GOOD MORNING, UPPER VALLEY!
Sunny, back into the 50s. With air flowing in from the south, there's nothing but mild temperatures ahead—which is great today and tomorrow when it's dry, but be aware that rain on Sunday and Sunday night could produce sharp rises on rivers and streams. Today we'll get into the mid and upper 50s, down into the low or mid 30s overnight.Still and in motion: the same bobcat twice. Here's a video and here, a few days later, a still.Did you check out "Dear Daybreak" yesterday? If not, you missed Rose Loving on the "murky month" of March; Jennie Chamberlain's discovery of a beautifully designed bench that appeared at a bus stop in Hanover (she'd love to see more of them) and Steve Becker showing us what it means to bring spoons back as a rhythm section: to Dire Straits, Lady Gaga, Outkast, and a lot more. And hey, Dear Daybreak needs more stories about life in these parts. If you've got one, send it in!He's sent people to jail and been hospitalized three times thanks to his work. Cop? FBI? Nope: Vermont's "Mr. Maple". For 30 years, Brookfield's Henry Marckres was the state ag agency's maple expert, and in a thoroughly enjoyable profile in The Herald, Maryellen Apelquist details his exploits—including, once, staking out suspects who were receiving truckloads of palm sugar at their maple plant. Mostly, though, they talk about grading and tasting syrup, its "flavor map" and the off-flavors that sometime pop up, why VT maple is different (higher density). Those hospital visits? You'll just have to read.Key parcel at the heart of Hartland Winter Trails gets conserved. The popular trail network has depended for decades on "goodwill and a variety of handshake agreements," writes Lauren Dorsey in the VT Standard—meaning that access can disappear when land changes hands. Now, the Upper Valley Land Trust has permanently conserved 68 acres owned by Timotheus Pohl until his death a year ago. "It’s a complete game changer for the town,” says conservation commission chair Rob Anderegg. “There’s no other parcel of land in Hartland that’s publicly open that’s anywhere close to this size.”SPONSORED: Resource guide for BIPOC home and business ownership. Gather by Zoom next Wednesday, March 19, at 4:30 pm to explore the next steps in a project to help Black, Indigenous, and People of Color put down roots in the Upper Valley – part of an overall effort to widen housing opportunities and help employers retain staff. Topics include a new online resource guide. Project partners are Vital Communities, Mascoma Bank, and Upper Valley residents Conicia “CJ” Jackson and Julius Turner.Whaleback seeks public's help to fix chairlift. As Ian Wood writes on the ski news site Unofficial Networks, "It's been a rough year to be a chairlift in New Hampshire." But the mechanical problem that forced the Enfield ski hill to shut its lift a couple of weeks ago "might be the worst of the bunch, as it risks the future of a modestly sized New Hampshire ski area," Wood writes. In an email to supporters Wednesday, Whaleback reported that the closure has created "significant financial strain, threatening our ability to continue operations." They estimate they'll need to raise about $250,000 quickly, Wood reports.Joint Hanover-Dartmouth effort boosts wifi along S. Main Street. The project, reports Aimee Minbiole in Dartmouth News, uses wireless access devices connected to Hanover’s fiber optic network to transmit signals. The expanded service will be managed by Dartmouth; in its initial form, it boosts wifi from the town offices down to the corner with Maple and South streets. Both Dartmouth and town officials "foresee additional wireless access points on the horizon," Minbiole writes. The service includes both public wifi and Dartmouth' s encrypted service, eduroam.SPONSORED: Eat well and make a difference! When you sign up for a CSA subscription with Root 5 Farm, you’ll enjoy easy access to the freshest organic vegetables, milk, eggs, fruit, and more! It couldn’t be more convenient with flexible pick up options, order what you need, and pay as you go. Your dollars stay local, strengthening our food system, encouraging innovation in sustainable farming, and helping make the Upper Valley a great place to live. Local farms are our future! Learn more and sign up today at the burgundy link or here. Sponsored by Root 5 Farm.Hiking Close to Home: Mud Season Tips. Warmth during the day and freezes at night this time of year can be challenging for trails as conditions bounce from frozen to muddy. The Upper Valley Trails Alliance advises hikers that trails with tree cover may still be frozen while trails with open skies may be wet and muddy. Be aware that trail use during this time could harm trail conditions, especially on muddy trails. For best practices, check out the Mud, Sweat and Tears guide at the burgundy link on responsible mud season hiking.Been paying attention to Daybreak? Because Daybreak's Upper Valley News Quiz has some questions. Like, when did inspectors first flag West Leb's "dry bridge"—closed suddenly last week—as needing attention? And which bank is gobbling up Woodsville Guaranty Savings Bank? Those and more at the link.But wait! How closely were you following VT and NH?
