Doom's Falls

On Sunday, R and I took the Buckaroo to Royalston to hike Doane's Falls. It was too early for the big kids, but they want to go next time. I think of it as Doom's Falls because there are all kinds of signs prohibiting hikers from going anywhere near the water. I guess four people have drown while swimming there in the recent past.

We hiked two miles (it felt like ten-- we need to get out more often!) to Tully Lake Dam, and it was gorgeous. The trail changes from large granite slabs to narrow and rooty and soft with pine needles, to cragged and mucky.

The river mellows, and at one point we looked over a bridge into the water, and the moss was flowing like mermaid hair. We saw baby trout (we think), geese, turtles, blueberries and tea berries everywhere. R says we could make tea from the tea berries, and it's very tasty. I was hoping to see a wood duck (another creature I thought was mythical) but we didn't spot one. When it got warm we could smell the pine trees, and it smelled like home.

The lake fingers out, cattails grow around the edges, and there are islands in the middle.

We stopped at the dam and had lunch while Buckaroo tried to throw himself in front of cars in the parking lot. The hike back to the car was much shorter. Why is it always that way?

Other firsts:

Saw my firsts bats on the lake after sunset. For a second I thought they were giant moths.

R took the big kids kayaking, and they all had a great time. Sweet Potato was worried because her last and only other kayaking experience didn't go so well.

I put on my swim cap and goggles and swam a few laps at sunset. Then I flopped onto the tube and watched the thumbnail moon cross the sky while listening to Jack Johnson from the neighbor's beach.

The stars are out tonight! It's the first cloudless night, or at least the first one I've noticed. Oh, how I've missed the stars.

I went to the packie today (govt liquor store) to buy makings for drink recipes from our friend Deanies Tini Lounge. R is stewing up the mynt symple syrup right now.

Sweet Potato thought she spotted a fisher cat. We have yet to confirm any fisher cat sightings in the area.

I shopped at Wal-Mart! Argh. I feel so dirty. Folks here don't seem to have any problem with shopping at the evil empire. I thought this was a blue state. Don't they know that last year alone Jim Walton (son of Sam) donated $37,300 to the Republicans? Haven't they read Nickel and Dimed? Ok, I'm hopping off of my soap box now.

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be anywhere else to shop around here. When we came out of the store we saw that a shopping cart had rolled into our car and scratched it. Karma, I tell ya.