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| Our route from Lincoln to Kittery. |
Wednesday,
October 9, 2013
Lincoln,
NH to Kittery, ME
Home
of John Robinson
110
miles
BRRRR!! There is frost on the truck this morning, and
our neighbor claims his water froze. Not
surprised! It was forecast for 30-32
degrees! Rick and I bundled up, left the
heater running on low, and slept pretty warm – too warm at times! (Except for my toes…couldn’t keep them warm
enough!) It was 49 in the trailer when I
got up at 7am, so the heater did a pretty good job!
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| Country roads along Lake Winnepeesaukee |
But….cold
means clear and it is a BEAUTIFUL morning!!!
We slowly get moving, pack up and pull out of the campground just 4
minutes before check out time! We only
have a hundred plus miles to go today, and don’t want to arrive too soon. Because of that, we have chosen the leisurely
drive route along Lake Winnepesaukee – a 30 mile long lake in southeastern New
Hampshire. We pass some pretty high-end
resorts and marinas, but also state parks (closed for the season) and small,
quaint little towns.
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| State picnic area at Lake Winnepesaukee |
We gas
up in Meredith, NH, paying the lowest gas price of the trip to date:
$3.28. Later we saw another station for
$3.26! Near the gas station we found a
book drop and donated a pile of about 6 books we had finished reading. (Had to make room for the 7 books we bought at
a used book store up in Littleton!)
It is
amazing how quickly we drop out of the ‘trees lost most of their leaves’ to ‘trees
still mostly green’! With a drop in latitude
and elevation, the change comes rapidly!
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| We made it! |
After missing the street a couple times, we arrive at John’s house around 2pm, but it
is nearly a half hour later when John comes out to greet us. He was on a conference phone call for
business when we first hit the door bell!
No problem, we grabbed a bite to eat from the truck while we
waited!
John is a childhood Greenville friend of Rick's. A neurologist, he is now working in managed care with insurance and Medicaid programs. We visited John and his then wife Lis 15 years ago when we visited them living in Portsmouth, NH. John
lives just off Hwy 1 and a maze of outlet stores in a quiet little culdesac
development. A beautiful spot where he
can see the water of a tidal river.
Recently divorced, he is in the house alone, so we have the privilege of
a guest bedroom and a four poster bed!
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| John Robinson's 'cottage' in Kittery. |
While
John completes another conference call from 3-4, Rick and I walk over to
Kittery Trading Post, a huge Cabelas and Eddie Bauer all rolled into one. Three levels of outdoor gear. We did a little Christmas shopping, including
a fourth pair of snowshoes for only $60.
(Also included another pair of trekking poles with both snow and hiking
tips) Now the family can go out at once
without having to borrow!
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| View from restaurant table of the port |
John
takes us on a quick mini tour of possible sites to visit tomorrow, ending at
Captain and Patty’s right on the waterfront for a quick dinner. Then a fast spin through Portsmouth before home. He has a ‘date’ tonight with his girlfriend
at a community concert type event. Since
Rick wants to watch the Pirates game, it was easy to stay home! I had John get me set up on the internet
before he left, so we are both happy campers for the evening!
Click HERE for today's pictures....
THURSDAY, October 10, 2013
Exploring Kittery - Portsmouth Area,
Harbor Cruise
Click HERE for today's pictures
Click HERE for Portsmouth Harbor Audio Tour (and ALL the fun facts accurately given!)
THURSDAY, October 10, 2013
Exploring Kittery - Portsmouth Area,
Harbor Cruise
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| Spruce River from John's deck morning |
Up
around 7 to a quiet house and a chance to catch up! John rises and prepares an omelet for my
breakfast, and shows up how to use the Kerig coffee machine! I haven’t drunk this strong of coffee for a
long time! One cup should do me!!
Around
9 Rick and I take off for the day so John can go into his office and go to
work! (He works from home!) First is to explore a little of Kittery. Both Kittery and Portsmouth were founded just
3 years after Plymouth, MA, in 1623.
