Frances Sanderson

What happens when Blues Lovers hit the White Mountains of New Hampshire for a weekend of Camping, Comaraderie and the chance to hear some of the best Blues Artists around? Magic! Plain and simple.

For the past fourteen years, Brad and Mike Benton have been hosting an event called The White Mountain Boogie N' Blues Festival on their family spread, The Sugar Shack Campground, in Thornton, New Hampshire. As Mike Benton stated in this year's welcome message for the Event Program, (paraphrasing one of the attendees): "The White Mountain Boogie N' Blues Festival is like a Woodstock for Senior Citizens."

Having attended the Festival myself this past weekend, I would like to revise that last statement to: The White Mountain Boogie N' Blues Festival is like a Woodstock for Families. There were future Blues fans in the womb; toddlers rocking in Pirate raingear on that rainy Sunday; young adults with dredlocks, hula-hooping in the wings; elder members of the crowd sporting T-shirts from Blues Events they had attended decades prior, and generations of family members, sitting together, sharing a love for the same genre of music. How often does that happen?

The event began Friday night at 6 PM and continued through to Sunday 6 PM. As this was our first time, my husband and I latched on to a couple who had been attending the Festival for the last ten years. They had determined over the years: the best place to camp; the best vendor tents to visit; the best area to set up your folding chairs for viewing access, and they had established a friendship with the Founders, Brad and Mike Benton.

I had won our tickets from the New Hampshire Public Television Auction back in May. As part of the package we received a VIP Weekend Pass which included two seats in the VIP section in front of the stage, breakfast for two at The Sugar Shack, the Benton's Family Restaurant, both Saturday and Sunday morning, and a $50 gift basket of Maple Products. Although we didn't sit in our VIP seats the entire weekend, I did take advantage of the prime photography opportunity VIP seating allowed me. Here is a sampling of the great shots I was able to get as a result:

What were some of my favorite moments of the entire weekend? I have so many, but if I had to narrow it down to a few, I would have to say that John Lee Hooker, Jr's 'New Hampshire Background Singers' Recording of 'MoJo Working', John Lee Hooker, Jr's Funky Booty Dance Contest with Gospel Singer, Shirley Lewis as a contestant and co-winner, and Elvin Bishop's Impromptu Jam Session with JellyBean Johnson were three very special moments I will never forget.

If you haven't made your plans for attending The White Mountain Boogie N' Blues Festival next summer, put it on your calendar now. The amount of Boogie Love you get for only $15 a day is a bargain any way you cut it.

New Hampshire is known for having the most vehicles with vanity license plates than any other state in the Country, or so I've been told. Having paid special attention to them in the last few days, I have to ask the question, 'What are some of you trying to say on those plates?'

Some of them are pretty self-explantory: People's names; The owner's thoughts on life; or advertising one's business...

I think my plate is one of those: (In case it is not self explanatory... I sell real estate)

Some are not so self explanatory. I saw one this morning that said: TGIFF I wondered if they very enthusiastically Thanking God It was Friday, or whether saying, Thank Goodness, it's French Fries.

Then there was the little Dodge Neon with this plate: (this is not the exact plate but you get the idea)

I would expect this plate to be on something like this truck, wouldn't you?

not this:

So, again I ask the question... What Does Your License Plate Say About You? If you don't have one, not to worry. Here's your chance to make one up :-)

Oh, and If you were curious like I was, this one hasn't been taken yet:

But this one has: IMAWNNR

Additional Information that may or may not be useful to you:

If you are thinking of purchasing a vanity plate in New Hampshire, you can only do this at your next scheduled registration, but if you want to research what names are presently available, you can go to the New Hampshire Department of Safety's Registration Bureau.

If you actually need to look up the owner information on a plate, in order to locate someone who was involved in a crash, for example, you can find that information, too, at License-PLATE-Search.

A while back, I posted an article about the Profile Falls in Bristol, New Hampshire, in which I wrote about how the formation of rocks there look like a man's profile, much like the famous 'Old Man in the Mountain' of Franconia Notch. Well, I believe I've discovered another rock profile I'd like to call the 'Old Man in the Boulders' in Franklin, New Hampshire.

Here is a photo of the Old Man in the Mountain, before it crumbled in 2003.

Photo found on Wikipedia

Why is the "Old Man' such a fixture for the people of New Hampshire? The Old Man in the Mountain has been New Hampshire's State Emblem since 1945 and many of us still have his face on our license plates. For me, he was a big part of my childhood vacations to the Notch, as it was the first stop we made before checking out The Basin and The Flume Gorge.

First 'discovered' by surveyors in 1805, It was a series of five ledges on Cannon Mountain, that when viewed from the highway (Route 93), looked like a man's profile. This is why he is sometimes referred to as "The Profile".

For many of us 'Granite Staters', the loss of the Old Man has been deeply felt, so much so that a Memorial is now being built at the base of the rock outcropping to commemorate his significance in our history.

Well, imagine my excitement when I was driving down the road to work when I noticed this:

The 'Old Man in the Boulders'.

The City of Franklin had just stripped the boulders on Route 3A (also known as Hill Road), and exposed a new Man in the Mountain for all of us to behold. Granted, he is nowhere near the size and scale of the Old Man in the Mountain, but this makes it much more exciting. He is right down close to the road. He can only be seen in one direction, however. You must be traveling South on Route 3A to view him.

On your left will be the Franklin Falls Dam.

There will be a small spot on the side of the road to pull over for a photo.

