October 13th: Still Reporting on the New England Visit

 While we were at Lincoln, NH, Christopher received a disappointing call from Teresa who stayed home with Owen and Annika because the kids had numerous activities. Teresa found out a classmate of Annika's tested positive for COVID. All of her classmates were to quarantine. I was really looking forward to getting to finally see the kids again. Upon further investigation, they learned that Annika could get tested in 7 days and end her quarantine if it was negative. We were all praying for that!

Owen, who is fully vaccinated, had a soccer game Monday afternoon so he was allowed to play. We of course wanted to attend the match and left early enough to make it. The ride to their house was very scenic and some of the trees were showing some color, especially at the higher elevations. We arrived back at Terri and Scotts in Williston, (Near Burlington) where I would be staying for 9 days. I suggested to Terri while planning my trip that perhaps they didn't want a "guest" for 9 days. She assured me that as long as I understood she doesn't cook it would be fine. I didn't ask twice!

Owen's soccer match

The soccer match was fun. It was nice to be able to see Owen in action. I kept trying to get a good picture but this is the best I ended up with. Owen, I believe, is the tall player in front of the net. I included the picture to show you our still great weather and the nice soccer field. 

I had planned to take full advantage of the time I would have for my visit. The entire Scott family was there to help. When planning this trip I checked the typical weather for this time of year. So far we were very fortunate with weather much nicer than is typical. Our plans included hiking, kayaking, eating out  and sightseeing. We decided to squeeze in as much kayaking and hiking as possible while the good weather was holding. So Tuesday we headed to Stephanie's. I was anxious to see her new home and  property which are on Lake Arrowhead, 30 minutes from the Scott's house.

The home is on the side of a mountain overlooking  beautiful and secluded Lake Arrowhead. No neighbors are visible.

This is the view from her living room window. Notice the tall pole in the third window from the left. That is for an osprey nest. The chicks were raised and the family moved out of the nest but we saw ospreys flying around and catching fish.

Terri and Stephanie in living room

The living room is all beautiful natural wood with a vaulted ceiling. There are very large windows offering wonderful views 360 degrees.

In front of the house is a great deck, perfect for bird watching. Stephanie has a very nice telescope to get a closeup view of the wildlife from the deck.

I appreciated the nice bright kitchen.

We wasted no time walking down to the lake and putting the kayaks in. Stephanie graciously offered to use her paddle board so Terri and I could use the kayaks. 

Terri paddling along the shore line

Terri was first in so she led our little group. I immediately fell in love with this lake. It is perfect for kayaking. There are many inlets and channels to explore. We saw numerous wood ducks from afar, (mostly because Terri scared them off before I got there! Sometimes it's good to be first.) Actually, as soon as anyone got close they would take off. Seeing the duck blinds along the shore, I can't say I was surprised they are a little skittish!. 

I took this picture of Stephanie on her paddle board and ended up with a great sun reflection. Wish I knew how to do that on purpose!

I ended up with another picture with a cool reflection so I included it. I was actually just taking a picture of the purple flowers that added a lot of color and were plentiful.

Steve and Stephanie

It was a little windy but we were able to stay on the leeward side of the mountains. The weather was perfect, sunny but not too hot. When we were among the tall grasses and cattails we were very protected. 

I was very impressed with how long Stephanie held up on the paddle board. She obviously has had a lot of practice. Fortunately she was quite adept with standing, sitting and/or kneeling without tipping over.

I knew I was getting carried away taking pictures but I couldn't stop. There were just so many great opportunities for a picture. It's taking me a very long time to go through them all but that's okay.

As you can see in the pictures, we were able to take a very leisurely ride around the many channels. I wanted to get some good arm exercise but with no wind nor current I had to just go for some short speed bursts. 

Terri and Stephanie

While I was doing that, Stephanie and Terri enjoyed a ride across an open area. Notice the trees in the distance starting to change colors. The lake has fairly large open areas in addition to all the little grassy channels. I caught up shortly.

At one point we had a clear view of Stephanie's house on the side of the mountain. She owns the property behind the house as well as in front down to the water. Look for the osprey nest pole and you'll see the house to the left.

There were a couple of Owen athletic events on the agenda during the week and one of several goals was to spend some time at Christopher's Lake house. The weather continued to be exceptional so we went all out taking advantage of it. Annika had a soccer game on the weekend that we were hoping she could play in. She was getting tested Friday.