It started as cloudy day and the weather didn’t look to be the most promising. Forecast was clouds early and clouds late with possible thunderstorms. We debated on making the trip and decided we would head up and hike Mt Field and if things went well try to get in Mt Willey as well both 4000 footers.The hiking party today would be Rose, Teah and Myself.

We arrived at the Macomber Family Facility around 8:30am. temps and skies were about the same as they were down south temp at the trail head was 64 and skies cloudy but light hints of blue sky could be seen occasionally in thin areas.

We started up the trail pausing several times to adjust our packs and clothing balance. The trails were in great shape and the traffic was much less than I anticipated. We were going to hike the A-Z trail, to Mt Avalon Loop, to Willey Range Trail.

The trail grade for the most part is not bad. The initial part of the trail follows a stream that was flowing quite well in which we crossed a couple times. In high water the crossings could be tricky but today they were easy.

As we started up the Mt Avalon trail things got much steeper quickly, it also became much more rocky. We were concerned about Teah’s paws so we put her boots on her. She did not seem to like the idea initially, but once underway she didn’t seem to care. As you might imagine we received lots of comments from other hikers on her boots, but knew all to well how the rocks hurt her pads on Mt Chocorua last month.

We made the summit trail of Mt Avalon, the sign shown is the same one that was just out of the snow on mt hike up Mt Avalon this spring with Shannon. It was interesting to hike the trails we had done in snowshoes. I could make out several landmarks from those earlier hikes including the snow coned tree.

The trail from Mt Avalon to Mt Field is an interesting walk through some different forest. I think it is what is referred to as the Boreal. Trees very close together, very lush, lots of dead trees mixed in. I kept waiting for the fairies to pop out any minute.

We made the summit of Mt Field and were welcomed by still mostly cloudy skies. We could see the Mt Washington hotel and the summits of Mt Avalon and Mt Tom but not much else. Occasional we we see some bright sun but the sky never opened blue as we had hoped. The good news the skies didn’t open with rain either.

After having lunch on the summit of Mt Field we thought we would head for Mt Willey 1.4 miles away. The walk should be a summit walk with little elevation change. We started off but Teah would not leave the summit. A group of guys came up that we saw earlier and we tried again. She still would not budge. So we figured maybe we should head back down. Tia didn’t want to do this either. Now Tia is not the biggest dog in the forest but when she wants a piece of another dog look out, she is strong and when she does not want to move she is dead weight. I ended up picking her up by her harness like a suitcase and walking. Teah started walking after about 30 yards. We went maybe a couple hundred yards and she stopped again. This time we waited, rested her for about 10 minutes and finally she started off. We went maybe a 1/2 hour and we met another dog on the trail, a big shepherd. She had no problem heading down the trail then and nearly pulled rose and I down the trail most of the way out.

We decided not to shoot up the 100 yard spur to Mt Avalon given that there would not be any views and Teah’s temperament for the afternoon and simply continued down the trail. When we reached the bolder cascade loop we decided we could swing though and take in the views. Tia would not go down the trail, once again refusing to budge. “Does she know the trail?” Rose asked, “I don’t know” I said. We tried a few minutes and then gave up and headed down the main trail.

Rain looked to be threatening and we didn’t want to wait and try coaxing her any longer. All in all we had an awesome day. The hike ended up being roughly 6.7 miles and the dog boots worked great on Teah’s feet. Now if we can only train her to go where we want to, when we want to we will have it knocked.

Rose did excellent all day. She took a minor tumble when we stepped aside for some other hikers, losing her footing and poking her hand on something. Other than that no injuries and no falls. That’s always a good thing. It was just a marvelous day of hiking even though we had no views.

It’s official, My Peanut is a graduate of Exeter High School.
Wow, how unbelievable my Peanut is out of high school and starting her next chapter in life.
Seems like just yesterday she was born and here she is graduating high school. When Emily was very young not long after she just started walking she put on these skate shoes and would skate back and forth down the hall, with her elbows up like a roller derby queen. It was so darn amazing she could go like she did and so cute. She would go back and forth, back and forth…
Emily we are all so very proud of you and all you’ve accomplished so far. You have become and amazing young woman before our eyes. Remember rafting the Kennebeck River and hanging on for dear life in the front of the boat?


