Blue Ridge Mountain

 The beginning of the "Canty Trail" that ends at the summit of Blue Ridge Mountain. Not the place John Denver sang about, it's also a mountain near Mendon, Vermont.

 About half way up the trail. Steeper than it looks!

 Flowers is pretty. What is it?

 Almost at the top...

View from the "summit" (3,278 feet) of Blue Ridge Mountain looking west towards the town of Rutland.

Trees, rocks and water... you don't need anything else.

This thing is a red-spotted newt. I think. I almost stepped in it.

 Some kind of frog. It looked slimy, so I didn't eat it.

 On the way back down. This is the muddy part.

 This log looks like a moose. It's smiling at me because I have peanuts in my backpack. This confirms my theory: Moose love peanuts.

Cabin near the entrance to the trail. If your abductor takes you here; you're done for.

Ok, my 1st post, let's see how it goes...

Adison and Noah, Easter weekend, I found bubbles in the creepy cellar, kids made good use of them....

A Row with a Piano

Moving Day! As seen here, a piano is ever so heavy!

 Matt & Tom take a well-deserved break. No libations?!

 We moved all of our trash from one house to another.

 Refreshments on the front parlour. Tom and Matt worked ever so hard! And the weather was ever so crappy.

 The famous Rutland Clock Tower. 1.21 gigawatts!

Clouds in the mountains! Looks smashing!

Hurrican Irene: Vermont Tragedy Story

 Oh the humanity! Our neighbor said there was a "branch leaning on the house". See, everything's bigger in Vermont!

 Porch, with a view of the branch and not much else.

 Once again, Fabian Earthmoving bailed us out. They made quick work of the "branch", then we cleaned up the mess...

 Will we ever recover from Irene's wrath? Short answer: no, long answer: yes, we will.

 With so many reports of roads out (we took the detours to prove it, sorry, no carnage pictures!) and flood damage all over Vermont, I couldn't help but feel sorry for myself and the loss of our crab apple tree in the backyard. Good night sweet prince!

 I bought this to keep pirates out of the house, but now I'm a little worried they might find this more of a "welcome" mat instead of a "danger" mat.

 The Vermont State Fair in Rutland, Vermont. What'd you expect? Farm animals, fried dough (more on that later), Charlie Daniels, and a dash of Seaside Heights, New Jersey. The teenagers take over after 7pm, guard your change purse (or man purse, Gerry).

 Meetin' Charlie Daniels on his tour bus. There are a couple of cool things about this... A. He has a "Following Jesus" cup. (follow the link; is it "tongue in cheek"? I've read it a few times and I ain't sure). B. There's a cup holder built into the table! Genius! There's a whole world out there that I didn't know existed. He was a very nice man and his bass player likes history. Thanks dude!

 Charlie Daniels a whoopin' and a hollerin'. The dude can play! Guitar and fiddle. Color me impressed!

 They said this wiener was a foot long. I didn't measure it, but it is a big wiener.

 I didn't think I'd ever see this sign north of the Mason-Dixon Line. Good job Republicans!

Rabbit Jail at the Vermont State Fair. More like the State Un-Fair (thanks Simpsons). Let the bunnies go!

 The porch restored! "O! say does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave", *wipes tear from eye*

The front yard, branch free. Now, with more sun!

The Second Amendment

 Flags at the Hubbardton Battlefield near Hubbardton, Vermont. The flags represent... errr, I'm not sure. One of them is the American Flag! USA USA!

 Statue commemorating the Battle of Hubbardton.

 Thanks to these brave rebels we have the right to bear arms (guns! guns! guns!) against the king of England. I'll die protecting this great land against the likes of you, sire! USA USA!

 The Hubbardton Battlefield. We (the rebels in the Revolutionary War) lost. Sniff.

 Honeybee!

 Start of the trail we hiked near Manchester, Vermont. Rootville Road.

Sitting on the Prospect Rock. The trail was uphill the entire time. Richard Simmons (remember him?) doesn't sweat this much!

 View of Manchester, Vermont from Prospect Rock.

 The Waterfall of Mystery on the Prospect Rock trail (aka "Rootville Road").

 Bonfire Vermont style! This was at a local party (they had moose meat! for eatin!). "I've seen bonfires before" you say. Look close, there's a couch in there. Take that, Mr. Man.

View from the backyard, contemplating Life, The Universe and Everything. Like when will we move to Vermont? When will we sell our house in New Jersey? When will we get jobs in the Vermont? Ahhh, the mysteries of life!

Shelly hiking...

Paddlin' With Beavers

 Talkin' out of turn... that's a paddlin'

 Glen Lake in Vermonts.

 Big rocks is crazy!?! What were they thinkin! 

 What mysteries are in the deep? Mermaids, treasure, sea monsters, a Pepsi can? Give a hoot for Chrimbus sake!

 Beavers! Everybody loves beavers! This is the house they built to live in and follow their dreams. Beaver dreams. Eatin' wood. Choppin' wood. Sawin' down trees. Makin' baby beavers. Circle of Life, baby, Circle of Life. Actually, we didn't see the beaver.

I didn't even think about wanting to drink this lamp oil until I saw this sticker. Now I can't stop thinking about it. How bad would it actually be to drink it? Could it really be that bad? Hmmm... They certainly could have made it look less yummy.