Around New England

This week we check out a fun walk around Haverhill's first and largest park,  Winnekenni Park in Haverhill, MA.  This park is located not far off 495 and has something for everyone.  It's really not too far from Ski Bradford which is a hidden gem of a learning ski mountain.  This park has over 700 acres to explore!
The hike around the pond is called the Winnekenni Shoreline Loop.  It's a lot of fun if you are up for an easy 4.5 mile hike.  If you don't want to do the walk (or aren't able to), you can drive up the road to check out Winnekenni Castle.  The castle was built with the stones from the property!  On the hike, be sure to keep your eye out for the glacial drumlins!  
After this hike we went to Roasted Coffee Bar for some coffee and baked goods.  Oh boy!  Their selection of buns were amazing.  We tried an original roll (like a sweet cinnamon bun) and a Nutella roll.  Their chocolate chip cookie was good too!  This place also had breakfast and lunch food that looked amazing.  We need to go back for some of that when we don't have the dog!  
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Join us this week as we head back to Vermont to hike Mount Ascutney.  We hiked the Weathersfield Trail.  This dog-friendly hike leads to great views from the observation tower at the summit (will this be the one Mike actually goes up?), the west peak, and even has a hang gliding platform that is actually used!  There are also cascades that are visible when the water is flowing.
The trail is very well maintained by the Ascutney Trail Association (ATA).  There is also an auto road that will take you within .4 miles of the hang glider platform and the summit firetower, although it is a little bit of a hike with elevation gain.  
After our hike, we enjoyed a great lunch at Brownsville Butcher and Pantry!  This place is a 10/10!  Their food is great, they have good coffee drinks, and soft serve ice cream.  The store attached to the butcher has great beer selections including Non Alcoholic Zero Gravity Craft Brewery.  They also carry the Vermont classic, Heady Topper!  Be sure to check them out after hiking this cool trail.  
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This week Mike and Pemi did a solo hike in the Seacoast area of New Hampshire while G was away for the weekend. 
This quick tour talks about the highlights of Stratham Hill Park.  It's super dog-friendly and has 10 miles of trails!  We did the 5 mile loop and it was great. 
This park is located near Portsmouth as well as Hampton and Exeter.  If you are staying nearby, plan on spending a little time here!  The trails can be tricky to navigate if you want to venture out far, so using AllTrails app was nice.  
There are a series of exercise platforms that you can utilize on this hike.  It was buggy the day we did this, but the trails we not muddy.  They could be muddy if there had been rain, so plan accordingly.  
Other nearby hikes that are great are the Great Bay Estuary and Odiorne Point State Park.
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This week we discuss hiking with a dog.  Be sure to check with your vet to be sure you aren't overdoing it with your little buddy! 
We give several tips on when to turn around, what to bring for the dog on trail, trail etiquite, and of course some of our favorite hikes to do with a dog.  
We discovered BringFido.com to be a great tool when finding hikes for your dogs.  
Some of our favorites:
Mount Major, Alton, NH
Mount Agamenticus (Mount A) York, ME
Mount Kearsage 
Any Beach
Urban Forestry Center
Stratham Hill Park
Franconia Falls
We even talk about some of the most dog-friendly cities we have visited like Portland and Freeport, Maine.  
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Join us this week as we hike another mountain from the 52 With A View list, Mount Israel.  This is a family and dog friendly hike with some fantastic views from the summit!  
The hike has many different features to it including the rare (to New England) switchbacks!  We hiked via the Wentworth Trail and it was a lot of fun.
After the hike we hit up Eldridge Family Sugar Shack to get some maple soft serve (known as a maple creemee in Vermont).  This place didnt disappoint.  They even had Pup Cups for Pemi!  It was a win for us all!  Check them out when in the Tamworth area of New Hampshire.  It will be worth it!
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Join us this week as we cool off at two great swimming holes.  We found these from the book "Falcon Guide's Swimming Holes New England: 50 of the Best Swimming Spots" by Sarah Lamagna.
First we went hiked up the Rattle River Trail to find a few nice secluded pools.  We had them to ourselves the whole time.  We didn't even see many hikers this day.  It's located near Gorham, NH.  It is part of the Appellation Trail and is one of the trails that goes up to Mount Moriah.
Next we headed over to Newry, Maine to the Sunday River Road Pools.  Located right off the road, this swim area is a lot of fun.  There is only parking for about 15 cars, so get there early on a hot day. 
