Wednesday, July 1, 2009

A Saturday drive to Western Maine


[North Fryeburg, Maine]

Last Saturday, my friend Julie and I traveled to Western Maine in search of my roots. OK, not in search of them, exactly. It was more like a trip down memory lane for me and a chance for Julie to see where I come from. My father's family is from the Fryeburg area, and there is a farmhouse and 2 summer cabins there that used to be in my family. We took our time driving around, with me pointing out the highpoints. We also went up into Evans Notch, part of the White Mountain National Forest that overlaps the Maine-New Hampshire border.






[This is Julie at the Cold River Overlook in Evans Notch]


Although we had a gray and rainy June, Julie and I were treated to some sunshine and big puffy clouds as we made our way around the beautiful backroads of Maine and New Hampshire.


We also glimpsed some wonderful wildlife, including a beautiful deer dashing into the woods at the side of the road and a family of wild turkeys. Neither of us had ever seen baby wild turkeys before -- they were really quite a sight! Once we got up into the mountains, we seemed to see butterflies everywhere we went. I wish I had photos of these special animals and insects, but they were all too quick for me to capture with my camera.

[The ferns are huge now, due to all the rain we've had.]

Driving from Stow to Chatham, we came across the remains of a yard sale outside the lovely Hidden Meadow Farm. Among the odd's and end's marked free were these two items: a vintage bread box that someone had repainted and a shabby wooden chair. I scooped both of them up. I have a project in mind for the chair. The bread box I may try to decoupage, or it may end up being donated to Goodwill. We'll see.

I'll undoubtedly have more photos of Western Maine for you later in the summer... It's one of the areas of Maine that will never stop calling me home.

Wordless Wednesday ~ red, white, & blue


I'm participating in French Lique's Wordless Wednesday. This week's theme is red, white, and blue - so appropriate for our upcoming Independence Day celebrations! I wish you all a wonderful weekend. Don't forget to take time to appreciate the freedom that we Americans enjoy.

[I took this photo outside Pennsylvania Station in NYC]