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The Basin – Tuesday Tour Guide
Henry David Thoreau described the Basin in Franconia Notch as “perhaps the most remarkable curiosity of its kind in New England”. Samuel Eastman said it was “one of the beautiful haunts of Nature, a luxurious and delicious bath fit for the ablutions of a goddess.” I have lived in New England for most of my life and had never heard of it until moving up here. The first time we heard the Basin mentioned was when Ryan’s class couldn’t make it to their field trip due to a road closure, so they picnicked at the Basin. I didn’t give the place much thought until some friends mentioned how beautiful it…
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The Basin – Sunday Snapshots
Since moving up here, we’ve heard people mention the Basin. Ryan’s class even had a picnic there when a road closure prevented them from getting to their field trip destination. A few Sundays ago, we didn’t have any plans, so we went for a little drive. As we drove past the sign for the Basin (about 15 minutes from our house), we decided to stop and see what it was. Who knew we could find so much beauty for free right on the side of the highway? We didn’t even have to hike in, it was just right there for anyone to enjoy (which is good because a few of…
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Myths of the North Country – Life Does Exist North of the Notches
Littleton is a town that sits “North of the Notches”. The Notches refers to Franconia Notch, Crawford Notch and Pinkham Notch, the mountain passes that contain the main thoroughfares between the North Country and the rest of New Hampshire. There are a lot of misperceptions about life North of the Notches and to hear many New Hampshirites talk about it, you wouldn’t think anyone would ever choose to live this far north. There is this kind of myth in New Hampshire that northern New Hampshire is this frozen wasteland with bad schools and no money or jobs, that is completely cut off from civilization. There is a belief that everyone…
