New Hampshire

An Evening Visit to an Ice Castle /  by Douglas Koski

2020 wasn’t all completely horrible (but it nearly was). Sinéad and I were able to make some great plans and we took a chance on revisiting something we had only experienced when dating - the Ice Castle at Loon. Except, it wasn’t at Loon Mt. this time around, and thankfully so. We were completely underwhelmed when checked out the Ice Castle at Loon when we had been dating. It was small, cramped, and just left one with the feeling that it could be so much more. Times change, however, and the magnitude of the castles were enough to require a new location. This no longer felt like a secondary gimmick at a Ski resort. It was its own attraction, and one that could allow imaginations expand.

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First Autumn on The Conway Scenic Railroad /  by Douglas Koski

Sinéad and I were so impressed with our summer trip on the Conway Scenic Railroad that we immediately decided we needed to return for the fall foliage. Unfortunately, we did not realize just how popular the autumn rides actually were. Regardless, there was still economy seating available for an October weekend; so Sinéad took inventory of those who wanted to join us, and we grabbed what seats we could. We also took note that reservations needed to be made as soon as availability was made public for any chance to get 1st class or premium seating (which we soon discovered is well worth the extra cost for anyone over 4.5’ tall).

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The Weekend of the 3 Photamigos! /  by Douglas Koski

Sinéad and I have long discussed the idea of my acquiring a cost effective backup DSLR. The idea was that it would allow me to fully trade off the D5300 to Sinéad to use after getting the D750. The side benefit was that my nephew Andy would have something he could take photos with. I have been scouring resources and product information for quite some time attempting to find a decent enough option to take advantage of. There was a killer deal for a D90 I barely missed out on listed on Craigslist, and I also was highly tempted by a D300s at a camera shop close to work. The stars aligned this past Saturday when I stopped into Hunts Photo and Video in Manchester and happened upon a deal I could hardly believe.

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An Autumn visit to Lost River Gorge /  by Douglas Koski

Sinéad and I found a great deal on Groupon for an adventure we had been waiting a long time to go enjoy. We quickly discussed the finding and determined we needed to try to fit it in to our schedule before our next big adventure (hoping there will be updates to share for that as well). Our adventure brought us to Lost River Gorge & Boulder Caves.

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Arethusa Falls Hike /  by Douglas Koski

It was a beautiful day and Sinéad was stuck working, so I took a little adventure up to the White Mountains for the morning.  I had been wanting to see some decent waterfalls, but didn't want to take too long of a hike in the process.  News of 3 waterfalls in what looked to be a single nearly mile long hike had found its way to my attention, so I took the opportunity to have a little road trip.

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Castle in the Clouds /  by Douglas Koski

Sinéad and I went on an adventure to the Castle in the Clouds in Moultonborough, NH.  While it might not have fit the typical description of a castle, it was quite the building to see!  

We started our adventure waiting forever to get in at the guard booth.  Given how quickly we eventually were able to make it in, the poor attendant on duty must have encountered a particularly inquisitive person a head of us in line.  Once we got through, we made our way to a small parking lot and a short trail to a waterfall.

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