Emily’s 17th birthday we all went to dinner and she demonstrated the proper technique for riding the saddle at the Texas Roadhouse. She has such great technique and the use of the napkin for a cowboy hat was brilliant. yeehaw!
The weather for graduation day could not have been much better warm but not crazy humid. The sportswriter for the Union Leader spoke Mr Joseph Sullivan. His message was enjoy life, be a little crazy, don’t be afraid to take chances, and above all laugh. Of course he did not mean to go physically speeding in a car or dodging trains, but more intellectually let yourself go. He speaks the truth laughter cures many things.

Nick showed for the ceremony and after party before heading back to Rhode Island. I was so glad to see him and catch up what little we could. I had not seen him since the Christmas holiday. I think he grew another 4 inches since then, is that possible? We sure would like to see more of him. What a great looking group… Grammie was so proud of you and she looked so good. It was hard for her today without Grampie, but we all know he was with us all in spirit and memory and always is. Emily you have you’re whole life before you, I’m so jealous. I want you to always remember and take to heart these simple words….. You are the author of tomorrows memories and those memories are created today. Follow you’re heart, be true to yourself, Don’t let yesterday use up too much of today, Live without regret but don’t regret to live, It takes steady consistent action to impart change, change is good, Work to live, don’t live to work, Live outside the box, and Laugh, Laugh and Laugh again…

Don’t take shit from anyone, Stay current with the new American language (Spanish); vote Democrat; support Unions; Wipe well; If it sounds to good to be true it usually is; Beware of those with nothing to lose, they’ll only lose you’re shit; Marching up the trail of Life you’re bound to get a blister, have moleskin; Take care of you’re stuff; Stay away from lazy men; Enjoy Life’s simple things, there’s so many more; Cook you’re fiddleheads, Men really only want one thing, good men want it all, great men should ask nothing.; Beware of splinters as you slide down the banister of life; Eat healthy foods… We don’t have to change friends if we understand that friends change.; Always leave loved ones with loving words, It may be the last time you see them.; You can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.; Money is a lousy way of keeping score.; You can keep going long after you can’t.; It isn’t always enough to be forgiven by others, sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.; Credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.; Heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences….

Sometimes when you’re angry you have the right to be angry, but that doesn’t give you the right to be cruel.; No matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn’t stop for your grief.; People you care about most in life are sometimes taken from you too soon; Don’t be afraid your life will end, be afraid that it will never begin.; The difference between education and experience? Education is when you read the fine print, experience is what you get when you don’t. Alcohol and Drugs only cloud you’re judgment.; Don’t rely on a single source for news, you’ll only get a single point of view; Laugh; Never take yourself too seriously; Be yourself, it’s good enough.; – - Wear Sunscreen.

I think this one sums it all up…….

“The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson.” – Tom Bodett

I’m proud of you Emily….OXOXOX – Go Get It Girl!

Well Monday night Rose cooked a great meal of burgers, mac & cheese and a salad. The salad had pea pods, tomatoes, carrots, and fresh fiddleheads. Wow fiddleheads? I haven’s seen these in years, not since my dad used to pick and cook them back in Stratham. “Can you eat them raw” I asked her, “sure” Rose said. I’ve personally never had them raw but I like trying new things and my sample tasted really good. So I heaped up the salad and mowed it down. It was excellent, so much so i went back for seconds, particularly the fiddleheads.

Well an hour or so later my stomach began to sour and after our company left I went to bed. It wasn’t very long I was up and headed to the bathroom, then up and down all night. I was so unbelievably nauseous and the diarrhea just wouldn’t stop flowing. I ended up not getting any rest and missing a day of work to recover. I hadn’t been this ill in a very long time.

Today after telling my Mom of my ordeal I find out that my uncle Louis Johnson had eaten raw fiddleheads a couple years ago and had become deathly ill. I’m not sure what happened but the Stadig grapevine didn’t reach me on this one.
Hannaford Supermarkets sold the fiddleheads packaged just like strawberry’s, but i really think they should have put a warning sticker on them to cook them. I did a little research and found this article printed in a couple places that speaks of an outbreak of food poisoning back in 1994 attributed to fiddleheads. It didn’t help that the day I’m sick is also the hottest day of the year so far, super high humidity and almost a 100 degrees.

