The Flowers Explore - Tuxbury Pond RV Resort - 2021/09/21-28

Today is a travel day! Goodbye Narrows Too! We had a great time exploring Acadia National Park from here! Our next destination is Tuxbury Pond a little south from here. 

There's a bit of a drive today. We're out by the Atlantic Ocean and there isn't a direct path to get to where we're going. We're going to have to drive North to go South. 

We're driving through Maine and then just to the other side of the state line into New Hampshire. 

Crossing the Piscataqua River Bridge and the state line into New Hampshire. 

The next part is where it gets a little tricky. Following Google Maps and our RV specific app for mapping routes, we made our way to Powow Cove Campground. Wait, aren't we supposed to be going to the Tuxbury Pond campground? Well the map is sending up here, and the satellite photo shows that Tuxbury Pond campground is at the end of this road. I guess I'm turning the RV down it. 

About 1/5th of a mile down the narrow 1 lane road I came to a fork. On the right was a private driveway that said "Not a campground entrance" and leads to a private driveway. 

On the left was a chain going across the road and after inspection, it was padlocked. I wasn't looking forward to having to back up the RV all the way to the road. Hopefully the main office of Tuxbury Pond can help us. Oh, that's if we can get a cell signal. Neither Theresa or I could. 

We hopped out of the truck, walked towards that field on the right and got 1 bar of signal. I can see RVs parked right over there. Hopefully someone can help. 

Luckily the main office picked up, was understanding of our situation. A few minutes later their maintenance man drove up in a golf cart, unlocked the chain, and let us drive through. 

Later we figured out that this is the sign we should have been looking for. It's a bit further up the road and takes you down a completely different road to a different entrance. 

Talking to the main office, our site to park the RV is right here where I've drawn the red box. Tuxbury Pond actually crosses the New Hampshire and Massachusetts state line in several places. Just driving in, you go back and forth between states a couple times. When you're using Google Maps, it will give you a verbal "Welcome to Massachusetts/New Hampshire" whenever you cross over. We got a kick out of going back and forth so many times. 

Talking to our neighbor also solved another mystery. Powow Cove Campground was a separate campground on the Massachusetts side. Tuxbury Pond RV Campground was right next door and bought them, closing the Powow Cove entrance and extending a few roads to connect the two campgrounds. 

Our rules for the map state that we only put a sticker on if we're spending a night inside the RV in that state. I'd say we're about 75 feet inside Massachusetts so that counts! Go for it Ian!

Our state map is starting to fill up!

There's one other extra special event going on today. Theresa and Alli are going to stay here in the RV and get everything set up. Ian is going to hop in the truck with me and we're going to drive about an hour into New Hampshire. 

To pick up Grandpa and Grammy! Their first visit to see us in the RV in Gettysburg was such a success that they're coming out for another visit to see us here! They were especially surprised to see Ian in the truck when I pulled up.  

And once we got back to the RV, Alli was really excited to see them too. 

We did a few things together that are going to get their own write-ups. Some though will get written up here. 

The Powow Riverwalk, is a gentle trail along the old rail line beside the Powow River. Perfect for a hike to get out and stretch our legs. 

Along part of the 1.3 mile trail was a storywalk. On the fence, every hundred yards or so, were pages from a book. The kids took turns running ahead and reading the pages. The book, Me... Jane, told the story of a young girl named Jane who loved observing the world and helping animals. By the end, we learn that it's about Jane Goodall who grew up to work with chimpanzees. 

Going under bridges. 

It was an enjoyable 2.6 mile walk. 

After walking, we drove back to the RV to let the grandparents relax a bit, while I loaded the bikes into the car. Time to get a few more miles in!

When we got back to the RV resort we continued our exploration of all the things they have to play with. Our neighbor told us about their two swimming pools, but when we tried to swim the gate was locked. The next day the water was halfway drained and the day after that everything was covered for the season. At least they have bocce ball, tetherball, a playground, and horseshoes. 

Looking out over the lake at sunset. 

There's even a Little Free Library here! We love finding those! 

As we were walking, there certain places where there are strong smells. Theresa said "Something really smells like grapes here." Looking around further, it's grapes! Tons of grapevines have attached themselves to the bushes and trees in this area, even growing 30 feet in the air! 

They smell a lot like Concord Grapes. Theresa checked with the office regarding if we could pick them. Their answer was just "they are there" not wanting to take any responsibility for us if we decide to eat them, but not saying we can't either.

They smelled amazing but they have a large pit in the middle. We've found free apples and now grapes. They might not be the best for eating, but Theresa has had thoughts about buying a juicer. 

Tuxbury Pond is full of lily pads! It would not be so easy to swim in. The office rents kayaks, but I think it would be a little difficult getting around. 

It's always fun to watch movies with the grandparents. We chose Raya and the Last Dragon. Ian made sure we watched through the credits to see Uncle Ruston's name. 

At the main office and camp store, I was looking around to see what they had and ran across this sign for these giant jawbreakers. That's got to be a mistake right? 10 cents each? 

I went up front to the counter to check and they said they're clearancing them out for the season. The whole resort will be shutting down in 3 weeks. I looked over at Theresa and she gave me a nod in the affirmative. 

Kids! Go grab them all!

Instead of counting them all out, the worker did a quick guestimate and said "60? That'll be $6." Oh my!

Once we got them back home to the RV the kids helped me count. Final tally was 102 jawbreakers! I love these. They are going to last me a really long time. 

Sadly the grandparents were only able to visit for a few days. It was great to see them. 

We'll see you very soon! 

The kids have a project here at the campground (which will be in a future post) so I took them to the airport myself. Bye!

Let's get some biking miles in! The Windham Rail Trail is nearby. Love those Rail Trails! They're flat, and sometimes they're paved!

There's even a caboose that's parked here!

The kids like to have an "animal of the day". There were two we saw that qualified, but only one that I was fast enough to get a photo of. This turtle was making its way across the path. He almost looked like a rock!

The other animal was a red-headed woodpecker. It flew low across the path right in front of our bikes, then right up into a tree. The kids immediately thought of Woody Woodpecker. 

There was a low probability of rain in the forecast. Less than 20%. We were keeping an eye on it, but things are not looking all that good. 

I love how portions of the trail have been painted. The barriers look like animals. 

And the posts have been painted to look like Aspen tree trunks. 

Alli's favorite was this squirrel holding a heart. 

A tortoise and a frog. 

On one section of the ground, the Robert Frost poem, The Road Not Taken, was painted. "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood." It was a little too difficult to read going at bike speeds, but it was still a nice touch. At the end of the poem, were footprints leading down the path, backtracking, then heading off into the woods. 

It's a good thing I have this orange rain bag on the front of my bike bag. It's starting to come down a bit harder now. 

We found a section of the trail where the mountain has been carved out for the trail tracks. That was a while ago and the trees have started to grow over them. It's a place that the trees have formed a natural umbrella, and it's here we decided to break for lunch. 

Alli - Rain rain, go away! (threateningly) I don't want to say it twice!

Ian - You brought a rain cover for the bag and not us? 

Alli - The bag got more love than we did!

When the rain started to clear, we started our bike trip back to the car. We ended up doing over 15 miles today, even with the rain! 

Despite the difficulties getting in, Tuxbury Pond was a great place to stay!