After these great swim holes we decided to skip on going back to Steam Mill Brewing because it was hot out and we had the dog.  We decided to just grab some baked goods at Puzzle Mountain Bakery.  It's a small farm stand on the side of the road that takes cash or Venmo.  It's well worth the trip.
On the way home we made another stop to Poland Provisions in Poland, Maine.  This is a cute little cafe and general store to grab sandwiches or treats for heading to the mountains.  Check them out.  We'll be back!
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This week we were so excited to go to a listener's recommendation and We hit 3 New England states in one hike!  The Buck Hill Management Area has a trail that will take you from Rhode Island into Massachusetts, along the border of Connecticut, and back to Rhode Island again.  This 7.5 mile loop had just over 600 feet of elevation gain.  
Be sure to wear your orange during hunting season as pheasant hunting is a big draw to this area.  Dogs are allowed on leash anytime but can only be off leash after August 15th and Before April 1.  This trail hits the Mid-State Trail and the North- South Trail.  Both are cool New England through hikes.  The pinnacle of this hike is the monument that marks the point where CT, RI, and MA all meet.  It's several miles into the woods.
There is a part of the trail is reportedly haunted because of Laura Sherman's grave which is somewhere along this loop.  The grave markers were repetatldy stolen, so they were eventually removed.  Check out this Rhode Island Public Radio article!  
After the hike Mike wanted a Del's Lemonade but there were none in this remote corner of Rhode Island.  G found an amazing little coffee shop in Burrillville called New Leaf.  They were a great post-hike treat!
Thanks for the listener who recommended this one, and thanks for tuning in!
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Join us this week as we hike on the stunning property of the Marsh Billings Rockefeller Farm and Museum.  This is actually a National Park, the first of which dedicated to land stewardship.  The trails are free to walk around.  You can park at the museum and use their facilities for free.  We have checked out the farm and museum many years ago and we had fond memories. 
This trip was all about hiking and checking out the property. Mount Tom is located on the property and was on the list of places we intitally wanted to check out.  We missed a turn and chose to prioritize hiking to see the Pogue.  This man-made pond is located at the foot of Mount Tom.  There is a loop around one of the clearest pond I've seen due to no swimming or recreation rules.
After this awesome hike we got some Maple Creemees and crullers at Farmer and the Bell in Woodstock.  This place was so good, we almost turned around to get more!
Other adventures to do in this area that we have mentioned in prior episodes include visiting the VINS center in Quechee.  We have also hiked Mount Gile and Quechee Gorge.  Of course we have to also give a shout out to Baird Farm in Chittenton!  Check out all these places while in the area.  It's a fun part of Vermont!
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Join us this week as we hike two more family friendly and dog friendly hikes around Portland, Maine.  First we hiked the popular Back Cove Trail area conveniently located right off 295. This is an easy 3.5 mile loop that must be a very popular spot for locals to get their exercise.  We can't say that we blame them!  There are city views as well as nice views of the water and the surrounding Back Cove neighborhood.  
Check out our previous episode about other Portland Hikes.
After the hike around the back cove, we checked out Tandem Coffee Roasters.  They even have a dog-friendly patio for your little hiking partner.  Their coffee and treats were amazing!  Check them out!
Next we hiked the Presumpscot River Trail which is part of the Presumpscot River Preserve.  This trail actually starts in Falmouth and ends in Portland at the mouth of the Casco Bay.  It's much more rural than Back Cove and a little more challenging in spots.  The views are cool and it ends at some cool falls!  Well worth the hike!
After that hike we wanted some lunch and went over to Argenta Brewing Company.  The had a food truck on site that you could order food from Hank & Arties Food truck.  The beers were good and the burgers were great!  
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This week we hike another 52 With A View mountain, Stinson Mountain in Rumney, NH.  This mountain has some great views and an awesome trail going up.  Listen to this podcast to avoid making the same mistake we made coming back down!  Overall this mountain is a lot of fun to hike.  It's relatively easy, and has great bang for your buck!
We have done several on the list so far.  Check out our Blog on the 52 With A View hikes that we have done as of the time we recorded this podcast.
After the hike we went back to Last Chair Brewery & Restaurant in Plymouth, NH.  Their food was good.  We brought our puppy "Pemi" and sat outside on the patio.  They even had dog water dishes for the pups to use!  The food, vibe and patio were all very cool!  Check them out, they are right at the traffic circle in Plymouth, so pretty easy to hit up after a day of skiing or hiking.  
After a reminiscent drive through Plymouth, we decided to return to Pure & Brave for some amazing iced maple lattes to cap off a really fun day!  
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