Kittery is the oldest town in Maine.
A series of forts, on both the Maine and NH shores, guard the entrance
to the Piscataqua River harbor. Major
ships can travel up to 4-5 miles inland, so it is a major harbor of the
NE. We visit Fort Foster first (say that
three times fast!) and walk out to the point.
Very reminiscent of Fort Stevens, OR, on a smaller scale. Marvelous views back in of the harbor,
including the chance to pick out the restaurant where we ate last night! We can see 3 different lighthouses, one right
out in the middle. We learn later it is
called Whaleback Light. As the fort
appears to now be used for a community park, a really cute playground has been constructed. There is a small building that was literally
built in and around a couple of trees, a bench of skis, boats sunk into the
sand, bridges, and piers. Pretty well
done.
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| Rick scans the skies as I look through the guard tower slots. Whaleback Lighthouse in distance. |
The
difference between Oregon and NE coastlines appears to be in the rocks. Oregon has sea stacks – big chunks deposited
on the sands, etc. The NE has shoals –
large flatter expansive rocks that appear much more during the low tides. It was interesting to see Fort Foster and the
harbor at low tide in the morning, and then take the cruise during high tide
and see the difference! A long pier juts out into the water from Fort
Foster, and we see a large, abandoned building on an island shoal. We learn later it is the Wood Island Life
Saving Station.
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| One of many country churches |
Along
the narrow road winding in and around huge, old colonial style houses, and
thick green undergrowth, small country churches can be seen with their tall
spire steeples. Some are in better shape
than others, but no where did I see a ‘modern’ style church. The sumac is changing colors here, and an
occasional branch of oak or maple. Even
in the two days we have been here, I think I see more color now.
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| Fort McLary |
We
then stop at Fort McLary, having to park outside the entrance because of an
upcoming wedding later in the day. But
we are able to walk in and explore the paths and buildings. This fort has much more interpretive material
to read. It has provided protection by a
civil citizen force as early as prior to the French and Indian War and as late
as WW2. In between times, the government
took over and built it up. Considerable
building took place around Civil War times, but then suddenly stopped. A granite wall was being built, and the large
chunks of granite look like a set of building blocks just tumbled in the
grass. The wall was never
completed. A VERY rich loyalist to
England owned ALL the land in the area, but it was taken by force for the fort
prior to the Revolution. We learned a
lot of interesting history during the harbor cruise later in the day, which
stopped at many of these places as well.
Rick and I took time to explore the large white octagonal blockhouse
high on the hill, the canyon mounts, and battlements nearer the shore.
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| Lunch time! |
Time
to head over the newly finished Memorial bridge, past the Naval shipyard
island, and into the heart of downtown Portsmouth. Narrow streets and brick buildings
everywhere! We find a parking garage –
first hour free and only .75/hour after that!
We can handle it! We are armed
with our cartoon ‘map’ of the downtown, but it shows a Ten Thousand Villages
shop right near where we park. We find
it and explore the magic there for awhile.
Rick finds a new nativity with a ‘bare butt Jesus’. I can’t resist. It is sooooo filled with expression and
down-to-earthedness. (Is that a word?)
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| Downtown decor |
More
wandering and we stumble upon a little health food store with a lunch counter
in the back. Time for a bowl of soup to
tide us over until dinner. Rick tries a chipotle
squash bisque which he says is excellent!
We
find some of the downtown churches and other major buildings, loving the stone
sidewalks, cobblestone in places, brick in others. The downtown is decorated for fall with
pumpkin headed mannequins stretched out on the lightpoles throughout. Fun.
Similar to Baker City’s scare crows on Main Street.
We
have a little time to kill, so we drive past all the bridges and to a shopping
area to pick up some bread and wine for dinner, then back to a free parking
area we found at a church just east of the I-95 bridge. “Only a 15 minute walk to downtown.” It advertised. Works for us!
