Returning to the U.S. and Making it to Maine.
Here we are on the Canada side of Niagara Falls, Sunday, September 25, 2022
We went to Niagara Falls on the U.S. side two years ago, but due to COVID we couldn't cross into Canada. Everyone who has been there told us we hadn't seen them unless we saw them from Canada. Yes, there is definitely a better view of the front of the falls from the Canadian side, but I think I liked the rushing, tumbling river and the roar of the falls on the U.S. side better. Glad we've seen them from both sides now.
Some pretty gardens near the falls.
Rob eating lunch in the Rainforest Cafe.
For those who know his aversion to noisy restaurants you should be shocked to see him here.We have been to the Rainforest Cafe once or twice near Disneyland. I had remembered the food as pretty good so when I suggested it at Niagara Falls Rob agreed. Well the food was nothing to rave about and the place is definitely noisy - and it was over priced, but oh well - we won't have to go there again. Inside the cafe they periodically have fake thunder and lightning - not nearly as "fun" as the real thing that we experienced while outside viewing the falls. We managed to not get too wet when there was a real down pour by standing against a big tree.
Our original plan on this trip was to stay in Canada until Quebec City and then drop down to Maine before going to visit our son Scott and his wife Kristy, but when we got to Niagara Falls, it felt like backtracking and then a lot of pressure to stay on schedule so we decided to head back into the U.S. at Buffalo, New York. Quebec will have to wait for another time.
Crossing the bridge from Canada to the U.S.
Entering New York on a rainy afternoon.
We stayed at a Harvest Host Golf Course on Sunday, September 25 - parked in the parking lot - not a bad place to spend the night.
Our campsite on Monday, September 26, at Verona Beach State Park, New York.
It is on the eastern end of Oneida Lake, a lake almost as long as Lake Tahoe.
Seagulls on a log in Oneida Lake.
A working lighthouse in the town right next to the campsite.
Looking out our screen door at the sunset while we ate dinner.
Sunset over Oneida Lake.
Early morning sky at Oneida Lake.
A pretty pond on my Tuesday morning walk at Verona Beach State Park.
Fall colors appearing as we drive through the Adirondack Mountains in New York.
The further north and the higher in elevation we went, the more colorful the trees.
Crossing into Vermont, Tuesday, September 27, 2022
Lake Bomoseen, Vermont where we camped at a KOA on Tuesday, September 27.
The nights are getting colder, autumn is definitely here in the north east.
A sign warning that there is low clearance ahead.
Tall enough for us! (We're about 11 feet high)
Going through Sanderson Bridge near Brandon, Vermont.
Beautiful woods with a hint of leaves changing color in Vermont, September 28, 2022.
Some rocks and trees where we took a break.
Up close color changes.
More color along the roadside in the Green Mountains of Vermont.
Sayre Bridge, Thetford Center, Vermont.
We're not going through any shorter than this!
The trees were noticeably more colorful in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.
Cannon Mountain in Franconia Notch State Park, New Hampshire.
Our destination on Wednesday, September 28 was Lafayette Place Campground in Franconia State Park. One of the Park Aides at Samuel P Taylor State Park left there last spring shortly before we left so she could drive across the country to spend the summer working as an Interpretive Ranger for New Hampshire State Parks. Since we were planning to travel through New Hampshire on our way to or from Maine during her season with New Hampshire State Parks we thought it would be fun to meet up with her. Franconia Notch State Park is huge, stunningly beautiful with lots of variety, and called the "Flag Ship" of New Hampshire State Parks, and that was where Emily would be when we were driving through. It was a rainy afternoon and evening, but we managed to get some hiking in and a nice visit with Emily.
Colored leaves along our rainy hike along the creek.
Actually, by this point it was "my" hike as fair weather loving Rob turned back when the rain started.
A wet New Hampshire mushroom.
Fallen leaves along the wet trail.
More New Hampshire mushrooms.
Rob, Emily and me.
Looks like California State Parks is loosing out on an outstanding Interpreter - Emily has fallen in love with New England, plans to spend the winter working in a ski area and then maybe in Vermont State Parks next summer.
A very enticing trail leading out of our campground.
I walked a short way on this trail early Thursday morning.
I sure wanted to walk further, but Rob had a scheduled Zoom meeting at 4:00 PM and we needed to be sure we got somewhere in time to have good connectivity.
My turn around point on the trail.
More pretty colors as we drove through New Hampshire.
Crossing into Maine.
Our destination on Thursday, September 29, 2022.
Ever since visiting Acadia National Park two years ago we wanted to return. I really wanted to ride bicycles on the beautiful Carriage Roads there, and we both just wanted to see this beautiful park again. I wasn't able to get reservations for a campground inside the park, but I found one just 3 miles from the park entrance, close enough for us to ride our bikes into the park and then along the trails. We spent two nights at Bar Harbor Campground, a very large, fully equipped campground. The best thing about this campground was that they never take reservations - only first come, first serve - I wish there were more campgrounds like that, especially in popular areas where it is so hard to get a reservation. The WiFi wasn't too good, but we had a good enough connection with Verizon so Rob could use the hot spot on his cell phone for his meeting. I was eager to see the park so I took the free shuttle that runs all over the area into get a first glimpse. One little glitch - the bus that was supposed to pick me up at the visitor center didn't show up, and it was the last one scheduled for the day. I managed to find a phone number for the company and the dispatcher managed to find a bus driver who hadn't gone home yet to come rescue me, so it was a good ending. Friday, September 30, Rob and I road our bicycles a total of 25 miles to and from the park and around the trails. It was a beautiful ride on a beautiful day, everything we could have hoped for. We even had time to park the bikes at the visitor center and hop on a shuttle bus to explore more of the park.
