Visiting Sabbaday Falls was a lovely experience as always and we enjoyed it as we usually do, but we had also planned to drive on a little further on the Kancamagus Highway to reach yet another site that we have been stopping by on our semi-annual week away in the White Mountain Range of New Hampshire. Although this site is still within the federal jurisdiction of the White Mountain National Forest, it is a state park.

The park permit that we bought last fall was for a year, so we didn't have to be concerned about paying a fee at this scenic gorge, nor the previous places we had been to. The permit is pasted onto the windshield of the truck, alongside the previous one we had acquired. Fees can be paid on site but we always acquired ours at the U.S. Forest Service office not far from the cottage we rent.

We had no idea whether there would be a lot of people using up the parking area, but it turned out we had no reason to be concerned, there was plenty of parking space. What was also there in great abundance we bright-headed buttercups, daisies and yellow and orange hawkweed. The hawkweed is the favourite destination of Yellow Admirals and they were there, as well.

The large area of flat, striated granite that comprises the gorge stretches into the near distance and beyond it, mountain peaks. The Swift River is well named; it gushes and rushes through the gorge and it's a favourite place for people to access footage on the rocks to get close up and personal with the raging river as it roars past. There's a bridge that fords the river and gives excellent views in either direction; toward the rocky plateau, and on the opposite side, the wild, rushing river.

This is as far as most people go, to the bridge, to the rocky plateau and no further. We were interested as always in accessing the Lovequist Trail, just beyond the lovely little forest lake that sits beyond the gorge called the Falls Pond. It's a tranquil, beautiful spot, a place to linger and just admire the landscape. Our lingering was brief, and we headed out toward the trail. Because of all the rain this spring the trail was wetter than usual.

The forest trees provide a screen alongside the lake as you progress on the trail. The trees in fact march up the mountainside, and the trail continues to skirt the lake in an interesting circuit that isn't very long, but a nimble foot is a plus. There were several trees down across the trail that hadn't been removed, one of them we recalled from last fall's trip, and both necessitated a brief skirting.

The day was perfect for a hike, not too hot, and a mix of sun and cloud. As expected we came across no one else on the trail, from start to finish. Jackie and Jillie are always curious and fairly excited at the prospect of being somewhere they're unfamiliar with. They love to explore. But they adapt well to the fact that while we're away from home they're not able to roam about wherever their fancy takes them so that they're kept on leash.

They were accommodating to that need and behaved really well, so that all of us had ample opportunity to make the most of the hike. Mind, t heir leashes occasionally became entangled and that's a nuisance, but in the end we managed well. We're haunted by stories of people allowing their companion dogs free reign when they're in unfamiliar places and never seeing their dog again. So though it's a nuisance, we feel more confident being in control and we're thankful Jackie and Jillie don't mind.

On our way back to the parked truck, I wanted to photography a Yellow Admiral on yellow hawkweed, but yellow is a colour that is tricky, it never comes out well, always looks kind of green in digital photographs and in my experience details become fuzzy. I had hoped to come away with a great detailed close-up of both butterfly and flowers, but that isn't quite what I ended up with.