Looking Back on 2016
I went to so many appointments in preparation for jaw surgery to correct my bite…
Dentist
Periodontist
Orthodontist
Oral Surgeon
Plastic Surgeon
and
Physical Therapy.
My surgery is finally happening in a few days so I wanted to share a small bit of my year now.
I spent a lot of time sewing
Playing with kittens
Watching It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia & Bob’s Burgers
unpacking…
searching for springs
and Nathan and I started brewing again!
I did a bit of travelling…
NY, MA, NJ, NH, ME, VT, & PA
Norway, Ireland, & Canada
I went to many awesome concerts and music festivals (they need their own post!)
and climbed some breathtaking mountains.
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| I stumbled upon the Gardens at Yaddo. Saratoga Springs, NY |
I climbed Cascade Mountain with Michelle.
Made it .3 miles from the summit, daylight fading.
Icy hike and my crampon broke…
Cascade Mountain 4,098′
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| Michelle on Cascade Mountain, Adirondacks. So much ice… Keene, NY |
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| View of Mud Pond from a clearing on Cascade Mountain, Adirondacks. Keene, NY |
Norway
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| Me and Nathan on the water front in Bergen, Norway with Bryggen behind us. |
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| Bergenhus Festning. Bergen, Norway |
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| Nathan and I in Gudvangen, Norway during our Norway in a Nutshell Tour. |
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| Snowshoeing on a mountain in Aurland near Flåm, Norway. The Norway Crew – left to right – Me, Becky, Andrew, Rich, & Nathan. Fjord Safari |
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| Parliament building with the full moon rising in Oslo, Norway. |
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| The Fountain in Frogner Park. Oslo, Norway |
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| Me at Akershus Festning. Oslo, Norway |
Ireland
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| Ha’penny Bridge over the River Liffey in Dublin, Ireland. |
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| Me near Newgrange, County Meath, Ireland. |
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| I was so excited that Nathan had to call ahead for me to stop so he could take the picture. The Ireland Crew minus Rich and Nathan at Trim Castle – left to right – Becky, Mike, Andrew, Mel, & me. Trim, County Meath, Ireland |
I hiked approximately 11 miles in the Catskill Mountains with Nathan, Ashley, Steve, and Marie.
No photos.
I didn’t take my phone with me and forgot to change the batteries in the camera.
There were no “views” and the terrain was… steep.
Big Indian Mountain 3,701′
Eagle Mountain 3,602′
Haynes Mountain 3,425′
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| I took this photo during a recon mission a couple weeks before the hike. Catskill Mountains, Seager, NY |
My sister Rebekah came to visit me for my birthday and we went to New York City by ourselves…
I had an amazing time discovering the city with her. We had originally planned to go to the top of the Empire State Building to see the city and beyond, but it was a very rainy day. We just took it easy and enjoyed everything that we could. No pressure to rush. I did make her walk some miles… Sorry Beki.
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| My sister in the Empire State Building. Manhattan, NY |
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| Me at Rockefeller Center. Midtown Manhattan, NY |
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| Minton Tiles at Bethesda Arcade in Central Park. Manhattan, NY |
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| View of The San Remo towers from across The Lake in Central Park. Manhattan, NY |
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| I turned 40… |
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| View of Mt. Greylock from the summit of Monument Mountain 1,642′. Great Barrington, MA |
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| I crossed the Brooklyn Bridge for the first time. Brooklyn, NY |
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| Me and Nathan on the Brooklyn Bridge. Brooklyn, NY |
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| My favorite fountain at The Mount (Edith Wharton’s home). Lenox, MA |
I got to see some of my first loves at the Rock’n Derby in Schaghticoke, NY.
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| Sebastian Bach from Skid Row. |
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| Nuno Bettencourt from Extreme. |
… and my beloved Marilyn Manson with Twiggy at SPAC, Saratoga Springs, NY.
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| Reminiscing back twenty-two years to the first time I saw him perform… I cried for our youth. |
Nathan and I moved to Saratoga Springs, NY
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| Logan in our new house! |
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| The kitchen in our new house. I love it so much! |
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| Morrigan in our new house! |
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| Woods Hollow Nature Preserve, Ballston Spa, NY A nature preserve that I can walk to from my house! |
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| Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
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| Lake Champlain (Cumberland Bay) looking towards the Adirondack Mountains, NY. |
I slept in a hammock at the Seawall Campground in Acadia National Park, Mount Desert Island, ME.
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| View from Great Head Trail. Acadia National Park, ME |
Hiked Precipice Trail, “The most challenging trail in Acadia,” with Nathan, Michelle, and Jim.
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| View from the summit of Champlain Mountain (1,058′) after climbing up .8 miles on Precipice Trail. Acadia National Park, ME |
And we rode our bikes on the old carriage roads.
I will admit, riding bikes in Acadia was one of the most physically excruciating things I did all year.
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| Looking out across Eagle Lake after a bike ride. Acadia National Park, ME |
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| Nathan waiting patiently for me in the Italian Gardens at Congress Park. Saratoga Springs, NY |
Michelle and I visited The Natural Stone Bridge & Caves Park in the Adirondack Mountains.
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| The mouth of the marble cave which creates the natural stone bridge. It wasn’t until this vantage that I realized we had already crossed the bridge. Pottersville, NY |
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| Oyster Shell at Artist’s Gorge within The Natural Stone Bridge & Caves Park. Pottersville, NY |
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| Becky and I rode the Carousel in Congress Park. Saratoga Springs, NY |
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| Me and Becky! |
I climbed Crane Mountain with Nathan.
Not an Adirondack High Peak, but I made it to the top!
Crane Mountain 3,254′
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| View from the summit of Crane Mountain, Adirondacks. Johnsburg, NY |
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| Me and Nathan during our Crane Mountain climb. Johnsburg, NY |
My good friends Ashley and Steve got married in the Poconos at the Split Rock Resort.
Their wedding was a fantastic celebration and I was happy to be there.
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| A view from my room at the Lodge. Lake Harmony. PA |
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| Split Rock Lake Harmony, PA |
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| Saw the Black Sun of Melancholy & Mapplethorpe exhibits at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Art Should not be Censored Quebec, Canada |
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| Hall of Springs, Saratoga Spa State Park. Saratoga Springs, NY |
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| I got to go inside the Hall of Springs in Saratoga Spa State Park! Saratoga Springs, NY |
I hope to continue to share my adventures from this year in 2017. I still have so much I want to share about Norway, and I haven’t shared any stories from Ireland yet… or Acadia.
Most of the photos were taken by me, some by Nathan, and possibly by any of my friends mentioned in this post!