Fall Weekend in New England

This is a long weekend. Monday is Columbus day. I don't know why the US even has this holiday. I think Amerigo Vespucci much more deserves a holiday named after him than Columbus.

Anyway, on Columbus day weekend the Black Dog has Black Dog look-alike contest. Their intention is having fun with dogs we love. In fact, they encourage all dogs in colors, sizes, ages and breeds to participate. I like the spirit. Who is the black doggy? It's Marilyn!


- Of course it's from the Black Dog!

- They are not patches anymore. It's more gray than black. Could this be a problem???
- Not so much. Umm, we have a bit problem here...

So, we stopped by their Newburyport store for her entry this morning. The lady, I believe she is the manager, remembered Marilyn from our last visit... because she is also Marilyn! She told us the original black dog was also a girl.

Marilyn took Marilyn's pictures. They are going to pick a winner at each store once the entries are closed, then those winners' photos will be posted on their Facebook where people vote for the grand winner. Let's see.

Usually we walk around the town, but the weather was questionable. So, we decided to head out to the next stop, the Crane Beach, after her entry was done. We drove by farms and marshes along with colonials and farm houses. It was a nice scenic road. Dogs are allowed at the beach between October and March. They can even be off leash in the certain area! When we got there, it was below 60, a little bit chilly.

Another reason I like to come to this beach in off-season is horses. You can see horses walking along the water. It's a graceful view. And, today was not an exception. In addition to these guys, we saw some more horses just coming out from the trailer at the parking.

Marilyn was so excited with the beach. She seemed to remember when she came here last year. The first thing she did was getting somebody's bag. Mama was not proud of that. Uggg, she sniffed around the bag for any goodies, then went to the bag's owner to say hello. They must have brought yummy lunch in it.

This was the second time coming to a beach this year. This time, she knew she shouldn't drink water out of puddles. Mama was proud she learned from her experience. She walked and sniffed on the soft sand. She also met a lot of new friends with and without tails. She usually doesn't do well with other dogs because she is afraid they would hurt her. Today, she greeted all dogs nicely. She seemed to enjoy that. All dogs she met from ones still have puppy heads to ones enjoying their golden ages were nice and friendly.

Many people brought their dogs to the beach today. Especially these three were super happy!

I believe this is the Plum Island, a typical New England coastal town.

Nice to see a wild life like this. Once I turned around I saw fall colors on the dune.

Most importantly, today's best shot. By the way, she was so proud of the bandana.

It was getting cold, so we left the beach. On the way home, we stopped by a farm near by the beach. Unfortunately, they didn't allow dogs. Marilyn had to wait in the car.

Farms are always full of inspirations for simple living and beauty of nature.

And, lots of yummies... wine, cider, cheese, and caramel apples... in addition to their fresh produce. They had hot cider and cider doughnuts which they were making there. There was a long line for the doughnuts. It was worth to wait. The hot cider was perfect for the chilly day. It hit the spot.

Their displays were also nice. I love they put kales in a tin bucket. Here is a family reunion... green tomatoes and potatoes. They had farm made apple pies and crisps. The nice thing about these frozen ones is you can enjoy them right out of the oven.

Of course, fresh apples from their orchards if you don't feel like picking your own.

These two must have gotten the memo.

You've got to see animals at a farm. Talking heads were on the water. Quiet ones were in the fence with youngster turkeys born this year.

The sheep was hiding from the chatty ducks.

This time around a year, you cannot forget pumpkins.

On the way home, Marilyn was a little bit upset since she had to share the back seat with a pumpkin on the top of missing a cider doughnut. Somehow, she knew...

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