LAKES. NO MOOSE.
Day 35 – There are only four other campsites being used – middle of the week. It was 44 degrees outside this morning. We actually had to turn on the heat in the RV to take the chill out of the air inside. We’d intended to kayak on the lake, maybe earlier this morning when we’ve heard the water is like glass. At 44 degrees, we decided not to do that after all. We hung around for awhile, then headed out for a drive to Moose Alley, the area above Colebrook to the Canadian border on Route 3. In the fall there are so many moose to be seen that people are lined up in cars along the highway. This is summer & we haven’t seen a moose yet.
We grabbed sandwiches at Subway in Colebrook to eat for lunch later when we would pull over at an area with a lake view. We drove north on Route 3. There are three large lakes between Colebrook and the Canadian border: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Connecticut Lakes. It took lots of thinking for someone to come up with those snazzy names, eh?
Route 3 pretty much follows alongside the Connecticut River. On the west side of the River is Vermont. The east side is New Hampshire. There were several small towns we passed through on the way to the border. The major recreational activities up here are hunting, fishing, snowmobiling & ATVing. Canada is closed to the United States currently. There were two State Parks off Route 3, both of which we’d checked out previously. One was smaller and more rustic than where we’re staying, with no dump station and no drinking water; the other was large and had more amenities, but it was very crowded. We’re happy with Coleman State Park, where we’re staying now.
We looked hard for moose. None. The scenery, though, was fantastic. The highway wound thru beautiful mature-tree forests, up and down hills. A fairly remote & wild area. We went as far as the border, then turned around and drove back, stopping at 2nd Connecticut Lake for a scenic lunch. While we ate, we watched a Great Blue Heron & a Bald Eagle fly overhead. And a Loon was floating by. Click any picture below to see a slideshow.
We continued back on Route 3, then turned west and crossed the river to Vermont. We drove the rest of the way back to Colebrook on the Vermont side. We’d wondered earlier if Vermont and New Hampshire would be any different from each other with the same terrains but separated by a river. We got our answer. They were different. Vermont had cut much more of its trees and was using the land agriculturally; this part of New Hampshire had remained heavily tree’d.
From Colebrook we took gravel side roads back to the campground. Again, there were 360 degree views. So pretty.
Back at the RV we showered, then made Salmon Scampi served over pasta (with Rob’s garlic bread) for dinner. Yum. Guess what dessert was! It never made it over 57 degrees today, partly cloudy with some wind.