“If you truly love nature,
you will find beauty everywhere.”
Vincent van Gogh
Summer freedom has turned into fall responsibilities. As green fades to gold, red and brown life begins to get more cluttered and it becomes harder to soak up the sunshine and fresh air. I left work today and headed to Pittsburg, NH to watch my son’s cross country meet. I traveled over back roads with my camera riding shotgun hoping to catch a glimpse of some wildlife. My eyes scanned the edge of the road closely as I drove along. Stone walls that had been invisible all summer hiding behind towering ferns poked out of the same ferns now brown and withered from morning frost. Birds and chipmunks were the extent of my wildlife sightings today.
My plan had been to travel route 145 past Beaver Brook Falls and stop to take a few shots of the falls. Route 145 was closed and detoured onto route 3. Heading north from Colebrook on route 3 I was greeted by the American Flag flying high on some ledges. This was a reminder to me of how close to the Canadian border I would be journeying. The farther north I headed the more it seemed like I was leaving civilization behind. My cell phone had not worked since Colebrook. Road maintenance did not seem to be a thing of importance this far north.
As I left West Stewartstown and entered Clarksville I crossed the 45 parallel. I had to stop and take a picture of the sign. Standing beside the road on the spot that is halfway between the equator and the north pole I was glad that route 145 had been closed. I continued on and came to what looked like a recently closed convenience store called the 45 Parallel Outpost. Sasquatch and a few of his friends, all carved with a chainsaw had greeted the former patrons of this establishment.
Finally I reached Pittsburg.The meet was to take place at Murphy’s Dam on Lake Francis. Lake Francis is the first of many lakes in Pittsburg, It is a man made lake that was built to control the water flowing from the Connecticut Lakes to the Connecticut River. I was a little early, so I wandered around the shoreline and the dam for a bit and took some pictures. The water seemed so blue today as did the almost cloudless sky. One of my favorite shots is the picture I took of a few fly fishermen on the Connecticut River as it flows south from Lake Francis. I consider the runners very lucky to have had such an amazing place to run, and myself lucky to have had the afternoon off to enjoy the beauty of New Hampshire’s north country.
To see more pictures from Lake Francis follow the link at the top of the page to my Facebook page.
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