Farmer's Market Delight!

Among several other delicious and healthy meals made this summer, here is one made entirely from our purchases from the Farmer's Market, complete with two different kinds of lettuce, white turnips, cucumbers, strawberries, and a homemade sesame vinaigrette. Yum!

Hampton Beast.

As I wrote earlier, the morning in Newmarket and Portsmouth was followed by an afternoon trip to Hampton Beach, an beach town south of Portsmouth and normally a 40 minute drive from Dover. We heard that there were several activities taking place in the town during the afternoon (which was true), but we didn't realize just how unbelievably crowded the island would already be so early in the tourist season.

Nonetheless, after spending upwards of an hour circling the island in search of parking, and ultimately paying $15 for that parking, we were off for a brief exploration. While we will not brave the traffic again to see the end product, one of the coolest sights was the annual sand sculpture competition. It was just getting underway during our visit, and so we had the chance to watch the sculptors begin to produce masterpieces from piles of sand.


In addition to the piles of sand, we also encountered piles of people. It was quite a ragtag bunch at Hampton Beach that afternoon, but everyone seemed to be having a good time. Charlotte and I squeezed ourselves into the front-most row of sunbathers and got a view of many waves and (blessedly!) few people.


After watching the waves break peacefully on the beach for a while, we headed north on the beach a bit, to where ocean catamarans were flying ashore after a race just offshore.

It was quite a spectacle to see the boats coming in to shore, but nothing compared to our own sailing skills. Not sure what this means? Stay tuned for an upcoming post about our latest summer pursuit!

Newmarket, Dog-sitting, Portsmouth, oh my!

Last weekend (when we promised to write), things got hectic and this weekend both Mike's brother, Kevin, and my own brother, Andreas, graduated from Shaker High School and Minisink Valley High School. Congratulations! But...more on that later! We thought that we would take a few minutes to catch you up on our adventures in New Hampshire last weekend before moving on to more recent excitements.

After a long week in the lab and field (me) and in the Portsmouth City Attorney's Office (Mike), we spent the majority of the weekend in Newmarket, NH, at a friend's apartment to watch her wonderfully loving and friendly, superbly-behaved dog, Keeley (seen below).


We stayed over in the apartment Friday night, which was quite a luxury, as the apartment is located in one of the beautifully restored mill buildings on the Lamprey River, which runs into Great Bay. On Saturday morning, we started the day with a trip to The Big Bean, a great little bright-colored breakfast cafe on Main Street, where I ordered some eggs with asparagus, arugula, pancetta, and goat cheese (yum!!) and Mike had a delicious-looking fresh omelette.

Fr0m there, we went, with Keeley in tow, to the Newmarket Farmer's Marker at the Stone Church up the hill, where the highlights included the purchase of kale, some dark burgundy Lollo Rossa lettuce, and white turnips. Most significantly, however, was our extensive conversation with Dr. Tomato (aka Lord Duncan of Castle Anam Cara). We were given sage advice and eventually escaped with a warm invitation to visit his castle whenever we were in the area, which we may very well do (and which will undoubtedly inspire another blog post)!


After our purchases at the Newmarket Farmer's Market, we took Keeley along in the car to Portsmouth for more Saturday morning activities. Our first stop was at the Portsmouth Farmer's Market.


Though much bigger, the variety was about the same, so we ended up purchasing just another head of lettuce, some arugula, and a pound of local ground beef from Greenland, NH. Below are the combined purchases, along with some scapes from the Dover Community Garden that we just harvested!


We proceeded to the dog park, where Keeley met several friends, including a friendly pug, a fluffy Newfoundland, a Husky, and some other fun small dogs. We proceeded afterwards to walk around Portsmouth, out to Pierce Island, where a great view of the harbor can be seen.



Last on our tour of Portsmouth with Keeley-dog was a hop aboard a Piscataqua Gundalow. Though no longer used actively, the gundalow was once used extensively in the rivers and estuaries in the area as a flat-bottomed cargo barge. The barge was dependent on the rising and falling tides to travel, with lateen sails used for "help." The volunteers on the deck were extremely friendly in showing us the boat, and even poured buckets of saltwater over the deck of the boat to keep Keeley's feet from burning!



We left Portsmouth ever wiser, as occurs with the majority of our excursions. There is still much to explore, and explore we shall! See you soon to catch you up on the latter part of our day!

Familiar places in a new light (part one)

Last week, we took a trip to the Great Bay here in the Dover/Newington, NH area. To most folks, this isn't a big deal, since the major road through the area (the Spaulding Turnpike) runs right through the area, and it's a drive made daily by many people. However, commuting from the one side of the bay to the other wasn't always so uneventful, as the name for the area on the Newington side demonstrates (this photos is also included for its dark comedic value).
More to the point, Charlotte and I have long been curious about the bridge that runs immediately alongside the highway, which is now open to the public as part of a walking/biking trail running from Dover to Portsmouth.
Walking the bridge provided a chance to go for a nice walk. Better still, it offered a chance to slow down and enjoy a view that we more commonly whiz by at 50MPH. The photo below shows just one of the many gorgeous vistas of the Great Bay that the bridge offers.
Next, we hope to traverse the bridge by bike, en route from Dover to Portsmouth. Stay tuned for more photos of this past weekend and future explorations!

The Magical Cape

Greetings again! With apologies for the delay, here is a quick recap (with an emphasis on photographs) of our recent trip to wonderful Woods Hole/Cape Cod, MA. After a week in the office/lab/field, Charlotte and I loaded up Mort the Mazda with our bikes and clothes and hit the trails southbound from NH!

