Down Rt. 117

I woke up to a foggy Sunday morning,

grabbed my camera and went for a short ride eastward, down Rt. 117 .

Lower Village Cemetery in Stow

St. Bridget's Cemetary, Maynard

St. Bridget's Cemetery, Maynard.

I love the stone wall and the dried leaves that bring out the brown tones in the stones.

Frost tipped grass.

A flock of wild turkeys on a field next to the side of the road in Sudbury.

I wanted to get closer but wasn't brave enough.

An old pickup truck in the field by the intersection of 117 and Sudbury Road.

For years I've been wanting to stop to take a picture.

Lee's Bridge by Sudbury River.

Sudbury River

Private? road just after Lee's Bridge.

Farmer's equipment at Drumlin Farm.

At this point I had to turn around and pick up some bagels

for my family at home.

The early morning was magical.

Even though I was on a major route, it was nice and quiet.

I like how the fog adds a little mystique

and how things in the distance appear colorless.

I wish it was foggy more often.

I don't know about you guys, but even as I found nature to be magical that morning, I have a difficult time finding Christmas spirit without the snow.

Today I made an effort to start making it feel like Christmas is approaching, at least inside the house. I guess I hadn't done much of that. It helped a bit. But I still want snow.

What are you guys doing to get in the mood?

Do you need snow?

Apple Country

Things have quieted down here in apple country.

The apple picking season has come to an end.

The lines of cars rolling in on weekend mornings are no longer here.

The crowds of visiting apple pickers, that add a bit of

temporary caos during apple season,

are done picking.

So when I went for a walk

(with permission) on the beautiful hills of

Bolton Spring Farm, I was completely alone.

The walk was very quiet and meditative,

the air was filled with a sweet aroma.

An aroma of apples past its prime that intensified

each time I accidentally stepped on one.

It's a strange, deserted feeling walking alone in the orchard.

Like the feeling you get when you go to the beach on a winter day.

It's the contrast between the noisy and lively, and the quiet, almost sleepy,

that appear so vividly.

I found the quiet and deserted orchard so beautiful,

and the view from the top of the hill was amazing.

I had such a nice, quiet and reflective walk.

Although the PYO* has ended,

there is still plenty for sale at Bolton Spring's farm store.

* PYO = pick your own. Americans looove time saving abbreviations.

Last night I decided to use up some apples by roasting them.

I made paninis with local Nashoba Brooks Bakery's 7 Grain Bread.

I layered roasted apples, brie, walnuts and a little honey

between the slices of bread.

-Yum!

I served the paninis with French onion soup, made with local beer instead of wine.

It tasted very fall:y.

Before I sign out, I also wanted to show,

especially to the locals, what I found

right next to Bolton Spring Farm.

A 1.2 mile path that leads to a lime quarry.

I can't believe that I have driven past this sign for 10 years without noticing it.

That is now on my list of things we can do on a weekend with our family.

I wonder what the quarry looks like...

Last, but not least...

A picture of our puppy Sanders.

As most of you guessed, he is a Boston Terrier.

Right now, our household is upside down

while we are trying to figure out how not to let this little life,

run our lives.

A Vermont Swimming Hole

"A swimming hole is a place in a river, stream, creek, spring, or similar natural body of water, which is large enough and deep enough for a person to swim in. Common usage usually refers to fresh, moving water and thus not to oceans or lakes." (Wikipedia)

Didn't quite understand what this was when my neighbor talked about them. I sort of had a picture in my mind, but after a resent visit to Stow, Vermont, I now have a perfectly clear picture of what a swimming hole is.

It's like going to the beach for people that don't have a beach.

It's a place to cool off.

Or, maybe "show off".

Many swimming holes are located in a mountainous and rocky area with wicked cold running water. A natural place for adventurers like hikers, climbers, white water rafters...

A place for people who live for the thrill of jumping off a cliff into unknown waters,

or find it very refreshing to take a swim in bone chilling waters.

There are even swimming holes for skinny dipping, how's that for showing off your adventurous side?

Au naturel! Oh la la...

And then there are those like me, who come along for the scenery.

Walking cautiously. Carefully planning each step on my way to the swimming hole.

Not willing put my camera down to jump from a rock, or submerge myself into frigid mountain water.

Without a hot sandy beach to lay down on afterwards, I feel a little out of place.

But, it is beautiful, the scenery.

Very rugged and untouched.

The rocks that have been shaped and smoothed by water are amazing.

The clarity of the water makes it look so pure and I get thirsty.

Look at the color of the water in the top picture, it has this fantastic teal color.

I need to go back and see more swimming holes.

Can you imagine this one in the spring time?

With all the water rushing down the mountain from the melting snow?

I think it might be a powerful experience.

Tree House Hotel

I'm sure everyone has already heard about the Ice Hotel by now. A hotel in northern Sweden completely made of ice. Seasonal, of course, but really coooool if you know what I mean.

But here's what I stumbled upon the other day that made my heart skip a beat. A TREE HOTEL, also in northern Sweden. I love this kind of thinking outside the box. Or, should I say thinking inside the box, referring to the kind of rooms that have been created by the cute couple below, for you to spend the night in.

The owners:

Kent Lindvall and Britta Jonsson-Lindvall

"Why not create a comfortable, well designed hotel which allows visitors to live in harmony with nature amongst the trees?"

Yes!

Why not?

Here is a sample of the different rooms that are offered.

The (bird) Nest

Like me, I'm sure you figured that out before you read it. Perfect name.

Looks just like a large scale bird house. I'd really want to get up close to touch it, to feel the twigs and look at the branch work.

It's so clever how they made the windows round, just like on a bird house. When you're inside, you could get a real birds-eye-view and imagine what it would be like to be a bird.

Can't help but to think that if I was a bird in this neck of the woods, I'd be completely terrified thinking about what kind of bird that built this enormous nest.

The Mirror Cube

I can see how this one got its name, it's a cube with mirrors.

I completely love how the cube blends in with the nature and almost becomes invisible.

I couldn't help but to think of the birds here too. Are they flying in to these mirrors and hurting themselves??? But I then read that when making this cube, they put infrared film in the glass so that the birds can see it. This prevents them from having accidents. Phew!

Here's a part of the interior of the Mirror Cube. Looks like a lot of straight lines. It's simple but nice and clean. I'm gonna take a guess and say that the lighting might reflect the position of the windows in the room. What do you think?

Note how the tree trunk goes straight up through the room. VERY neat!

The Blue Cone

WHAT??? The other ones had completely logical names. This one boggles my mind. I suppose the top is sort of cone shaped, but it's definitely not blue. Funny, I can't stop thinking about this one as a puzzle, and that I will eventually figure the name out.

Inside the Blue Cone, a great view of complete wilderness is offered through the low placed large window. It's "crystal" clear that the focus at this hotel is closeness to nature.

So...

Do you think you could live in harmony with nature amongst these trees?

If you have the time and money and think that you might want to visit, there is lots more information and pictures on their website at www.treehotel.se.

All pictures above are from the Tree Hotel.

Have a great weekend you all!

Annelie

Morning walk

On a Sunday morning walk...

Five Canadian Geese

The great colors of Common Pokeweed

A beautiful Bluebird

Some wild turkeys are acting shy and running in to the woods.

Or is it perhaps too close to Thanksgiving to feel safe?

And my family, sometimes shy of the camera.

And almost always a few steps ahead of me and my camera.