Finally, we are out of the state of Ohio -- thought we were going to be there forever!! Felt like we were in a whirlpool, waiting to be spit out! Briefly hurled through Pennsylvania on our way to upstate NY. Of course our first stop had to be Niagara Falls. Kind of a grimy little town everywhere except right at the Falls area. Had we known, we definitely would have stayed on the Canada side -- I think the exchange rate has killed the American side tourist trade. All the nice hotels and the best views are from the Canadian side. Each time you cross the border, though, they get you for $2.50! And it is all like one big town!
We managed to bypass all the hawkers of "tours" -- they were everywhere -- and went straight to the State Park on the American side of the Falls. Nice visitor center, and all kinds of choices in ways to see the Falls. One warning -- don't bother with your Visa card here -- they only take cash! And they charge for everything -- parking $5, elevator $1, lunch $12, People Mover to the Falls, $4.50 each, Maid of the Mist $17 for two -- oops, we only had $15 left -- smooth talking Phil got us in for our measly $15!! I don't know how he does it!!
We went across the border for dinner -- they only places with views of the Falls were there -- to the Marriott Falls View dining room. Great view, good food, slow service.
The real highlight though was the Maid of the Mist -- you have to do that! It takes you right up to the base of the Falls, thundering 1.5M cubic feet of water per second -- the power is awesome!! That tug must have some power just to hold the boat there while the mist gets all over everyone in their bright blue souvenir rain suits, flashing their point and shoot cameras into that massive wall of mist! It was an incredible experience that you can't imagine standing on the shore.
Chose the scenic route out of Niagara Falls, along Lake Erie. Very rural, and very average homes all along the water with farmlands all around.Nice to something other than McMansions. Passed right through Rochester, and decided to brave camping again, as the weather and the countryside was beautiful. Our first camping evening in almost 6 weeks. The Fall colors have arrived in the NE -- and we were enjoying every turn with new landscapes to thrill the eyes. We pulled into a nice park in the Lakes region, got hooked up -- it took some time -- we were laughing at how much we had forgotten in 6 weeks! We used to be able to do this in less than 10 minutes!
Now here is a episode that had us rolling on the floor. The space we were assigned didn't have a water hookup, so we decided to move to the space next to us -- there was hardly anyone in the whole park. Since we had already pulled the electric out, and had the water hooked up to the Van, Phil said -- just leave them, I'll handle the connections while you maneuver the Van. About this time, 2 couples (from Roseburg, Oregon!) happened by on their evening walk, and inquired of Phil, as he is holding onto 2 cables from the Van as I am moving it along the road, "Are you out walking your Van this evening?!!"
I swear, this is true!! We should have replied, "yes, but we have to keep it on a very short leash!!" but we were were laughing too hard. Had a nice conversation with them about "home" -- I think they finally decided we weren't fools....
Off to the Adirondacks as the skies dumped good ole Oregon style rain on us all day. The trees were absolutely everything we had imagined. The colors across the hills were beyond description and interspersed with wonderful creeks and Lakes all along the route. We decided on HY8 out of Utica, but any of the highways through there, I'm sure would also have been beautiful. The rain kept us from getting any good pictures, but the memories of the mind are always the best anyway. Tonight we are at Lake George, one of the most developed spots in the Adirondacks, in hopes of a beautiful dawn and breathtaking view of the Lake in the morning. The Sagamore Resort is just across the Bay. Think we'll have lunch there tomorrow -- we're still recovering from The Greenbrier!
We're off to New Hampshire -- through the mountains, and all the Fall foliage. The eyes can only absorb so much over many days. We had a lot of rain, and moments of beautiful sunshine. The patchwork quilt of colors from scarlet to burgundy, from sunshine yellow to brilliant orange, from dark umber to light tan, from mint green to dark forest green made for an afternoon of mouth gaping views The white bark of the birch trees lined the quilt with random threads amongst the color. Nothing in the west comes anywhere close to these views.
Driving through Vermont, we only got a glimpse of that state. Passed by Killington (the Ski area town) and a host of cute towns tucked into the creases of the hills including the most quaint New England town of Woodstock, VT. Too darling!
Caught up with our friend Haley Dahlquist in the White Mountains of NH. Saw a lot of the sights we had been told about -- Franconia Notch, the Old Man of the Mountain, Mt. Washington, the Mt. Washington Hotel -- really a neat restoration -- another one of those great steps back in time -- with the beautiful fall foliage in the background. Even though the weather was alternately cloudy and rainy -- we still loved every minute of the view.
Had great fun visiting with Haley's Aunt and Uncle -- Ruth and Bob. They hauled our buns off to the health spa (suppose they could tell we needed it?) the first afternoon. Had a wonderful workout, and fabulous relax in the steam and whirlpool. Enjoyed another New England dinner of seafood and good company and conversation.
The next day we headed out of NH on the scenic HY 2 towards Maine. A long day of driving through beautiful scenery landed us in Bangor Maine to begin yet another week. Thanks to Ruth and Bob for a nice introduction to the White Mountain area of New Hampshire.