Maine

We enjoyed strolling the streets and a little shopping in Bar Harbor before the rains came. We were camped in the nearby Acadia National Park Blackwoods Campground.


This lobster tried to distract me into thinking about ice cream but I am not falling for it!

Even in the rain one can drive through Acadia National Park but one cannot see far from the top of Cadillac Mountain. In fact, we could not even see the top. This is the place where the sun can first be seen rising in the morning in the United States. It wasn't an option for us. All I could see was Leon ten feet from the van.


In Camden we stumbled upon an arts and crafts festival which I thought was quite a quality show. Here I bought my trip souvenirs: small flower vases made by Nancy.

Leon enjoyed these shovels. The man called them retired shovels and they all had smiles. No wonder!!!

Leon enjoyed watching the big boats get pushed around in the bay by young girls in little boats! The big boats were returning to the shore loaded with tourists. This was a mighty busy little town on a misty day.

We drove along stopping in Wiscasset for lunch. The crowds of people who had been down east (over in the Bar Harbor area which is really northeast??!) were returning on Sunday afternoon. By mid-afternoon we were enjoying 60 degree weather along the coast in Kennebunkport. We toured around Dock Square, an area of boutiques and shops in old restored buildings. There are only 1300 or so residents but it seemed that many people had gotten off the tour buses.


Of course, we made the typical tourist stop by the George Bush compound, the ex-president's house, as we drove alongside the rocky Maine coast on Ocean Avenue.

As the sun set we located our Walmart stop for the night in Biddeford, Maine. Monday morning the sun was shining bright. Ogunquit is a quaint seaside town and popular resort. We found the market in town a nice place for a delicious blueberry scone before walking along the coast on the Marginal Way, a walk constructed for just such an occasion which is quite well traversed. It did not hurt that there was a geocache on the path. The path is lined on one side by large homes and hotels looking across the path to the rocky shore and large bay.


Then it was south through New Hampshire (again) and on to Massachusetts.

Genealogy AGAIN!!

Maine was a good bit warmer than the mountains of New Hampshire. The drive over was lovely. The trees looked like jello flavors sometimes and sherbet flavors at others, but always plenty of color.

I took us down a backroad to Belgrade, Maine to revisit the cemetery find that got me hooked on genealogy about ten years ago.

Old Eleazer was right where I left him ten years ago along with his wife Mary.


This time I had enough sense to visit the Burbank farm next door where the ggggrandparents had lived. The girl living there was quite friendly and showed me the old mantel she had removed with the date 1836 written on the back.


She explained that the barn is of Quaker construction. Eleazer Burbank and his wife Mary had come to Belgrade about 1800 from Westbrook, Massachusetts. He owned 180 acres here and donated land for the church, which was later moved and then burned, and the cemetery. I could only wonder who piled all the rocks around the perimeter of the property.

New Hampshire

Morning in St. Johnsbury, Maine found us on another maple tour. This time it was the Sugar Grove Maple Factory.

No, Leon is not about to rob the candy lady. They take health precautions as they lead people through the candy making part of the factory.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Look at all these Santa Clauses waiting to be soaked in maple syrup.


Every tour ends in a gift shop but they have the best prices for maple syrup here. I was surprised to find out that all of the syrup for Cracker Barrel is made here as well as many products sold by Emeril.

The Dog Chapel was a fun find. This man is quite the talented artist and must have a booming business. In this chapel are notes from people pertaining to their dogs all over the walls! Dogs are everywhere!

Finally we crossed into New Hampshire and spent the afternoon exploring the White mountain National Forest. The goal of the trip for me was to drive among the Kancamagus Highway where the fall foliage is the finest. All day was saw a kaleidescope of color even though it was cloudy. Our first hike was postponed due to snow but it did not last long.


Sabbady Falls is a favorite I remembered from years ago. We like it when a trail goes uphill first. Then we know we can walk back down.


We walked the trail along the Pemigawasset River for awhile along with many other tourists.

We stopped at the Albany Bridge built in 1859. We were too tall to drive under. We hoped to take a 3 mile hike here but realized it was too late in the day so we returned to Jigger Johnson campground for the night.

There were so many beautiful views along the way we just oohed and aahed all day long.

northern Vermont

It seemed if we stayed in Montpelier we should visit the capitol, the oldest one still being used for that purpose in the United States. The town has less than 10,000 residents!


Then a few miles down the road we spent some quality time in Waterbury. At the Apple Cider Mill we sampled jams, jellies, mustard, apple cider and got a free apple cider donut. It was interesting to see how the apples were compressed in the big apple press.


For dessert we sampled Ben & Jerry's new flavor after a tour of the building. They were not making ice cream today.

The Green Mountain Coffee Shop and visitor's center in Waterbury offered fresh coffee on a chilly day with the high forecast to be 45. The blustery wind did not help. We watched video presentations as to how the coffee is harvested in Peru and roasted and processed in the factory nearby. In the park across the street we accomplished the first Vermont geocache.

It was a good day for my new mittens as we strolled alongside the river on the recreational trail.

We even got to watch the corn being harvested as we left.


A few miles up the road we arrived in Stowe, a well-known ski resort. A tour of the ski museum was interesting and brought lots of memories back to Leon.

The trip north from Stowe was breathtaking. The leaves seemed to be at peak along many sections of the highway that led to St. Johnsbury. There was just never a spot to pull off for the best photo.


Again we have located an Elk's Lodge that is happy for us to stay in St. Johnsbury. Another fine day.

Central Vermont

After a peaceful evening at the Elk's in Rutland, Vermont we continued east. In the Killington, Vermont area I slammed on the brakes to investigate further the cows made from hay! There are 32 arrangements made from bales of hay for the Hay Festival. We found them scattered along several roads. How clever they are.
The bears seemed to be the most common although we saw a tiger, tinman, Pinocchio and more.

