This past weekend,  I traveled to the white mountains of New Hampshire.  A place that is stunning but also near and dear to my heart.  I lived there for two summers back in 2009 and 2010. Since then, I have returned a number of times and experienced many adventures, developed relationships, had many laughs and tears, all around I hold a lot of memories in this area. 

      This trip came at the last minute and I debated with myself whether I should go because I would be on my own. The potential for mishaps or off the grid injury or wildlife encounters are high and I told myself that I had "a lot going on right now".  I then recognized this fear was myself trying to limit my own potential....so I booked the trip. As soon as I realized that fear was attempting to hold me back, this possibility began to excite me.

    This awareness also made me more attuned to the outer persuasion that was occurring around me.  How many people told me I shouldn't go... that I needed to be careful..all were said out of care and concern for my well-being but it still felt like pressure and that I had to appease someone other than myself. This does not fly with me anymore. Should's are like boulders placed upon someone's shoulders (including our own). When you live an empowered lifestyle we are meant to do what we want to do and when we want to do it if it aligns with our intuition. It is always your choice of when and how you use your time and your responsibility to hold your own boundaries. You have every right to say no... and also more than every right to say yes. If you want to.

     I knew I was making the right move when the night before I left, Cupcake, my favorite photogenic bear stopped by my house to say hello and send me off on my way! She greeted me with the most magnificent smiles as if to say hey there long lost friend! (I had not had an interaction with her since March) Bears are a symbol of strength and confidence which was my reinforcement that I had everything I needed to face the unknown. 

     Already, this trip was different. No one to plan with, no one to talk to, just me and my weirdly awesome self doing EXACTLY what I want to do at all times.  And all the signs on the planet saying yes please, go ahead with out caution. When I am alone, I have an uncanny ability to connect with something bigger than myself and at the same time I am led to magical places and things to then take magical photos. In a nutshell, I listen to my intuition. I started off the trip by making a quick stop at Lost River Gorge. An attraction I have never visited and figured I should finally check it out. This place is filled with decorative bears! That was my favorite part :)

      My next stop was a trail I had previously hiked but had not gone all the way to the top. I had no intention of completing the trail this time either. I simply wanted to go and sit near some waterfalls to relax. Once I got there and realized how much I had missed the first time I hiked the trail, I couldn't stop myself from continuing on. The falls were stunning. The trail was not terribly long, but definitely steep with tricky footing in places. Each time I thought I had reached the "best view" I kept seeing those in front of me continuing higher. Now I was more intrigued to see where they were going. I continued on until I reached the top, completely impressed with my view and my own ability to keep on when I thought it couldn't get better.

   My final hike for that day was the Mt. Pemigewassett trail also known as "Indian Head trail". This is a 3.5 mile out and back trail that I would classify as a moderate hike. For the Whites, it is easy. I powered through this because it appeared a storm was potentially brewing close by and I was losing daylight! The entire trail is an incline, rocky and a very solid lower body workout. I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and the view at the top was magnificent. Due to it being later in the day, the trail was empty until I reached the top. The few folks that were there were beginning to make their way down as it had gotten so windy. It took me approximately 45 minutes to reach the summit . I gave myself about ten minutes to enjoy the view, but between the wind and the incoming storm, I was ready to head back down to make sure I made it down safely. I ran most of the way down and with the obstacles it was quite exhilarating. This would be a great trail for a sunrise, but you would have to give yourself ample time to do it and definitely bring flashlights!

      Once I reached the bottom, I made my way into the Franconia Notch to view the sunset. I had seen those storm clouds brewing and knew it would be the prime opportunity for an incredible sky if the sun hit them just right. The first spot I stopped in gave me an okay view and I thought the sunset was just going to fizzle. I took some pictures then hopped in my car to keep moving so I could search for the moving dusk wildlife aka deer, moose, bears and anything else that wanted to show themselves! As soon as I drove up the road, I said WOAHHH and pulled right over to continue my photo shoot. I didn't have the best view from this location so I continued on to the Cannon mountain parking lot. It was INCREDIBLE. We were probably 15 minutes past sunset time and that show was just starting! Who needs fireworks!! :)

     The next morning, I continued my tradition of rising early every time I travel to find a sunrise. I hit the trail and did a quick hike for a decent view. Unfortunately, the sky this morning had absolutely no clouds in it unlike the night before. If you don't know, clouds are what make spectacular sunrises and sunsets. It gives character, depth, adds interesting lighting and colors. When you don't have clouds and just a crystal clear sky, the scene is just a typical sunrise. Still beautiful, but I felt no need to stick around to watch it transform into something bigger. I headed down the trail and hit the road! On the morning drive around the notch and surrounding areas I spotted a white-tail deer and 2 turkey parents with multiple babies.  Everyday began with multiple turkeys along the roadways escorting their babies. Turkeys are a symbol of abundance especially when you see them with their many babies. Abundance is everywhere if and when you are open to receiving it. They are an interesting animal to me that I typically only see when interacting with certain people.

