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OM&M is heading to Maine in Spring 2016

OM&M gear available in Maine

I am pleased to announce that Of Moose & Mountain gear will soon be available in retail stores in Maine for the first time in Spring 2016!

Shaker Hill Outdoors in Poland Spring will carry oval kayak decals. Shaker Hill Outdoors is a great source for supplies for a wide variety of outdoor interests from landscaping to power sports, paddle sports, and fishing tackle.

Shelter Institute in Woolwich will carry my Woodworker Wisdom t-shirts in the showroom. Shelter Institute is the place to go for quality and hard to find woodworking tools and for training on various woodworking topics from canoe paddle carving (I took this class) to building your own timber frame home.

OM&M gear is now available in select stores in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.

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OM&M in the Green Mountain State

Haystack Mountain Shirts

Of Moose & Mountain gear is now available in Vermont!

As of September 19, 2015, three versions of the new Mountain Elevation series shirts are available at The Hub in West Dover, Vermont. Located in the Deerfield Valley in southern Vermont, The Hub is practically at the foot of Mount Snow and Haystack Mountains with Stratton Mountain just a short ride up Route 100. Shirts featuring these three mountains along with their elevations and map coordinates are available.

This is the first time OM&M gear has been available in Vermont but, hopefully, it won’t be the last.

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Ashuelot River Canoe Club Shirts Available at Hannah Grimes Marketplace

Ashuelot River Canoe Club Shirt

Ashuelot River Canoe Club shirts are now available at Hannah Grimes Marketplace in Keene, NH. The latest OM&M t-shirt design features a canoe with crossed paddles and celebrates paddling in the Monadnock Region. The screen printing is intentionally “grungy” on a faded shirt giving a vintage look. Get yours today and be sure to post a photo on social media using the hashtag #GetYourMooseOn.

Wholesale inquiries welcome.

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Six Months in the White Mountains

Of Moose & Mountain gear has been available at the Local Works Marketplace in Bethlehem, NH, and the Local Works Gallery at the Omni Mt. Washington Hotel in Bretton Wood, NH, since October 2014. This is the first time OM&M gear has been available in the White Mountains. If you find yourself in the area, stop by either of the shops to see their selection of OM&M items as well as lots of other New Hampshire made products.

The Guide to Understanding New Hampshire Expressions postcard is our best seller at the Local Works shops (and most places that carry our items).

Of Moose & Mountain is looking to expand throughout the state and around New England. If you are interested in carrying our shirts, hats, decals, postcards, or other items, use the Contact page to ask for details.

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Adventure of the Week – Foliage Tour

Autumn is by far my favorite time of year. The cool mornings, warm afternoons, crisp air, and all the amazing colors of the leaves changing. The changing foliage makes every hike, bike ride, or drive a whole new experience each day. Peak color arrives at slightly different times each year but typically within a two week period. We’re just about hiking peak right now in the Monadnock Region. However you like to enjoy the outdoors, get out there and experience it anew this weekend. Revisit your favorite hike. Find a rail trail to walk or bike on. Bike some quiet country roads. Go apple picking. Take a driving tour of all the covered bridges in the area. All the experiences are even more pleasant at this time of year.
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Adventure of the Week – Hike a 4000 footer

New Hampshire has 48 mountains with elevations over 4000 feet with Mt. Washington coming in at 6,288 feet. Hiking up to 4000 feet is nothing compared to hiking at over 8,000 feet or higher in the Rockies, it’s no stroll in the park either. Some of the hikes are very grueling and require serious preparations. It’s quite an accomplishment to climb all 48. You get to join the Appalachian Mountain Club Four Thousand Footer Club as a high school classmate did recently.
As much time as my wife and I have spent hiking in New Hampshire, we had not climbed any of the 4000 footers until this past September. And that was almost by accident. We hadn’t woken up planning to hike a 4000 footer that day. We were in the White Mountains for a week of hiking and biking. Over breakfast our first morning, we were looking at trail guides. We found some fairly easy hikes near Twin Mountain but I wanted a bit more of a challenge. We saw Mt. Hale (4054′) on the map in that area. After reading up on it, we determined it was within our capabilities and the weather would be appropriate.
Mt. Hale is the 37th highest peak in New Hampshire and one of the easier hikes among the 4000 footers. We started at the upper parking lot on Zealand Road off Rt. 302. The trail progressed steadily uphill with few distant views even at the summit. The best views are a couple hundred yards below the summit.
When we arrived at the top around 11:30 AM, a hiker and his friends were celebrating his 48th 4000 footer. It didn’t take us long to feel the comradery. Everyone we met at the top or passed along the way asked what number you were up to and were very encouraging when we said it was our first.
If you are not used to long strenuous hikes and the potential for changing weather conditions, hiking New Hampshire’s 4000 footers is not for you. But if you like a big adventure, get out there this weekend and start collecting 4000 footers.
Learn more about the AMC 4000 footer club at http://www.amc4000footer.org/.
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Honeymoon in the Scottish Highlands Part 3

Wolf

We had a nice breakfast at our B&B this morning and then packed and had our host take a picture of us with the mountains in the background.  The bill for the night came to £50.

