We are driving south towards Franconia Notch State Park and today is supposed to be our COLOR day. It starts out great and I am so excited as we are driving the Kancamagus Highway and it is listed as a scenic byway offering "splendid vistas, vivid color, and all the glory of Mother Nature." Everything we read ahead of time told us to take this route and so here we go. Fingers crossed.
We arrive at Franconia Notch and stop at Cannon Mountain hoping to ride the tram up the mountain for incredible views. Nope --- we cannot even see the top of the mountain due to clouds and so we have to punt. After a few minutes in the car with maps and books, we decide to drive past our original destination and see some of Maine and then drive back to where we should have been for the evening. Then tomorrow morning we will backtrack back to here and try again. It seems longer than it really is and so off we go. It is raining now and the view is definitely limited.
In Conway, New Hampshire we stop at Tuckerman Brewing Company only to learn that they are not open for walk-ins except during tour hours. Dang. For an anniversary day, we sure are running into obstacles today.We stay westbound and arrive in Naples, Maine around lunchtime. We have passed many lakes and ponds and have laughed ourselves silly trying to determine just how they decide which is which. These are some of the largest ponds I have ever laid eyes on.
Bray's Brewpub is in Naples and so that is our stop for lunch. They have a lobster roll on the menu and I mention that I have never tried one. Well -- that makes our order for the day obvious. They are so delicious but also very rich. I am glad we are sharing this lunch.
The bartender tells us about the Songo Locks just down the road and so we head that way after lunch. The locks connect Sebago Lake to Brandy Pond and Long Lake and are the only ones remaining from over 30 of them built in the 1830s. They are still operated by hand from an operator who hangs out in a small shed near the controls.
It is time to turn around and head back to Fryeburg via a trip around Sebago Lake and cross country up to North Conway. We stop to do a little shopping as I need a raincoat since the weather has changed. We find a Columbia store and I am able to find the perfect coat as well as a few new shirts before they close. The Moat Mountain Smokehouse is our sleeping quarters for the night. Yep -- we have a room over the restaurant/bar. It turns out to be very quiet, simple, and amazingly comfortable.
Mister has made reservations for dinner at the White Mountain Cider Company in Glen, New Hampshire. It is a wonderful evening and so nice to be able to celebrate our two years of marriage this way. The food and service is excellent and makes our evening topnotch.
Mister: I look forward to another great year with you. Thank you for loving me.
Lady
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I look out the window and see the sun. After yesterday that is a great sign. We are going back to Franconia Notch today and I so want to ride the tram up the mountain. First stop though is the Jackson N.H. Bridge (nicknamed the Honeymoon Bridge) which was built in 1876. It has been kept up with fresh paint and I love the red color.
Driving the Kancmagus Highway today is quite different and oh so pretty.
When we reach Cannon Mountain, we buy our tickets for the aerial tramway and start our ascent. The temperature drops rapidly and by the time we reach the top it is quite cold and the ground has been dusted with fresh snow. We really didn't pack for this weather and so are not sure just how long we will be able to walk around outside. We start down the path along the ridge of the mountain and love the views. It is so worth the cold. 
After our walk, we stop in the lodge for a nice hot chocolate and take seats at the window to bask in the views for as long as we can.
Look at the colors!!! Oh my.
The tram ride down is chilly but goes quick. I try and get a picture of Mister with the colorful background but once again the camera is not near as good as my eyes. I wish it was able to capture exactly what I see. Perhaps it is the dirty windows.
When we reach the bottom, we set our sights on the Flume Gorge just down the road. The 2 mile walk to the gorge is full of color and both natural and man made items of interest. Eye candy day!
This is a nature walk, but at least one man made item has caught my eye. It is the Pemigewasset River Bridge and is that wonderful red that I love so much. It is still in use today as is the walkway beside it. Built in 1934, it is one of the younger bridges that we have visited on this trip.
As we are walking along the path my inner child pops out and I have a desire to play in the leaves. I had this thought that they would just slowly rain down on me -- so silly -- they came right back down in the same clump they were thrown in. I still had fun though. I look like the Pillsbury Doughboy all bundled up in my coat over my heavy sweater - I bet I could easily roll down that hill.
