Millinocket, ME

Audra and I decided to pack our bags and head to Maine for a long weekend.  We rented a "cabin" in the small town of Millinocket, ME.  I am using the word "cabin"  loosely, although that is how they advertised.  Wasn't quite the rustic cabin in the woods feel we were hoping for, but the accommodations were nice. 

 If a little yellow house doesn't with pink chairs doesn't say rustic I am not sure what does

 There were approx. 8 "cabins" and they were all on a residential street.  
 We brought up some Meat for some grilling.  Feeling like real grill masters on this bad boy...

Ok so they did have a larger propane grill, but couldn't help but laugh.

It even had pink walls! Not only were we on a residential street we are also next to the airport.  Although don't think any commercial flights come in to this airport.

The sign in the background says to "smile as you go by, if you don't have time say hi"
I tease, but it was clean, and inexpensive.  Really can't ask for much more. 

Day 2-Whitewater rafting with "Three Rivers Expeditions" on the Penobscot.  Had a blast with these guys.  We paddled our way through a few class 5 rapids.  Managed to keep our boat upright although I can't say the same for the rest of the rafts.

 Our PFDs said "Unicorn Expeditions"  for some reason I got a kick out of this

 There were approx. 80 people that went.  Here we are making our way to the river

 The rafts were pretty heavy. 

 Getting ready to head out.  We were always the final raft because our guide Tony was the owner of the company.

 

 Couldn't have asked for a better day!

Some boats making there way thru some rapids.  I was unable to get any decent shots of the rapids cause they make you paddle when you are going thru. : )  I'm pretty sure if interested though you can "Youtube" Penobscot and "Three Rivers Expeditions" and they have some videos up. After an amazing day we headed back to the "Three Rivers" Headquarters where they have a full bar and grub.

 Audra and I with Tony our guide

 The bar- I was surprised at the selection they offered.  Nothing but the best for these broads.  Classed it up with some PBR.

Everyone after rafting.

Day 3- Baxter State Park.  This is where Mt Katahdin is.  The final or starting point for the Appalachian Trail depending on the direction you are heading.  It was in the mid 90's so our hikes consisted of short walks in hopes of finding some lake or pond to swim in.

 Audra signing us in.

 These falls were beautiful

 The "Appalachian Trail" only 2,194 miles to go.  We are so close : )

 Stunning views

 Walkways to help preserve nature

Enjoying a quick dip in one of the ponds.

 Ended our day by swimming in this pond before heading back into town.  The water was warmer than I would have expected.

That evening we decided to head out for a night out in Millinocket.  Ok, so were lightweights and only made it through dinner before we were ready to call it a night.

 Although small the few restaurants they had all seemed very charming.

Our final day we decided to get up early in hopes of spotting a moose.

 Unfortunately we did not see any, but got see some beautiful views

 And this mama and baby

 And eat breakfast with this view

 

 They had canoes that could be rented at Daicey Pond

 We had a great time canoeing around. 

I'm pretty sure that is Katahdin in the background.

 There were frogs everywhere! But still no Moose

 Does anyone know if there is a name for the stage of the life cycle when the tadpole has legs, but isn't quite a frog yet? 

 Unfortunately we had to pack our bags and head back to Boston.  I could have stayed here all day!
The ride back to Boston is approx 5hours.  We made a couple of stops to break up the trip

 Oh look-Bears!

And finally a Moose!

 We also decided to stop in Portland, ME and tour the "Shipyard Brewery"

We watched a quick video on the history of Shipyard and then tried a few samples. Afterwards we went had some lunch before heading back to Boston.  Another amazing trip!

 

Moscow, Idaho

Made a trip over to Idaho to visit one of my closest friends, Meghan.  Can't believe she gets to study these cuties for her PhD. 

Chloe the Pygmy Rabbit.  Had the opportunity while there to sit in on an informal interview and lecture of a Post Doc looking to work at WSU.  Was interesting to hear about the different disciplines and what these scientists are studying to help our environment.

We decided to get out of the "city" (Moscow is a bustling metropolitan area of about 20,000) and head out in to the Idaho wilderness.  Meghan surprised me with this great gift. 

What girl doesn't need a purple case filled with the essentials- ie bug spray, baby wipes, pocket knife, etc.  I love it and it came in very handy!

We went camping at Heyburn state park which was only about an hours drive. 

The tent was GINORMOUS! Plus cots... we sure know how to spoil ourselves
 There was a nice bike trail that we rode on for a little bit.  I guess it goes pretty far, the Boy Scouts camping next to us went on 100mi ride!

 Self pic- Meghan and I on our bike ride

 Checking out the views from the bridge

 Meghan loves to ride her mountain bike and even races on occasion.  Thankfully she was very patient with me.

After our bike ride we went over to the visitor center and took advantage of a nature walk they had. The park itself was made a state park in 1908 (it's the oldest park in the Pacific Northwest) by President Taft.  (I hear there are no national parks in Idaho)

 A nice viewing spot for birds

 A boardwalk out in to the marshes

After exploring we headed back to camp to cook up some dinner and relax.  Man the fire was a pain.  The wood just would not catch.  Finally had to suck it up and buy a bundle from the camp host.  Once we did that we had a fire in less than 5mins.

 Unwinding with a glass of wine. 

 Preparing our firewood

The next morning we got up and went on a short hike "Indian Cliffs trails." The trail led us up a mountain for spectacular views of the park and the lakes.  There are 3 lakes that make up Heyburn State Park-Chatcolet, Benewah, and Hidden. Plus the St Joes river that flows through these lakes.  A little interesting tidbit- this is the highest navigatable waterway in the world.  (Is navigatable a word?)

 Check out all those Ponderosas.  It's like N. AZ but with more water : )

Enjoying some breathtaking views

 

After the hike we went and rented a canoe.  The lady was awesome and only charged us $15 even though she could have charged us at least double that. 

 

 The canoe.  Felt like the current was trying to pull us to one side, but we figured it out and made our way across the lake

 Hmmm think I will take some pics and let Meghan do the work : )

 Attempting to fly fish from the boat.  Which resulted in Meghan get the line wrapped around her neck.  Needless to say wasn't very successful

 

We eventually decided to stop at one of the islands and try fishing from there.  No luck , but at least no one got strangled. 

The next morning we woke up to pouring rain so decided to pack up the campsite and headed back to Moscow.  Reid, Meghan's husband came home from doing field work and we all went out and played some pool and had a bite. 

This was an amazing trip.  Wish I could have stayed a little longer.