This weekend, my friend Molly and I set off on a quest to complete our sophomore year goal: to see a moose.
Molly cheated and accidentally saw one last fall on Mt. Adams (what a jerk). We headed up north to the Great Woods region of Pittsburgh, New Hampshire so I could see one, too.
On the way there, we saw this beautiful sunset near Lake Francis State Park. The colors on the ice were incredible.
After checking in to the lovely Moose Cabin at Partridge Cabins, we headed out at dusk in search of moose.
No luck. However, we didn’t realize how close we were to Canada, and were really confused when we were suddenly at the border.
We tried to sneak over sans passports but were stopped by a very friendly border patrol agent who was loaded with moose stories. He said that years ago, you could see 30 or 40 moose on a single drive around the area. I wonder what happened to them all?
We headed back to our cabin, which was incredibly nice and cozy. However, all the moose paraphernalia was just rubbing in our discouragement!
There were plenty of beds to pick from, but I ended up crashing on the couch because the wood stove was just too inviting. We woke up with the sun the next morning, and were treated to a beautiful sunrise (our cabin was right on the lake!)
Our cabin!
We headed out again, determined to find a moose once and for all!
Once again, no luck. However, we did see 3 turkey and 6 deer!
Sadly, 3 turkey + 6 deer does not equal 1 moose. We headed back to our cabin to relax before going back to school.
Isn’t it awesome? Such a great place to unwind and cry about moose.
After a relaxing morning, we headed south to see The Basin at Franconia Notch State Park. On the way, we passed a sign for the 45th parallel- halfway between the Equator and the North Pole. It blew my mind that UNH is closer to the equator than the North Pole. Molly was overcome with emotion by this crazy fact.
The hike down to The Basin passed rushing streams and small waterfalls. Snowmelt caused the rapid currents.
The Basin is a geologic wonder, a rock formation created by thousands of years of water erosion.
Once we got hungry, Molly and I headed to my favorite New Hampshire eatery, The Tilt’n Diner. It’s perfect after a long day hiking or kayaking- pure comfort food in an awesome diner atmosphere, right off I-93! However, I was shocked when I saw the sign:
But things became clear after we pulled into the parking lot.
If you’re ever traveling in the Great North Woods region, I definitely recommend Partridge Cabins. Gerry and Cathy are awesome hosts, and the cabins are beautiful and right on a lake!
Have you ever seen a moose? If so, I’m jealous!
Thank you so much for reading my posts! I’ve had incredible amounts of fun on this internship, doing everything from dogsledding to geocaching, and of course, hammocking. Thanks so much to Grant and Michele for everything, and for NH State Parks for making this position possible!
