October 11–14, 2017 - Banner Elk, NC

After 12+ hours of sleep on Wednesday night, I was ready to face the day on Thursday and quilt, quilt, quilt!

There are six people from my online quilting group at our retreat this year and we were all busy with projects we brought along. Flying in limits my choices and I am lucky to have one of my friends bring a spare sewing machine so I don’t have to tote mine along on the plane.

My days usually started around 9 am – sewing, designing, getting suggestions,  playing some quilting games, snacks, and repeat!

I managed to complete a row quilt that I have been working on (except the borders). YEAH! I also got most of a baby quilt finished I am making for a friend before starting on my third project. Unfortunately, our time is coming to an end and it is time to pack up and get ready to head back to Colorado.Tomorrow morning I will finish packing my bag and head back to Charlotte for my flight back to Colorado. Looking forward to another retreat next year!

October 10-11, 2017 Fort Collins, CO to Banner Elk, NC

It seems like I was home for a blink of the eye before I was heading back to the airport for my annual quilting retreat. By a funny coincidence, our son Tyler, was on the same flight at 1:15 AM to Charlotte, so he was able to drive me to the airport! He continued to New York for business, I continued to Banner Elk.

After picking up my rental car, I stopped at Mary Jo’s Cloth Shop in Gastonia. I have always enjoyed their wide variety of fabrics, but was disappointed this year. It seems the ownership has transferred to her sons and the selections were limited. I guess the good news is, my wallet wasn’t drained!

Heading north, I stopped at the Brown Mountain overlook. Brown Mountain is a low-lying ridge, approximately 1.5 miles long, in the Pisgah National Forest near Morganton, North Carolina. There is some history of strange light sightings in the sky near here that date back to the 1200s! Ghosts? Aliens? I didn’t see any, but it was daytime, so who knows??The colors are beginning to change, but it will be a while before the intensity of their show peaks.In Banner Elk I stopped to look at one of the markets. I love these displays!I continued on to the Holsten Camp and Retreat Center where our quilting group holds their annual retreat. This year we only have 6 attending, but it will still be a great time. My body is telling me that 2-1/2 hours of sleep wasn’t enough, so that’s it for today. Tomorrow, watch out – that sewing machine will be humming!

October 8, 2017 North Conway, NH to Fort Collins, CO

We were up and on our way about 8:00 am today. Bernhard and Marlies dropped us off at the Eastern Slope Inn where we caught the Concord Coach Line bus back to Boston. It was raining, so we hung out on porch while we waited for our departure.They had some interesting yard art in front of the Inn. I guess you could call him a “pothead.”It rained all the way back to Boston. Coming into the city, we were very thankful we didn’t have to drive in this traffic!We got a few last minute looks at the city as we passed through the same downtown area we had stayed at when we arrived last week.We arrived at the airport about 12:45, so after checking in, we headed to the Priority Lounge to hang out until our flight at 5:15 pm. We were a bit late getting away and looked back from our plane to see all of the planes stacked up behind us ready for takeoff!A last look at Boston from the air.We got one last look at the coastline as turned inland toward Milwaukee on our way home.Our flight to Denver connected in Milwaukee and several people on the plane had the Green Bay against the Dallas Cowboys football game on their TVs. The game ended shortly before landing and the Packers pulled off the win in the last 11 seconds! Lots of cheering onboard!

We arrived back in Denver and the rain had started. By the time we got the shuttle to our car, it was blowing sideways and coming down quite hard. It turned to a rain/snow mix as we headed north on I-25, but Tobey got us home safely about midnight. It was a great trip and we have lots of new, great memories, but it is always good to be home again.

