Michael Webber

Category: New Hampshire

  • Hike East Osceola via Greeley Ponds Trail

    Here are some photos from our family hike up East Osceola Mountain via Greeley Ponds Trail on July 7, 2015.

    For the most part the firts 1.3 miles of the Greeley Pond Trail is flat, although there were some muddy spots and a few stream crossings.
    For the most part the first 1.3 miles of the Greeley Pond Trail is flat, although there were some muddy spots and a few stream crossings.

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  • Hilton Hhonors Wifi vs. Verizon Hotspot

    Our family is on a short two-day ski trip in New Hampshire, staying at Hampton Inn & Suites North Conway. The hotel is great, extremely family friendly, and the staff are nice. There’s an amazing mini-water park  inside the hotel, bingo night, movie night complete with popcorn. Just a wonderful place.

    Unfortunately, I needed to sneak in a quick Skype TV interview for work Monday morning and was hoping the hotel wifi would be strong enough. In running some speed tests the night before and I was frightened by the results. I’m not a big business traveler, but I’ve heard the hotel wifi can vary significantly and often performs rather poorly.

    I’m barely getting 1MB download and upload speeds and about half that:

    Hilton Hhonors Wifi Speed Test Results
    Hilton Hhonors Wifi Speed Test Results

    To be fair, I was testing the wifi at the worst possible time, 9pm on school vacation week. I believe the hotel is nearly full, it will be curious to see if there’s any improvement in the morning.

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  • Mount Washington TV Geeks

    Picked up my copy of Marty On The Mountain at <a href="http://www.booksmusictoys.com/">The Village Book Store</a> in Littleton, NH.
    Picked up my copy of Marty On The Mountain at The Village Book Store in Littleton, NH.

    Mount Washington and Television, two of my life passions in one book.

    Marty on the Mountain is a wonderful book full of neat stories about life as a TV engineer on top of Mount Washington.  Only 157 pages, the book is a fun read over a quiet weekend.

    I’ve had the opportunity to hike and visit the mountain on a number of occasions.  In fact, I proposed to my wife after a hike up Tuckerman’s Ravine.

    I had a clear image of the location as I read about the different buildings on the summit.

    Great book, I picked up my copy at the Village Book Store in Littleton, which is always part of our family vacation trips.  I usually pick up at least one book. I know the store downsized in 2014 and is now under new ownership, known as Little Village Toy & Book Shop  but still a great place.

  • Franstead Camping 2013

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    Our two week camping trip to New Hampshire is underway.

  • Ripley Falls 2011

    Ripley Falls 2011 by mediaguy4

    I’m starting to go through vacation photos and video from our trip to the White Mountains in New Hampshire.

    This photo of Ripley Falls is one of my first attempts at HDR photography and I’m somewhat happy with the result.

    Click on the image to view a high resolution version on my Flickr page.

    Ripley Falls is 100ft tall and one of the easier hikes in Crawford Notch.  A great adventure for a family with young children.  We brought our two boys, 5 and 2 1/2 and they did just fine on the trail.

     
    Ripley Falls 2011, a photo by mediaguy4 on Flickr.

  • Old Bridle Path to West Rattlesnake Mountain

    June 24, 2011 – This was our second time on the Old Bridle Path trail leading up to the scenic ledges that overlook Squam Lake.  Scenic is sort of an understatement, ever since our first hike I’ve noticed that nearly every tourism brochure features stunning photos from this location.

    Unfortunately the weather was not so great this time, although the scattered showers were mild and the mid-70 temperatures were comfortable.

    The property is owned and managed by the University of New Hampshire’s Office of Woodlands and Natural Areas.  There’s a great PDF brochure with a trail map, and background information about the area on the NH Division of Forests and Lands website.

    If you have kids, this is a great trail as long as you’re careful about slippery rocks and the steep ledges at the top.  Our two boys (2 and 5) made it all the way to the top on their own.  The trail itself is almost 5ft wide all the way, and VERY well maintained.  Lots of crushed stone to help with potential mud, and steps to deal with the steep areas.

    I did cary the 2 year old back down in his backpack carrier, but that was expected.  We also discovered what appeared to be a bad bug bite on the younger boy’s face.  He had a reaction to whatever it was, with red spots, and red skin areas all over his body.  We called our doctor and stopped by a local pharmacy to pickup some over-the-counter medication to be safe.  The redness and spots seem to go subside over the next 10 hours.

    Hopefully the weather breaks and we can go for some longer hikes.  I’ll add some photos to this post as soon as I get connected to a better internet connection.