The pretext for the trip was to pay a visit to Dr. Angstadt (Mike's dad), who is on the faculty for a summer course taught at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL). While there are too many details to delve into (perhaps more may be fleshed out during a follow-up visit next summer), this offered a really special opportunity to spend time with quirky, hilarious and extremely intelligent scientists from around the country/globe. Another benefit of the visit, however, is that Woods Hole is incredibly gorgeous, so have a look! Here's the downtown (with a drawbridge poised to open)...

...0ne of the MBL boat docks downtown.

The ferry terminal, from whence you can be whisked away to Martha's Vineyard OR Nantucket!

The view from near our idyllic hotel with a soap-opera name ("The Sands of Time")!

And one of the many beaches along the nice, flat bike path that runs from Woods Hole to Falmouth, MA. There is some dispute among experts regarding exactly how much time baby Mike Angstadt spent at this beach during the time he lived at Woods Hole. However, while the debate continues, this photo gets included, not only because I spent at least some time sunning myself on this beach, but also because it shows Charlotte after her first test drive of a road bike.

This is an out-of-order mention, but for anyone who has ever spent time in Oneonta, NY, it should be known that there is an equally charming, equally pro-local food, and equally delicious "Pie in the Sky" in Woods Hole. Both deserve a visit!

Having spent a day at Woods Hole, Charlotte and I geared up for what would hopefully be a beautiful half-day at Martha's Vineyard. Accordingly, we loaded our bikes on the ferry and headed off with high hopes for sunnier weather, despite the dense fog. Shortly thereafter (maybe around 8:30 AM), we were greeted by a marked increase in the wind-can you tell? It wasn't looking good, but then we looked on the other side of the ferry.

This is the view from the other side of the ferry. Note Martha's Vineyard in the distance, as well as the apocalyptic thunderstorm rapidly overtaking the boat.

Right on cue, the ferry pulled up to the dock, and Charlotte and I found ourselves in the midst of the most ferocious thunderstorm I have ever experienced. Here we are under some of the only shelter available, thoroughly drenched after walking only about 20 feet off the ferry ramp. Over the course of the next hour, the weather became truly unbelievable.

The rain, thunder, and lightning intensified to an extreme degree. And, while we don't have a picture to prove it, at the peak of the storm a house just beyond the ferry terminal caught on fire when struck by lightning! What a morning!

Fortunately, the storm didn't last forever, and after about an hour, we were able to bike across the island (though at times in up to a foot of water) to Oak Bluffs, where we test-rode a very old carousel!

Afterwards, we took a stroll through the very picturesque gingerbread cottage neighborhood in Oak Bluffs, and took a gander at the gorgeous outdoor meetinghouse/cathedral in the center of the vacation community.

After our time in Martha's Vineyard, we headed back to Woods Hole for a day and a half of decidedly better weather. We took a bike ride on the bike path (we cheated and used this photo above, so refer upwards if you forget what it looks like), visited the free NOAA aquarium, ogled a couple of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute ships, and sampled the local fare some more. Our day of departure brought the best weather of the visit, so we had trouble tearing ourselves away from the warm salt breezes. In the meantime, we rounded up Dr. A to show us some of the sights...

And then did some final exploring of our own!

With our trip behind us, it's back to Dover, Durham, and Portsmouth...ughhh. Not really! The official start of summer is just around the corner, and things are getting truly beautiful around here. So, stay tuned, as there is plenty to update you on from here. Until then, enjoy the beautiful weather wherever this post finds you!

Our trip to Otisville gets memorial-ized!

Before we get too far into our summer adventures here in New England, it's time to take a moment and share our wonderful Memorial Day trip to Otisville, NY with you all!

While the extended weekend was a great opportunity to visit with Charlotte's family, it wasn't all relaxation: we had important business to attend to!

First on the agenda was a quick trip to Mike's apartment in glorious White Plains to finish provisioning for the long New England summer. However, this doesn't make for very blog-worthy fodder. So after quickly mentioning that upon our return to Otisville I (Mike) had the opportunity to see my first in-the-wild bald eagle (and baby!) near Charlotte's house, we forge onward to Saturday.

After a morning walk around Otisville and a delicious salad nicoise, courtesy of Charlotte's father, we (Charlotte, Charlotte's mother, and I) headed off to participate in a very wonderful memorial 5K race. While my race time was nothing to write home (or on this blog) about, we had a great time getting fresh air and seeing some of Charlotte's hometown friends; best of all, the weather cooperated until after the race had ended.

The following day brought still more beautiful, sunny weather, and so we availed ourselves of the outdoors yet again. After a wonderful morning bike ride through the countryside to Moonbeams, a nearby land trust's conservation property, we headed to Warwick. Warwick is a gorgeous, small community located nearby. In addition to possessing numerous shops, restaurants and photogenic spots of its own...

...the town is located right near Pine Island, which is home to a rather unique geographical feature, known today as the "Black Dirt." This region formed when a glacial lake got bored with New York State and skipped town, leaving in its wake a flat and incredibly productive region that is now farmed extensively for produce. In addition to those who use the land to raise crops, folks like us use the land to take really cool photographs, like this one!

After our delightful Sunday, we prepared to return to New England, but not before I first got to take in the local Memorial Day parade. There was lots to see, including the wonderful Minisink marching bands (with Charlotte's brother, Andreas, holding the high school band together), as well as many other fun Memorial Day sights.

Best of all, the local fire department treats all the parade-goers to free hot dogs, soda and beer following the parade. This concept is clearly at least mildly popular.

Anyway, if all this quaintness wasn't enough for you, don't despair, because we're back in New England with lots more to report on! Stay tuned for a report on our Cape-tastic weekend, and perhaps a glimpse at nearby Portsmouth, NH, where my (Mike's) summer employment is situated. Until then, have a great week!