October 7, 2017 - North Conway, NH

Today was cloudy, but we got a fairly early start to hike in the White Mountains again. We stopped at the National Forest Ranger station for recommendations. We chose the 3.1 Boulder Loop hike. This was the beginning of the hike and looks are deceiving … the climb had a 950 foot elevation gain in the first mile! The trail passed through the woods for most of the trek to the summit with limited viewing areas. The colors were still beautiful.At the summit, otherwise known as the Ledges, we took a break and lots of photos. The 2.1 mile descent put us back into the woods. It was easier on the downhill – a much more gradual descent. The trail took us around a large rocky area. We could imagine the force of the glaciers that moved these huge stones. After 2-1/2  hours, we arrived back to the car to begin the next stretch of the drive.   Continuing west on the Kancamagnus Highway, we stopped at the Sugar Hill overlook for more beautiful views and snacks. At Lincoln, New Hampshire we turned north to make the loop back to our B&B in hopes of seeing moose, the goal for the afternoon. The rain that had threatened started and continued off and on – mostly on, until we got back to North Conway. While two different rangers told us we should be able to spot them near Pinkham Notch – no luck! We went by one of the New Hampshire ski areas and it looked pretty tame compared to the ski hills in Colorado.We did get a chance to walk on the Appalachian Trail near Pinkham Notch. It didn’t make up for no moose, but was fun to see.We had a great day – lots of miles, but lots of beautiful scenery!We had dinner at Vito Marcello’s Italian Bistro – after a 1-3/4 hour wait! The food was delicious, but sharing the meal with Marlies and Bernhard was better. It was a bittersweet end to a great trip together because tomorrow we have an 8:30 bus back to Boston for our flight back to Colorado where we are looking at a winter storm warning. YUCK!

October 6, 2017 - North Conway, New Hampshire

It was cloudy when we got up today – not at all what we were expecting. After a yummy breakfast of banana nut pancakes and ham, we got ready to head out for our hike … and then the rain began!

We decided to go ahead and at least drive the Kancamagus Highway which is a 34.5 mile scenic drive along New Hampshire's Route 112. It is designated as an American Scenic Byway for its rich history, aesthetic beauty and culture. We were not disappointed! We stopped at covered bridge over the Swift River, grabbed our umbrellas and walked to the bridge. The colors were amazing!Back to the car we continued on to the Lower Falls. The rain was letting up, but the clouds were still hanging low in the valleys.We took the small path to the overlook and were delighted with the beautiful views.By the time we got back to the car, the rain was stopping so we continued to the trailhead for the Hedgehog Mountain Trail.The 4.8 mile trail begins through the beautiful woods and winds its way up the mountain – with an elevation gain of 1466 feet. We took the “shorter” direction up to the top and the longer part of the loop on our descent.It was cool when we started off, but we were soon shedding our jackets as we climbed higher and higher. We talked to one man who was returning from the summit who had seen three bears on his trek, but we only spotted some bear paw prints in the mud. Bummer!We stopped at the summit for a snack and rest. We enjoyed the sunshine and seeing miles and miles of beautiful fall colors covering the mountainside.As the clouds began to roll back in, we started our trek down the mountain and across several areas where the trail was only granite. The rain started back up which made the hike quite slippery in places. Fortunately, the rain didn’t last long and we were soon back in the trees. The descent was about 2.5 miles and it was sometimes hard negotiating through tree roots and rocks. Our knees certainly felt it was harder on the way down.We made it back to the car after four hours of hiking and we were glad we made the decision to do the hike. Our route back to our B&B was by way of a shorter loop road, the Bear Notch. The colors continued to amaze us and we stopped for another view of the beautiful scenery!After a rest and pizza dinner, we went to a concert at The Theater in the Woods to hear the Peacheaters, an Allman Brothers tribute band. It was a fun concert (loud) and they did a great job. We found out after we got there it was actually a fundraiser for the Believe in Books Literacy Foundation. They are a non-profit which is dedicated to advancing the healthy development of young minds through literacy programs that encourage early reading, imagination, and physical activity. I was happy we could support their program!The weather forecast for tomorrow looks promising for another hike, so we will keep you posted!

October 5, 2017 - Bar Harbor, ME to North Conway, NH

Today was a travel day. We said goodbye to Bar Harbor and headed west to North Conway, New Hampshire and the White Mountains. We were surprised at how much the trees had changed colors in just the few days we had spent in Bar Harbor. We made a stop in Naples, Maine to stretch our legs. We walked along the lake and watched as a float plane took off on an afternoon tour of the area.It was a fun drive as we went through Poland, Denmark, Naples, and Fryeburg – we felt like we were in Europe, not Maine!

