The weather was overcast but we saw a glimmer of a sunrise over the 2nd Connecticut Lake.

Just before leaving for home we stopped off in the center of town to go to the Lake Francis General store.

Overall it was a nice vacation albeit we left a little disappointed that we did not see any moose. As we passed back through the white mountains on our way home Meghan spotted a bear drinking from a river at Franconia Notch! We turned around to stop and take a photo but it was unfortunately too late!

We arrived at our cabin around 11am. The cabin was a little further off the beaten path than previous places we have stayed but had everything we needed and slept 6 so we had plenty of space!

Click image below for a larger view:

We took a drive up to “Moose Alley” and spent some time looking for moose without success. While on Rt-3 I went on the Moose Alley Trail which takes you into the woods and across to some waterfalls. It was interesting to see the different kinds of vegetation as you walk through the woods.

I found this Geocache at the falls.

Here is a video of the falls and my walk through the woods.

We spent a lot of time on Route 3 between Pittsburg and the Canadian border, known to locals as “Moose Alley” for its frequent moose sightings. Moose Alley lived up to its name as we saw 16 moose along the roadside during our 2 night stay. We saw the last moose of our trip “number 17” on Route 16 south of Errol NH on our way home.

All in all it was a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend in New Hampshire’s Great North Woods.

Here are some pictures from our weekend away and a video clip.

A nice welcome gesture from the cabins. I wonder who told them?

Route 3 – Moose Alley

A friendly Gray Jay swooped a couple of times to get my attention and then posed for a photo!

A moose keeps a watchful eye on us as it drinks from a roadside bog.

Our cabin for the weekend at Lopstick. The aptly named “Moose” cabin.

The view from our cabin. We couldn’t have asked for better.

Even the spring colour in New England is impressive.

Caution! Active Moose Crossing. This sign was feet away from the U.S. border entry point.

A reminder of why the above signs are posted all down Route 3.

After a long days moose watching we fired up the BBQ.

A covered bridge. A familiar sight throughout New England.

A picturesque graveyard.

Dusk at the 2nd Connecticut Lake.

And finally, a video clip of my birthday weekend away:

Dramatic skies over the Pontook Reservoir on Route 16 in Dummer, NH.

The Balsams Resort in Dixville Notch, NH.

Our cabin for the night in Pittsburg, NH.

The view from the deck on our cabin overlooked the 1st Connecticut Lake.

This heron represented the only wildlife I photographed all weekend!

Mount Chocorua in the White Mountains on the journey home.

Our next trip to the Great North Woods will probably be next year now when the moose become active again.

Enjoy!

The picture is available in high-res on WMUR’s uLocal website.

As we travelled up Route 16 towards Errol, NH the big yellow signs at the side of the road warning us of moose collisions got more and more frequent. By the time we reached our B&B we knew we were deep in moose territory!

Our moose spotting took us mainly to a section of Route 3 called “Moose Alley”, so called for it’s frequent moose sightings. This section of road runs from the northern most New Hampshire town of Pittburg all the way up to the Canadian border. We drove as far as the border and then turned in the road at the border entry point and headed back down towards Pittsburg.

We only saw 1 of our total 6 moose sightings on this road! And here he is (you can tell he is male by the bumps on his head where his rack grows):

The remainder of our moose sightings were slightly south of Errol on Route 16.

Moose spotting strategy is fairly easy, you just crawl along at 15-20mph while checking the sides of the roads for signs of moose (like the mud tracks in the picture below).

Moose sighting are more frequent in the early daylight hours and just before dusk when they move about to search for food. We were told by the lady of the house at our B&B that once you have lived there for a while you get “an eye for them”.

All in all we had a fantastic weekend and I am thrilled to have seen my first moose!

Here are a couple of other pictures I took. The first is a hummingbird on the feeder at the B&B.

Here is a short video montage of our moose searching!

On the way up we stopped at Chocura Lake. I had photographed the lake a few weeks earlier but this time was able to get some shots of the lake frozen and the snow topped mountain in the background.

On Saturday night we stayed at the beautiful White Mountain Hotel. The hotel is situated next to a tall cliff face on one side and the beautiful mountain range on the other.

Here are a few pictures of the hotel:

The following day we visited the Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods. The resort is very picturesque all year round but even more so in the snow. There were only a couple of inches of snow on the ground in an area which is used to seeing several feet! We stopped off in the hotel for a coffee and a cookie before continuing our drive around the White Mountain region.

We were hoping to see some moose while in the region. I have been in New Hampshire for nearly 4 months now and am yet to see one. After a lot of driving around and keeping our eyes peeled we realised it was not to be. For this trip at least. I am now more determined than ever to see my first moose! Watch this space!