I decided to spend some time outside after the massive storm New Hampshire and many other places got this week. I wanted to take in what is probably the last major storm for this winter, and what was probably the largest storm we've gotten in a few years. I ended up going to the Cathedral of The Pines in Rindge, NH. I grew up in Fitzwilliam, NH which is right next door to Rindge so this was always a place I would go to walk the many trails on the grounds. I even got my senior pictures done there! I ended up dragging my cousins along to go with me, which was really nice because I don't get to spend a ton of time with both of them at the same time now that we are older.
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A photo of me, with the beautiful Mount Monadnock
in the background (3/18/23) |
The area was still extremely snowy, and the Rindge area got a TON more snow than the Keene area, which I was severely underestimating. I don't believe the images exactly do the amount of snow justice, they easily got over two and a half feet of snow. This led up to just end up doing the tiny 1/4 of a mile walking path through the grounds instead of the long trails in the woods. The walk was beautiful, and I've only ever spent time there in other seasons so the large amount of snow really gave it a unique vibe that I've never seen at this place, it was very calm and we were one of the first people to have walked on the grounds with the snow so we were out there kind of making our own trails, which added an extra layer of fun. I included a few photos of some of the spots that caught my eye, most of the memorials and landscape was completely covered in snow but it was a marvel in itself that there was that much snow. I'd like to come back here and take "before and after" shots of when the snow melts and see how different the landscape is, and also maybe I can go back and figure out the name of that religious statue. I didn't have my gloves so I didn't want to bury them in the snow, but its a good reason to go back. The Women's Memorial Bell Tower looks beautiful year round though, as it is quite tall and raised a bit to hide from the snow. Also there are many marriages here every year due to the amazing view of Mount Monadnock, but I've never been to one personally.
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| A photo of a religious figure (3/18/23) |
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| The backyard seating area buried in snow(3/18/23) |
There is a massive hill on a side of the grounds, which is a good community spot for sledding among the local children and parents. There was a large herd of children there at the hill when we went as it was prime sledding weather. It made me wish I had brought a sled and made me a bit nostalgic for times when I was a bit younger.
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| The Women's Memorial Bell Tower (3/18/23) |
I had chosen this place because I have a ton of nostalgia about this place, and also I feel like it represents the local community extremely well as it is universally known by the community and is a safe space for the "vulnerable" population, being the elderly and disabled people in the community. Many of our talks in class are about communities of people and places that are important to the community, and this place reminds me of a place that the community would certainly fight over in the case of any environmental misconduct. There have been quite a few vandalisms here over the years, and every single time it happens there is an incredible community response and I guess it surprises me because I feel that is becoming more and more rare in this age. The fact that this short walk had me thinking of all these things is amazing, and I truly believe that taking Environmental Studies classes has changed my perspective of many things in nature and I'm extremely glad I decided to take them alongside my Computer Science classes.
