Pam – Page 41 – New England's Narrow Road

Sharing Photos From My Trip to New Hampshire

It was a treat to visit my kids this Spring in New Hampshire. I was able to walk along some of the streets where I used to live and visit old landmarks. I had to make up for the two years since I’d traveled north.

In March when I arrived a bit of snow remained, but later in mid-April we had a snowstorm. One day the temp was near 80, but mostly is hovered around 50-60 degrees by late day.

The black flies were coming out by the time I left in May.

Spring Gardening

The weather was pretty nice, except for the day it snowed! So I bought some perennials for my daughter’s yard. I was able to find some old favorites which used to grow in my own New Hampshire yard.

The Lenton Rose (Hellebores) is an early bloomer and the plant we bought already had fading blooms. Forsythia were blooming everywhere with their tiny, bright yellow flowers, and daffodils were welcoming spring.

Forsythia in New England Spring — Daffodils

Columbine was always something I grew in my gardens and I had a huge monarda plant next to my house. The one I found at Tenney Farms was quite tiny, so I hope it lives to become a nice bush with bright pink blooms.

My daughter chose some Catnip to keep her little cat happy, and the cat rolled all around on top of this plant so much that I thought the stems would break!

Arrival, Snow and First Walk

This section should be first… but I am unable to move the section so…….

Out the window of the plane I got my first view of snow! It’s exciting when you live in Florida but love the north.

I did plenty of outside activities during my 7 week visit, including walking through woods and along roads, and hiking mountains.

New from the plane showing snow on the ground — From the plane

March New Hampshire with ground showing and some snow — From the plane

Day Trips to The Woodstock Inn and Brewery and Harrisville Designs

One day we took a trip to the Woodstock Inn and took a brewery tour and had lunch, with beer of course!

On another occasion my daughter and I visited Harrisville where the Harrisville Designs mill and shop are located. I’m a knitter, so I wanted to see where some of my favorite yarn is spun. Read more about Brooklyn Tweed and the HD mill here.

Woodstock Inn and Brewery New Hampshire — Woodstock Inn and Brewery

Canning Pig's Ear beer at Woodstock Brewery — Woodstock Inn and Brewery

The Great Outdoors – Sun, Water, Mountains, and Snow

I never tired of breathing the fresh air of the north. Most days were nice, cool and sunny. There were some cold and rainy days, and that day it snowed, but getting outdoors was a priority.

I arrived in March just as Maple Syrup season was ending. On a walk along the road I found some buckets still attached to the maples collecting sap.

granite seat next to Nubanusit Brook — Stone seat, brookside

Stone park in Peterborough New Hampshire — Stone seat, brookside

I enjoyed every day of my trip to New Hampshire and saw my kids as much as possible. I even met up with an old friend whom I had not seen in about 30 years! That was freaky and fun.

Choosing a Winter Scarf Pattern to Knit

Find a scarf pattern to knit this winter.

Some of my favorite beginner knitting projects were winter scarves. And they are something I would wear often when I lived in New Hampshire. Usually the repeats are simple enough that a scarf project can be picked up and worked on at any time without losing your place.

Hiking New Hampshire, So Happy To Be Here!

I arrived in New Hampshire for an extended visit in March 2021, after two years of not traveling north (thanks Covid). On the first weekend of my visit, my kids and I took a walk on a Harris Center trail, which is in Dublin or Hanock, I believe. There are a lot of trails in the area and this is only one of them.

This one is 2 miles long and makes a loop through the woods and along the water, with pretty views. I was so happy to be here where walking and hiking is fun, and the weather is cool enough to be enjoyable.

Harris Center sign at trailhead — Trailhead sign – Wish I’d read that beaver information!

For some reason I didn’t get many photos on this hike, and most were of us, which I won’t share. Maybe I was too busy skirting the ice on the paths and trying not to fall! Although the day was sunny and beautiful, snow and ice still stuck to the ground in the woods.

This trail begins in a field, where we parked in mud. March is mud season, so there ya go. There is one slight hill at the beginning of the walk, but the rest of the hike is pretty flat. It winds around a lake, or pond, not sure of the name. We saw a few ducks and geese in the water, which still had ice in places.

Harris Center trail winds by a lake which still had ice in places

The day we went there were not a lot of hikers. We met one couple on the path and saw a few more people. The most stunning thing we found (IMO) on this hike was a big tree which was completely chewed around the bottom by beavers! Why? I thought beavers chewed on small trees to make them fall to use for building. But this tree was big.

