Littleton, NH

Our first stop was Harry's homesite outside
Littleton, NH.  This will be the view
from his deck.

Soon after returning to D.C. Harry and I took a road trip to New Hampshire to check out Harry and Narjes' retirement location.  They've bought land in NH and are currently working with their bank, their contractor and others to get their new home built.

Harry did the driving which is very impressive as he drove from southern Maryland to northern New Hampshire through the wee hours to avoid the traffic snarl in NYC.

After a stop to see his property, we drove into Littleton to check out some of the great local beer at Schilling Beer Company, overlooking the Ammonoosuc River.

Our rooms for the trip were in a pleasant inn at Bethlehem.

We spent a good bit of time
enjoying the local brewpubs,
This was Harry at the Copper Pig
in Lancaster.

Harry's friend has a cabin on the mountain
above Harry's place and this is his friend's view.
Those are the Presidential Mountains
on the horizon.

Harry and Narjes own 20 acres.

The stakes and twine outline the new house and rooms.

We extended the road trip north.
Those mountains in the distance
are in Canada and Vermont is
over the hill on our left.

Our farthest north was Pittsburg, NH.
Not to be confused with Pittsburgh, PA!

Of course, a beer stop at this excellent brewery,
Coos Brewery.

  After dinner back in Bethlehem, we stopped for a pint at the Rek-Lis Pint House only to discover they were doing karaoke!  For videos of Harry's performance click Here and Here.

Harry did a great job of capturing my entire effort.

The next day proved perfect for wandering about Littleton.

That's the Riverglen House seen from the
pedestrian covered bridge, downtown.

The Ammonoosuc River runs through town.

An alleyway downtown.

Lunch here!

Harry's FB Post upon our departure.

Then the overnight back to Maryland.

Harry Chapin 80th

Union Station in Washington, DC has 
a grand hall and looks terrific,
having been recently refurbished.

Bob Zimmerman, longtime great friend, invited me to join him for a concert performed by Tom Chapin, Harry's brother, and the Chapin family.  As most folks recall, Harry lost his life in a car crash before he reached 40 years of age.  A tragic loss as he was not old a great songwriter and ballad singer, but more importantly, spent much of his fortune and lots of time working to reduce hunger in today's world.  Thankfully, his family continues the work of Harry's foundation.

The train took me from D.C. to Pittsburgh where I spent a few days with sailing friend, Keith Otto.  Then Bob and I drove to Kent, OH for the concert and returned to Pittsburgh where I caught a return train to D.C.

Even the market area in the upper level retains 
its grandeur from an earlier era.

Changing trains in Philadelphia's 30th St. Station,
I saw this impressive memorial .  .  .

.  .  .  honoring and remembering those
who lost their lives in WWII. 

By train across rural Pensylvania.

And the famous Horseshoe Curve, just west of Altoona, PA.

When Arriving at Keith's home, he had a 
package for me from Arizona!

This X-Wing fighter is a fun attraction .  .  .

.  .  .  At Mike's, an eatery in Kent, OH.

As the music was mostly songs we knew from concerts we attended over 40 years ago, we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.  And the Chapin family did a great job presenting music that went beyond Harry's songs.  For a short video from the concret, Click Here.  The videos below are quite a bit longer, but might be fun for fans.

 

 

The drive back to Pittsburgh was a beautiful autumn day.

The before dawn departure of the train a couple days later enabled this video of the Upper Potomac River as the train ran back and forth between West Virginia and Maryland:  Click Here.

The train ride back to D.C. took us through
the historic station at Martinsburg, WV.

Sailboat Show, Annapolis

If memory serves, My first attendance at the US Sailboat Show in Annapolis, MD was in October of 1993.  Although I may have missed one or two shows since then, it seems this show may be my 30th!

Since an airline ticket is usually less costly than fuel
for Kelly VI, my rv, the airlines provided my transportation
to Baltimore, where I met Harry.  He's my host this month,
as well as being a great friend.  And for a few hours before and
after the show, my employer,as I assist him with
IT installations at the show.

Before our first day at the show we enjoyed a brew
with Cable, Harry's terrific hound, at
Pherm Brewing Company, a dog-friendly pub.
Just outside, a fleet of VWs was being shown.

VWs, old, new, ragtops and more.
For video, Click Here.

These small tug boats are used to build the 
300 boat marina, which is broken up and rebuilt
after 1 week, then after a second week, it dismantled
until next year!

You'll notice that each boat is named, 
this one is Yank.  The above photo shows Shove.

This fellow is named Push.  Some of the other tugs 
are named, Pull and Jerk.

One of Harry's and my favorite spots is in Galesville.

I love the view of all the boats in the harbor.

Kelly IV and I sailed here many times when I 

was cruising the Chesapeake Bay.

Harry and I arrived before dawn to begin the IT setups for his clients.

Harry actually found me working when he took this pic!
With very few wires to run, it's mostly wireless these days,
We were done in plenty of time for clients to
engage with their customers.

Several old friends were at the show, 
including Stewie, whom I worked with when I was a
yacht broker in Annapolis 2012-2015.

After work, we found time for music and a beer
at the Fleet Reserve Club.

This view from the Fleet Reserve Club is possibly the
best view, short of that from the air.

Harry, Murph, & Narjes,  Harry's wife.
They were terrific hosts, so nice to spend time with!