     One of my best pieces of advice for anyone would be that if you drive past something and say "what was that" or "oh that looks cool" you should stop, get out and check it out. Don't wait until your next trip. There is a reason it caught your attention.

     I soon stopped driving around when I wanted to stop and explore. One of my first stops was to my favorite waterfalls, Sabbaday Falls, which is a popular family place on the Kancamagus highway. The last time I rolled through Lincoln about a month ago, I was disappointed to see Sabbaday had been closed and there was no indication of when it may reopen. I happened to see a social media post claiming the spot was reopened within the past week or two so I made sure to check it out! When I arrived, NOT A SOUL was there! I had the entire attraction and waterfalls to myself. This is a photographers dream as well as for someone who gets extremely drained around crowds of people. 

     At the base of Sabbaday falls laid a beautiful heart shaped rock positioned perfectly next to cairns. Cairns on most hiking trails are hand made piles of stone that are typically trail markers. As if to say, you are on the right path or "right this way".  The message I received here with the position of the heart shaped rock right next to the cairns was "Following your heart IS the right direction." It actually is the ONLY direction.

    When I finished at Sabbaday, I debated about where to go next. There were a number of trails in that area that I found interesting and the landscape is PERFECT for a moose habitat. I ended up pulling in to the Sawyer Pond Trail parking lot on a whim. I had looked into this trail a while ago, but I had no intention of doing it so I couldn't remember the details. The sign and map told me it was 4.5miles to Sawyer Pond and the area looked relatively flat. No big deal! I'll do one long trail to get my exercise in today instead of exploring multiple trails. Perfect. I started off. I walked for about 30 seconds and ran into a body of water. I thought hmmm......now what? Where's the trail? I followed a small trail along the river that looked like it hadn't been frequented much this past year. I went through a lot of tall grasses and weeds that dumped me out onto a small beach next to the river. I looked down to see prints and said okay someone was just here the trail must be close! And then I looked closer.....those are NOT human feet. I had been trailing a moose! It was so exciting. Sure, moose are huge and could kill me with one kick easily. But, they are rare to see (I've now seen 3 in my whole life) and they are incredible animals. It would have been an honor to see one up close and personal and outside of the comfort of my car. But for now, I settled for some fresh awesome footprints of what looked like mama moose and her baby and later fresh moose poop (on a different trail)! I finally realized that in order to actually be on the Sawyer Pond Trail you have to forge the river. Alrighty then! Totally not what I expected to be doing at 8:00am but why not, right? I really enjoyed this hike. It was flat for the first 2 miles approximately then it gradually went uphill the remainder of the way. Arriving at Sawyer Pond was beautiful and I would love to go back to spend more time there. The trail itself was not spectacular with a lot of things to see. But I did find many frogs, changing vegetation, and even a rowdy squirrel that I swear was having a full blown conversation with me...I think every animal does this actually!

     On my last day, my legs were quite sore. I had hiked a lot and I hiked hard. I did some shorter and steep trails over the weekend, but I had run up and back down them. My body can handle it, but I don't do it all the time so when I do...I feel it. I knew I had to sit in the car for a while on my drive home so the best remedy was a trip to the river. The temperatures had dropped into the 40's overnight and that water was frigid! But an ice bath has always been the perfect trick to sore muscles. And peaceful rivers clear all negativity in your spirit instantly.

     After my ice bath in the river, I was led to travel back to Lincoln, NH via the Kancamagus highway. I passed by a pond that I had never seen before on my many trips over this highway. I quickly turned around and went back to check it out. I love ponds! They attract all sorts of wildlife and for photography they offer great reflections and typically beautiful landscapes around them. This stop is called Lily Pond. Right next door was the entrance to a trail that would lead you to Sawyer Pond! Go figure! I needed to move a little bit and I didn't want to waste much more time so I decided I would head down this trail for 30 minutes or so and then head back to my car. I will DEFINITELY be going back to do this whole trail! I found so many exciting things here within the first 5 minutes. The area is filled with Metallic green damselflys also known as ebony jewelwings that I swear are fairies on earth! The path itself was lined with Lady Slipper plants that were just past their blooming time. I have never seen so many in one area! I then stumbled upon fresh moose poop and anticipated I might see some sort of wildlife in this spot.

The White Mountains are an incredible place and a gorgeous area to explore. I would highly recommend it to anyone. I can't wait to go back and cover some more land! Don't let anyone or anything hold you back from what it is you want to do with your life. 

~AcornTales