Didn't go as planned

Last Friday I decided to ride Bay Road to Durham and make my way back via Packers Falls Road. When I approached the light at Route 108, I noticed a couple on a tandem studying a map. I stopped and we talked for awhile. They were from Ontario, staying in Epping and on their way to Portsmouth. I helped them with directions and we went on our way, with me thinking, Argh! I should've taken a picture for the blog.

I get to the hill on Bay Road, just before Adams Point. I'm doing 35 to 40 mph down the hill and hit a bump on the bridge that goes over a stream entering the bay. I hear something sliding along the road and realize its my water bottle. I hit the brakes, turn around thinking how hard can it be to find a big water bottle. Of course, it was going 35 to 40 when it hit the road, slid a long ways and found a great hiding spot over the bank. It took me 10 to 15 minutes of hunting through the tall grass to find it.

So now, as I started climbing the hill away from the bridge, I'm 30 minutes behind schedule for my lunchtime ride with a water bottle whose mouthpiece is full of dirt. I decide it's best to head back. But since I'm at the entrance to Adam's Point, I decided to salvage something and take the short ride to the point. I hadn't been there for a few years.

Jackson Estuarine Laboratory

Great Bay near the boat launch

It was low tide, I crossed the road to take a few pictures and walked out onto the "sand" to get closer. It wasn't sand. The black areas are where my feet sunk down way over my ankles into smelly mud.

Wasn't Sand

Smelly Feet

I made back home without any further surprises, and got the hose out.

ROAD CLOSED

That was a very common sign today. I had a hard time deciding which river to ride by, but ended up following a portion of the Lamprey River. A great day for a ride. My first ride this year without a jacket and gloves. The river is still running very high, but appears to be subsiding. Packers Falls in Durham was amazing.

This is the river above Packers Falls.

And just below Packers Falls, Bennet Road was closed.

I road up the river to Wadleigh Falls where it looks like the campground lost a picnic table to the river.

On the way home I stopped a Piscassic Ice Pond and took a picture. You can see that the water has gone down to almost normal.

Rain

We got approximately 8 inches of rain in two days and woke up yesterday with no power …. again. Plus the water in the basement was almost at the top of the hole for the sump pump. This is the third time the water has risen to that level in the 20 plus years that we have lived here. We got busy moving things in the basement, when, luckily, the power came back on before the water reached the level of the floor. Many rivers in the area are 5 feet above flood levels and are expected to remain at these levels for most of the week. The weather is suppose to turn for the better with temps reaching close to 60 degrees. I’m hoping to do a “river ride” this week. The normal level of Piscassic Ice Pond is beyond the first line of trees in the picture.

And Brian decided to try some skim boarding on the temporary stream in the backyard.

A Short Ride

I took a short ride on March 12th. I had to drop the van off for inspection, so I put the bike in the back and rode it home. A few pictures are below. It looks like a couple of cool rainy and windy days are headed our way for this weekend. Time to paint some rooms in the house.


An old but well kept cemetery on Bald Hill Road. I found more pictures of this cemetery here 

Went by a field waiting for spring planting.

Mulch Mountains

Another sign that spring is coming. The mountains of mulch are full size now. I guess they truck the mulch in during the winter to get ready for spring distribution. A couple of cyclist were riding by as I took the picture. I think they were wondering why I was taking a picture of an industrial park. Just one of those strange people on a recumbent I guess. The picture was taken on March 10, 2010

Feels Like Spring

March 7,2010

It felt like spring today with temps in the 50’s, which is very nice for this time of year. Many cyclists were out to enjoy the day. Anyone who has lived here for awhile knows that March usually teases us with a few nice days. Winter can surely show itself again still. There were many reminders of the February 26th wind storm as I was riding. I saw a few men repairing the cables on a Saturday afternoon and a number of White Pine trees uprooted.

But there are also signs that spring cannot be too far away. The ice on Piscassic Ice Pond in Newfields is melting, Waldleigh Falls in Newmarket is running high and all over there are buckets hanging from the sugar maples.