The morning started of foggy with a light mist. I wasn’t too optimistic about the scenic vistas I knew awaited me. But the fog and mist lent an eerie silence to the pond…
When heading out to a new town, usually, I can predict what kinds of scenes I’m likely to encounter, but sometimes I come across something I couldn’t have anticipated…
If I had done more research on the town, instead of just consulting a map, the missile wouldn’t have surprised me…
I walked over the the kiosk next to the missile to learn more about it. There is a panel which tells the story of how the missile came to be in Warren just not the why.
“The Redstone missile came to Warren on April 21, 1971. Native son Henry “Ted” Asselin with permission of the US Defense SupportAgency, and the selectmen of Warren, brought the missile to Warren from Huntsville Alabama with the help of Irving MacDonald of Dorchester, on a 77 foot truck and trailer provided by Lew Brown of Holderness. The eight ton missile is secured in a eight foot deep foundation with five huge steel I-beams set in cement. A crane transferred the missile onto the upright beams. The missile was dedicated on Old Home Day, July 4th, 1971, by New Hampshire Governor Walter Peterson before a crowd. For more information visit the Warren Historical Museum.”
The irony, for me, is my dad worked for a company based at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. Of course it was long after this missile made its epic journey to Warren and the company had nothing to do with Redstone missiles. Still, it seemed an interesting coincidence. When I finished gawking at the missile, I looked around the town common at all the historic buildings…
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Is it just me or is there something ironic about the condition of the building and its name? I knew there was much more to see, so I set off again.
The scenery was distracting while I was driving. This is why I will probably never get a speeding ticket while I am out touring, unless it is a ticket for driving to far under the posted limit. It’s times like this I wish Steve was with me. With him driving, I am free to gaze at the views. It’s a good thing I was driving rather slowly or I might have missed the sign completely. As it was, I had to do a u-turn…
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After spending a few minutes with “the old man” I headed to the dam…
The lake was beautiful, but the scene on the opposite side of the dam was amazing…
I was able to get my farm, field and barn “fix” while I was in Warren…
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As I was poking along, I saw what I believe is the remains of an old lumber mill. It has been a long time since any of this equipment was used…
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Just down the road a bit, I found a relaxing spot to sit for a while…
Sometimes (frequently) a map or GPS can be misleading, what you think is a public road often turns out to be private…
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Since nothing on the “reserved for” sign applied to me, I backtracked until I was sure I was on public roads again. The Appalachian Trail passes through Warren and sometimes after being on the trail for days at a time, a hot meal, shower and bed sound truly appealing. This hiker hostel might be just the place…
The Appalachian Trail isn’t the only trail in Warren. I found The McVetty Recreational Trails in the Warren Town Forest…
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I’m sure there are other trails for hiking, but I’m still partial to driving trails…
Especially ones that lead to things like this…
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Lake Tarleton is on the far western edge of Warren and marked the spot for me to turn around. I had passed Ore Hill Brook earlier in the day and wanted to return to see the sculptured rocks. Water can be a powerful force…
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The final place I visited was the Warren Fish Hatchery. (You may remember from my post on Sandwich the hatchery truck out delivering stock to the area waterways.)
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The cement pond in front of the truck is filled with large trout…
A group of children on a field trip were happily feeding the trout in one of the other ponds. Every handful of grain tossed brought dozens of trout to the surface to get their share…
While I’m sure I didn’t see everything Warren had to offer, I thought I’d covered quite a bit. And since I started the post with one of those “odd” finds, I will end it the same way. I did use a bit of artistic license to help you see this a little better. This is what you do the with 2 tall tree stumps in your front yard!…
Touring NH 
So happy to see the fog lifted and afforded you great views! You always find the most interesting things, love the wood carvings!!
Quite a talented carver for sure.
Two really unexpected sites made your blog even more interesting: the truck perched on that car and the Redstone missile! But really, I loved all the pics — especially the old buildings and the creative tree stump artwork!
I’d love to know the story behind the truck and car!
I’m still puzzling over that car and truck scene I must say! How great that you were driving slowly enough to catch the old Man profile. How fun is that?!
Since I don’t have a picture of the real “Old Man of the Mountain” which collapsed in 2003 I always like finding others. If you go back to my post about Keene, there is one there as well
That’s a picturesque town, even with the missile. I like the willing worker’s hall and the sculpted rocks.
It really is a beautiful town I like the irony of the willing workers hall.
The Willing Workers Hall the barn with the broken door are really cool. You live in ideal road-trip territory. Everything is so green right now up there. Fall has arrived in Alaska and I am sure in a few posts we will see those awesome fall colors of the northeast in your photos.
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One nice thing about New Hampshire is you can travel the length of it in about 6 hours. Today isn’t so green, we’ve had severe thunderstorms lasting 15-20 minutes, followed by 1/2 an hour of grey sky, followed by 5 minutes of bright blue sun-shiny sky then starting the cycle all over. Looking forward to seeing you fall colors from Glacier Bay, but I’m in no hurry to get to fall here. Actually, Fall would be fine if we could skip winter and go right to spring!
Nice place, not sure about the parking rules, though. Were there many rabbits?
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I don’t think I’d park like that either. I didn’t see any rabbits, but they are making a comeback in NH.
Beautiful photos as always Laura. It looks like your New England summer is at its peak. The why of the missile is a good mystery. I can see a few of the city officials sitting around after one too many beers saying: “Oh yeah! If this little burg just had a missile things would take off for us.” ~James
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Thank you. It’s been a great summer, even if a bit dry. I’m not looking forward to fall, only because it leads to winter. “things would take off for us” Nice play on words, lol. ~Laura
Love the Willing Workers Hall and the Old Man of the Dam. What an interesting place and what on earth is that missile all about?
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There certainly were a few surprises in Warren. I’m still not completely sure why the missile is there!
Laura, I didn’t realize the Appalachian Trail goes through Warren! Cool. I do love the “Reserved For” sign, but my favorite quote is, “Is it just me or is there something ironic about the condition of the building and its name?” LOL! 🙂 Terri
Yes, the “Willing Workers Hall” is certainly in need of some attention.