     

     

     

  • Five Reasons To Stay at Fransted Family Campground

    Fransted Family Campground
    Fransted Family Campground has been our vacation destination for years.

    April 2012 UPDATE: Since I wrote this blog post Fransted Family Campground has been sold and is now managed by the new owners.

    If you’re looking for a campground in the Franconia Notch area of New Hampshire, you need to check out Fransted Family Campground.

    There are many camping choices in New Hampshire and the experience can vary greatly.

    For example, the state campgrounds offer a low cost, no frills value in prime locations.  Perfect for Deb and I when it was just the two of us.  That said, the reservation system can sometimes be a pain to deal with and alternatively the first come, first served sites often leave your vacation to chance.

    There’s also all kinds of private campground alternatives.  One that sticks in my mind promotes themselves with this, “Come experience the difference of no alcohol, no pets and no radio.“…OH JOY!  While I can appreciate this concept, it’s not for us.

    Then there are what I call resort style campgrounds, with pools, boats, beaches, mini-golf, arcades, ice cream shops, hayrides, and playgrounds all in an attempt to keep guests occupied from dawn to dusk.  Although not in New Hampshire, Point Sebago in Maine comes to mind as an example.  This is where I went camping as a kid, the place was awesome, but has since grown into an over the top RESORT, at least in my opinion.  It now has a “Nationally Acclaimed 18-Hole Championship Golf Course” , offers cabins, fist class entertainment…it’s a resort .

    For us Fransted Family Campground offers a perfect blend of all the examples above.  The reservation system is easy, with a wide variety of sites from private tent sites to RV sites with all the services.  The campground allows dogs, responsible use of  alcohol is permitted, they have a nice playground, mini-golf, and a modest beach area.  There’s also a fair amount of activities to keep you busy, especially on holiday weekends, but they don’t aim to keep you busy ALL day.  We really like this, kids and families should be able to enjoy the area without spoon feed entertainment all day.

    1. JACK & RITA (and don’t forget the family)
    Without question, owners Jack and Rita are the number one reason Fransted is so special, and better than most campgrounds.  The couple is deeply engaged in the business and seem to always be looking for ways to improve the campground.  We’ve been going for more than seven years now and we still get escorted to our campsite upon arrival…it’s so funny.  But it’s one of those little things that makes you feel like the owners care about your stay.

    Jack and Rita also maintain good control over the campground.  They are very friendly, but don’t hesitate to remind campers of quiet hours if they get too loud.  We think this is good, it’s a family campground and we enjoy the quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

    Jack & Rita’s family are also a big part of the campground, many of them work on weekends and major holidays to help run the many of the activities.  It really is amazing how efficient the whole operation runs.

    2. THE BATHROOMS!
     Let’s be honest, good CLEAN bathrooms are critical to an enjoyable camping experience, especially if you have children.  ALL the Fransted bathrooms are CLEAN, the cleanest I’ve ever seen in a campground!  They always have a fresh coat of paint, hot water, and free hot showers.  The staff checks and cleans the bathrooms all day long, it really is nice!

    3. WOOD CHIPS
    AH, THE WOOD CHIPS!  OK, so this one might sound a little strange but wood-chips are HUGE!  A few years back Jack had wood-chips placed on almost all the campsites, except for maybe some of the RV sites.  A very generous amount of wood-chips, and I think he adds more each year.  Imagine pitching your tent on a soft bed of wood-chips….no rocks and no packed down dirt that feels like asphalt.  HEAVEN!  At first I thought it would attract a lot of insects or start to decompose after a few years and smell, it just seemed like a strange idea.  Well, we’ve not experienced any of those issues, it was a great idea, and everyone seems to love it.  In fact, it’s such a good idea that I can’t see myself camping anywhere else, the thought of hard packed dirt is a turn off now.

    4. THE OTHER CAMPERS
    The culture within Fransted Campground is extremely friendly, many of the campers are regulars, some have been going to Fransted for 10, 15, 20+ years.  We have met so many great people, heck some of the folks now attend our kids birthday parties and other social gatherings.  That’s awesome!

    5. THE AREA
    The White Mountain region of New Hampshire is a wonderful place, there are countless hiking trails, and nearby attractions to keep you busy.  Here are a few that we would recommend:

    It’s true, I’ve become a fanboy of Family Fransted Campground, but for good reason.  We often complain about the products, businesses, and companies that do us wrong, but it’s not to often that we acknowledge those who provide superior service.

    THANK YOU JACK & RITA for running such a great campground and for making our family vacations so enjoyable and memorable!