYKYK



We skirted the Conway shit show, and then turned north into Maine. The countryside here is beautiful.





Looking quite well, Dan!!



We get to the overlook at the top of Evans Notch, and stopped to look around. That Viffer is a looker, man.



Another terrific day!



Might as well stretch it out, since I'm here.



In Gilad, we took a left and rode back into New Hamshire, turing left again onto Hwy 16, ripping it past Mt. Washington.



For a Friday in the summer, the traffic is more than tolerable.



Yee Ha!!!!



We take a right onto Hwy 302, and then a left onto Bear Notch road. Been wanting to try this one since I got here and it did not disappoint.







Then we jumped onto the Kanc and railed it down to Lincoln. I got a smidge too aggressive passing a couple of vehicles and bumped my rev limiter. (dumbass Pants)

I like this old train restored for display.



I had another 60 miles on my route, but times flies when you are having fun and it was already almost 6 pm. So, we bailed on that and turned toward home.



We arrived safely back at the ABB, and while we were gone, Tammy prepared a snackle-box for us!!


.
A got a great lady, ya'll.

After happy hour, we walked over to the town square for pizza. Then back to the ABB for a nightcap and some good conversation.

It sure is nice to see friends when we travel.

Stay thirsty, my friends.....

[Hppants]

Where is yo' fishin' pole Pants!? Fresh perch and chain pickerel for supper...unlike you to pass that up.

That's a good question. Back home, I haven't done any "perch jerking" in a few years. The style of fishing I prefer is notedly different than this. Maybe next year, I'll bring some gear wherever we go and add it to the repetoire.

[Hppants]

August 3, 2024

I made bisquits and with the leftover Snackle-box and a pot of my coffe, Dan and I had a good breakfast. Afterward, Dan packed up and headed back home. I thanked him for the company, and we vowed to get together again before I leave.

Today, I think I'll take a bicycle ride.



I climbed the mountain at Greeley Pond (about 900 feet) and stopped about halfway down to smell the proverbial roses.



This is a really (REALLY) good MTB trail.



Then I turned left onto Livermore road (another good gravel road) and climbed to the top of Mt. Tecumseh (another 600-ish feet). I stopped at the ski chair lift. They run the lift on the weekends for peeps that don't want to climb the mountain. I talked to the upper lift operator a bit. He told me that I could ride my MTB down the ski trail if I wanted, but it's a bit steep, so I passed for now. Maybe another time.

Returned back to the ABB, 18 mile ride, about 1600 feet of climb. Good workout.

Stay thirsty, my friends....

[fontanaman]

From couple of posts back, Lake Pemigewasset, can you pronounce that please!

Kinda of like Issaquah or Puyallup Washington.

[Road Runner]

From couple of posts back, Lake Pemigewasset, can you pronounce that please!

Kinda of like Issaquah or Puyallup Washington.

I have cousins that live in Puyallup. I need to get out there. Never been. He owned Coopers Automotive Specialists