It made me wonder if they were using this wood to sharpen their teeth, or do they have some big building plans in mind? I also wonder if someone will cut the tree down before it falls in a storm.

Big tree which was extremely chewed at the base by beavers — Crazy beavers!

I Love New Hampshire

One of the most wonderful things about New Hampshire is how pristine it is. The air is crisp to breath, waterways are clear, and all the surrounding nature is a joy to behold and explore. People take care of New Hampshire land.

The day after this hike, we drove up north to visit the Woodstock Brewery.

The day before we took this hike, my daughter drove me to visit Harrisville Designs in the town of, yup, Harrisville. I don’t know much about the area’s history, but apparently someone named Harris made a big impression!

Clear water and big walk on Harris Center trail — Clear water

We took another beautiful, and more exerting, hike on Easter Day. That one gave us some wonderful views and I will write about it, and share photos, soon.

My Trip to Harrisville Designs in New Hampshire

Ever since learning that yarn I buy online is spun in a New Hampshire town near where I use to live, I’ve wanted to go back to the area and visit the shop.

I had the chance to do that while on a resent visit to New Hampshire. Harrisville Designs sells Brooklyn Tweed yarn, and a lot more, but the Brooklyn Tweed is spun at that location. See this similar view in their video.

Historic Harrisville, NH mill buildings — Driving up Main St. which leads to Harrisville Designs

Even though I did some knitting years ago when I lived in a town quite close to Harrisville, I knew nothing about types of yarn and never knit with Brooklyn Tweed. After I moved away, all I wanted to do was get back to the area and visit Harrisville Designs. The quaint town of Harrisville is known for all it’s brick mill buildings.

Building where Harrisville Designs is located

My daughter drove us to Harrisville on a beautiful, sunny day in March. Clumps of snow still dotted the ground and it was cold enough that I wore my Cobblestone Cardigan and Katie’s Kep.

We were still wearing face masks because of Covid, as were the women working in the store. Right away they commented on my hat, which I think stands out as a hand-knit. Then they asked about my sweater, which I said was knit with Brooklyn Tweed “Shelter” yarn. They were friendly, and we chatted a while about yarns and patterns through our masks.

Brooklyn Tweed yarn display Harrisville Designs store — Display of Brooklyn Tweed yarn

Because we visited Harrisville Designs on a weekend day, and it was a beautiful day, there were no other customers in the store. Most likely people were outside hiking and enjoying the sunshine. But, that gave my daughter and I the whole place to ourselves! What a wonderful place for a fiber crafter to visit.

Inside Harrisville Designs — Inside the store – look at those floors!

We dug through buttons which were displayed in cute little trays. We admired the hand knits displayed all over the store. My daughter always chose the most difficult-looking sweater patterns when picking out her favorites. She is not a knitter and laughed at the fact that I kept saying, “That looks difficult and over my head”.

I noticed a display of Sincycle yarn which I am familiar with. I have two skeins at home in Florida which I bought online. Because I have to fly back home at some point, I had to curtail my buying, but couldn’t resist purchasing a little skein of orange Spincycle.

Spincycle yarn for sale at Harrisville Designs

A loom was set up in the back of the store with sample weaving projects. Weaving needs were all displayed in this section. I’m not a weaver, but it gave me a chance to tell my daughter about my grandmother’s loom and how I remember seeing it in her tiny house, and then it was eventually moved to the barn. Her loom may have come from this store.

Weaving loom at Harrisville Designs — Weaving Loom

Harrisville Designs famous potholder kits were on display in the weaving section. (This is an affiliate link to Amazon, I may make a small percentage from a clickthrough)

Inside Harrisville Designs where a weaving loom is for sale — More looms and cones of yarn

When we were finished shopping, we took a walk over a path that gives a good view of the Mill buildings, both upstream and down. See the upstream photo at the beginning of this post and in the slideshow at the end. The place is quite picturesque, even in the usually dreary month of March.

Mill area downstream in Harrisville center — Downstream, more of the mill yard

After crossing the footpath we crossed Main Street to visit the historic Harrisville General Store. Apparently this is the oldest, continuous general store and has been in operation since 1838.

Inside was a counter with prepared food, some empty tables, shelves with food items, and a cooler section. No one greeted us and we were generally unimpressed. BUT, it is Covid times, so things may be different when it’s not.

Harrisville, New Hampshire general store — Harrisville general store

I could have gone nuts buying yarn and patterns in Harrisville Designs, but as I mentioned, I have to pack and fly in a few weeks. I yearn to be living in New Hampshire once again and places like this make me homesick. It was a lovely day spent with my daughter, and a good memory to hold onto.