Yesterday, I took some time to myself. I got on my motorcycle with fog swirling, shutting off radios and phones. I headed out. I had some things I wanted to do. Memorials, roads, places. For a while I felt I needed to travel north and do a few things. Today was that day. (I took this ride on October 4th.)
At 7:30 I climbed on my bike. It was 45 degrees, damp and foggy. Not ideal, but I have done worse. I headed over to fill up the tank and headed out. A couple of people were a lot closer to me than I would have wanted but that is the problem with driving in the fog. {{more}}
As the fog swirled and shapes appeared, I thought how it has been a while since I did one of these. I began to have memories of being 17, having a new motorcycle and being enamored with this young lady who lived near Utica. Getting up early (Yes, teenagers will do crazy things, but here I am 64 doing a similar thing.)
Heading out the weather did not get any warmer than 50 for the first hour. The sun finally broke through a bit and I got on the highway. Heading east to Concord and then catching 93 north. (And yes, the speed limit was 70 mph, but hey, who’s paying attention to that?)
I made the decision to avoid any radio, phone or anything else other than nature itself. I had set myself a goal of not stopping until I got to the town of Lincoln New Hampshire. The beginning of the Kancamagus Highway. (pronounced “cain-ka-MAW-gus”, “Fearless One”)
Driving the 32 miles of the Kancamagus, I stopped a few times to admire the beauty of the mountains, the rivers and the foliage. The sun had fully come out and the weather warmed to about 65 degrees. Add in the curves of the road itself and it was perfect.
I stopped in Conway, watching a train and just enjoying the time. Coming down into Ossipee and Merideth, I slowed to admire the lake, the colors and the beauty.
It was an emotional day on many levels, as the geography, sites and memories flooded in. I had not been there in a few years, the last time traveling north to The Flume, another exit north. I stopped at places that brought visions of others’ lives and what they had endured, the struggles they faced. A small cemetery caused tears. Memorials to those who rode and had died. Loved ones who left too soon.
I spent nearly 8 hours just riding. Physically, I could have doubled that. Emotionally, I was hitting my peak. The nature, the mountains, the valleys and the rivers did my soul well. Even though I encountered some emotional conflicts, forgotten memories and some trips of nostalgia.
I came away, remembering a note to do this more often.
All too often, we place emphasis on what we know. I think what we know is often a surface that needs to be scratched, and a well of understanding sought. 
I came home sunburned, emotionally wrung and wanting to do it again.
Part II
So much did I enjoy my time up on the Kancamagus, that I decided to set a time for my wife, my daughter and a couple of my grandchildren to go with me.
They came in last Friday, getting to my home to spend the night with the plan to head out when everyone was awake. The next morning the final upriser was ready by 10:30. We had water and sandwich materials, so we could just stop at our leisure.
The foliage began to appear as we headed up through Hillsborough catching 89 to 93 and the trek north. Oops! Tons of traffic! We pulled over to a roadside rest area and it was packed. We just joined the leaf peepers! Cars on the right side of the highway with people crossing over to the other side for the views. What?!?!? Are you kidding me?
From there we went to exit at Lincoln and traffic was backed up out on to the highway. To get through the light was a 20-minute trip. We finally got onto the Kancamagus, catching views of the art show in Lincoln. There was a ton of traffic, but all you had to do was look up to the mountains and the blazing colors. As we approached the first place I wanted to stop at for the views, I was excited to see what it looked like. Distance and traffic were offset by the beauty.
After walking around the area, we made PB&J’s, opened a bag of chips and admired the beauty. (I also had a new co-pilot!!! My daughter deciding the last stop a little much!)
We continued on from there, stopping a couple of more times before heading down the average 7% grade. Cars on both sides of the road, vehicles with trailers and loud diesels did not change my mood.
We arrived in Conway and spent a bit driving around, viewing a covered bridge, beautiful architecture and the delight of a small town. We then headed south towards Ossipee, from there over to Merideth. Unlike my previous trip, I had a surprise.
I headed down into Laconia to Recycled Percussion’s newest store, Chaos & Kindness. Surprise!!! My daughter and her children love Recycled Percussion. The store did not disappoint them. (I have a separate article on this.) I love their band and their devotion to kindness.
All in all, it was a great trip. Next year it is my plan to head up there for a couple of days to camp, do some hiking, visit The Flume and maybe a trip to a zip line or something.
I hope this encourages you to go and check it out the next time you are in the region.
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