On the Road with the Beak

I set out this morning in search of carnivourous plants and a rare species of bird that is common in the NE Kingdom. The NE Kingdom is the rugged part of VT and marks the begining of the Tundra. I have been in elevated forrests in NY State but this promised to be a new adventure.

Route 105 starts in the Champlain Valley and the area is mild in climate compared to the rest of the state. Lake Champlain keeps the temperature from plumeting in the winter. The landscape is filled with Maple and Willows with an odd evergreen tossed about.The route follows the Missisquio river to Richford. The lanscape is a lush green with yellow dandilions as far as the eye can see. In the distance loom the rounded Green Mountains of VT.

Now traveling in this region is fun if the weather is damp or you own a gasmask like Mr Beamish. Today the area was damp and the smell not so bad. However as I tell the locals if a Staten Islander is complaining about foul odors believe it. The smell of the dairy farms is far worse then the Fresh Kills landfill. The locals tell you that you get used to it but the is a load of %$#%$#% much like the source of the horrible smell.

Enosburg Falls is a nice little town one can get gas and shop at the local Hanafords supermarket. The next town Richford is the butt of every joke in the area. There isn't much there but it is a small town with a border crossing. I made a wrong turn and almost ended in Canada.

From Richford to Jay we start entering the Green Mountains. My trips have been North and South . One doesn't really think about how hard it was to travel east west. Even with the luxury of a car and a paved road it is a steep climb. There are much fewer maples and evergreens are more prominent.

The trip down the eastern side is not breath taking .I follow Route 105 back into another plain. The plain area is much like the Champlain plain . For those of you who like farm land the landscape seems like a more colorful Wyeth painting. I do not care for the horible odors eminating from the cows. Thislandscape is unbroken until one comes to Newport. Newport is on the shores of a huge lake Memphragog that is mostly in Canada. It is a huge lake but much smaller then Champlain. In the distance I saw what looked to be a moving stone but with the trusty binoculars it was a large snaping Turlte.

From there I drove along 105 into the famed North East Kingdom. In the distancte the White mountains loom. The White mountains are more interesting to look at from a distance. The Green Mountains are similar to the Catskills and Poconos everthing is smooth and rounded. The White Mountains are angular and the landscape is now filled with evergreens.

I stopped my car at a resting area and entered the a bog. Always test the ground with a stick as you will sink a long way. There were signs of Moose everywhere trees with bark chewed off in a circle around shoulder high. Even some utility poles seemed to have been damaged by Moose. I ventured in looking for some pitcher plants
and did not find any or Muhlenburgs Bog Turtle . I did see a rare Wood Turle and around some good sized Bullfrogs.

I decided to continue to New Hampshire and the scenery was awesome. Route 3 follows the Connecticut river to a nice sized regional town Colebrook. Colebrook. I followed
route 26 to Upton Maine. The top of New Hampshire is narrow but roads follow streams through the Mountains. The highlihgt of the trip is Dixville Notch . Route 26 cuts in between two huge stone formations . I stopped the car in the rest area and inspected the rocks. It was an odd mix of shale , limesone and there looked to be some othrs tossed in. The wind is magnified through the crevice and a one has to account for it while driving.

I continued driving until I had reached Lake Umbagog which borders Maine. The lake is crystal clear and known as a hotspot for fishing trout and suposedly a species of land locked Salmon. I took out my binoculars and observed a great blue heron in the distace. I continued driving unil I had reached Maine and if you blink you will miss the town of Upton.

I may repeat this in a month or so and try the east west pass to the South that my coworkers swear by route 2. The scenery along Route 2 is said to be nicer and it is closer to Portland and lobster rolls.

Mr Beamish in 08, Ducky to be smoked with Cheech and Chong, 167 keeps changing venue, Hank Snow clueless as well as bogus and Socrates aborted yet again he posts I abort life is good.