Mount Lafayette is one of the tallest mountains in NH. At 5249 feet it is the tallest mountain that is not part of the Mount Washington Massif. And it’s location next to interstate 93, AMC hut and 360 views makes it a popular hiking destination.

She is the crown jewel of the Pemi loop. An impressive peak of the beautiful Franconia ridge. And a summit with a great deal of interesting history of her own.

Despite the fact that I would not name Mount Lafayette as one of my favorite mountains, my history with her is long and I respect and love her rocky summit.

I first met Mount Lafayette in September 2001. My crew team did a team bonding exercise and hiked the New Hampshire peak. It was my first time on a mountain with intention to scale it (instead of skiing it) and most likely my first time in what is now my home state. Several members of my team had to stop at Greenleaf hut because of various aches and pains. But I was part of the group that pushed for the summit. I loved being on top of that mountain.

Many months later I was driving through Franconia Notch, the gap between Mount Lafayette and Mount Cannon, when I saw my first live wild moose (and tourists getting out of their cars to take pictures).

I would have a much scarier experience in the notch years later when I crashed and spun a school van by slipping on black ice and ping ponging on the guard rails. It remains the only time I was in an accident that caused injury to myself (it was a concussion, but still memorable to me).

As for hiking, I’ve been on Lafayette on gorgeous blue bird days, I’ve been on her in winter. I once bailed on a Pemi loop because I was on her summit as a thunderstorm gathered around her.

Lafayette has also been my beacon. I’ve seen her distinctive summit from so many other peaks. I once even tried to catch the sunrise from Kinsman in hopes of catching a view of the sun rising in the col between Lafayette and her brother Lincoln. It ended up being a cloudy sunrise.

She’s also been a beacon on my drives home. On countless trips back from Quebec, Lafayette has let me know that yes indeed I was back in New Hampshire and solidly on my way home.

And perhaps this post is a bit of a love song for the mountain, but Lafayette’s popularity also upsets me sometimes.

There is a huge parking area at her base that is often overflowing. Leading to people parking along the side of the highway. I think it’s enough of an overflow issue that a parking garage could almost be justified.

The ease of reaching the trailhead from both Boston and Southern Quebec attracts a lot of inexperienced hikers and large groups. The stunning viewpoints and great trails also mean that some never branch out to other mountains. The White mountains have so many incredible mountains to explore that this is a shame.

But this crowding issues is probably why I don’t visit Lafayette more often and why I don’t count her as a favorite summit.

But one thing is for sure, my history will continue to cross paths with this gem of geology.

I spend so much of my time in the outdoors that this is a shameful admission. At the age of 28, I’m still not sure what poison ivy looks like. How have I survived so long? I just avoid any plant with three leaves. It’s not a way to live.

Cooper was quite ill after eating this plant the other day. I think that this must be poison ivy.

Am I right?

Maybe I can stop avoiding most three leaved plants now.

I was also wondering if anyone knows what these plants are. The best way I can describe them is reeds or bamboo-ish.

The town occasionally cuts them down because they get too close to the road.

Some pictures from when I was in Virginia for the Hubby’s Massanutten Mountain Trails 100 miler. My camera hasn’t been overly happy lately.

I’m not sure what’s going on this year but parts of my yard are covered in mushrooms.

I could understand if the mushrooms were growing in the forest around my house, but these relatively big mushrooms are growing in the center of my yard in clumps. They’ve been turning black with time. I wonder what kind of mushroom they are, but obviously don’t have any intention of eating them.

Our house is surrounded by trees, many of the trees are oak trees. Our trees produce a lot of acorns. The acorns are currently covering the driveway, the deck, and the rest of the yard. Adam has a very specific place he has to park in order to not have the acorns dent his car.

You would think that the many squirrels and chipmunks in our vicinity would gobble them up, but I think the harvest is probably larger than even their gluttony.

I tried to make a pile of acorns to help the squirrels out but our pup seemed to think he should be helping himself to the nuts.

Soon those acorns will be covered in a dense pile of leaves. I hope the rodents stockpile them before it’s too late.

The one advantage to passing thunderstorms is that some amazing clouds often intermix with the thunderclouds. I captured these beauties while driving in Deerfield, New Hampshire.

I love going to New Hampshire’s 18 miles of coastline. I guess I’m a natural beachcomber.  I spend a lot of time in the winter walking along the sandy beaches and I’m really excited to have Cooper to join me on future excursions.

Taking a dog to the beach in the summer time requires more logistics. Some of the beaches allow dogs but only after “beach hours”. Recently we have gone to York Beach which requires dogs to be on lead (no more than 15 feet) on the beach and after 6pm. The town of Rye allows dogs to be on the beach from 7 pm until midnight and they can be under voice control.

Cooper’s still getting used to the waves, but he loves chasing balls on the beach.

I have lived in states that border the Ocean for over 7 years now. And for many of those years I have visited beaches on a regular basis. From Maine to Cape Cod, I have always associated these flowers with the salt spray, the sound of waves and dogs and people running along the sand. I never knew what they were.

I recently listened to Anita Shreve’s Strange Fits of Passion as an audiobook. At one point, while describing a cottage on a cove in a remote part of Maine, the author mentions the cottage is surrounded only by “wild beach roses”. I decided to look up the plant to see if I had seen the flower before. Sure enough, the pretty pink, red and white flowers I have seen and known on the beaches of my adulthood are Beach Roses.

What surprised me most? They are not native to North America. They originate in Asia.

I’m not sure if these flowers that survive the sometimes brutal climate of the New England seaboard are planted as low maintenance ornamental plants along the coast or if they actually do grow wild now. But they are a beautiful addition to the coastal areas.

I’ve mostly written a post that I’m kind of excited about regarding Cooper. I want to do a good job on it because it’s something I’ve wanted to post about for a while regarding perception versus reality of poodles.

But I need to upload some supporting pictures to do so and right now I have to head to work. So here’s a filler post.

One of my favorite things about random walks in the woods is finding random objects on the ground to take pictures of. Take this feather, beautiful and random. It was in the middle of the woods in Pawtuckaway State Park. We’ve found lots of neat big feathers in that park. It helps that they have Turkeys and Turkey Vultures there. That reminds me, if I ever get a good picture of a turkey vulture I should write a post about the scare I gave one when I was bushwacking near the cliffs.

Random enough filler for everyone?