22Aug05 - A weekend away and wasps

Well Rayne took the day off on Friday so we could make the 4 hour trip up to New Hampshire for the weekend. As is usual here, there was a major car accident on one of the highways so we got slightly diverted on the way up but had a couple of nice "doggie breaks" on the way.

We stopped at an outdoor smokehouse for lunch. The food was good but we were a little overwhelmed when our lunch for two turned out to be enough to feed a small family (say 4-5). So we ate what we could and stripped the rest off and put it in a plastic bag for dog treats.

We arrived at the Lazy Dog Inn at 2:30 (1/2 hr before we were supposed to) and signed into our room. The place was really cozy (especially our room), there was a fenced play area in the back, and a kennel where all the dogs have their own (tempreature controlled) dog run. We quickly checked it out, unpacked our things and asked where in the area we could take the dogs for a walk and a swim. We ended up just down the street at White Lake state park where we paid 3.00/adult to park our car and off we went.

The lake we went to was very nice and had gentle sloping sandy beach so Kyla ran in like a dirty shirt. Rayne and I slipped off our sandles and went wading with her, Brodie sat on the shore looking rather frustrated. After a little coaxing Brodie joined us and actually began to swim! Unfortunately shortly after that a lifeguard wandered over to us (we stayed away from the swimming area) and informed us that they do not allow animals in the park. He was very nice and said we could walk down a trail to another beach if we'd like but that dogs weren't allowed in the park.

We went off down the trail to the next beach and proceeded to have a great time with the dogs. On the way back we got another little surprise, Rayne was carrying a "poopie" bag and went to ask where she could dispose of it. She was told that the park was "carry in/carry out", in other words there were no waste bins at all. Not a big deal for us, Rayne just went the the washroom and disposed of it there. The truly odd thing is, the beach was packed with families that were picknicking, barbecquing and generally enjoying themselves, it seemed strange to me that they would all have to pack out everything they had brought in......I wonder how many really do?

We then took off to explore the nearby towns of Conway and North Conway. Conway was nothing to write home about (so I won't), but North Conway was a beautiful little place. It was right across from a ski resort and included all manner of interesting little shops and a scenic railroad. Very much like an Eastern Banff idea. We walked the streets and did some window shopping before heading back to the Inn to relax for the evening.

When we arrived back at the Inn, all the other guests had arrived. There were dogs everywhere, Pappillons, Skipperkees, Boxers, Retrievers, a Cairn and an adorable grey 4 month old Great Dane named "Sadie". Brodie and Kyla were in their glory until little (50lb) Sadie laid a heavier than anticipated paw on Kyla. I guess it surprised her and so Kyla became a little "nippy" with the big dogs. Luckily that only lasted over night (by Sunday Kyla, Sadie and Brodie were chasing each other with abandon in the play area). The only dog Brodie had issues with was a Boxer named Blaze who was also "intact", we just kept them away from one another.

The evening was spent talking to the Inn Keepers (Steve and Lauren) and the rest of the guests around an outdoor fire and sipping wine while the dogs got used to each other. It was very pleasant and Steve and Lauren were very nice folks. They opened the Inn a year ago because they had vacationed in the area for years and always had a difficult time finding a place to bring Megahn and Molly (their 2 golden retrievers). Since then they have been booked non stop and have been rated as the most dog friendly place to stay in North America. Quite a success story really!

The next day we took the dogs for a couple of short hikes along the Kancamagus scenic byway. Everyone in the area calls it the "Kanc" because it's too difficult to spit out. We met up with our friends Ryan and Cristina and went to a little spot called the Muddy Moose for lunch. We spent the afternoon exploring shops in North Conway and settled in for an early evening to watch a movie.

On the drive back we decided to take a different route and traversed the entire Kancamagus byway to Vermont and the I-91. The road was beautiful and windy for about 60 miles before we hit the freeway. We stopped in a couple of spots to do short hikes and walk the puppies. It also happened to be Kyla's 1st birthday.

Driving through Vermont was breathtaking. The highway takes much better advantage of the vistas than the I-95 and route 16 that we used to get to New Hampshire. There were plenty of nice bridges that afforded wonderful views of rivers as you crossed and the region is very hilly. The drivers in Vermont are something akin to oblivious Saltspring Islanders on Prozac. They meander in and out of lanes without much thought and must make the drivers from New Hampshire (whose license plate state "Live Free or Die") as well as the more uptight Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut a little crazy. All in all the little extra time for the drive home was well worth it.

We arrived home with some amount of trepidation. You see the prior two days I had been on a mission of sorts. Somehow our kitchen and dining room had become home to an alarming numbers of wasps. I had spent the Thurdays swatting and trying to figure out where they were all coming from. I would kill 3 or 5 in the dining room, go to the kitchen, kill as many there, return to the dining room, only to see another swarm. In total I must have killed more than 50 wasps. When I was finished I went to relax in the living room and was promptly stung by one of the survivors! Karma I guess.

We opened the door to the house and sure enough there were several wasps and about twice as many wasp caracasses lying around the windows. On the way in the door Rayne was stung too! I went out today and bought some spray to use around the windows, hopefully that will help (along with the 4 nest I had already done).

BTW I must say Happy Birthday to my sis Kelly in Winnipeg. I hope you have a great day and the year brings you many pleasant days to follow.

Here's hoping that you are all well!