if you only had 1 day left on the lake..

[jayp603]

what would you do?

[State]

I'd head for the mountains.

Too many people associated with the lake.

I nearly got into an accident yesterday at the lights in Center Harbor when a pickup aggressively drove into the lane when it was only the breakdown, and when I more leisurely and appropriately went into it he honked at me.

That's after a Fish & Game officer glared at me when I was smoking my pipe. A legitimate tobacco product.

And that came after some Massachusetts visitors almost forcing me off the road when they drove too fast in the middle of my dirt road with much erosion on its side.

I feel as though it's better not to head out on busy summer wknds. The lake is not much different.

[wifi]

Originally Posted by State

I'd head for the mountains.

Too many people associated with the lake.

I nearly got into an accident yesterday at the lights in Center Harbor when a pickup aggressively drove into the lane when it was only the breakdown, and when I more leisurely and appropriately went into it he honked at me.

That's after a Fish & Game officer glared at me when I was smoking my pipe. A legitimate tobacco product.

And that came after some Massachusetts visitors almost forcing me off the road when they drove too fast in the middle of my dirt road with much erosion on its side.

I feel as though it's better not to head out on busy summer wknds. The lake is not much different.

It certainly is different than it was a few years ago.

[robmac]

I for one would be out on the lake. If that's not an option perhaps watching traffic and people at maybe Shibleys at the pier, Naswa beach bar, Lobster Pound on the deck or T-Bones outside overlooking Paugus bay. Always something to do in the lakes region.

[Greene's Basin Girl]

Originally Posted by robmac

I for one would be out on the lake. If that's not an option perhap watching traffic and people at maybe Shibleys at the pier,Naswa beach bar,Lobster Pound on the deck or T-Bones outside overlooking Paugus bay. Always something to do in the lakes region.

If I didn't have any days left on the lake my ashes could be spread in the Graveyard.

[Slickcraft]

I would watch the sunset from sunset terrace next to Sunset Rock (lower right) on Welch Island.

[RLW]

Originally Posted by jayp603

what would you do?

First thing I would never think about it. There are way to many good days ahead of ME.

[WinnDixie]

I'd try to burn into my brain the view from the Belknap Point Motel...as I do each time I'm getting to the end of my visit. Really, though, I am with RLW...would rather think there are many good days ahead of me...and that I'd get up there again!

[jack1706]

Question was on the LAKE .....(not mountains, etc.)

I would boat all day and hit all spots, north , south. east & west,
then hang in the broads, engine off ,
drifting......................................

and wait for the sunset....

take in every second
and head with some cocktails to end the night listening to the loons & hope to see the sunrise !!!!!!!!!( and hope to return to the big pond in my afterlife! ) because I hope that day never comes !

[RLW]

Originally Posted by jack1706

I hope that day never comes !

Amen to that

[robmac]

Agreed, any day on the lake is better than anywhere else !

[boat_guy64]

I would get up at 6AM and take a long ride on my jet ski with my wife. Then, I'd grab the kids, get on the boat and take a trip from Meredith to the Alton Bandstand, cruise around the lake and finish up taking a peak at the Boat show in Meredith. Then, I'd spend the rest of the day on the beech with friends and do some swimming in the almost 80 degree weather. Then, I'd take a shower and go to dinner with my wife at Camp in Meredith.

That's what I did on my last full day of vacaton at the lake today. Luckily for them, they get to stay for a few more weeks while I go back to work. I love this place.

[Winnipesaukee]

I would do 48mph in front of an MPO.

[dykg]

I would cry.

[BroadHopper]

I would spend my children's inheritance on the biggest bad a*s Cigarette. Spend the day cruising around the lake with a big 'No 45' graphics on the side. Soak up all the thumbs up and 'birdies' as well as speeding tickets. (Can't tell a dead man to appear in court!)

Stop at Shibleys for cholesteral inducing Clam plate. Stop at Wolfeboro for Bailey's Bubble ice cream. Stop at 20 Mile Bay for some barefoot skiing. Stop at Blanchard Island and jump off the big rock. Stop at Center Harbor for dinner at Canoe. Stop in Meredith for a drink at the docks. Stop at the Weirs for a gringo 'rita. Stop at Naz to dance the night away. Hang up that old rope swing in front of the Southdown complex and moon the moon. Back to the 'C' dock in Lakeport and make my final sleep in the boat.

Life is short!

[jkjoshuatree]

...sounds like the perfect day!!!

But to get off topic (but that never happens at Winni.com, right?) for a minute, I knew there was a rock where you could jump off of. I remember doing it as a kid.

I took my son to the Five Finger Point Reservation at Squam Lake yesterday and he couldn't get over it. The snorkeling and "jumping rock" was almost more than he could handle. He told me he was so "at peace" where we were...so funny coming from a 12 year old.

Anyway, I told him there was a spot somewhere on "our" lake where you could do the same thing.

