Lake Winnipesaukee family vacation

Last week Stacey and I headed to the east coast for a much needed vacation. We kicked off the trip with a visit to Boston, where we stayed with our good friends Mark and Colleen. They were generous enough to pick us up from the airport at midnight on Friday and let us crash at their place in Boston for two nights (thank you!). We had part 3 out of 4 of our wedding activities on Saturday: a picnic by Lake Waban on Wellesley's campus with a small group of friends. We all enjoyed plenty of yummy picnic food, beautiful weather, adorable dogs, and one inflatable kayak. Then on Sunday we headed up to New Hampshire.

We stayed at the same place as we did two years ago -- a little cabin on Furber Point of Lake Winnipesaukee.  We spent just under a week there with my parents, my sister and her boyfriend, and my two uncles.  

 

The cabin on Furber Point

Much like last year, we rented a boat for the first part of the week to explore the lake, waterski, and take the scenic route into town. This year, we got a much more powerful boat, which made water skiing easier and tubing much more exciting/treacherous than last year (they don't call us the Action Taylors for nothing).  My parents were the guinea pigs for the first tubing run and got tossed dramatically into the lake, although they were (mostly) all smiles at the end.  Luckily everyone survived their experience on the water with only a couple bruises and sore muscles the next day.

We also managed to fit in some canoeing and swimming, too.  And just like our last visit, we were treated to some gorgeous sunsets from the dock.

We don't get summer sunsets like this in California

Sunset over the lake

We managed to see a little more of the town of Wolfeborro (or, at least it's surroundings) this time, too.  Stacey and I joined my parents for a walk along one of the trails that heads out of the town and visits some of the neighboring lakes.  It was a beautiful day, and we ended up walking for about 2 hours through the outskirts of town and the surrounding forest. We even made a feline friend along the way...

New feline friend

Lush forest undergrowth

Stacey and my dad stopped for a lengthy berry photo shoot

On Thursday we all went for a family hike up to the top of Mount Major, a moderate climb with a steep scramble near the summit.  Luckily, our efforts were rewarded with thick patches of wild blueberries at the top of the mountain, and Stacey and I wasted no time picking enough for everyone.  Once we got to the top, we enjoyed lunch and incredible views of the lake.

Trail signs

Moss photoshoot

New froggy friend

Picking blueberries

One of many handfuls

Wild blueberry bushes

Stacey and me at the summit of Mt Major

On our last full day at the cabin, we spent most of the time relaxing/napping in the hammock, making a run into town for some post cards, and one last trip to Bailey's Bubble for monstrous ice cream cones.

Hammock time

There was talk of going back to Winnipesaukee again in two years, although since the house where we stayed is currently for sale, it's unclear whether we'll get to go back to what seems like "our" little cabin on Furber Point.  Even so, we're already looking forward to more waterskiing, boating, swimming, puzzles, ice cream, s'mores, and quality family time.