The Green Mountains of Vermont

We left Saugerties, NY and traveled from the Catskills up to the Adirondacks seeking cooler weather. Stayed at the Adirondack Village Campground on the edge of the Adirondack National Forest, a six million acre area of scenic beauty in upstate New York. Even the elevation did nothing to dissipate the sweltering heat and humidity. We arrived right after 'Americade' which we were told was the largest multi-brand motorcycle event in the East with over 50,000 bikers in town. The weekend before Americade was a convention of Elvis impersonators - - and we managed to miss both events...

Monday (6/9) we ventured out to Lake George Village and Queensbury looking to experience local culture. Lake George Village was a disappointment in its commercialism. It costs $1 per hour to park the car near the lake, no picnic tables to be found, and access to the 'beach' was thru a pavillion and locked gate after paying an entry fee. The 'beach' was a narrow strip of sand on the lake. For a fee, one could ride a steamboat across portions of the lake and back. There was absolutely no breeze and we were miserable from the heat. We took our picnic lunch and tried to go to the picnic area next door at Fort William Henry, but that gate was closed. Apparently after Americade the streets roll up until school gets out [yes, school is still in session until mid-June here]. The area is quite beautiful and there were many things we wanted to see and do but the heat was just too much.

Tuesday (6/10) left Lake George, NY and traveled across to St. Johnsbury, Vermont via US4 across the Green Mountains. Initially the roads were wide and not alarmingly steep. However, just outside of Killington, VT we encountered a blinking sign that read, 'Use Caution - Pavement Ends.' Well, the folks in Vermont are very concise with their signs and tell no lies. For several miles and through several villages, the pavement was removed, leaving a very bumpy gravel roadbed with no guard rails and only one lane traffic in some spots. The Green Mountains are considerably taller than the Appalachians in our area. Even so, we survived. We passed through several ski resort areas with no snow, of course, but many tall ski lifts and such (many elevations over 3,500 feet).

We arrived to 95 degree heat at Moose River Campground, set up camp, put out the awning, kicked up the A/C and were settling in when the campground hostess came knocking to let us know a huge storm was coming and advising us to take down the awning. We had two rounds of rough weather, with tornado warnings, lots of lightening, lots of rain and high winds. The power went out around 4 PM and didn't come back on 'til 2:38 AM this morning. By the way, the sun rose at 5:24 this morning and we enjoyed temperatures in the mid-70s today. We are about 45 miles from Canada and 27 miles from Littleton, New Hampshire. What a difference a day makes. It's supposed to reach 30 degrees overnight.

We visited Stephen Huneck's Dog Mountain today. We have been huge fans of the artist for a long time and are amazed we actually got to visit here. Dogs are welcome here in both the chapel and the gallery and there's also a pond and agility course just for dogs. People come from all over the world and post notes about their pets and pay tribute to much loved, deceased pets. The chapel has stained glass windows featuring dogs; the steeple is an angel dog; benches are carved dogs; there are statues of dogs everywhere.... After all, it is Dog Mountain...

On the way back down Dog Mountain to the highway, we saw a mother moose and offspring trot across the road in front of us. It took a second or two to realize they were much taller than deer and have a thicker, longer nose. These didn't have any antlers. No pictures since it was such a quick and unexpected encounter, but we wanted to include a picture of the campground moose...

There is so much to see and do in this area that we extended our stay another day. In addition to Dog Mountain, we toured through St. Johnsbury, VT and went to see The Birdman outside of Danville, VT. Edmond Menard is 'The Birdman' and hand carves small birds, such as humming birds, chickadees, pelicans, ducks, etc. from the cambrian layer of white cedar. He is a very nice, somewhat reclusive artist that is more than happy to show you how he creates his art. We bought a humming bird from him. What is most amazing is that the entire bird is carved from once piece of wood, with the feathers fanned out individually. He uses NO GLUE as it is carved from ONE piece of wood. Our visit with Edmond was very interesting. The picture does not do it justice. The actual bird is about 4 inches long and probably weighs less than an ounce.

