Sunday in Maine

We actually made it to Maine this morning (Oct 6th) and have a couple of days to spend here before heading towards home.

Crossing the bridge into Maine.

We woke to a dreary, cold and rainy day, but our hearts were warmed and our spirits lifted by a wonderful worship service at the First Baptist Church of Kittery Point, Maine. The congregation was very small with only 12-15 people present, and I think the only one younger than us was the pastor. They were small in number, but mighty in the warmth of their welcome and their joy in the Lord! We shared communion and were so very, very blessed by the pastor's words and the presence of the Holy Spirit. What an Awesome God we serve, and what a privilege to worship Him with our brothers and sisters in Christ. My cup runneth over! :)

The First Baptist Church of Kittery Point

Parked on the road by the church.

We stopped at Fort McClary and took a quick walk around. Built in the early 1700's, it was a key defense site during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. The original blockhouse was locked and we only stayed a few minutes.

Fort McClary Blockhouse

We had hoped to do some sightseeing along the coast, but the cold, rainy weather was not very conducive to scenic views or being outside. We stopped at a rest area to examine our options and were cheered by a phone call from Nathan and the grandkids. The boys naturally wondered what exciting thing we were doing at the time and were a little baffled to hear we were sitting in the truck watching the rain fall on the windshield. Matthew thought we should at least get out of the cab and go into the camper:)
We decided to find the nearest campground and hole up for the day staying warm and dry. Around 5pm the rain let up for a bit so we walked a few blocks to the ocean. The tide was out and we took a couple of pictures before heading back to the camper to warm up.

I think maybe we've bounced and jounced over too many back roads with the camper during the last three years. In the past couple of days we've had THREE cupboard doors fall off. The tiny screws have worked their way out, and when I go to open the door . . . Off it comes. Of course it's only happened to ME and so Mark thinks I'm tearing the doors off or something . . . :)

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Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Saturday (Oct 5th) was cloudy and cool. We arrived in Portsmouth and went to Strawberry Banke which is a 10-acre living history museum of an actual seaport neighborhood. Many buildings and artifacts of the Puddle Dock area have been preserved/restored to reflect life as it was in this neighborhood during different time periods ranging from the early 1600's to the 1950's.

For example, the Pitt Tavern, built in 1766, is restored and furnished as it was during the Revolutionary War and has a costumed interpreter playing the part of the tavern-keeper's daughter.

The Marden-Abbott House is a furnished WWII-era home with an attached family-run grocery store.

Other buildings depict other time periods.

There are also craft demonstrations (weaving and building wooden casks).

Many of the exhibits include samples of children's toys or activities of the time period that visiting children are welcome to try out. The Jones House is devoted completely to children with a Family Discovery Center and play yard.

Family Discovery Center

An adorable Victorian Children's Garden at the Goodwin Mansion (1862)

Some of the exhibits also have period clothing for children to try on.

After our tour of Strawberry Banke, we left our vehicle in the parking lot and walked across the street to Prescott Park, down by the harbor, and around the nearby neighborhood. We stumbled across the Wentworth Gardner and Tobias Lear Historic Homes which were open for tours. Apparently they get very few visitors, because Anne, the docent, was very pleased to have someone stop to see the houses and gave us a wonderful, personally guided tour of both homes.

The Wentworth Gardner Home (1760) is an example of beautiful Georgian-style architecture.

Tobias Lear served as President George Washington's personal secretary for several years and President Washington had tea with Tobias' mother in the parlor of the Lear home.

Tobias Lear birthplace

Room where George Washington had tea with Mrs. Lear.

We also saw the Memorial Bridge across the Piscataqua River which was quite interesting. Instead of a drawbridge opening to allow boats through, the center portion of the bridge rises up in the horizontal position like an elevator to allow boats to pass beneath it. We've never seen anything like it before!

Memorial Bridge

Being lowered from the raised position.

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Canterbury Shaker Village

On our way to Canterbury on Friday (Oct 4th) we stopped in Lanconia to visit the Belknap Mill. Housed in an 1823 brick building, there is a hydroelectric power plant, a renovated wheel house, original circular knitting machines for socks, and exhibits and displays explaining the process. It was interesting to me and would be a good field trip for a class learning about the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. If we had been there on Thursday, we could have seen live demonstrations.

We spent about three and a half to four hours at Canterbury Shaker Village founded in 1792, one of 19 Shaker Communities in which the people devoted their "Hands to Work and Hearts to God" for 200 years.

 

The Shakers were a very productive, enterprising group of celibate Christ-followers living communally and dedicating everything they did to the worship of God. Men and women were separate, but equal, with well-defined positions of leadership within the spiritual community and assigned jobs which they rotated regularly. This religious sect was an offshoot of the Quakers, but was founded on the teachings of Ann Lee. It was quite amazing to see how men and women lived and worked together so closely in a community, yet remained so separate. They had separate doors for entering and leaving buildings and even separate staircases within a building. Although they ate and worshipped together, they did so on opposite sides of the room. The group grew in numbers by making converts from the outside world and taking in orphans. They were quite successful and prosperous for many years until their numbers declined. There are now only three, very old, known Shakers still alive.

Separate doors for women and men

 

We just missed the first guided tour, so we did the self-guided portion first, wandering through the open buildings and reading the printed material. While interesting, it really didn't come alive to me until the guided tour. We had an amazing storyteller guide, Claudia, who was passionate about her subject and truly brought the village to life for us. She was fascinating and very informative. The "45 minute" tour stretched to an hour and a half and no one got bored. I was disappointed when she literally ran out of time and couldn't spend a minute more with us.

The only indoor space we were allowed to take pictures. Contains reproductions for children to touch and experience.

This song "Simple Gifts" was written by Shaker Elder Joseph:

"'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,

To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come 'round right."

When we left Canterbury, we drove to Concord and found the Walmart. We had a nice dinner at Olive Garden using a gift card Mark was given for his birthday:)

 

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Lake Winnipesaukee

Thursday (Oct 3rd) we headed towards Lake Winnipesaukee, the largest lake in New Hampshire (covering 69 square miles).

Lake Winnipesaukee off in the distance

 

Our first view of the lake was from a 1914 mountaintop estate, Lucknow, built by millionaire Thomas Plant before he lost his money in bad investments. Lucknow, also known as the "Castle in the Clouds", is a beautiful example of Arts and Crafts architecture and contains every modern convenience money could buy in 1914 (hydroelectric power, intercom system, central vacuum, ammonia-brine cooled refrigerator, indoor showers and flush toilets, etc).

Hexagonal dining room

 

Built high in the Ossipee Mountains, its best feature is the view. Perched on a mountaintop, the surrounding view of the countryside, mountains, and Lake Winnipesaukee is quite magnificent (although you can't really tell from the pictures!)

Backyard looks out over the mountains, the valley below, and the lake off in the distance.

Window view

View of mountain beyond the valley

 

The grounds of the estate include a pretty waterfall as well as many trails for hiking.

 

When we left Lucknow, we drove to the Weirs Beach Pier on Lake Winnipesaukee for ice cream and a stroll along the boardwalk.

 

We camped at Ellacoya State Park which is also located on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee. I was put off by the camping fee ($47 per night for a state park!), but Mark enjoyed sitting by the water and taking a swim, and the campsites all have full hook-ups. It was the first time on this trip that we've been plugged in to an electrical outlet, usually we run on battery power.

 

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