heading into town. Montpelier, Vermont. Capital city. 
the farmer's market was incredible, and easily rivaled NYC's best offerings. we stocked up on fresh produce and munched on local wood-fired pizza, homemade chicken mantu, and smoked trout tacos.
back at the house, Carolyn made delicious margaritas with some tequila we picked up. She makes her own Triple Sec from scratch.
... in the garden next door.
The beans are ripe for picking.
Mrs. Morton also makes fantastic Limoncello from scratch. It's the best I've tasted.
and afternoon on #10 Pond.
drinking the fresh margaritas on the floating dock.
back in town. fireworks on July 3rd over the capital city.
early on the 4th, we drove a few hours to New Hampshire where the family camp is. we left the cars on a dirt road. you can only get to the camp by boat. 
The Mortons built the camp by hand from surrounding trees. no electricity or plumbing. no need. the refrigerator and stove are propane. perfectly peaceful and cozy. the nicest place i've been in a long time. I didn't want to leave.
Magic Hat did not pay Kip for this endorsement of their #9 beer. over the weekend, we enjoyed several great Vermont beers: Trapp, Hill Farmstead, Switchback, Otter Creek, Longtrail, and Magic Hat. really good stuff.
lunch at the camp.
the best grilled cheese i've ever had. local aged Cabot cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, local onion, homemade maple walnut bread, some spicy mustard.
dinner at the camp by candlelight. a delicious caprese salad and pasta salad made with both farmer's market and garden goods. top it off with a nice baguette and wine.
we kayak. we swam a lot in this pond at the camp and at #10 pond in Vermont. we spotted constellations by night, skinny dipped by day, and found loads of frogs, snakes, crawdads, spiders, and other awesome creatures.
on the night of the 4th, we built a fire after dinner, drank our whiskey, roasted marshmallows, and shared stories and good times.
campfires must be the answer to everything. nature trumps all.