Then I had to brake hard and fast so as not to miss what turned out to be a wonderful farmer's market. The fridge is loaded with fresh vegetables. How about these swan neck gourds.

Woodstock received the acclaim in AAA that it is the prettiest town in Vermont. And it was most enjoyable. There are plenty of old houses dating to the early 1800s that delighted me. We had a really nice walk through the town. Later in Montpelier we were told that a bunch of rich snobs live there. Perhaps so!

On our way to Sugarbush Farm we went throuhf the Taftsville covered bridge built in 1836.

This calf would have liked for Leon to hang around longer.

The Belgian horses like crabapples and thought I might have some. At one time they were used to pull the wagon through the woods in March where the syrup buckets on 6,000 maple trees would be emptied into a large vat each day.

A visit to Sugarbush farm was a fun way to sample some maple syrup and cheese. This is the syrup house where the sap is cooked and turned into syrup. It takes 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of pure maple syrup.

A walk among the maples allowed us to see how they now run tubes through the trees rather than using the buckets as they once did. We met a woman here who was letterboxing, a hobby similar to geocaching but no gps required.

A few miles further east we came to the Quechee Gorge. The bridge is 165 feet above the Ottauquechee River.

We then continued further north traveling alongside the eastern boundary of the Green Mountain National Forest. The small two lane road provided us a broad array of colors even though it was misting rain most of the time. All flavors of sherbert came to mind: peach, lime, strawberry, raspberry, pineapple. We settled for the night at the Montpelier Elk's Country Club, high on a hill overlooking the golf course and distant mountains.

Ticonderoga, NY

Ft. Ticonderoga is a reconstruction of the old fort that played an important role in our history.


The original fort was constructed in 1755 by the French to control the narrow portion of Lake Champlain used for shipping. It also played a role in the French and Indian War and the American Revolution.

In 1775 Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys took the fort from the British. It is stocked with artifacts and artwork.

This young lad dressed in period costume explained how five soldiers were assigned to a bunk. Three manned the cannons outside while two slept in the bunk.

It was our first day of rain but at least it was a slow drizzle that did not stop our tour nor dampen our spirits.



The one person in period costume seemed to do it all!





The King's Garden is a restored formal garden enclosed in a brick wall on the shore of Lake Champlain. It demonstrates 18th century gardens used by the troops.

Just down the road is the ferry from Ticonderoga, NY to Vermont. We debated taking it and decided to try a bridge instead.


The evening was a most delightful experience as we drove back west a few miles to reconnect with my high school friend Stephanie. She and Tom were fabulous hosts at their Adirondack cabin.

We did the best we could to catch up on the last fifty years.

I enjoyed sitting on the porch and watching the sun attempt to come up over their pond.

After sweet potato pancakes we exited the Adirondacks in a myriad of fall colors: lime, peach, rust, red, yellow, melon, and peach as we drove along the Schroon River watching the mist rise. We crossed the border and got free coffee and wifi at the welcome center.

Further east in Rutland we located one stop shopping at the Walmart store where I am connected to wifi. Within a block are several restaurants, a movie theater, and TJ Maxx. What a deal!

Adirondacks in NY

The Adirondacks include both private and state owned land and about two-thirds of upstate New York. Nearly half of the 7 million acres of the park is wilderness. We decided to spend a couple of days exploring the region and it was time well spent. We only scratched the surface of opportunities in the region. There are 42 mountains over 4,0000 feet high, 2,800 lakes and ponds, 1,200 miles of rivers, and more than 30,000 miles of brooks and streams!

We stayed on Lake Durant in a state park campground near Blue Mountain Lake and enjoyed our first campfire. Walmart camping in the Adirondacks is rare!

A nearby hike was the first order of business the next morning. It was a lovely trail through the forest among the ferns and birch trees.


We soon arrived a grassy pond, our destination.

In Blue Mountain Lake we spent three hours at the Adirondack Museum and could have spent many more. It is one of the best museums we have ever visited. We learned much about the history of the area. They had displays pertaining to boats and boating, logging, trains, sleighs, skiing and outdoor activities, adirondack history, culture and architecture and so much more! One of my favorites was the display with moving magnetic boats that showed how visitors flocked to the area on train and then caught steamboats to deliver them to various hotels, lodges, or homes in the days before automobiles.

The hillside across from the museum was just a sample of the myriad of colors we viewed for several days.

Several of the campgrounds are already closed but the second night we stayed at Wellington Notch near Lake Placid and experienced a 27 degree night. Good thing we brought our coats and hats.


We stopped in several small towns including our visit here to Hoss's in Long Lake. Always nice to visit with some of the locals.

As we drove into Lake Placid we noticed the frost on the grasses and trees.

The 1939 and 1980 winter olympics were held in Lake Placid. These are the ski jumps used in 1980.

After a nice breakfast and a wander through town we took the 2.7 mile walk around Mirror Lake.
What a gorgeous day.

Do you see the woodpecker in this tree on the shore of Mirror Lake?

Who knew that John Brown lived in Lake Placid? I surely did not, but he moved to this farm 1855, after trying to help free blacks establish a settlement in North Elba. Brown was later found guilty of treason in Virginia for leading the raid on Harper's Ferry and hanged in 1859.

His wife brought his body back to the farm where he was buried on December 8. We visited the farm before it opened so did not take the tour.


First time I ever saw sheep upstairs but that is where they were in this barn. Also where the hay was which might explain it! They were watching us as we were watching them.

The fall colors were quite lovely but changed with the elevation. We lost the colors as we descended to Ticonderoga, where we were happy to spend a night at Walmart. We could not have a campfire but we did not have to pay $20 for a place to park without electricity either.