Here at Hangman Hill

Our Christmas in 2020 was a little different than in past years.

We decided to travel to our chalet in New Hampshire so we could have a change of scene and enjoy some time in the mountains. But his meant that we needed to quarantine for 14-days when we arrived. Accordingly, we packed up the car with everything we might need for 2 weeks and set off a few days early.

Our friends Mike and Denise had managed to rent the chalet next-door-but-one to ours for a few days. So, we agreed to try to have an outside and socially distanced Christmas together if we could. We wouldn’t see anyone else and we all had plenty of warm clothes from our outdoor sporting activities to wear.

To shelter from the weather but still stay outdoors we set about creating an outdoor dining area under our deck. We needed protection from strong winds, cold temperatures and heavy rain (the typical New Hampshire weather at this time of year). This was achieved with a tarp, zip-ties, bungies, a string of Christmas lights, a propane heater, and the last remaining Christmas tree from our local hardware store. In just a few hours “Cafe Dundee” was created!

Despite a wide range of weather conditions (including 3” of rain on Christmas Day) we were able to enjoy festivities outside three nights in a row without getting drenched or suffering from frostbite. There was plenty of fresh air and lots of distance between us all even when huddled around the heater. And in between all of the eating and drinking associated with Christmas we managed to fit in a couple of nice winter hikes (Peaked Mountain, Attitash Trails) and a morning on our XC ski’s at Bear Notch.

A big thank you to Mike, Dee and Mesa for joining us in this crazy Christmas adventure. We had a great time and we hope that you did too!

We had hoped to spend our Christmas on skis but all the rain we received on Christmas Day left us with no snow. So, we have been exploring new places and since the days are short, we are looking for hikes nearby we can do with two doodles.

In Bartlett, near the chalet we hiked to Cave Mountain. After a short, but steep climb we came to a cliff with impressive boulders. Indeed there were caves. What we didn’t expect was a terrific view, not just from an opening at the top of the caves, but also along the trail, looking south and west. One of the benefits of hiking in winter in New England is prevalence of views that are masked in the canopy of late spring, summer and early fall. We were reminded today of why we enjoy hiking this time of year.

Post by Sheri

It has been a long year, even in the garden! In the past we have been able to push the garden well into fall, but never as late as December. I have read that in Vermont, farmers can grow greens into the winter using polytunnels. Apparently, protecting the tender plants from the wind is more critical than the cold.

So, during the fall clean up I planted some salad greens in one of the plots and covered them with poly tunnels. The only green that came up was arugula (rocket if you are in the UK) – which is no surprise as it does really well in Hangman Hill Gardens.

I have been watching the arugula grow, always wondering if I should harvest what was there, or keep letting it grow. It was always a balance between taking advantage of a warm fall temperatures and some pretty crazy storms with high winds that can damage the polytunnels (and did for the one covering chard).

With a Nor’easter starting to blow, snow falling and predictions for up to 12”, I knew it was time! Dressed in my down coat, hat and gloves, I harvested the arugula by head lamp with the snow swirling. I have harvested by headlamp in the dark, with the R.E.M. song “Gardening at Night”, playing in my head. Harvesting by headlamp in the snow is a first. The staves holding the tunnels in place were nearly frozen into the ground but I wrestled them out and… VIOLA! Fresh arugula on December 16th.

I hope this a good omen for 2021. Keep breathing and eat your veggies!

Last night we enjoyed a Christmas “music and light show” put on by Pfizer at the Groton CT campus. It was open to employees and neighbours and helped to raise money for local charities and food banks. It was very well organized and a joy to drive through the buildings where we normally work all lit up for the holidays.

This year we celebrated Thanksgiving in Connecticut, just the two of us, and, Zealand and Chatra too. While we missed spending time with friends and family, we are grateful to have each other for company.

We are very lucky to have friends nearby that we can still see outside for meals or walks in the woods. Our Thanksgiving week started with a delivery of an incredible pumpkin bread from Jen. It was a treat that we savored whole week. We are very grateful to Jen and her culinary skills. We have had some fantastic bread, rolls and pretzels during the pandemic!

We were inspired by a colleague at work who shared her successful experience with a grilled spatchcock turkey. We followed a recipe from the New York Times that provided great instruction for removal of the backbone and for brining in buttermilk. After soaking the turkey for the recommended two-days, we opted to grill instead of roast given the warm tempeatures. To our delight, the turkey turned out beautifully and tasted great.

For sides, we kept things simple and had stuffing on the side, roasted potatoes and Brussels sprouts, steamed peas and a pumpkin pie custard for dessert. The pumpkin custard is just pie filling in a ramekin. We loved the simplicity and less filling version of pumpkin pie!

We spent the rest of the holiday weekend doing a few home renovations, went for a hike with the Mitchell-Dignan-Spencer clan and began some Christmas preparations. On Sunday evening we enjoyed a happy hour in the glow of our new fire pit and the light of the full moon.

Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Full Moon and now on to ski season… THINK SNOW!

We enjoyed unusually warm temperatures a few weeks ago for a shoulder season hike to North Moat Mountain. We had tried this hike last year, but had to abandon it due to high water levels.

The hike was very scenic and there were many wonderful views on the ascent. After a picnic lunch and a nap on the summit, we descended via the Red Ridge Trail which took as back to the Diana’s Bath parking lot.

We are mostly working at home and thus missing our regular trips to the Pfizer fitness center. In the summertime we worked-out outside on the deck and really enjoyed the al-fresco exercise experience. Now that the days are much shorter and the outside temperatures are colder we have been forced inside for our gym time.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us (and many others) to be creative. So, we cleared a space in the basement and purchased some rubber floor mats. With a few weights, mats, straps, bands and balls that we already had we now have our own in-house fitness center for the winter months.

A few weeks ago we spent a cloudy and damp weekend in New Hampshire. Despite the sub-optimal weather we enjoyed some really nice hikes and also some brief spells basking in the sunshine.

We hiked the Basin Trail in Evans Notch on Saturday, and this allowed us to check out some future overnight camping spots. And on Sunday we completed our penultimate “Terrifying 25” trail by hiking to (and onto) the Goodrich Boulder in Waterville Valley. This short hike was extended by continuing on to the Greeley Ponds to explore their peaceful and secluded valley

Typically the garden has always slowed down by early October, but this year it has kept going strong despite a dry spell and a few cold nights. Our harvests have been great and we hope it can keep this up for a few more weeks….

The first weekend in October brought us back to New Hampshire for our annual homeowners meeting (of our chalet development). We were lucky enough to get a hike in on Sunday, and we tackled Pine Mountain from the Gorman side. The leaves were perfectly colored and we even saw a rainbow.