So beware of the fiddlehead…unless you cook it thoroughly. If you choose to collect you’re own fiddleheads you need to know how to properly identify them since picking the wrong kind can also be cancerous, again see the article link up above. You can also check out this Wikipedia article that explains how some types contain Shikimic Acid. Shikimic Acid is used in pharmaceuticals and is commonly referred to as Shikimate.
So in closing if you would like to make you’re intestines evacuate like the energizer bunny eat you’re fiddleheads raw.

I present to you Mr & Mrs John Nelson….. It’s always amazing to see a wonderful couple grow and evolve as they progress down the road of life. John and Chrissy have been dating for something like 8 years (Since they were 15). They are a great couple and are always positive, jovial and outgoing.

They decided that the time had come to tie the knot and did so last Saturday 06/07/08, now i am sure this was done so they never forget their anniversary date but you didn’t hear that from me. The ceremony was fantastic and the weather couldn’t have been much better even though it was sunny and hot, but at least it didn’t rain.

The ceremony took place in Plimouth Massachusetts’s on a bridge over a small swift stream. I had seen several fish moving it the water and thought they were decent sized trout, but later read that they were a form of Herring. The bridge has a significance , John’s father Paul who passed many years ago used to walk John over this very bridge as a baby. There was a picture at the reception showing John in a stroller with his Dad on the very spot. The bridge was decorated in fresh flowers taken from Rick and Rosa’s home and looked amazing. The arrangements looked better than anything you could have purchased.

I guess the story is John met Chrissy at a church outing back when they were like 15. John told Keith “See that girl over there? She keeps staring at me” The rest as they say is history. Below is a picture of John Nelson the groom and his best man Keith Fuller.

Chrissy arrived fashionably late and was accompanied by her father who walked her to the ceremonial bridge. Chrissy looked fabulous! The dress she was wearing was and antique worn by her future mother and law (Mary-Ann Nelson) and future grandmother in law (Gloria McCabe). The whole wedding party looked fantastic, the colors of the bridesmaids dresses really popped.
The ceremony was great with the family all circled around. Prior to and after the ceremony, they had a small trio that played guitar and fiddle with a vocalist. They performed several Irish tunes and fishing songs. The group also accompanied the wedding guests after the ceremony to the Grist Mill for refreshments and a snack while formal pictures were done and we awaited the wedding party. The Grist Mill was a quaint old building with tons of character and a working water wheel.

After the mill everyone went to the Pavilion for the start of the reception. Sean and I took down Bruce and Rob in a game of horseshoes, earning ourselves our first free bear of the day. Sean decided our team name would be team “Drink for Free”. As it turned out we got in another game with Mark and Shane and I had to drink a bit faster since i was starting to back up from all out winnings.

The reception was an awesome time with many different games and prizes. At the reception they had many pictures, yearbooks, a journal of hikes in Utah, and more all displayed. The food was a sandwich buffet that was incredible, and was provided by the same caterer (can’t remember his name) who did the Hoe-down at Rick and Rosa’s last summer. He actually grew up with the McCabe family. The hikes in Zion looked unbelievable.

The reception went well into the night with dancing and activities as you generally find. It was great to see and meet Rose’s extended family like Dottie whom I met for the very first time. Rosemary, Paul and Josh made it up from Atlanta. There are many more people far to many to many to list in this forum. After the reception there was to be another gathering at Grist Mill after all the part stuff was offloaded at Mary-Ann’s home. We had to leave it was already 9pm and as it was we didn’t make it back until after midnight.
It was a wonderful day for a wonderful couple and family. John and Chrissy are planning on going up through Canada and returning back to Salt Lake via a route over the Great Lakes and down through Yellowstone. They are hoping to get in a couple hikes, do some camping and get a little R & R before heading back to work in ten days. Congratulations to the new Mr & Mrs Nelson!!!

Hopefully we will see them later this year when we do a vacation. We hope to go to Colorado to visit Shannon and swing down to Salt Lake for a visit with the Nelson’s.

Here is a link to all the Wedding Pictures….These are unprocessed…more to follow