We had the time for a walk!
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| On the harbor cruise |
Glad
we picked up our tickets for the cruise last night online, as it ended up quite
full – probably 35 or so on board. It
isn’t that big of a boat. While Rick and
I got seats in the front, we stood up the whole time! I was VERY glad Rick suggested I get out my
warmer coat. It was very cool on the
water! The day had gradually become more
and more overcast, and the clouds were leaving the sun just a glow in the sky.
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| Cruise route |
The
cruise was fun….Because of high tide we couldn’t go under two small bridges
around Newcastle Island, but we could go out more on the shoals around Wood
Island. I will try to include a map here
of the trip. Lots of fascinating history
of the area. We visited the Naval
shipyard, primarily a submarine repair base now (or decommissioning). Over 100 subs have been built here, most
during WW2. We could see one sub waiting
to be move to Washington state to be scrapped.
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| Naval prison, The Castle |
Also
on the shipyard island was the Naval military prison, The Castle. What a formidable looking building! The main section truly did look like a castle
with guard turrets on all four corners.
No prisoner ever escaped, because the rule was the guard had to serve
the remaining term of any prisoner who did escape. That gives the guards a little incentive to be
ever watchful! The building grounds are
in disarray.
We
then visit Fort Constitution, another of the four forts guarding the mouth, and
its Portsmouth lighthouse. Near this
fort stands the oldest private residence in the area: built in 1660’s, a
hundred years BEFORE the revolution. It
looked like it had just had a fresh paint job!
Definitely did NOT look 350+ years old!
We
went around Newcastle Island and into Little Bay, port for hundreds of private
sailing ships. We were told that it is a
20 year wait to secure mooring for your boat in this harbor as it is very
popular due to its nearness to the open ocean, but protection. Just past the actual marina, we see a HUGE
building that was the Wentworth Hotel.
What we saw was only a third of what was once on the site.
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| Wood Island Life Saving Station |
Our to
Whaleback Lighthouse and the Wood Island Life Saving Station, located right in
the middle of the harbor entrance.
During WW2 a net was draw across the harbor to prevent submarines from
entering undetected. Evidently many
German subs were off shore, but none ever entered. Large foundations for the net are still
visible near the Fort Foster pier.
Past
Fort McClary for a view there from the harbor side, and back to dock. We were able to see the drawbridges raise for
some sailing ships to go in and out.
Near the dock is a HUGE pile of road salt, imported from South America
(mostly Chile), and trucked all over the NE during the winter months.
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| Dinner Party |
Quick
walk back up to the truck, hopped on to I-95, and back to John’s in no
time. His girlfriend MaryEllen (ME) is coming over for dinner. John whips up a penne pasta base with
sausage, spinach, grape tomatoes, and pesto sauce. Excellent!
With the bread and salad, a delicious meal. (Oh, don’t forget the wine!) ME is easy to talk with and we had some great
conversations.
Early
bedtime shortly after 10. Another day of
travel tomorrow, but only down to Cape Cod!!
Click HERE for Portsmouth Harbor Audio Tour (and ALL the fun facts accurately given!)
FRIDAY, October 11, 2013
Kittery, ME to Mashpee, MA
Home of Jim and Denise Schneider
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| Kittery to Mashpee |
127 miles
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| Sunrise |
Another
beautiful morning in Kittery. I sneak
outside to try and shoot part of the sunrise, but it is very damp outside! A low water fog is drifting on the river,
which is again at low tide. I get caught
up on this blog and post. Then to
breakfast, shower, pack up, and be ready to roll by 9:15am.
John
has advised us that if we leave between 9 and 10, we should miss the thick
traffic in Boston and be able to drive straight through the city on I-93. This route takes us into ‘The Big Dig’, the
tunnel which goes under Boston Harbor and out the other side. You don’t see much of the city! A quick look at Bunker Hill Monument , then a
pass over a new modern design bridge, and then down into the dark depths! Everywhere else the freeway seems to be
rimmed in such thick understory of trees, you can’t see much at all! I did capture a cool mural on the side of a
building, and a tower in the distance that looked like a castle.
