Natick, MA to Keene, NH

This morning I bid goodbye to Massachusetts and continued North to New Hampshire, the Live Free or Die state. I could tell I was entering more a more rural environment for a few reasons: 1. My GPS lost coverage literally the moment I crossed the state line. 2. I was on a two lane road where I could actually pull over to take a photo of the Welcome to New Hampshire sign. 3. The first sighting across the boarder was an independent convenience store that displayed hand-painted signs for everything from tobacco to soda to fishing tackle.

The two-lane road continued into Keene, a small and very cute town. If Eureka Springs was Santa Cruz South-ish, then Keene is Santa Cruz East. It just has that vibe. Even the Fairfield in is located in an historic building smack in the middle of downtown. This is the first time that my hotel room is split level, with a living area downstairs and a bedroom upstairs. Bonnie at the front desk explained that they have only four of these and I likely scored because of my newly minted Ambassador status with Marriott.

Because another storm is predicted tomorrow, Bonnie suggested I at least drive out to Monadnock State Park, home to Monadnock Mountain. Apparently climbing the mountain is one of the main things to do here. The other is to tour the many murals in town. There is a handy map to help you locate all of them. New Hampshire also has an ice cream trail, complete with a booklet in which you can get stamps for each of the 42 listed. I’m not sure how healthy a goal that is, but in this hot humid weather, ice cream for lunch or dinner will definitely happen on occasion.

I arrived at Monadnock State Park late enough that some parking spaces were opening up. This was lucky as I had not yet done my research and did not realize that they needed to be reserved in advance. I hiked a short way up the trail to check it out and decided it was worth coming back to hike the summit. That will have to be Monday after the storm has passed. The trail will be even muddier and slipperier, but should be possible. I saw many hikers coming down in shorts, tank tops and sneakers, so with hiking boots and long everything (and the requisite bug spray and sunscreen) I think it should be doable. Of course, now that I have said I plan to do it, I feel compelled to complete the deed. Stay tuned.

I returned to town in time to take a walk out to Ashuelot River Park. This is sweet city park on the edge of - wait for it - the Ashuelot River. It is nicely curated without turning it into an amusement park. The only problem is that the mosquitos also think it is a pleasant spot to hang out. Before they chased me away, I stopped to talk to Kayla and Malika. It turns out that they have also driven out from California. I’m pretty sure that we are the only two CA plates in town.

I’ll have to see what will be possible in-between the raindrops tomorrow.