December 26, 2020 How nice is it, the day after Christmas, to walk on a beach? Cold, more than a bit windy, but everyone had their Bean boots on, trekking through the wet sand with their dogs running free. And the surfers were out too! So very New England, Bob couldn’t get over it. But this is the sort of thing we do… as they say, “there is no bad weather, only bad clothing”. Warm hat and gloves, parka and waterproof boots for the people, and the dogs don’t care, they are just happy to be there. The surfers are hard core in their wetsuits (truth, they are probably cold-blooded, and crazy).
At Wallis Sands State Beach, it is free to park from late fall to early spring, and dogs are welcomed. None of the NH beaches are huge, and they are all somehow bound by rocks, but that adds to the charm; there is some natural visual interest instead of miles of plain sand and water. And on a clear day, you can see the Isle of Shoals, a group of islands about 6 miles off the coast with quite a fascinating history. NH’s coastline is only about 16 miles in length, with Route 1A the closest access to the water and views – it is one of our favorite drives and you’ve probably seen me blog about it before.
We didn’t have a plan to stop here, otherwise we might have considered bringing Sydney, but Porsches (even old ones) don’t really mix well with wet, sandy, large dogs. These days she needs her ramp, and while she might cavort in streams, she’s never been fond of the ocean or even swimming in lakes. Odd for a retriever, but she is not a water dog!
Bob is especially drawn to the ocean, it is something about the repetition of the sound and motion of the waves, sometimes crashing on the rocks and sand, or gently pushing and pulling the sand and shells in and out, over and over. He could sit on the beach for hours, but today we walked until we got cold and stood watching the waves for a bit before bundling back into the 964, hoping for a bit of warmth as we fired it up for the ride home.
To bookend our dog day at the beach, two vignettes. This morning we checked on the tower, and sent our videos of the tower leaking (from Christmas Day) and these two photos to Munch and Bob L. Clearly large gaps in the siding could be a means of introducing water, don’t you think? Munch’s response to the leaks was, “No way!” (sound familiar!) He said he’d come by tomorrow (Sunday) morning to check it out. To end the evening, Bob took the train for a spin. Full disclosure, even after knowing Bob (a Lionel train lifer) for over 20 years, I am just not a train aficionado. I can respect his passion for them, and I guess I’ve learned a good amount about them, since they are all over our house. But, not nearly enough since I previously described our Christmas Train as a Lionel, when it is actually a Marx (Bob does not collect Marx trains, but they do run on Lionel tracks). Not only that, it is our son’s train from his childhood, which I also didn’t know or remember. Well, there you have it. In our new house, there will be NO trains visible, except in designated rooms for trains. Just sayin’. 🙂
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