Daniel Webster, a famous lawyer and orator that New Hampshire and Massachusetts both claim as a son, once said, "Men hang out their signs indicative of their respective trades; shoe makers hang out a gigantic shoe; jewelers a monster watch, and the dentist hangs out a gold tooth; but up in the Mountains of New Hampshire, God Almighty has hung out a sign to show that there He makes men."

Perhaps the saying is also true that when one of his signs crumble, he simply erects another sign :-)

Ten years ago, there were only a handfull of licensed Vineyards in New Hampshire. Today, in 2010, there are twenty-four licensed Vineyards and Wineries in the State, and many more home vintners, or winemakers, that have been bitten by the grape, so to speak.

This past weekend, my husband and I decided to check out two local Wineries in the Lakes Region, as we are beginning winemakers ourselves. We planted 45 vines last year, and as it takes 4 or 5 years to actually produce grapes that are good enough to make wine, we have a while to wait :-( In the meantime, our trip yielded lots of helpful information.

The first Vineyard on our adventure was Haunting Whisper Vineyard on Route 4 in Danbury.

Owners, Eric and Erin Wiswall, began their vineyard with 500 plants back in 2005, They have 75 acres with views of Mt Kearsage and Ragged Mountain. Eric was tending the Winery that day, while Erin was showcasing their wine at the Annual Co-op Producer's Fair in Lebanon. Eric took us to the window in the wine-tasting room, where we could see the fermentation room down below. Forget oak barrels. Most of today's local vintners use stainless steel tanks. Easier to clean and they last longer.

We then began our wine tasting experience with Haunting Whisper's wine list. My husband and I don't fancy ourselves as white wine drinkers (many are too sweet for us), but surprise, surprise... we ended up purchasing the Edelweiss. which is a semi-dry white. I was cooking up some local trout that night and this seemed to be the perfect pairing for the trout. We didn't have time to tour the actual vineyard, but we will definitely be back for more as Danbury is only a half hour away from our home!

The second Vineyard on the tour, which we visited the next day, was Stone Gate Vineyard in Gilford. Owners, Peter and Jane Ellis, and their daughter Cory, were perfect hosts.

When you first arrive at this 2 acre lot with 350 vines, you are driving into the Ellis' actual driveway. In fact, the fermentation is done right there where the photo looks like the garage door is open. Up to fifteen family members and friends fit into this small space to create 500 cases of product, just last year alone.

Now, having done some home brewing ourselves, this was something we could relate too. Who needs a garage when you can use the space for something better, right?

We walked the rows of grapes with the owner, Peter, as he patiently explained about securing the vines...

What the different variety of grapes look like...

and then the taste test :-) Talk about a wine-tasting room! This room was decorated in a style that truly enhanced the wine tasting experience.

The art work was done by local artist, Cathy Friel....Distinctive Illusionary Finishes and Murals, in a style called, Trompe L"Oeil (pronounced, Tromp Loy). Trompe L"Oeil is French for 'deceive the eye'. It is an art technique which creates the optical illusion that the objects depicted are actually three dimensional when they are not. I can not tell you how realistic those 'exposed' brick walls looked.

And check out what she did to the plywood flooring...

Sure enough, when we walked out of there, we walked out with another bottle of white wine. This time, it was the Seyval, also a dry white. So, maybe this experience changed our palates a little. There's nothing wrong with a little change now and then, right?

And my husband agrees with me when I say that as a result of Peter's fine tutelage, we are much more confident that the day will come when we can proudly share our stories of how to make a fine wine!

Be Sure to Check Out These Special Links of Interest:

Jewell Towne Vineyards, South Hampton, NH

Candia Vineyards in Candia, NH

Zorvino Vineyards in Sandown, NH

Flaghill Winery in Lee, NH

Black Bear (or Black Dog?) Vineyard in Salisbury, NH

Walpole Mountain View Winery, Walpole, NH

LaBelle Winery LLC, Amherst, NH

New Hampshire Winery Association

For you Cider Lovers: Silver Mountain Farms, Lempster, NH and Farnum Hill Ciders, Lebanon, NH

New Hampshire Wine and Cheese Tour Brochure

Wicked Wine and Brew Fest: Saturday, September 11, 2010 at Mel's Funway Park in Litchfield NH.

Trompe L'Oeil Crumbling Wall Video by Chris Westall

How to Make Cheap Wine (Can't vouch for this one personally, but worth a try to see if winemaking is for you or not.)

Last year, I wrote about the Snow Golf Tournament at Attitash. Well, it's that time again, only this year, I'd like to get the word out about the event that is going on at Loon Mountain in February.

LOON MOUNTAIN: Loon Mountain and the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of New Hampshire will celebrate their ten-year partnership with a return to snow golf on Friday, February 5, 2010 from 8-5:30.

How do you find a white golf ball in the snow???

Snow golf is just what it sounds like: golf played on snow. Loon will transform its Blue Ox trail into an 18-hole golf course, and participants will ski, snowboard or snowshoe the course. The event will be a double-flight, nine-hole "shot-gun" style scramble format. Prizes will even be award for the "closest to the pin" and "longest drive."

The funds raised through this event go to help children who need a strong advocate for them. Sponsors of the 2010 CASA Snow Fest include WMUR-TV ABC-9, WOKQ, and The Common Man Restaurants.

To become involved with the event, contact CASA directly at 603-626-4600, or go online to www.casanh.org.

Frances Sanderson, Franklin, NH REALTOR®, Certified EcoBroker^®