We visited Maple Grove Farms. They do not make maple syrup, but do make things from maple syrup, like salad dressings, spreads, maple sprinkles, fudge, etc.

We drove on to Cabot, VT to visit the Cabot cheese factory. This tour is only $2 and worth it since you can eat your weight in cheese samples (YUM!) both before and after the tour. Cabot is a farm co-op and receives milk from about 1,300 dairy farms. They make umpteen thousand pounds of cheese each and every day in lots of flavors. They also make yogurts, sour creams, spreads, and other perishables that are sold only in the New England area.

FYI, Vermont folks are very proud of all their local Vermont things and happily send you around to experience different places. Vermont is also home to Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, King Arthur Flour, Green Mountain Coffee (processed in Vermont), and of course, maple syrup. There are many local farms that have sugar bush farms to harvest the sap to make syrup. It takes approximately 40 gallons of sap to reduce to 1 gallon of maple syrup.

Vermont may be a small state, but it's packed with stuff to do.

Until next time - - find joy even in the small things....

J&K

Moving On Up

The area of Pennsylvania in which we were staying had much to see and do. We spent several more days so that we could visit Gettysburg National Military Park and then take a tour to Philadelphia. Gettysburg was interesting and one of those places that we felt we needed to visit since we were so close. One could take a 24-mile driving tour to visit exhibits, monuments and various battlefields. Twenty-four miles of history was a bit much for us so we hit the sights that most interested us and moved on. It was interesting even though we're not hugely interested in Civil War memorabilia. The cemetery was very quiet and moving. Imagine a small town finding itself in possession of thousands of dead bodies after three days of battle and having to find ways to bury the dead and care for the wounded. It must have been a daunting task. Gettysburg remains a small town today.







Our guided tour to Philadelphia was fun. We were both able to ride and look at the sights along the way rather than one having to drive and the other one having to read a map and navigate, with both of us missing a lot along the way. We visited "the most historic square mile in America" which included Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross House, Old Christ Church, a Quaker Meeting House and several other key sights. One very interesting point of interest were the "busy-body mirrors" that were on the houses in Elfreth's Alley during Revolutionary times and now. This alley is lined with row-houses that have been continuously inhabited since the 18th Century. Even back then, there were 'nosy Nellies' who wanted to keep up with what was going on around them. It would have been nice to spend another whole day visiting the Museum of Art and the Rodin Museum. We did see the steps that Rocky ran up at the Museum of Modern Art but we were not allowed to get off the tour bus to run up them ourselves. A funny thing about the 'city of brotherly love' - if the traffic is stalled just lay down on the horn (no, it did not speed things up), but apparently it's how this city shares the love.

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On Thursday (June 5) we drove up to Saugerties, NY to stay in the Saugerties/Woodstock KOA. We have enjoyed a little down time during our stay here. The little town is at the southern edge of the Catskill Forest Park. Jerri did some hiking and visiting waterfalls. There was a moderately challenging hike to Kaaterskill Falls. The rocks, roots and mud were well worth the steep climb to the top to see the 260 feet high waterfall, the highest in NY.











Today we visited the Saugerties Lighthouse. Who knew there was a lighthouse here? It is a stone lighthouse on the Hudson River at Esopus Creek originally built in 1838. The lighthouse is a half-mile hike best done at low tide since the trail is only four feet above sea level and high tides can cover part of the trail. It has a full-time keeper and the upstairs is a B&B now [really expensive].






We were a little disappointed in the village of Woodstock. Not sure what we expected but what we found was not it. Lots of shops with antiques and tie-dye stuff (even head shops) but it was very touristy. Most of the shop owners were either really old hippies or newbies to the area. We passed a couple of 'old' hippies on the sidewalk and couldn't help but notice that personal hygiene is still not a priority. The Woodstock Music Festival in 1969 was originally scheduled to be held here but the venue was changed to Bethel, NY. There's a new museum at the Bethel Center for the Arts paying homage to 'Woodstock,' but it was a whole day trip in itself with advance tickets highly recommended. At least we can say we've been to Woodstock, NY....