Because Seven Days wants to know if you know which single US stop best-selling Canadian author Louise Penny will make after canceling her US tour.
And NHPR's got a whole set of questions about doings around the Granite State—like, when seven school districts voted on partial spending caps on Tuesday, what was the outcome in all seven?
Snowboarder outruns Tuckerman avalanche. Tuesday's dramatic video was captured by the Mount Washington Observatory cam atop Wildcat Mountain. If you look carefully, you can see a tiny figure drop into the bowl in the center left—the snowboarder becomes clearer a few seconds after the cam zooms in, over on the left side of the screen. The boarder was uninjured. The Mt. Washington Avalanche Center reported multiple slides on Tuesday.Tesla driver following GPS drives onto Cannon Mountain beginner slope. Fortunately, reports Jason Schreiber in the Union Leader (possible paywall), the incident last Saturday morning happened before the state-owned ski area in Franconia Notch opened for the day. The car drove past the aerial tramway base station, says general manager Jace Wirth, and mistaking the slopes for a road “would be quite difficult and you would pass multiple signs.” Cannon’s ski patrol used a snowmobile to catch up to the driver. The driver was “obviously profusely sorry,” Wirth says.NH legislators get an earful about education funding. So much of an earful, in fact, that Rep. Ken Weyler, who chairs the House Finance Committee, got impatient about an hour into a five-hour hearing on the state budget, reports the Monitor's Charlotte Matherly. “We know that it’s a problem," he announced. "We don’t need to hear it 50 times.” Speakers weren't moved. “I apologize, I know you’ve heard it. I would ask, are you listening? Have you listened to us? Have you listened to all of these people?” asked one. Their focus: boosting state funding for public schools.
Meanwhile, NH Bulletin's Ethan DeWitt reports, both the GOP-controlled House and Senate yesterday voted to remove income limits for families to participate in the state's school voucher program. Currently, Education Freedom Accounts are available to families with a household income of 350 percent or less of the federal poverty level. The bills differ in the details, DeWitt writes, and would expand the program further than Ayotte has proposed.
After eight years in the post, Frank Edelblut will depart at the end of the school year, Gov. Kelly Ayotte announced in a press release yesterday. Edelblut was a leading advocate of the state's Education Freedom Account program, notes NHPR, and "
led other efforts to deemphasize classroom-based learning in favor of other educational approaches." In addition, he sought to exert greater control over school curriculum and library content, including challenging school officials "over specific books...and classroom exercises and display," NHPR reports.
Saunders, of course, has
been
the state's secretary for nearly a year, after Gov. Phil Scott made her interim secretary following the Senate's rejection of her nomination last spring. Yesterday, senators voted 22-8 to make it permanent. Hartford's Becca White was one of those "no" votes, telling her colleagues she's heard even more opposition to Saunders from constituents than last year, reports
VTDigger
's Ethan Weinstein. Senate Pres. Phil Baruth was a "yes": “We need a confirmed secretary of education now," he said.
That comes after the Trump administration cancelled USDA funding for programs aimed at supplying locally grown produce, meat, and cheese. In a letter to the state ag agency Friday, USDA wrote, “this agreement no longer effectuates agency priorities and that termination of the award is appropriate," reports VT Public's Howard Weiss-Tisman. “This program puts money in the pockets of local farmers. It puts healthy food in the bellies of people who need it,” Northfield farmer Gus Griffin tells him. “If you don’t see the value in feeding people and paying farmers, then my question is, ‘What is a good investment?’"
Trying to keep tabs on town government in VT? A new AI tool may help. As Rachel Hellman writes in Seven Days, Local Minutes, which was developed by Essex software engineer Duane Millar Barlow and his wife, Allison, "can answer questions about a town's policy history and what happened in a selectboard meeting in mere seconds." It can also give you a sense of how any given issue is being addressed in different towns. So far it covers the state's 50 biggest towns—in this area, Hartford, Randolph, and Springfield are on the list—but they hope to expand. Do remember: chatbots hallucinate, so check facts.
That’s because grownups—specifically, an ad firm—had bought every one they could find to launch down the streets of San Francisco. On
PetaPixel
, Matt Growcoot tells the story of the 2005 ad that introduced Sony’s Bravia TV to consumers in the UK. The balls, fired from cannons, reached speeds of 130 mph. The film crew wore Kevlar armor, riot shields, and helmets. “Ultimately, things got so chaotic that windows were broken” (racking up $74,000 worth of damages) “and cars were dented,” writes Growcoot. The video, though...
