Turning something that was once nice into...

[Dhamma]

Originally Posted by fatlazyless

Hey Dhamma ...... today is your lucky day ..... because the Plymouth Walmart has 'zactly one Ozark Trail 12' Pro-Angler Kayak, in grass camouflage color left in stock for the year, reg $495 ...... now reduced down by 50% ..... a super steal of a deal


.......and , here's where to go ..... http.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umbagog_Lake .... Lake Umbagog, up north.

I have a 16' Grumman Canoe which I love. My fav places to go are the bogs up in Pittsburg. And a paddle up the East Inlet is mesmerizing. Would like to try a Kayak some day but it doesn't fit into the schedule right now. Besides, dogs like the canoe.

[Susie Cougar]

I’m sorry to say, but I have to agree with Dhaama.
We lived in Hanson Cove in the late 1950s to the early 1960s. We got our water from the lake. Yes, we actually could drink the water from the lake it was that clean.

In 1963 my parents build their retirement home in the Kona area in Moultonborough.
We swim in front of the house in a beautiful sandy beach. You could swim out and see the bottom in 20 feet deep water. At night the shoreline was covered in crawfish. Our dog used to go crazy when he saw them.

My dad owned a lot of land back then, which he sold over many years.
I used to love to swim back-and-forth, from a beach that he had to his house just a quarter mile or so. The last time I made that swim was in 1985 when I was pregnant with my last child. What was once a pristine haven now turned into a nightmare. There were so many weeds that I came upon when I was swimming that I thought that they would drown me for sure. Weeds are growing everywhere now , there used to be just a few areas with lily pads for people to go fishing.
Now,You step down and you sink into 6 inches of mush where there was sand.

I too feel that I have checked out. My father loved Lake Winnepesaukee more than anyone could ever imagine. He put restrictions on his property, so that no one would infringe on anyone else’s enjoyment.

I was walking back in 2014 after my mother died, a loop that I had done many times. I couldn’t believe I saw a man holding round up and spray it all over his weeds by the road. I just looked in shock. I finally said, that my dad used to own all this property And I’m glad that he didn’t live long enough to see what everyone has done to this beautiful lake.
Sorry, I could go on and on. It will never be the same!

[Susie Cougar]

I just read my response. You can see how stressed out I was with all the grammatical errors that I made. 😢

[iw8surf]

Originally Posted by Susie Cougar

I’m sorry to say, but I have to agree with Dhaama.
We lived in Hanson Cove in the late 1950s to the early 1960s. We got our water from the lake. Yes, we actually could drink the water from the lake it was that clean.

In 1963 my parents build their retirement home in the Kona area in Moultonborough.
We swim in front of the house in a beautiful sandy beach. You could swim out and see the bottom in 20 feet deep water. At night the shoreline was covered in crawfish. Our dog used to go crazy when he saw them.

My dad owned a lot of land back then, which he sold over many years.
I used to love to swim back-and-forth, from a beach that he had to his house just a quarter mile or so. The last time I made that swim was in 1985 when I was pregnant with my last child. What was once a pristine haven now turned into a nightmare. There were so many weeds that I came upon when I was swimming that I thought that they would drown me for sure. Weeds are growing everywhere now , there used to be just a few areas with lily pads for people to go fishing.
Now,You step down and you sink into 6 inches of mush where there was sand.

I too feel that I have checked out. My father loved Lake Winnepesaukee more than anyone could ever imagine. He put restrictions on his property, so that no one would infringe on anyone else’s enjoyment.

I was walking back in 2014 after my mother died, a loop that I had done many times. I couldn’t believe I saw a man holding round up and spray it all over his weeds by the road. I just looked in shock. I finally said, that my dad used to own all this property And I’m glad that he didn’t live long enough to see what everyone has done to this beautiful lake.
Sorry, I could go on and on. It will never be the same!

Curious, what did you seriously expect? Nothing to ever change?

[Susie Cougar]

No, of course I expected things would change. Things always change. But do they have to change for the worse?

