Jomegat's Weblog

Today after church several members went up to Mount Major in Alton, NH for a hike. My family was among them.

As soon as we headed up the mountain, Va slipped on some mud and injured her knee. So she went back to the car and waited for us. I don’t think she much enjoyed the hike. 😦

There were plenty of wildflowers in bloom, including lots of false lily of the valley, blueberry, clintonia, and striped maple. Plus one that at first I thought was mountain laurel, but after having looked in my books and scouring the internet, the only thing I know for sure is that it is not mountain laurel.

I have emailed “Mr. Smarty Plants,” which is actually a gang of botanists connected to the Native Plant Information Network at the University of Texas at Austin. I’ve asked Mr Smarty Plants questions before, and have never been disappointed. I expect I’ll not hear anything until Tuesday though, what with this being a holiday weekend.

When we reached the summit of Mount Major, we hung out a bit and took in the view of Lake Winnipesaukee.

Then we got buzzed by an airplane. On his first pass, I think he was easily within 200 feet. Maybe 100, but heights are deceptively difficult to estimate. We could see the pilot an his passenger pretty easily though.

While we were up there, the temperature dropped about ten degrees. I didn’t have a jacket (and I should have known better, but we were hustling to get our stuff together before we left the house this morning, and a jacket was one of those items I forgot). The trail down was shorter than the trail up, and thus… steeper. But it had some interesting rock formations:

Penny certainly seemed to enjoy the hike. It was one of those rare outings that seemed to wear her out. We hiked three miles, but I don’t know if that was each way or total. Penny, on the other hand, ran up the mountain and back down again at least six times. She’d run ahead, and then run back to us. Then go on a side excursion. Then find us a stick to throw. And if anyone took her up on that proposition, she’d chase the stick and return it post haste. She was one tired dog when we got home.

At the bottom of the mountain, I happened to spot another flower I wasn’t sure of. I suspected it might be a lupin, and when I got home to check that out, my suspicion was confirmed. It’s funny the a wildflower enthusiast such as myself, who spends tons of time outdoors snapping photos of flowers had never seen this one before. It’s maybe the most famous flower in the state. Anyhow, here it is.

Now I need to get to bed. We don’t have anything planned tomorrow (unless I am greatly mistaken), so maybe I’ll get to sleep in a little. My sore legs would sure like that!