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| Entering the Big Dig Tunnel of Boston |
We
veer to Hwy 3 to Cape Cod, and shortly after, near the town of Hanover, exit to
find the Weight Watcher store front in a strip mall. A successful weigh-in, happy to be unchanged
since today I am wearing my heavier jeans and a turtleneck! Only one more weigh to record in the next 10
days! I have been looking for store
fronts because you can go into them anytime and weigh….easier than coordinating
to a meeting!
We
grab a quick snack and some gas while we are off the freeway, and then head on
south, past Plymouth Rock and the plantation, over the Sagamore bridge and the
Cape Cod Canal, and into the town of Mashpee, located at the heel of the Cape
Cod ‘boot’. Jim and Denise, our pastor
Katy’s parents, live in a classic Cape Cod cottage on a cul-de-sac, surrounded
by trees!
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| The beech grove along the trail. |
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| A stop at Wakeby Pond |
Quick
get settled, and then we are off on a hike on trails that wind around the two ponds
we passed on the way down. Mind you,
these ponds have waves breaking on the shoreline so they are much bigger than
what I imagine PONDS to be. In my
definition, these are LAKES!!!
(Clarification….I couldn’t wait, had to go to google! In terminology, the words have been used
interchangeably. Ecologically, a pond
tends to be shallower, where light can penetrate to the bottom and support
plant growth. Lakes tend to be deeper
and light cannot penetrate. Surface size
makes NO DIFFERENCE! And names have been
used frequently without regard to ecology!
Science lesson for the day!)
Trail
is through dense mixed forest of white pine (the New England kind with delicate
feathery needles), beech (leaves like corduroy!), and oaks. The light is filtering through. We pass through a section from the movie
BIRDS – the trees are covered with black grackles, the noise is a ruckus of
sound. Denise points out some poison ivy
to avoid. She had a BAD case this past
summer! Lots of varieties of holly have
been planted by a man named Lowell in the area, hence it is known as the
Lowell-Holly reserve. Plenty of oaks and
acorns, but I maintain self-control and only pick up some baby fresh-water clam
shells! It feels good to get out and
hike around a bit and stretch the legs.
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| Some trees are starting to change here. |
Back
to the house to discuss tomorrow, enjoy cheese, crackers, and wine while
hearing about the Rhine River cruise Denise and Jim just got back from, and
then yummy dinner of Cajun Chicken chili and biscuits! Dessert was Colonial Innkeeper’s pie, which
was superb. It is a kind of cake with a
layer of chocolate in a pie shell. I
must get the recipe.
Rick
and Jim eventually went to watch a little of the Dodger-Cardinal game while
Denise and I investigated her nature collections and then played a game of
cribbage! Our cribbage game exchanged
leads as often as the baseball game!
Another
day in another friend’s paradise!
Click HERE for today's pictures
The
actual Shining Sea Rail Trail runs for 10 miles from North Falmouth. Our entry point only leaves us the final 3.5
miles of the route down to Woods Hole, MA, site of the National Oceanic
Organization and NOAA. It is also a
terminus for ferries running out to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. A tiny town with a great deal of
activity!!
Then a
drive out to the Nobska Lighthouse. The air is quite cool now and it is very
windy out at the point! We can see big
boats laboring to go out against the wind.
Good views of the whole Wood’s Hole area.
Park
out alongside the road, set up and plug in the trailer. Scott comes home from work relatively soon
after we arrive. Around 3 we head
downtown to check out one of western Connecticuts best town ‘greens’ and
buildings. THREE classic churches right
in the downtown area. Fun just walking
around, poking into bookstores and toy stores.
