BOOOO....Rain.....BOOOO!!! :( Lake Massabesic

I think this is Cow Vetch

As most of my friends and family know, I’m heading out of town for work in the near future. It’s a trip that I’m not particularly looking forward to, however I need to get into a good mindset regarding it, in order to make the best of it. I’m not so sure the trip itself is the unappealing part, but instead it is the actual travel time and being away from Jill. I was hoping to get some decent hiking in the last couple weekends, but Mother Nature apparently doesn’t want me to.

Bed of wild irises

Last night and this morning, the weather channel was forecasting that the rain wouldn’t begin today before noon in the southern portion of the State. So, Jill and I got up super early and headed to Jaffrey, NH, to climb Mt. Monadnock. It is not a mountain that we are particularly excited to climb, but given the weather, it was the perfect candidate. But wouldn’t you know it, in Peterborough, we hit the first rain shower. We continued on to the trailhead, hoping the sun would peak through. Unfortunately, it didn’t. We made the decision to head back east, as we knew hiking in progressively heavier rain showers isn’t always fun for us.

Partridgeberry

On the way back home, we swung by the Massabesic Lake Audubon Center. We decided to walk out to Battery Point, even though the rain showers were starting to roll in. We were able to check out a few neat birds, although it was difficult to snap photos of them because they seemed to be very active. Also, we captured a few pictures of some wild irises and what I think are partridgeberry flowers. At the trailhead, next to the Audubon building, they had a caged Northern Barred Owl, which was very cool. I would highly recommend this area if you are looking for a nice flat nature walk in the southern New Hampshire region.

Mushroom

Battery Point

So, it rained. But we still got a pretty good walk in. Not really the hike I was hoping for prior to my trip, but it will do. A rainy day in the woods is better than a sunny day in the office, I suppose.

Northern Barred Owl

BOOOO....Rain.....BOOOO!!! :( Lake Massabesic