Woot woot, summer is here. July has arrived, and another weekend trip has come to pass. This time I was doing some, well, sightseeing. A Saturday of driving around to some of New Hampshire’s covered bridges.
My weekend started after work on Friday, and it turned out to be an early work day for me. This is a good thing when traveling during the summer months, it gets me out ahead of the heavier traffic, and this early day was no exception. The drive was nice, no traffic, a bright sunny, warm afternoon. Arriving at the Hampton Inn Bow/Concord gave me a bit of a surprise. The Inn is undergoing renovation, the outside was the current focus, residing and repairing of the outer walls was well under way.
Check-in was quick and easy, as I had already done an online check-in the night before, I had my room picked out and all info had been entered, so all I needed to do was get my room key cards from the front desk. A quick rundown of the amenities from the desk clerk and I was off to my room, a King Bed room.
After a nice after work shower and a bit of relaxing with the music from Pandora playing, it was out to find me some place for dinner. After a bit of driving around I found the local retail district. A drive up and back to see what was available, I decided on a restaurant I have not tried as of yet, Ruby Tuesday.
Dinner was good, and the price was fair, Ruby Tuesday’s will be on my radar from now on. I had the Broccoli Cheese soup for a start, followed by the Sirloin and Shrimp with fries and the grilled zucchini. No wait time for seating and my server, Lauren, was very cheery and her service was spot on. The restaurant was not very busy, so not a lot of noise to contend with, making for a nice dinner.
Not much else for me to do in the area at night, so it was back to the hotel for a relaxing evening chatting with my friends. Wi-Fi in the hotel seemed a bit odd, kind of off and on. Had some fun conversation with my buds. Sleeping was good, comfortable bed and a quiet room for the overnight.
Morning and complimentary breakfast at the hotel, a bowl of oatmeal, a bagel and some scrambled eggs, to start my day. I knew I was going to be active for the day. The day was a bit overcast, but not really threatening rain, making my plans for the day going forward.
Headed out from the hotel towards my first planned bridge, Keniston Bridge in Andover. Easy to get to, the bridge is still in use.
Next up, Cilleyville Covered Bridge, also in Andover and not too far from Keniston. Cilleyville bridge is closed to traffic, there is a small parking area for people to get out and walk across or enjoy a picnic at the table set up in the middle of the bridge.
A bit of a ride to the next bridge, Waterloo, located in Werner. Warner is also an open bridge.
Dalton Bridge was my next destination, the drive there had me driving by the New Hampshire Telephone Museum. I decided this would make a good, random, impulsive stop. I chose to visit my last planned bridge and come back after.
Dalton Bridge is also located in Warner and is an open bridge.
The ride to the next bridge was a bit long and odd. My GPS brought me through the woods, over a very grassy road. Not sure why my GPS brought me through such an odd drive, but I did find it to be fun.
The last bridge on my planned route was Railroad Bridge, located in Contoocook. Railroad Bridge is exactly what it sounds like, an old railroad bridge. Closed to all except for foot traffic. On one side stands the old Contoocook train station, I am not sure if there is any business located inside as it looked closed.
Still early in the afternoon, I decided to go back to the New Hampshire Telephone Museum. I am glad I did, a very small looking building on the outside, loaded with plenty of telephone history. Great look at Mr. Graham Bell’s telephone history as well as some local telephone history. A great collection of telephones throughout history to peruse. I spent about two hours taking the self-guided tour and enjoying the experience.
From the museum I headed to Applebee’s to get my self some dinner. Fish and chips was on my mind all day, so fish and chips was my dinner. I was feeling a bit tired, so I got my dinner to go and headed back to my hotel room for the evening.
Second nights sleep was a good as the first. Breakfast was light as I knew I had my drive home ahead of me. I had a bowl of oatmeal and some toast with a cup of coffee. Checking out was a simple procedure, turn my room key cards in and I was out the door and headed home. Sunday traffic was light and my drive home was uneventful.
Random Thoughts 