Why do people have to have a green lawn? Why do they have to dump so much fertilizer that it all ends up in the lake?
Maybe I just don’t get it anymore. The lake was always so beautiful, so natural, and I would like to think that that is the reason that so many people love the lake.

So I don’t understand why people don’t respect the lake like they used to .
Why do people throw trash overboard when they’re on their boat? We would never do that. Why do we have something like the sandbar in Braun Bay?
I don’t find it funny to hear it referred to as Urination Cove .
My kids were always taught to get out of the lake when they had to go to the bathroom. How many people just go automatically now?

[Dhamma]

Originally Posted by Susie Cougar

No, of course I expected things would change. Things always change. But do they have to change for the worse?

Why do people have to have a green lawn? Why do they have to dump so much fertilizer that it all ends up in the lake?
Maybe I just don’t get it anymore. The lake was always so beautiful, so natural, and I would like to think that that is the reason that so many people love the lake.

So I don’t understand why people don’t respect the lake like they used to .
Why do people throw trash overboard when they’re on their boat? We would never do that. Why do we have something like the sandbar in Braun Bay?
I don’t find it funny to hear it referred to as Urination Cove .
My kids were always taught to get out of the lake when they had to go to the bathroom. How many people just go automatically now?

There should have been spacing and setback laws to protect the lakes and the beauty. Houses should have to be back in the tree line and painted passive colors. Docks and boat size should have been limited.
But! As we all know tax money comes before anything.
I know people would call it dictator control but the lake cant speak or protect itself and people dont think about things like natural beauty. They think about fun, excitement being entertained and showing off. Their minds run them instead of them running their minds.

[Susie Cougar]

Dhamma, you are correct.
My father was forward thinking in everything that he did. He never thought of the enjoyment just for the moment, But the effect it would have on everyone in the future as well.

When he started selling land, the lots were bigger than the minimum requirements. He also made sure the setbacks were further back from the lot lines. He stipulated that you could only build a one story house, so that no one’s view would be obstructed in anyway. As I think back as a teenager, when all this was going on, It seems to me he was asking everyone to be a steward for the environment, and if they didn’t agree with his way of thinking, he didn’t care. He would find someone else that felt like he did.


One restriction that I remember, that I couldn’t comprehend at the time was that my father put a 50 year building limit on back land that he owned. The 50 years just came up a few years ago, I don’t know what year exactly.

Too many people just saw the lake as a way to get rich. I won’t name any names, but if you’ve been around the lake as long as I have you know what’s been done.

I realize that I’m not talking to everyone who enjoys the lake, to those of you I apologize.

The garbage and pollution and all the damage done to the lake has been man-made. You can’t blame it on anything else.

[Susie Cougar]

My memory is in overdrive now.

I think it was back in the 80s, my dad didn’t have much land left. And all his land was always the best.

He had just listed it for sale, and received a call from someone in Massachusetts.

My dad never really told me what was going on businesswise, it was just what I could figure out. My dad said there was no way in the world he would ever sell to him.

The man so desperately wanted to buy the property, and obviously Something was going on and my dad said Absolutely no!

I remember when the man drove up from Massachusetts and the trunk of his car was full of cash. He told my dad no one had to know, it would be between the two of them. I never heard my father scream so much in my entire life!

It was never about the money to him. So obviously, I am extremely biased in my thinking.

My apologies

[Wifi-1]

Originally Posted by Susie Cougar

My memory is in overdrive now.

I think it was back in the 80s, my dad didn’t have much land left. And all his land was always the best.

He had just listed it for sale, and received a call from someone in Massachusetts.

My dad never really told me what was going on businesswise, it was just what I could figure out. My dad said there was no way in the world he would ever sell to him.

The man so desperately wanted to buy the property, and obviously Something was going on and my dad said Absolutely no!

I remember when the man drove up from Massachusetts and the trunk of his car was full of cash. He told my dad no one had to know, it would be between the two of them. I never heard my father scream so much in my entire life!

