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22nd Sep 2005
The first day of Fall, New Hampshire
Thursday, 22nd September, 2005
Having got to bed at about 4.30am our time … we were up again early to a bright and quite chilly morning with a heavy dew on the ground. We went out for a walk before breakfast. This is apparently the first day of the New England Fall … I suppose, measured as being after the equinox … and it means a quite a lot to them. The trees, for their part, are only just beginning to turn at this latitude; a slight yellowing to the green; the odd yellow, orange or red branch and one or two under-shrubs have completely lost it and turned red.
Nearby there was Covered Bridge – sadly not a particularly exciting one in a Madison County sort of way or from a photographic point of view, but nonetheless dating from the 1850s. Bement Bridge it was called. Also saw a pumpkin-patch doll, various American flags.
From the earliest dawning of the morning and all through the walk we were listening to some very distinctive bird calls. Distinctive, as I didn’t have my binnies with me but they were familiar from the slightly irritating Sesame Street electronic book which the boys had many years ago – one of those ones where you read the story and then press a button on the edge of the book, whenever there’s a small picture in the text. As this one was about Big Bird going bird watching, it had a whole range of (North American) bird sounds … and (finally getting to the point) whatever they were were here !! Either blue jays or yellow-bellied sapsuckers we think.
The Inn is very ‘New England’; lace, quilts, antiques, painted floors (where else would a chipped, painted wooden floor be considered chic) and heavily patterned rugs. All through my walk I had been wondering what I would have for breakfast and had settled fairly firmly on the idea of waffles with New Hampshire Maple Syrup … which seemed an entirely appropriate way to start the trip. Not to be.
Breakfast turned out to be quite a gourmet affair. Something of a cross between a nouveau cuisine experience and challenge to use as many local fruits in a meal at one go. To start with, came a home baked (and still warm) lemon muffin served with strawberry jam. Next, with a bit of a flourish, a beautifully presented plate of cinnamon swirl French toast, served with an orange syrup (!) and a couple of slices of melon, a star fuit and quite unexpectedly, a kale leaf … presumably to complete the effect.
Well, that all slipped down quite nicely (well, apart from the Kale leaf) and then we were offered the third course (politely declined by the healthy Americans on the table next door) but readily devoured on the Moore table in the corner; Lemon pie with cream and blueberry sauce. What an extraordinary breakfast!
Packed and out by 9-30 and venturing out to the car, it was clear what sort of day it was going to be … stretching up into the 70s already and destined for the 80s.
North on Interstate 89, we crossed the Connecticut River and passed into Vermont. As we were well on schedule for the 1pm appointment in Williston, we stopped off for a tub of Ben and Jerry’s best at their main (and original) factory just outside – Waterbury. A really cool establishment !
They ran a competition recently to seek public opinion as to which of their discontinued lines should be brought back in to production and ‘Wavy Gravy’ came out top … so that’s what I had to show support. Anne had Cappucino Buzzbuzz and Maple Pecan.
At Williston Public Library, we met up with Paul, the Geology Professor at UVM who was doing a public talk on his re-photography program. Anne slipped off to hook onto the internet and send a couple of e-mails and I had a very interesting hour hearing about the Vermont Landscape Change Project and seeing how the public can engage in the process. They have quite a considerable archive of images available a particularly interesting set of pics taken in the early 1960s before and during the construction of the Interstates. These images show rolling farmland, grazing cows, stands of elm, document the changes which took place during the very intrusive construction process and finally the retakes reveal a very changed landscape; Less cattle, hardly any elm and the completed Interstate. Much of the imagery showed a cleared landscape. After logging and as roads were being built. One of the questions from an elderly gentleman queried the loss of views due to the increased tree growth; a very similar issue to the increased growth of trees (particularly roadside) at home.
We followed Paul into Burlington after the talk and he took us to 254, the Guest House. Its an old house in an old part of town with mature trees close to the house. The owners were out and we just let our selves in and settled. I changed, got my stuff together and half an hour later Paul was back to take me to the Delahunty Hall for my talk to students at the Geology Department.
About 20 or so Grads and lecturers squeezed in to the lab and I gave them the Spey CMP talk complete with Scott Skinner at the end which stunned them into silence initially but then the questions started thick and fast. Quite strange really; I offered to answer any questions and then I'd started clearing away my gear, expecting someone to ask something. As I fiddled around with the back of the computer, I looked around to find people sitting there with their hands in the air ... completely silent and waiting to be offered the chance; can't imagine that happening at home.
Our discussion continued through dinner with the Grad class – about a dozen or so students and we sat around informally scoffing Indian takeaway and discussing particularly ways of communicating science, or science-based fact to the public - clearly the image based ways were heading the topic.
Anne meantime was downtown Burlington; refraining as it seemed from leaping in to immediate purchases but certainly scouting the options and making future plans! I finally got back to the guest house at about 9pm and sleep was not far away at all.
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