So, to end my much-winded diatribe, where is Blanchard Island? I'll look for it on the map as soon as I send this reply but I thought with your expertise you could help.

Thanks. And any tips on the best way to get there (I'm in Winter Harbor) would be greatly appreciated!!!

[jayp603]

i meant the last day of my vacation! i know i will be back, but is REALLY nice to wake up and have the boat at the dock, steps away, instead of an hour drive with arguing kids. why does it take so long for a posting to appear? i am reading this after unpacking...

[jayp603]

where is 5 finger point?

[jkjoshuatree]

It's a hike off Rt 113 in Holderness. Off Pinehurst drive. I found it in my "Dog Lover's Companion To New England".

Beautiful hike that ends with "jumping rock"...a huge rock that you can jump off of into over 40 feet of water. It's a lot like our "sand bar"...people anchor off shore, swim in, and jump off the rock.

It's also a great snorkel spot. There's a small island about 50 yards away that has a shallow shore that's perfect.

Just drive to the end of Pinehurst, park your car, and the trail entrance is on the left. Bring a lunch, snorkel gear, a towel, and spend the day there!

Enjoy!!!

[BroadHopper]

Originally Posted by jayp603

i meant the last day of my vacation! i know i will be back, but is REALLY nice to wake up and have the boat at the dock, steps away, instead of an hour drive with arguing kids. why does it take so long for a posting to appear? i am reading this after unpacking...

i thought you meant the last day of your life! Oh well, it was fun writing my 'bucket list'.

[angela4design]

I thought we were talking about a bucket list too!

[MAXUM]

Maybe this is a little bit retrospective, but often times when I'm out on the lake on a beautiful perfect sunny summer day I can't help but think of all those who are less fortunate who don't have the means to or even have any idea of how beautiful the lake really is. Maybe it's a single mother or father just barely able to make ends meet and stuck in some crappy apartment complex in the middle of the city and the kids have no place to play or go on a hot summer day.

I think if I only had one day left I would want to share that with a nice family who otherwise would never have the chance to do so. At the end of the day I'd toss them the keys to the boat and walk away with a smile on my face.

[Rattlesnake Guy]

Thinking like every day is the last day at the lake is a great way to make sure you treasure each one to the max. Cause one of these days it will be the last. You just might not know it at the time.

[BroadHopper]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

Maybe this is a little bit retrospective, but often times when I'm out on the lake on a beautiful perfect sunny summer day I can't help but think of all those who are less fortunate who don't have the means to or even have any idea of how beautiful the lake really is. Maybe it's a single mother or father just barely able to make ends meet and stuck in some crappy apartment complex in the middle of the city and the kids have no place to play or go on a hot summer day.

I think if I only had one day left I would want to share that with a nice family who otherwise would never have the chance to do so. At the end of the day I'd toss them the keys to the boat and walk away with a smile on my face.

My parents use to host city kids at the camp. The YMCA had a program to bring kids up from Boston, Hartford and NYC to share our experience with the lake. We even hosted a teenager from Sweden. I still remember their wide open eyes and 'WOW'!

[mets3007]

1. I would start with breakfast at Ames Farm Inn

2 Mini Golf at Pirates Cove

3. Spend the Afternoon on the boardwalk or playing arcade games

4. Dinner at T Bones

5, Ice Cream at Lili's

6. Watch the sky turn to night

7. Watch the Red Sox or any baseball

8. Get up next day eat breakfast at Friendly's then leave knowing I would return one day.

[dpg]

Remember the post and picture of the guy fishing on the bass boat with a woman in a bikini/shorts? That would be my last day on the lake...Minus the fishing.

[StephenB]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

Maybe this is a little bit retrospective, but often times when I'm out on the lake on a beautiful perfect sunny summer day I can't help but think of all those who are less fortunate who don't have the means to or even have any idea of how beautiful the lake really is. Maybe it's a single mother or father just barely able to make ends meet and stuck in some crappy apartment complex in the middle of the city and the kids have no place to play or go on a hot summer day.

I work with at-risk teenage boys at a residential treatment center in the suburbs of Boston. Most of our kids fit your description, though some of them are from suburban and rural areas themselves. One fine cobalt-blue-sky, July, Saturday morning a few years ago, I piled all the "on level" (meaning well behaved) kids into a van along with our picnic stuff and did the 2 hour drive to the lake. Most of them had never been to New Hampshire, never mind Winnipesaukee. They were all excited to be going, anticipating this "big lake" that I was talking so much about, being so much better than some of the local ponds we usually go to. (I guess they ignored the fact that we often went to some nice ocean beaches such as Horse Neck in SE Mass.) I set my sights on Ellacoya State Park.

Anyhow, as the kids are finally getting tired of the near 2 hour trip, one asks me if we're there yet, just as we're cresting the last hill top on the Laconia bypass. Their glimpse of that million dollar view of the lake quieted them down real fast right there.