The Friday Wordbreak. With a word from yesterday's Daybreak. And hey, one thing to know: You can keep doing Wordbreak over the weekend, featuring words from a VT or NH news source. Just hit the burgundy link here (or bookmark it) tomorrow and Sunday.
Daybreak doesn't get to exist without your support. Help it stick around by hitting the maroon button:
Daybreak tote bags! Thanks to a helpful reader's suggestion. Plus, of course, the usual: sweatshirts, head-warming beanies, t-shirts, long-sleeved tees, the Daybreak jigsaw, those perfect hand-fitting coffee/tea mugs, and as always, "We Make Our Own Fun" t-shirts and tote bags for proud Upper Valleyites. Check it all out at the link!
The first is the annual MUD (season) show, with works by 60+ local artists "inspired by the melting snow, the running sap, the returning birds, the awakening bears..." And Sharon artist Finnie Trimpi's exhibition "Fierce Females" (
) gets the spotlight, too. Both are at 5:30 pm.
With Setiawan on mandolin, BB Bowness on banjo, Julian Pinelli on fiddle, Alex Rubin on guitar, and Brittany Karlson on bass, moving around the string band repertoire, both traditional and experimental. 7 pm.
Last night was sold out and tomorrow's opening is sold out, but
tonight
(and later in the run) you can score tix for the musical that features Sara Bareilles' "enduring wonder of a score" (
NYT
). Runs through April 13. 7:30 tonight, Sunday matinee at 5.
Fifth Business starts things off at 7:30 with, among other things, the only happy Scottish song maybe ever; the Footworks family trio at 8:15 with inspiration from Cape Breton; and harpist Rachel Clemente and piper Dan Houghton with avant-garde Celtic interpretations at 9 pm. First Congregational Church of Lebanon. Baked goods!
Saturday
, when some 350 producers around the state throw open the doors to their sugarhouses so you can get a look and a taste. There's no shortage of participants in these parts.
. Make like "Mr. Maple" and see if you can tell the difference.
And nope, Iggy's not a dragon, but a girl with a unique talent. Reading plus crafts. 1 pm.
Soprano Lise Davidsen headlines an all-star cast as Leonore, "who risks everything to save her husband from the clutches of tyranny." It's "part political manifesto, part hymn to the beauty of marriage." 1 pm tomorrow at the Loew.
At the Norwich Bookstore, middle-grade kids book writer Gail Donovan talks with veteran journalist Sherry Boschert about Sparrow Spreads Her Wings.
In the sequel to
Sparrow Being Sparrow
, Sparrow "rescues an injured animal but soon wonders if she’s taken on more than she can handle alone." 2 pm.
. Barber grew up in Hanover before heading into the wider musical world and a stint, among other things, with the Grammy award-winning group Chanticleer. He'll be performing a range of Webber songs, plus pieces from
Hamilton, Les Misérables,
and more. 7 pm tomorrow.
. It's our local roller derby team's biggest fundraiser: Go "dressed in your best Victorian outfits, gadgets, and gizmos, for a night of dancing and merriment while we welcome our newest members to the league." 18+, starts at 7 pm in WRJ's Hotel Coolidge.
Sunday
Upper Valley Music Center's 30th Birthday Bash at LOH is sold out, but
And for the weekend...
Noeline Hoffmann grew up in the southern Alberta badlands and worked as a ranch hand and those experiences feed her music.
, it's a dyed fuel with a tax break for Canadian farmers—but the song's not really about that. It's about rural resilience and "people who don't have any quit"—qualities you can find in the woods and fields of the East as surely as you can on the prairies.
Have a fine weekend! See you Monday for CoffeeBreak.
The Hiking Close to Home Archives. A list of hikes around the Upper Valley, some easy, some more difficult, compiled by the Upper Valley Trails Alliance. It grows every week.
The Enthusiasms Archives. A list of book recommendations by Daybreak's rotating crew of local booksellers, writers, and librarians who think you should read. this. book. now!
Daybreak Where You Are: The Album. Photos of daybreak around the Upper Valley, Vermont, New Hampshire, and the US, sent in by readers.
Want to catch up on Daybreak music?
Want to catch up on Daybreak itself (or find that item you trashed by mistake the other day)? You can find everything on the Daybreak Facebook page
, or if you're a committed non-FB user,
.
Written and published by Rob Gurwitt Poetry editor: Michael Lipson Associate Editor: Jonea Gurwitt About Rob About Michael
And if you think one or more of your friends would like Daybreak, too, please forward this newsletter and tell them to hit the blue "Subscribe" button below. And thanks! And hey, if you're that friend? So nice to see you! Subscribe at no cost at:
Thank you!