We then went for a short stroll on a walking path in Kingraig.  We went to an old church and graveyard, along Lock Insh, and down a farmers driveway.  His cows were quite interested in us.

Next, we went to the Highland Wildlife Park.  For £16, we were able to drive around and walk around a lot of native Scottish wildlife in nearly natural habitats. We saw European bison, elk (moose), sheep), wild horses, deer, otter, lynx, wild cats, pole cats, owls, and (my favorite) wolves. We took lots of pictures. The gift shop had wildlife t-shirts from The Mountain, a t-shirt shop in Keene, NH, where we work.

After a drive the country (B roads or less), we ended up at Inverdruie/Rothiemurchus for lunch.  I had a venison burger while Sarah had a sandwich she loved and some soup.  After lunch, we took a 3 mile walk through the woods and countryside.  The highlights of the walk were watching two highland cattle butting heads in a field and the ruins of a castle on a small island in the loch.

Throughout the day, the same weather pattern continued: sunny for a while and then rainy for a while.  But it rarely poured.

On the way up to Inverness, we stopped to see the old stone bridge from the 1600 or 1700s in Carrbridge.  Later I stopped to photograph a railroad bridge near Tomatin crossing the Findhorn Rriver.  Just as we got to Inverness, we saw the most intense rainbow I have seen in a long time.

Then the frustration started!  While Inverness is much smaller than Edinburgh, it’s still a city.  I have never been one for driving in any city – let alone a city where they drive on the other side of the road and I don’t have a good map of it.  After much effort trying to find a particular B&B, we ended up near a Travelodge hotel/motel. I think there are only two in the entire Highlands. A room much like an American motel cost £60.

We had a little trouble finding our way back into town for dinner – and much trouble finding a place to eat.  There were several choices but few that seemed right.  There was even a McDonald’s.  We ended up at an Indian restaurant for a curry.  We easily found her way back to the motel – much to my surprise.

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Adventure of the Week – Living History Days at Leonard’s Mills

It has been over 20 years since I visited Living History Days at Leonard’s Mills but I can still feel the cool autumn air, smell the campfires, and taste the fresh baked beans cooked in the ground overnight. Located about 10 miles outside of Bangor, Maine, Leonard’s Mills is the home of the Maine Forest and Logging museum. It’s smaller than some other living history but that just adds to its uniqueness. This year’s Living History Days are scheduled for October 4 & 5. Activities will include a 1790 encampment, 20th Maine Civil War encampment, 1900’s machinery and Lombard loghauler, wagon rides, cider pressing, beanhole beans (my favorite), water-powered sawmill, blacksmiths, weaving, spinning, and more. Writing this up made me wish I could fit it in this year. Maybe I’ll get back there next year.
For more information, check out the event on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/539102262857099/
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Adventure of the Week – Free Entrance Days in the National Parks

However you like to enjoy the outdoors, the national parks system has something for you. And, this Saturday, September 27, you can get in free for National Public Lands Day. Whether you’d like to bike the carriage roads at Acadia National Park, stroll around the grounds at the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site, or enjoy any other activity at any national park, get out there and enjoy!

What’s your favorite national park? It’s probably not a surprise to most of you that mine is Acadia.

http://www.nps.gov/findapark/feefreeparks.htm

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Adventure of the Week – Paddle Pisgah Reservoir

Pisgah State Park is the largest state park in New Hampshire located in the towns of Chesterfield, Hinsdale, and Winchester. The park has a lot to offer throughout the year: hiking, biking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, wildlife viewing, and a little history. Within the park is the 110 acre Pisgah Reservoir. There is no direct car access to the reservoir so you may have the water to yourself if you are willing to work for it. You can drive in from Route 119 up Reservoir Road to a parking area. From there, carry your canoe or kayak up a couple switchbacks and along the trail to the shore (less than a half mile). Then set out to explore. There are several old foundations along the shore as well as one on a small island in the middle of the reservoir. I paddled here on a weekday morning and had the entire 110 acres to myself shared only with an otter. I didn’t see anyone else until I headed back to shore where a small group of school kids were on a field trip.