On The Road Again: The Maine Pond House

Ralph moved us to the Pond House, still in Lovell, Maine. The previous cabin (the one with the squirrels) had been nice. This place was a major upgrade, though! All wood paneling and ceilings, fireplaces, comfortable leather furniture, pond views out of enormous windows, nicer than our home, certainly nicer than the van. Moving is always inconvenient at best, but in this case, it was certainly worth it.

Compared to Kezar Lake (to which we still had access), the pond was small, about 80 acres. But it was lovely, with water lilies, and loaded with fish, largemouth bass and chain pickerel. I would later spend many pleasurable hours floating around it in a kayak, casting a popping bug that I'd squashed the barb down on. I fooled more than a few fish with it.

Pond House interior.

A long-time friend, Maryann Deveau, came up from Boston to spend some time with us and share some adventures. The first was an apple-picking trip to Pietree Orchard in Sweden. We picked two pecks of apples! Baked apples, fried apples, apples out of hand, and of course apple pies followed. You can eat much worse things than a New England apple right off the tree.

I made a trout-fishing trip to the Rapid River with registered Maine guide Bob Duport. Although the fishing was slow, we had a wonderful day, and I did get a beautiful brook trout from the stream. Do brook trout come in any other version than beautiful? I've yet to see one.

Brook trout, Rapid River.

We took a boat ride around Kezar Lake on a wonderful New England day. Warm sunshine, blue sky with poofy white cumulous clouds, just warm enough that we didn't need sweaters, no wind, no other boaters with most summer vacationers home after Labor Day- the weather couldn't get much better. Loons called, their wild cries adding a touch of wilderness. I cast a spin road at select spots, without success. I didn't care, everything else was so perfect.

Our next trip was to Grafton Notch. This notch lies at the northern end of the toughest mile on the Appalachian Trail, the Mahoosuc Notch. We wouldn't be doing any hiking, but we did spend time at Screw Auger Falls, a splendid display created by glaciers about 10,000 years ago. On the way back to the Pond House, we stopped at a roadside stand where freshly baked blueberry pies were being sold. We contributed to the baker's and Maine's economy in a small way. The pie we bought was every bit as delicious as it looked. I wanted Susan to smear some blueberries on her face for a photo. She often indulges me when I ask her to model, but not this time!

Route 26 in Grafton Notch.

I went kayaking on the pond one evening, just as it was getting dark. The ladies were upset; they feared for my safety. Waugh! I've been making trips like that all my life. In spite of that, Maryann insisted on accompanying me down to the pond. She sat on the bench on the dock to make sure I didn't drown out there. I got four nice bass on the fly rod popper in 30 minutes, and we were both treated to a nearly full moon rising through the spruce trees, a magnificent sight. The mosquitoes never showed up- they've been absent during our entire stay here in Maine, a surprising and welcome circumstance.

At Diana's Bath.

Some locals had suggested we visit Diana's Bath and Cathedral Ledge, located near each other in Bartlett, New Hampshire. We made the drive and hiked into Diana's Bath, a series of cascades and pools on Lucy Brook. What a place for a photographer! What a place for anybody! I went a little crazy with the camera, and I truly could have spent an entire day there. One part of my brain would love to see it in January, when the falls would all be frozen.

Next came a visit to Cathedral Ledge, a popular rock-climbing destination. Although a hiking path leads to the top of the ledges, so does a road. Recently paved, we found it an easy drive, and we spent over an hour at the top taking in views of the White Mountains and the Saco River Valley.

Susan, John, and Maryann atop Cathedral Ledge.

I write this on a rainy day. They always present good opportunities to catch up on writing, correspondence, laundry, food shopping, and other errands. I'll be doing research to find our next adventuring locations. Stay tuned.

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