A bit later on, they're taking in all the sights of the lake from the beach at Ellacoya as I say, while one of them wanders over and looks at a navigation map of the lake the state park staff had posted on an information board. He asks where we are on the map and I point out Ellacoya. Then he looks through the trees, over the beach, towards Welch Island, and then back at the map, and he realizes what he sees beyond the beach is only a fraction of the true lake. His jaw kind of drops as he quietly, and a bit reverently says "Wow! This is a BIG lake", again, looking out over the water.

A bit later in the day, after our BBQ, we climbed Mt. Major so they could see most of the rest of the lake. It was Mt. Washington clear that afternoon too, if memory serves.

That was three summers ago and since then, all of those kids have graduated and left our school.

Oh, and by the way - the kid that was so amazed that day, comparing the map view of the lake to the real thing - he eventually moved to Littleton ----- New Hampshire. And myself? I'm still stuck in MA. Go figure

[trfour]

And I would hope that some folks have enjoyed my photoPost collection that has some 1276151 views to date with my enjoyment and involvement over the many years with a taste of the magnificent Lakes Region area. Kind of neat to know that I lived all and will be among the four seasons twixed.
My favorite seasons in order are as follows. Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer.

Now, here in Texas, they have Summer, some more summer, some more summer, with a sprinkle of winter for maybe a week or two.

Thank God I got to live the good life in New Hampshire since years.

You mention a snowmobile down here and they'll throw down any hardware, and the overcoats come out quicker than a loon in the heat of spring up north!... What Wimps!

[BackBay]

Originally Posted by Green's Basin Girl

If I didn't have any days left on the lake my ashes could be spread in the Graveyard.

... or dropped into the lake ... (my intentions -)

[KateT]

I would spend the day with a real estate agent figuring out how I could move here.

[Greene's Basin Girl]

Originally Posted by BackBay

... or dropped into the lake ... (my intentions -)

The Graveyard is in the lake.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

i thought you meant the last day of your life! Oh well, it was fun writing my 'bucket list'.

My thought exactly!



1) Had it been for the last day of my life, my thought would have been:

Eek! I have to hire help to close up the cottage!

2) Had it been for the last day of the season, it would have been:

Eek! I have to hire help to close up the cottage!

[Coastal Laker]

I guess because I live here, I took "last day on the lake" to literally mean last day on the lake and not the last day of my life.

Since I live here, I'm on the lake every weekend and the last day on the lake for me is sometime in October before I put the boat away. I ride around and enjoy the foliage and crisp fall air. Then I take her home and park her until next year.

[coltgov101]

It was always for my dad and me a boat ride from Spindle Pt. to Center Harbor where we stored are boat over the winter. It was usually in Nov. and we had to wear wool stocking caps over our heads because of the cold! But guess what? we owned the lake that day! We never saw another boat and it was something I will never forget!

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by StephenB

I work with at-risk teenage boys at a residential treatment center in the suburbs of Boston. Most of our kids fit your description, though some of them are from suburban and rural areas themselves. One fine cobalt-blue-sky, July, Saturday morning a few years ago, I piled all the "on level" (meaning well behaved) kids into a van along with our picnic stuff and did the 2 hour drive to the lake. Most of them had never been to New Hampshire, never mind Winnipesaukee. They were all excited to be going, anticipating this "big lake" that I was talking so much about, being so much better than some of the local ponds we usually go to. (I guess they ignored the fact that we often went to some nice ocean beaches such as Horse Neck in SE Mass.) I set my sights on Ellacoya State Park.

Anyhow, as the kids are finally getting tired of the near 2 hour trip, one asks me if we're there yet, just as we're cresting the last hill top on the Laconia bypass. Their glimpse of that million dollar view of the lake quieted them down real fast right there.

A bit later on, they're taking in all the sights of the lake from the beach at Ellacoya as I say, while one of them wanders over and looks at a navigation map of the lake the state park staff had posted on an information board. He asks where we are on the map and I point out Ellacoya. Then he looks through the trees, over the beach, towards Welch Island, and then back at the map, and he realizes what he sees beyond the beach is only a fraction of the true lake. His jaw kind of drops as he quietly, and a bit reverently says "Wow! This is a BIG lake", again, looking out over the water.

A bit later in the day, after our BBQ, we climbed Mt. Major so they could see most of the rest of the lake. It was Mt. Washington clear that afternoon too, if memory serves.

That was three summers ago and since then, all of those kids have graduated and left our school.

Oh, and by the way - the kid that was so amazed that day, comparing the map view of the lake to the real thing - he eventually moved to Littleton ----- New Hampshire. And myself? I'm still stuck in MA. Go figure

Not to worry..............There is a place reserved for you and all the others who work so hard to make this world a better place for all. Your post was very touching and just to let you know that you certainly do a good job! Those kids got lucky when they got you!

[challmec]

I would definitely be out on the lake enjoying the water and the unpredictable New England weather.
Hope everyone is having a safe and enjoyable summer on Winny!!