We really wanted to visit Opus 40 and Quarryman's Museum, a six-acre environmental bluestone sculpture built from an abandoned quarry over 40 years' time. Just our luck, Opus 40 was closed when we arrived because a wedding was being held there. Maybe another time.





So, we are off to Lake George, NY in the Adirondacks tomorrow. We will spend a few days there and then move over into Vermont, where we want to visit Dog Mountain in St. Johnsbury, VT. We have admired the work of the artist who founded and who lives and works at Dog Mountain. There is also a Dog Chapel there where we and our dogs will be welcome.
















For those of you wondering about our three dogs Troubie, Homer and Frannie, they are doing fine and have adjusted to the traveling life pretty well. It seems that one couch is about as good as any other one. "Home is Where the Couch Is."

"Still round the corner there may wait, a new road or a secret gate."

- J.R.R. Tolkien

Until next time...


our journey continues.





J&K

Aaaahhhh, Pennsylvania....

Welcome to Intercourse, PA formerly known as 'Cross Keys.' We decided to show you some of the sights we see here everyday. This area of Pennsylvania has many townships, such as Bird-In-Hand, Intercourse, Blue Ball, Leacock, etc. The townships are similar to villages but have no governing bodies, so they are not the same as towns or cities. Our campground is in the very heart of Lancaster county in Amish country.

Thursday (May 29th) we went to Hershey's Chocolate World in Hershey, PA. It was a good day trip without being too tiring. Visited Chocolate World and the Museum but opted out of the theme park. We became well versed in Milton S. Hershey's legacy to the world and the history of Hershey (the town and the chocolate). If you visit you must buy chocolate - the chocolate smell is wafted everywhere, vending machines are outside, chocolate and everything resembling chocolate is inside... Jerri found a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity when KitKat came around. The photo says it all.

Friday (May 30th) rode out to September Farm, a dairy farm that makes and sells their own artisan cheeses. Definitely need a GPS to find with so many turns. The cheese is very tasty and melts well. The cheese curds make a salty snack with crackers and fruit. We rode to the Green Dragon Market which is like a huge weekly indoor/outdoor flea market where you can find almost anything (except a parking place). We finally found the perfect tag for the 'Whoo Hoo Wonder Bus.' A fitting memorial to the lost but not forgotten 'Beach Bum' flag.

We ate lunch at the Revere Tavern in Paradise, PA which was previously owned by James Buchanan, the 15th President of the US. We found out his sister was married to Stephen Foster (the famous songwriter, i.e. My Old Kentucky Home, Oh Susannah).

Beacon Hill Drive (where the campground is located) is like an Amish freeway. Every day buggies and carriages travel up and down going to town. The people we see are friendly and usually wave back or say 'hello' or 'good morning' if you speak first. They do not make eye contact. Yesterday three Amish children pulling a red wagon came to our campsite selling homemade bread, strawberry and rhubarb jam, fresh asparagus and horseshoes. We bought a jar of jam.

Today (May 31st) we drove a couple of miles up the road to Centreville Bulk Foods. The small store has no electricity and is lit by propane lanterns at the end of each aisle. They accept cash. We rode on up the road to a Giant supermarket which designated a special place for buggies to be harnessed while shopping. All of this has done nothing to dampen our curiosity about the Amish.

We are loving our adventures in discovering America!

It's All Good...

Finally, a decent WiFi signal...



Let's refresh our memories of the Outer Banks. The Hatteras Lighthouse was great. While Jerri climbed the lighthouse, Kathy sat in on a lecture on the plight of the endangered Piping Plover. There were only 7 nesting pairs last year. Of course, humans are the largest detriment to the little birds. The ferry trip to Ocracoke was nice as was the island. Ocracoke is a good 40 miles from Waves. BTW the Outer Banks is the longest group of barrier islands in the world at 130 miles in length.