We arrived at our B&B, The Old Red Inn and Cottages, and got some recommendations on hikes and restaurants from Susan, the owner. Diana’s Baths was a short hike just about five miles from here, so we decided to check it out. It was an easy walk through the forest to a series of three small waterfalls. Diana’s Baths lie along Lucy Brook in Bartlett which is fed from Big Attitash Mountain.In the 1860’s, after building a house and barn on the banks of the brook, George Lucy built a water wheel powered sawmill. In the 1890’s he built a 12 room boarding house for tourists to visit the site. Both the rooming house and sawmill were eventually sold to the US Government and have become part of the national Forrest land and the structures were removed.The colors were beautiful and we enjoyed seeing the area. In the spring and summer, the volume of water going over the falls is much greater. We could imagine how much fun kids would have playing in the water!After our brief visit to the falls, we checked out some of the shops in North Conway before having delicious steak dinners at the Red Parka Pub.

The weather today was fabulous – about 70  degrees – and it should be close to that tomorrow. We hope to get a hike in and explore a bit of the Kancamagus Scenic Byway.

October 4, 2017 - Acadia National Park

Today we headed out to Acadia to drive the Loop Road and take a shorter hike than yesterday. We arrived at the Sand Beach parking area to begin our initial hike to the Bowl. We had two routes we could choose from to get there and we opted for the Bowl Trail rather than the Beehive route. This was our route.The Beehive route heads right up the steep south face of Champlain Mountain and includes granite steps, iron rungs to climb up, and several handrails for exposed rock scrambling sections. The picture below shows some crazy people taking that route! When the trail split, there were warning signs for hikers advising the dangers of that trail.The Bowl is a picturesque little pond tucked high into the mountainside on the south end of Champlain Mountain and just below The Beehive. After pausing to enjoy the colors and peaceful shore of The Bowl, we backtracked to the junction of the Gorham Mountain Trail.  We passed through woods and open areas on our way to the summit.At one point we stopped and had a great view of Sand Beach below us. The water was an incredible blue which rivaled the Caribbean!We reached what is known as the mountain's false summit where we had an open view of Otter Cliff, Otter Point, Baker Island, and the Cranberry Islands, as well as Egg Rock Light. Egg Rock Light is a lighthouse on Frenchman Bay, Maine. Built in 1875 and has a square tower projecting through the square keeper's house.We reached the open summit of Gorham Mountain with an elevation of 525 feet! While Gorham Mountain is not one of the higher mountains on Mount Desert Island, its close coastal location provided spectacular views!Heading south from the summit, we continued to the southern Gorham Mountain trailhead. Again, we were back in and out of the trees and the colors were beautiful!We followed the Ocean Path walking trail back to our car once we reached the trailhead. The Ocean Path runs parallel to the road and was relatively flat. We spotted some not-so-healthy looking trees along the way. They look like they had been attacked by insects which caused the huge bulbs along the trunks. We need our good friend, Phil, along to tell us what caused this!About half-way back we passed Thunder Hole. If the waves and the tide are just right, you are supposed to hear what sounds like thunder. Today the water was calm and it was no where near high tide, so we heard nothing! We did enjoy the beautiful trees lining the sides of the road as we continued back. Just before the parking lot we made the trip down to the beach. The water was beautiful, but with temperatures that range between 45-55 degrees, none of us wanted to take the plunge!Our Bowl Trail to Gorham Mountain and back to Sand Beach was a 3-1/2 mile hike. While it was shorter than yesterday, we weren’t keen to add the 3-1/2 mile hike around Jordan Pond so we just walked down to the water and enjoyed the beauty!It was another great day in Acadia and we think it would be an easy place to spend a week!

This evening we headed to Geddy’s for the “lobster menu” meal. Before going in we watched the two cruise ships that were in Bar Harbor for the day set sail. The full moon was making its appearance, too!At Geddy’s, we all had the lobster bake which included clam chowder, a lobster, fries, and blueberry pie. Dinner was delicious and we were stuffed! Tomorrow we bid goodbye to Bar Harbor and will make our way to North Conway, New Hampshire.