The Flowers Explore - Sandy Beach Campground New Hampshire - 2021/09/05-14

Welcome to Sandy Beach Campground in New Hampshire! Today is a travel day and we're going to get in a bunch of new states today!

We're going from New York up to New Hampshire. About a 4:30 hour drive. 

All set to go kids? 

We drove through Connecticut. 

And then Massachusetts. 

And then New Hampshire just snuck right up on us. Theresa wasn't able to get a picture with the phone. 

That's three new states for the kids' map in a single day! That might be a record! Now we're really starting to fill in that North Eastern section. 

As we got closer, we definitely had to follow an app called RVTripWizard for GPS directions. You can put in your height, and it will route your down an appropriate path. We're around 12'6" tall, so it makes sure to avoid these low 9'6" covered bridges. 

Made it! And it's wooded... ugh. I've come to dislike trees now when I'm pulling the RV. 

Up at the main office we got our site assigned and the worker hopped in a golf cart to get us turned back around. We've got to approach our site from a certain angle with how big we are. 

Well it took some doing. I need a bit of room to swing the truck to get the RV to move. I abandoned 2-3 attempts and straightened things out again to give it another go. Theresa is watching the back end making sure that doesn't hit anything, but my front end is getting close to a few trees. 

A neighbor who was watching us came over and asked if we'd like some help. I'm still pretty new at this and I'm certainly not too proud to accept any offers for help. With Theresa in the back and our neighbor helping guide me in the front, I was able to get Beauty back in the site. Whew! I'm glad we're here for 9 days! 

Theresa and I wanted to figure out a way to say "Thank You" to our neighbors, and we've always thought that hot and fresh bread is something special. Even more so when you're out in a camper and might not have access to a normal kitchen. I made up a couple of my Rustic Bread loaves and we wrapped it up along with a stick of butter to take over to them. 

We never expected the turn of events that would happen next. They were super appreciative of the fresh bread. Their names are Jake and Pauline and they are here celebrating their 52nd wedding anniversary. Actually today is their 52nd wedding anniversary and that bread will go great with the ribeye steaks they brought to cook for dinner. 

Pauline asked the kids if they wanted to try some Real Vermont Maple Syrup. Who would say no to that? 

Talking to them a little bit, it turns out that they are Maple Syrup and Dairy Farmers. This Maple Syrup is from their very own trees that they collected the syrup from earlier this year. 

Oh, and if we'd like, we can come up and visit their farm, see how the maple syrup shack works, see the dairy, pet the cows and kittens, and just take a tour!

What?!? Absolutely! We'd love to do something like that! We made arrangements to meet up with them later in the week once they got back home. That will be a separate write-up, but it's amazing how just the small little events can grow into something bigger. 

It was really reminiscent of our experience after the 2017 Eclipse, where one of the people the kids' made friends with invited us back to her house to see all her farm animals. 

Now that we've settled in and had dinner, it's time to explore the rest of the campground. So this is the famed Sandy Beach that the campground must be named for. Overlooking a Rolf Pond. 

Now that is a cute RV. It looks like a railcar! We had hoped to catch the owner outside to talk about it, but despite our frequent nightly walks, never did catch them. 

Hey Alli, go pose cute by the flower. 

Nailed it. 

We've been seeing a few chipmunks while we've been out walking around. The kids love them. 

The basketball court/tennis court wasn't so good for playing on. It was covered with acorns. This little boy thought the chipmunks needed help finding them, so both he and I loaded our pockets up with as many acorns as we could carry. I'd ask if this was enough, showing him my full pockets, but was always told no. How much do you think these chipmunks eat? 

There's a good size meal for a chipmunk. We'll see if any come around to feast. 

On another walk, we caught the sun just as it was about to set. Beautiful. 

And the kids love the playground that's right by the beach. 

And we had our first close encounter with a bat! He was swooping back and forth catching insects. A nearby person said that they eat mosquitos. The kids were really happy about that. 

We're watching a disney movie tonight and the kids made us popcorn buckets. There's Duffy, Mickey, Minnie, and Shellie Mae. You guys are getting pretty creative. 

The mornings are starting to get a little chilly here in New Hampshire. This is the perfect time to turn on our electric fireplace! 

Alli woke up a short time later and joined Ian. 

While they were eating breakfast, they noticed a visitor. 

A chipmunk has come to eat from their buffet! They loved watching him grab a nut, run off, then come back for more. 

That night, Ian and I went for a walk. It was a clear sky and I was hoping that being in the woods away from the city lights that we might have a good view of the stars. He's bundled up in his favorite blanket from his Uncle Ruston. It's soft and fluffy. 

Ah. I hope to never get tired of these kinds of views. Ian and I reported back to Theresa and Alli that they had to come check out the view from the beach. 

And we even got to see some meteors and satellites! The one on the left is an airplane. The one in the middle is a meteor. I also like having the NightSky app to show us what the different bright stars and planets are. 

We're determined to catch up on our hiking and biking while we're here. The end of the year will be coming up before we know it, and we want to make sure we hit our 500 mile goal. Theresa found a rail trail that is flat and goes through the woods. 

I'm sure in a few weeks, these leaves will be beautiful yellows, oranges, and reds. Not quite yet though. 

It was pleasant to walk beside the river during our walk. 

And there were still bursts of color here and there. 

At the bridge, I had the kids collect as many pinecones as they could, and we threw them into the water below. 

Ian wanted to touch the water. Alli followed. 

On our hike back, somehow I'm focused on moving forward and not so focused on where I'm stepping. I walked right by this guy and the kids called me back. SNAKE! 

It sure it! I bet it's looking for some of those frogs we've also been seeing. I need to pay more attention to where I'm walking apparently. 

What a great job today kids! We've set a new record for hiking! Our previous record was a little over 10 miles back in California. Today they did 10.6 miles! 

That Utz cheese ball container from a few weeks ago is great for their crafting. She used tape to make a hip-band, and it's become a drum. Theresa has said that after she learns to play piano and guitar that she can learn to play the drums next. 

Simply Piano has been going great! The kids celebrate their accomplishments together. After getting 3 stars on a difficult song, they always cheer for each other. 

For better or for worse, I've taught them how to jump out of swings. They need to do a little more practicing. Good thing it's sand where they're landing. I do like that they're a little bit daring. 

The Londonderry Rail Trail was great for catching up on Biking miles. We ended up going twice. I have a separate post about that coming soon too. 

But it was fun seeing the leaves changing colors over there too. 

On our last night, Ian wanted to make s'mores. We'd collected some branches earlier on some of our walks and we need to get rid of them. It didn't take too long for Ian and I to have a roaring fire buring. 

This half-barrel shape offers a little bit of shielding so you can roast your marshmallow without getting too hot. 

Theresa just likes the roasted marshmallows by themselves. 

Uh-oh. Marshmallow fail. 

The kids were quick to offer to roast her a new one. 

Boy we had a lot of fun while we were here in New Hampshire. Meeting new friends, seeing new places, setting new personal records, and just enjoying the beauty. It's been an awesome time, but it's time to move on!