This is a photo of sunrise at the Outer Banks. Because we are so far East, the sun rises around 6AM. The light is so bright and intense, there's no sleeping in after that.



As we said in a previous post, we are still mourning the loss of the 'Beach Bum' flag. It blew away one night never to be seen again. Another night we were under a tornado watch and saw rotating clouds right above us. Another camper that had been through a tornado told us that if there was just a little more wind it would form a funnel cloud. Whew...close call....

Waves is centrally located about halfway in the OBX, which makes it convenient for several day trips. One trip was to Kitty Hawk and the Wright Brothers Memorial. Lots of history and information to be found here. The interpretive rangers set the stage for the birth of independent air flight by the Wright Brothers who had a bicycle shop in Ohio. Pretty fascinating, especially if you've ever flown on a modern flight to think of how it all began.



Loved the OBX and will definitely plan to come back again and maybe stay longer next time.

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We left the OBX and traveled to Pohick Bay Regional Park in northern Virginia. The park was a nice change from the beach with lots of trees and mountain laurel in bloom - very shady and cool. The roads were paved, which made riding the bicycles nice. The park quickly filled to the max over Memorial Day weekend, and just as quickly emptied on Monday, leaving us and a quiet handful of campers to enjoy the beautiful nature trails.



We took the Metro into Old Town Alexandria one evening, which was a very nice change. The park is just down the road from Mason Neck National Wildlife Preserve and Gunston Hall. We spent a day exploring the immediate area. Pohick Bay Regional Park plus Gunston Hall plus Mason Neck totals 5,500 acres of nature and preserves with lots of hiking and bike trails. Pohick Bay is a small bay off the Potomac River across from Ft. Belvoir, while Mason Neck is located on Belmont Bay across from Maryland.



Gunston Hall was the plantation home of George Mason, author of the Virginia Declaration of Independence which served as the blueprint for the Bill of Rights to the US Constitution. Mason attended the Continental Congress but was one of three who refused to sign the Constitution on the basis that it gave too much power to the government and failed to ensure the rights of the individual [go George Mason!]. The tour of Gunston Hall and the grounds was rich with history and we had a docent all to ourselves for the tour.



Left Virginia this morning, bypassed Washington and Baltimore to a small campground in Intercourse, Pennsylvania. We arrived in the heart of Amish country this afternoon. The campground is just across the road from a working Amish farm. During dinner we watched the farmer harrow part of the field with six mules and a manual draw plow that he stood and rode on. There are lots of Amish and Mennonites in the area and we are curious about their beliefs and differences. Everywhere you look there are horse-drawn carriages riding up and down the roads. We were fascinated by a bicycle-like contraption - it looks like a bicycle but has no pedals or chains. The rider stands on one foot on a platform and pushes with the other foot - more like a scooter than a bicycle. We'll try to get a photo of it so the description will make sense.



There are more things to see and do here than one would think. Gettysburg and Hershey's Chocolate World are short day trips away.



Happy Travels, K&J.

AT&T (AKA Liar, Liar Pants on Fire...)

Long time - no blog....We purchased a Sierra 885 AirCard from AT&T before we began adventuring with the complete assurance of the teenage salesperson that the connection/upload/download would be 'just as good as DSL.' NOT!!

With very weak WiFi in the OBX and non-existent WiFi in Northern Virginia, we've had to rely solely on the AirCard. That's why this message will be very short and contain no pics. It takes a looooonnnngggg time to connect. We are 20 miles outside Washington, DC and can only pick up a 2G network (Not 3G like the teenage salesperson raved on about).

Oh well, we're off to Pennsylvania in the morning and hopefully to WiFi-land. We'll do our best to catch up on everything then.

We are still mourning the 'Beach Bum' flag that blew away during the stay at the Outer Banks. We were told to search up in the trees, but alas no Beach Bum flag...