The 45 miles of carriage roads were a gift of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and family.
They are well signed and easy to follow with the help of a map.
Witch Hole Pond along the Carriage Road.
Looking across at fall colors.
Us at Jordan Pond with the "Bubbles" behind and between us.
One of the beautiful bridges.
16 foot wide carriage road used by pedestrians, bicycles and horses, including horses pulling carriages.
We saw all forms of allowed transportation on the roads, but they were never crowded.
A view from the road out to the Atlantic not long before we reached the Visitor Center.
After checking out the Visitor Center we caught one of the free shuttles to explore more.
Sand Beach where we got off the shuttle to walk along the Beach Trail.
Rocks at Thunder Hole.
Looking down into Thunder Hole.
There is a cave here that with just the right conditions makes a sound like thunder when the tide water goes in and out. All we heard was gurgles, but it was all beautiful.
After leaving Acadia on Saturday, October 1, our next destination was Harpswell, Maine where son Scott and daughter-in-law Kristy now live and are building a house. On the way as we approached the crossing of the Penobscot River we noticed what looked like a giant granite fortress across the river from us and from the town of Bucksport. The Penobscot Narrows Bridge was very impressive and just as we crossed it a sign for Fort Knox caught our attention. It was lunch time so we turned off and had a wonderful serendipitous adventure going up in the Bridge Observatory and exploring the "first" Fort Knox - named for the same person as the one that holds the gold. This Fort Knox was established in 1844 to protect the Penobscot River Valley against a possible future British naval incursion. The fort is huge and made of lots of Maine granite. It took 25 years to build and only housed troops for training purposes a couple of brief times. The Observatory Tower is almost as tall as the Washington Monument, and the design was partially patterned after the monument.
The bridge with one tower visible.
Looking down from the top of the tower.
Looking down again, zoomed in to see the colors.
Looking down on the bridge.
Inside the fort.
Rob in front of the hall that goes through multiple enlisted barracks.
The outside of the fort - I wished I'd taken a picture of the whole thing before we'd crossed the river.
The entrance to the development where Scott and Kristy are building their house.
Not a great perspective, but trying to show the progress Scott is making on the roof of the house.
Here is Scott on the used lift he bought to make this work easier and safer.
When he's finished using it, he'll sell it.
Grandson Jacob is in Maine, and other parts of the U.S. for a few months and came by to help one day.
Rob decided to take a ride up in the lift with Scott.
Here they are, high enough to get a view of the water.
I also took a ride up in the lift, but was a bit too shaky to get a very good picture looking down.
To the left of the entrance peak on the house is Scott's pickup looking pretty small.
To the right is the trailer Scott and Kristy are living in while building.
Here is LesThora parked in front of the house where we would stay for 4 nights.
From this perspective the house doesn't look as big as it is. It's Big!
A three car garage on the bottom with a workshop behind it that is just as big as the garage.
The main floor of the house is almost 2,400 square feet with two bedrooms, a bathroom and a loft on the second floor. This is one heck of a big project, and Scott's doing it pretty much on his own.
Soarin' Free, Scott and Kristy's 46 foot Catamaran.
This boat is the reason they bought their lot where they did. It gives them access to a mooring ball where they can keep the boat - except in the winter when this bay freezes. Their plan is to live in Maine in the summer and to sail south in the winter, but this year finishing the house is their priority so they need to take the boat out of the water and store it on land for this winter. Obviously with a boat this size that requires a special facility. The ones near by would cost over twice as much as the one they found in Norfolk, Virginia. They have plans to interrupt construction on the house for a couple of weeks to get the boat south to Virginia for the winter.
While at Scott and Kristy's we did some exploring of the surrounding area with Kristy, and just enjoyed family time and being off the road for a bit. I found a trail not too far away to hike one day, and we went into the town of Brunswick which is only about 15 minutes away a few times.
Along the trail in the Maine woods.
This tree is along the shore.
I wonder how long it will stay standing with its roots loosing their anchoring bank.
Some pretty bright color nearby.
Color in the trees near their house.
We had gone into Brunswick for dinner a couple of nights and noticed the very impressive building of the First Parish Church, A United Church of Christ Church in the center of town. On our last full day Kristy, Rob and I headed into town to hopefully get a chance to see the inside of the church. The church secretary told us we could only view it on Sundays, but while we were standing outside the office feeling disappointed a woman who was tending the garden asked if there was something we needed. When we told her we had hoped to see the inside of the church she gladly volunteered to take us inside. She had been the church secretary for 18 years, and now retired from that position she volunteers to tend the yard. She shared lots of history with us about the beautifully cared for church where Harriet Beecher Stowe, and other notable persons worshipped. What a gift to encounter her and get inside. Next time we're in Maine I hope we're there on a Sunday so we can worship there.
The beautiful sanctuary.
Stenciled organ pipes in the balcony.
One of the beautiful windows.
Notice the stenciled boarders to each side - they coordinate with the organ stencils.
A Maine themed altar cloth.
Harriet Beecher Stowe's pew.
A tree on the Bowdoin College campus near the church.
After the tour of the church we headed to lunch across the river from Brunswick.
Much of the time we were at Scott and Kristy's it was cold and windy, but not this day.
After lunch we drove a short distance up river to this swinging bridge.
Erected in 1892.
Pictures from Angel Island:
Does Elsie look happy?
I am sure Straus moved away the moment this picture was taken.
Both kitties enjoying the sunshine.
Beautiful photos, fun trip. Thanks!!
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