It was never about the money to him. So obviously, I am extremely biased in my thinking.

My apologies

I sympathize with you, unfortunately, "change" is not always for the best. There are plenty of recent examples.

I wouldn't expect many others to agree with what you are saying.

[MeredithMan]

...to answer the question of favorite and least favorite renovations in the area, my candidates are:

Favorites:

--Triple H's mansion. Although it is huge, I think it was done tastefully and fits in the with the lake, with its Adirondack/stone design. They also left a lot of mature trees and plantings on the property

--Center Harbor Inn. Before the renovation, the place looked like a run-down 1950's motel, which it was. Now it has a nice Adirondack, "lakey" flare to it.

--Condos at Christmas Island and the Meredith Bay condos along Scenic Drive in The Weirs. They packed a ton of them in at Christmas Island, but they are attractive and have a lake look and feel to them. Same with the Meredith Bay condos on Scenic Drive.

Eyesores:

--The hideous condos they built on top of the strip mall next to China Bistro. That mess is so ugly, especially sitting on top of "posts" in the parking lot

--All of the vacant lots at The Weirs.

--The MB mansion on Governor's Island. I have no issue with waterfront estates, but at least make it tasteful, like Triple H's. That thing looks like it belongs in FL, not on the lake.

--Downtown Laconia Parking Garage and late 60's urban renewal project. Bulldoze it down and start over.

[LongBay]

Originally Posted by MeredithMan

...to answer the question of favorite and least favorite renovations in the area, my candidates....

Thank you for getting back on topic. As usual, Fats got folks going in another direction.

In addition to your favorites, one my favorites is Church Landing.
Faros came out looking good. Too bad about all those surrounding vacant los.

[Susie Cougar]

My husband was in Meredith several years ago attending a conference. He was in Church Landing when he overheard someone mention that it looks like it used to be a church.

My husband said well yes, of course, I actually got married here!

I think the greatest transformation is the one that turned Meredith from a Mill town to a tourist destination.

I remember driving through downtown Meredith in the summertime when the windows of the factory were open and the asbestos was floating like cotton out of the windows.

[fatlazyless]

..... someone said that triple-h bought the open farm fields, lower meadow farm land held through a conservation easement, on the Meredith Neck just beyond the last fire hydrant at Barnard Ridge and Meredith Neck Rd.....

.....and, the first field with the highest quality mowed green grass looks totally amazing!

.....and, the third and fourth fields have a continuous 3-rail, split rail, cedar fence that goes for hundreds of yards ..... looks totally amazing!

.... and, everytime I drive down the Meredith Neck one can actually hear the property values growing higher ...... like corn the day after an early August rain ..... and it sounds totally amazing!

..... that new town conservation forest land that used to be a cow pasture or something, along Barnard Ridge Rd also looks...... totally amazing! ...... whoopsie ...... no new sub-division there ...... too bad!

[MeredithMan]

Originally Posted by fatlazyless

..... someone said that triple-h bought the open farm fields, lower meadow farm land held through a conservation easement, on the Meredith Neck just beyond the last fire hydrant at Barnard Ridge and Meredith Neck Rd.....

.....and, the first field with the highest quality mowed green grass looks totally amazing!

.....and, the third and fourth fields have a continuous 3-rail, split rail, cedar fence that goes for hundreds of yards ..... looks totally amazing!

.... and, everytime I drive down the Meredith Neck one can actually hear the property values growing higher ...... like corn the day after an early August rain ..... and it sounds totally amazing!

..... that new town conservation forest land that used to be a cow pasture or something, along Barnard Ridge Rd also looks...... totally amazing! ...... whoopsie ...... no new sub-division there ...... too bad!

That is true. He made the farmer an unsolicited offer he couldn't refuse. Can't you just picture ol' HHH in his bib overalls, chewin' on a piece of hay, riding his tractor...??? I guess he has proved that just because you bought the farm, doesn't mean your dead!