Kathy's New Home

Kathy has found her new home. Not for the reasons one might suspect (i.e., the scenic beauty, coastal breezes and laid back atmosphere). Nope, we are talking about the fear of bridges. We had to cross 4 very long, very high ones, with signs that said "Danger: High Crosswinds" to get to her new home at Waves, NC on Hatteras Island. You would think the fact that we were traveling to an ISLAND would have been a clue for her.



With a fear of heights and bridges since childhood, it was an interesting ride to say the least. As she crawled into the floorboard of the motorhome and hailed as she did so, "If you need anything I'll be right here" -(yeh, right!) - we made our way safely across each of the bridges and into the campground. I had hoped "Immersion Therapy" would be the answer in helping her overcome her fears but I was wrong. Have I already lost my touch? Anyway, anyone with Valium should respond quickly. We are in dire need of assistance to cross back over the bridges to make our way on up to VA. Otherwise, Kathy can be reached from here on out at her new address: Oceans Waves Campground, Waves, NC.



Yes - now Kathy speaks-- Portions of the tale were altered to protect the not-so-innocent. The bridge freakouts were very mild and came after a 400 mile drive, portions of which were on 35 mph switchbacks through Pisgah National Forest, with blinking yellow lights attesting "Speed Too Fast for Conditions" (those conditions were miles and miles of 6% downshifts) and ALL 400 miles were in high, gusty winds. Enough said!



Having said all that, the campground is beautiful, with the beach just a short walk over the dunes. We would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to visit this area. Any of you who have been fortunate enough to visit the area know what we are talking aboutn. The weather was absolutely gorgeous today!



We've seen a Bald Eagle since arriving (they are said to nest on the islands). The sun rises much earlier here and you feel the need to get up and get going so you don't waste any part of the day. We rode our bicycles to the seafood market and bought fresh shrimp for dinner tonight and crab cakes for tomorrow evening. Settling in for the evening with boiled shrimp and a bottle of wine for dinner.

ps Thanks to everyone for the positive comments. We are new to blogging, but think we've fixed it so comments can be made on the blog site.

Catching up....

It's been a while since our first/last post, but we've been without Internet service. Rolled into our local campground for two weeks to work out all the bugs and get the WhooHooWonderBus ready to roll. As with most adventures, adjustments had to be made. The first campsite was just too small for WHWB and she had to move.





The welcoming committee showed up at the new site and several times a day every day looking for some kind of hand out [they were ducks - three of them]. Sometimes they brought their buds, two Canada Geese. Just hungry mischief-makers looking to make the dogs bark. Totally fearless, but very consistent.





A day or two into our adventure a fellow camper was whisked away by ambulance and sheriff's deputy. According to his brother-in-law, he suffered medical amnesia and had been missing from St. Louis, MO for five days. Of course he showed up in our campground.





Then there was the terrible weather - thunder, rain, high winds - and a HUGE tree fell two sites over during the night. It blocked the road and scared off two families of campers behind us the next day. With nowhere to run and hide, we stuck it out. Alcohol helps in times like this...





During our stay we invested in a 'poop wagon.' This is a handy little plastic vessel on wheels that you download your crap into and haul away to the dump station. Too much trouble to unhook and can't burn the precious diesel to drive a hundred yards to dump the crapper. Oh the adventures the 'poop wagon' has provided. Did you know that if the connections aren't tight you can take a crap shower whether you want to or not? We have no complaints about the bath house - it was quite pleasurable to wash all that crap off. At least it was our own crap and not someone else's...





One thing about living in a motorhome, you become really frugal with water usage, especially seeing how you are responsible for emptying what you use. Everything has to have its place - even the 'poop wagon.' Crap is a priority. Can't let the tanks get too full - can't overfill the poop wagon - all connections must be tight... Lots of rules to remember. Crap rules!





BTW, we invested in a wireless air card for the laptop so we can have Internet access in most places and keep up with the world.





Today [5/15] we traveled north on our journey and are just outside Statesville, NC in a pleasant campground complete with a pool, playground, and a hearse decorated with flames...





We head out tomorrow for the NC coast and Waves, NC. We will attempt to upload photos of our adventure so far.