Day Negative Two - Day 2 in Franconia (What's up with the weather?)

I've lost track of where I am and can only be somewhat sure of where I am going. Then again, I'm not even sure of that.

We spent the typical lovely day 2 in Franconia. After a big breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and all that good breakfast stuff (after we swore we'd never eat again), we went for a swim in pool, even though it was gray, cloudy, and cool. The kids just love swimming, they can't get enough of it, and we're glad for that. Besides the safety concerns, swimming is just a great activity, and a great way to beat the heat, if we had any heat to speak of. Actually, it's been muggy and warm, even if there is no sun, and the rain is relentless. We can't seem to catch a break on the weather, but more on that later.

We swam for what seemed like hours, occasionally jumping in the jacuzzi for relief, and then headed out to the flume for our regular rite of passage. The flume is so cool, I love hiking it, but it can be challenging for young kids because it is about a two mile hike and for young legs that can be daunting. Neither A nor N wanted to do it, and we had to coax them a bit, but finally they agreed. We packed up some water and headed for the Notch.

It had been drizzling steadily all day, so we knew we weren't going to get stellar weather, and that there was a good chance we were going to get wet, which is fine when you're a real Vermonter. You don't let a little weather stop you. A lot of weather, on the other hand...

Before we left we wanted to check out the local ice cream parlor, which apparently is famous for it's homemade vittles, but we had a bit of a situation with grouchy children, and ran into a standoff. Some of wanted ice cream now, others wanted it later (for no apparent reason). The latter won out, and we decided to wait, but said person was extremely distraught over the possibility that they'd be closed when we got there later. Oh well, you make your decisions, you live with them. Something we must learn every day of our lives.

The flume was nice, a steady drizzle but it meant it wouldn't be too hot. Some of us were grouchy because we didn't get enough sleep (what else is new?) and because we were still regretting our decision to wait for ice cream. I was convinced that I'd be carrying someone the entire way through, especially in light of the fact that I'd (it's always my fault) packed the wrong shoes and they were being worn begrudgingly.

However, once we got inside and rode the bus to the trailhead, our spirits had lifted, and all grouchiness dissipated. In fact, for the first time both our kids hiked the entire flume unassisted. My arms were grateful. What's amazing is N lead the charge. He came out the starting gates like a rocket and powered through the hardest part that leads to the flume. He really enjoyed himself and his excitement was palpable.

We had a great time, and though it was wet, there was a sizable contingent of people who weren't going to let a little rain stop them. It was nice to see. We even crawled through the wolf den for the first time, which wasn't easy for me (the kids breezed through it) because I'm large and old, but I went for it to show my support for our kid's sense of adventure. It was NOT easy, I literally had to get on my stomach and slide through, but I couldn't lose face.

We made it through no problem, the kids had a blast, and we got to burn off some excess baggage from the previous two meals. With this in mind, it was time to replenish. We had set our minds on ice cream, but real food sounded good, too. So we had lunch in town and then went and got our ice cream cones.

A ordered chocolate but it was too soft so they put it in a bowl. I could see her disappointment, but she didn't say anything because she's such a good kid. Thinking fast, I ordered Cookies and Cream and swapped with her so she could have the cone experience and I would do the cup. She was grateful and relieved. N got the Moose Tracks (what I originally wanted) and R got Coffee Heath Bar. They were all fantastic, a fitting end to our long trek, and N just happened to get the biggest scoop, which was fitting since he started the day grouchy and was now a happy camper.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.