Phase XXXIX : Massachusetts

That evening, we stayed at another hotel in Sturbridge, MA.  This was our third night in a row for a hotel, but necessary to ensure Mer continues to fully recover.  I'll be honest, by now, we only have two weeks remaining to finish visiting the lower 48.  Our ambition for roughing it in the van, forgoing showers, and cooking over a Coleman stove have fallen to the wayside.  It's dark by 6:00, and camping is sparse, so another hotel, that's too bad :)

We only had one purpose for being in Sturbridge - Treehouse BC.  I had once visited in 2015 and scored some Julius (IPA), but did not acquire any Green (IPA).  Time has not really permitted any 12 hour beer runs to MA since then.  Over the last couple years, Green has become my most coveted beer, so was really hoping to score some!  This visit had me walking through pastures of Green (figuratively); I finally scored some Green and Haze and Julius and Typhoon and ...  Mer was astonished by the case of beer I brought back to the van.  I was in heaven:

As I finished my breakfast stout (Double Shot, Sweet Espresso), I admitted to Mer that I did not have anything else on the agenda for that day.  My visionary skills to plan and execute beyond this moment were clouded with haze :)  We had the option to visit Cape Cod or she could redeem Vermont.  The weather forecast for Cape Cod was iffy and had us journeying through the outskirts of Boston traffic.  Vermont offered serenity, hiking, nature and maple syrup.  The latter was appealing to both of us, so we headed north.

Before crossing into NH and VT, I wanted to tackle some hiking in MA.  We stopped at Tully Dam, Recreational Area.  Mer wanted to conserve energy for tomorrow, so I hiked the 4.5 mile perimeter loop around the lake.  It was muggy and hot, but fortunately I was sheltered by the surrounding trees.  I enjoyed the solitude on this scarcely traveled path, or so it may seem.

Following our visit to NH/VT (see Vermont 2), we passed through Massachusetts again.  By now, Mer is nearly 100% back to health and is ready for flight...of beer.  We stopped at Fort Hill BC, which is located outside Easthampton.  They specialized in both European and American style craft.  We then hit Northampton BC for dinner.  There we had dinner and a tasty beverage.  The nachos alone could feed an army, and the wings weren't bad either!