Weekend in New Hampshire

So I planned to post this earlier in the week, but life has been just too busy...starting my new job and all. BUT better late than never!

Anyway....

Last weekend Patrick and I took a short trip up to New Hampshire as a last little get away before I became a "slave to the man" again. We made the three hour drive up to NH on Saturday morning and stayed in a cute little town called North Conway.

North Conway is within the White Mountain region. The mountains are not even close in size to the Rockies....but none the less still beautiful. The mountains in this area are known for their stunning colours in the fall because they are covered with several different types of trees. We missed the really fantastic colours by a week or so....but there were still leaves left on most of the trees.

On Sunday we drove further north into the mountains so we could do a hike. We planned to drive to Mt. Washington and hike around there, but it turned out the road on the mountain was closed for the season (booo....). After spending some time in the Mt. Washington gift shop, we saw a postcard of a place called Flume Gorge that looked interesting...so we decided to go! It was on the other side of the mountain range so we had to take about an hour detour.

Mt. Washington in the background

We really lucked out because it was the last day they were open for the season. We had to pay a small fee to get into the Flume Gorge, but it was well worth it. It was one of the most beautiful areas I've ever seen.  It was about a 2 mile walk from the visitor center, around the loop and back. The map said it should take a little over an hour to walk....but we were there for over two hours. We really took our time, taking lots of pictures and enjoying the beautiful scenery. We followed the trail to the Flume Gorge and up to the Avalanche Falls, then to the Liberty Gorge and then finally to the Pool basin.

Starting at the Visitor Center

Massive boulder that was carried by glaciers

First of many bridges

On our way to the Flume

The narrow path up the Flume Gorge

Up the boardwalk we go

Avalanche Falls at the top of the Flume

Looking down onto the Flume from Avalanche Falls

These pictures don't really do the gorge justice. It's much more impressive in person! Just to give you an idea the gorge is 800 feet long and 12-20 feet high, depending on the section. Some parts were far more narrow than others. The boardwalk built along the inside of the gorge was also very impressive.

Liberty Gorge

Pool basin

One of many beautiful bridges

After our little adventure we headed back home, and on the way stopped at a NH liquor store for some tax free purchases. By the time we got home and unpacked, it was time for bed! The next morning came fast and it was time to start my new job!

Next up...for Halloween this weekend we're heading to Salem. It's exciting to have couples costumes this year. The other night we spent two hours picking out costumes in this massive over-crowded store in Cambridge. It was like a much more organized Value Village and new costume store all rolled into one. Any guesses on our costumes??

Back to Canada

Last Thursday Pat and I left for the airport bright and early for our short trip back to Canada. Anyone who knows me, knows I HATE flying. But, having Pat with me seems to calm me down. The flight from Boston to Toronto is a nice short one. I should also mention that Thursday seems to be the best day to travel. Pearson airport was dead and so was customs. Pat and I also enjoyed our in-flight movies. It's always nice to sit next to each other but watch completely different movies...best of both worlds I say. He watched Robin Hood and I caught up on Sex and the City 2. I never saw it in theaters and it actually turned out to be pretty good....just not very plane appropriate....hem hem.

We landed in Calgary and went straight to the passport office to renew our passports...where we didn't have to wait very long at all. Surprising I know! Our plans that day could not have gone any smoother. That night we had a delicious dinner with Pat's family in Calgary.

The next morning we woke up to snow! Which was really no surprise hehe. Pat's parents drove down from Edmonton to meet us and then it was off to Banff. My CGA grad was at the Banff Springs Hotel and it made for a nice little getaway! We stayed at the hotel and felt pampered all weekend. Friday night we had dinner at the Bow Valley Grill in the hotel and it was yummy. The dessert buffet was especially delicious.

After dinner we wondered around the massive hotel and eventually found the ballroom where the ceremony and banquet would be held the next day. It's a good thing we went the night before, otherwise I would have been late in the morning. It took us about 15 minutes to walk inside to get to the conference center. It was a little convoluted, but eventually we did find it. We could have just walked outside but it was cold and not as fun.

Pat and I also walked around the grounds of the hotel to do a little night photography:

Saturday morning we were up early for my graduation ceremony. Apparently there were more than 1200 people at the ceremony. It was nicely put together and it definitely exceeded my expectations. After the ceremony my ladies from CRA and I had a little photo shoot with our new certificates. For lunch we went to The Bison in Banff and then for a long swim in heated outdoor pool at the hotel...it was divine. 

 

That night Pat and I went to the CGA banquet. The food was delicious and they had a harpist and a live band. It was a fun night and it was so nice to catch up with my buddies from CRA that I hadn't seen since the move. I miss them!

Having a little too much fun

Feeling good

Sunday morning I wasn't feeling as good as I should....so after a delicious brunch at the hotel I went for a nice swim in the pool again. At the pool I ran into one of my previous tax instructors, who I ran into the day before at the pool (I guess we both really like swimming). We had a nice long chat and then it was time to get ready to check out.

After check out we headed to Peyto Lake for a hike. This lake is popular because of it's bright turquoise colour. The hike and views were amazing. After our hike we stared to head back to Calgary.

Peyto Lake

Whoa bear!

During our drive back to Calgary we stopped so Pat could take a few more shots:

We stayed in Calgary for the evening before flying back to Boston the next morning. In Toronto we missed our flight because we were stuck in customs. But I now have a working visa and we were put on the next flight to Boston. So it all worked out!

What a great weekend!