Fall is for Walking

Thanks to everyone who posted condolences on the sudden passing of our good friend, Marty, on the VA eastern shore. We appreciated your kindness and will share your comments with her husband, Robert, when we attend a memorial service this month.
         ❋                                  ❋                                  ❋                                  ❋                                 ❋                     

The weather was perfect for walks in Mine Falls Park this week. This 325-acre park is within the city of Nashua, NH. While not all the colors are at peak now, many are just starting to show their beauty.

Mine Falls park was purchased in 1969 with city and federal Land and Water conservation Fund (LWCF) monies. The park includes forest, wetlands, and open fields. It is bordered on the north by the Nashua River and on the south by the Millpond and canal system. 

The park provides recreational activities like walking, biking, kayaking, cross-country skiing, and snow-shoeing. It also has fields for organized sports like soccer and baseball and lacrosse.

The name "Mine Falls" derives from the 1700s, when low-quality lead was thought to be mined from the island below the falls. In the early 1800s, the potential of the Nashua River to drive the wheels of industry was recognized. Workers used shovels and mules to dig a 3-mile long canal, which provides a vertical drop of 36 feet at the mills.

The Nashua Canal Trail is part of a series of loop trails in Mine Falls Park, Nashua. A total of 6 miles of trails wind along the canal and river in this wooded park. Only 1.2 miles of trail are paved, and the rest are hard-packed dirt. 

The canal itself was dug by hand in the 1880s and is 3 miles long. The waterfall created by the canal powered local mills. 

There are several entrances to Mine Falls Park within walking distance of our mill apartment. We're very fortunate to have such natural beauty close by.