Continuing along the path, we come to a wooden walkway that hugs the rocks along the creek and we start to climb up the gorge. It is so pretty and amazing in that it is all natural. It was discovered in 1808 by a 93-year-old woman who was out fishing. She went home to tell her family and no one would believe her at first.
The waterfall at the top can be heard in the quiet between the rock walls. We continue up the walkway marveling the chance we even have to visit this place. I love the many shades of green and the flora that is growing from within the walls.
We stop along the walkway so that Mister can work on a shot of the waterfall itself. It is complicated as each time someone further back on the walkway moves, we can feel it and so he gets movement in the camera. He tries several times and I think pulls it off quite beautifully. This picture takes me back there all over again and I can almost feel the mist on my face. There used to be a huge (10x12) egg-shaped boulder that hung suspended between the walls but a huge rainstorm in 1883 started a landslide that swept it away. We are walking along at about the same pace as a couple of men and strike up a conversation with them. They are trying to take pictures of each other and Mister offers to take one of them together. When he finishes, the offer is returned and so we are treated to a rare picture of us together. I think it turned out nice and the colors behind us are vivid. It is so pretty here and I am so glad we retraced our steps and returned to the park today. (Oh -- check out my little Rudolph nose).
The next corner on the path brings us to the Sentinel Pine Bridge. This is a covered bridge for the hiking trail over the Pemigewasset River and was built in 1938 over a fallen pine tree. If you look under the bridge, you can still see the tree. Now THIS is a romantic bridge.
Little streams dot the landscape as we walk and fill the air with sounds of running water and a mist that freshens the nose. It is absolutely delightful to be here.
A small chipmunk comes over to check us out and is so bold as to even climb up onto Mister's foot for awhile. Unfortunately, we do not have even a crumb on us to give to him -- or perhaps I should say fortunately, since I know it is not always a good idea to feed wildlife and then make them dependent on humans.
A few shots that are simply breathtaking.
The White Mountains have not disappointed us in any way. They have only delighted us.
Oh, our stay in the park has been so nice and I wish it would last forever, but the day is moving on and since we have backtracked, we have quite a distance to go still. Once we are back in the car, I locate a three more bridges to have a quick peek at before we leave New Hampshire. The first one is the Albany bridge which was built in 1858 for a mere $1,300.00. Most of us could build one today if that had stayed the same.
The second one is the Saco River Bridge. It is painted a nice grey with white trim and a red roof. It was built in 1890 and is still used today and has quite a bit of traffic. It takes a few minutes to get a chance to check it out.
The final one is the Swift River Bridge and another of the beautiful red ones. It was built in 1870 to replace the previous one. It is no longer used for motor traffic, but as a historic site alone. I have so enjoyed seeing the covered bridges in Vermont and New Hampshire. They are certainly treasures to hold onto. There are only a few left of the thousands that were built and I would hate to see these become extinct. Now, onto the lighthouses.
We settle in and freshen up a bit since we have had a busy day and search the internet for a place for dinner. I locate a lovely place right on the water called the Rising Tide and so with the GPS armed and our tummies grumbling we aim that direction. It is in an amazing location, but is closed for the season. Dang -- I had even called ahead and the answering machine said they were open. Oh well. We look around for awhile at the beautiful harbor. It really is quite lovely and the sun is just starting to set and I want to watch. Mister tries to capture it but once again I am reminded that my eyes are better than cameras no matter how good the picture is.
We still don't have dinner and I am really hungry now. We stop at Bayley's Seafood Restaurant and this is what we were given. I don't think I have ever been so incredibly let down by a meal. Frozen, pre-made crap. I cannot even eat it and so we go downstairs and do something that is very rare for us - complain. The counter person gives us our money back and we are once again on the hunt for dinner.
We drive back into Portland and go to Demillo's Floating Restaurant and Marina. It is an Italian restaurant housed in old ferry that has been renovated. We have a short wait, but the meal is decent even though the service is not wonderful. Perhaps I am just tired and cranky by now. Time for bed.
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