|
Pittsburg, New HampshireSep 23, 2007
|
|
Sep 23
Today we are off to Pittsburg and points north. We are taking a back country road and the color through here is the best we have seen. We stop often for pictures.
In Pittsburg there is a small country store we browse through and get provisions to complete our picnic lunch. We head out to find a covered bridge and there is a picnic table there also so we have lunch. What fun.
Next we are headed towards Canada and Moose Alley. Linda and Deyan are determined to find a moose. We find another covered bridge and the map says a second is also in this area so we continue on down the dirt road. I don't think Roger really wanted to go four-wheeling in the rental van but that is just about what we did.
We finally found the second bridge and then the state park. This gave everyone a chance at the bathrooms and we got more suggestions on where to find the moose.
So further up the road we go to a lake, which is a nature preserve and moose pasture, but no moose.
We decide to head onto to Dixville Notch. This town is the first to vote in the national elections in the U.S. When we get there all we find is a huge hotel. We drive around totally lost and stop by the pro shop. A young lady comes out and asks what we are looking for, we tell her and she is wonderful.
First of all she is from Medford, OR. the same as Roger's mother and my aunt and uncle. She answers all our questions and sends us off to the hotel.
Here they are also wonderful. We are met at the entrance, we tell them what we are looking for and the nice gentleman escorts us to the Ballot Room, all the time telling us to enjoy ourselves, feel free to roam around and look at the pictures on the wall of famous visitors, walk the gardens, sit on the sun porch, whatever we would like to do.
The Ballot Room is the place where the town votes each November. The population is small, around 30 and the majority of them work at the resort, the Balsam. There are pictures all around the room of candidates who have visited.
No candidate who has not visited Dixville Notch has ever become President and likewise the person who wins in Dixville has never won the election.
The resort is the only business here and it is beautiful. We had a wonderful time and walked around for nearly an hour. It was 5:00 and time to head for home.
Our route took us down the Androscoggin River valley to Berlin where we finally found a place for dinner. Here we split up and the Noah/Shannon group headed for home while we made a pit stop at Wal-Mart.
Tomorrow we are going up Mt. Washington.