Ashley and Spencer (grades 4 and 7 respectively) are delightful
youngsters. Spencer in particular has
grown up so much since we met them 2 ½ years ago at the ship christening. Loving kids, polite and affectionate. Just a fun time checking out the old
buildings, etc. The ‘strip’ of mall type
stores is all south of town and the downtown area has maintained its feel. Ashley wanted us to see the Art Center where
she goes for classes once a week after school.
Great place! I liked the paper
mache giraffe and the decopauged floor of art prints!
We
couldn’t decide on a restaurant, so the ‘girls’ car went to the store and
picked up the necessary wine, bread, and ground beef to make meatballs! A good dinner! Later Trish made an apple crisp for
dessert. Ashley and Spencer made us
bracelets from rubber bands. They also
got a chance to talk with Luke for awhile on the phone, which made both their
day AND Luke’s! Luke certainly made an
impression with these young cousins during that short christening weekend. Ashley showed me EVERY postcard he has ever
sent to her!
We
were going to take Strider out to breakfast, but he argues that he has x number
of guest meals on his pre-paid plan that he will never use up because no one
comes to visit!! So we enjoy having a
custom made omelet and other treats!
Final
packup of the trailer and we pull around front to get a cup of coffee for the
road and to say goodbye to Maryann at the front desk. Then we are on our way!!! Time is just a few minutes before 10am.
So….chuck
all the directions we got the night before.
We are taking free roads, country roads.
It will probably add an additional hour to the trip, but oh well! We head down country lane 202, through some
beautiful woods in the morning light, I-287 south to I-78 west. Enter Pennsylvania at Easton, which is where
Crayola Crayons are made. I’ve heard
that is a pretty good tour, but not this trip!
I drove from midway on I-287 until we left I-78, about 80 miles. Last
stretch was another country road, Route 100, south from Allentown. Through Phoenixville itself, and we came into
Don’s directions from the opposite side, but we found their house easily. Arrived at 1:30pm.
So
good to see such good friends, such long-term friends! We visit over a late lunch (they had gone
ahead and eaten which I hoped they would!), and then we are off to take the
trailer to the church, and to leave the truck at Don’s local car man to have
the oil changed and the tires rotated.
Time to give the Honda a little TLC!
The church is NOT that close as we wind up and around, over hill and
dale, and across one lane bridges to Trinity Presbyterian Church in Berwyn,
PA. We park in a corner of the parking
lot and tell the trailer to ‘be good’!
They off to the car repair site, and then home again.
The
houses are all three levels, 4 bedrooms, 2 bath, with a single car garage. They are nice places and very energy
efficient. We are working on the second
floor of a unit, which is a new experience for Rick and I. When everyone finally arrives, Anthony our
supervisor says a quick prayer and we get started.
Back
toward Phoenixville, but with a stop at the car repair to pick up the
Honda….all cleaned up, tired up, and oiled up.
At around $75 not the cheapest place, but it is done and done
well!!
We
arrive in Coatsville a little early (no traffic on Sat mornings!), so we drive
into the first row of Habitat houses to see what they look like. All similar design, but the road is narrow
and filled with cars. A little hard to
turn around. And then, in exploration,
we find two rows of the old projects homes.
Such disarray and poverty can be seen, along with nice cars and Dish TV
receivers. Priorities can be a challenge
at this stage. No one was up and around
to wonder why we were cruising down their street!
I have
some fellow female workers today! That
is nice. Betsy is about my age and works
OFTEN with the Chester Co. affiliate.
Sam was a young gal who works with a wine company and will soon be
moving to Connecticut. She was a lot of
fun. A couple of young men, and Jerry, a
supervisor sub, was on hand for the day.
Two of the homeowners came also, Ring and Ismael. They didn’t talk much (both African-American,
but I got the impression that Ismael didn’t speak a lot of English yet.) Three
other homeowners were working on finishing touches of other homes (all women).
Basically
today we got the other three walls of the top floor finished and installed on
the house. We had to scrounge around at
the end to find enough materials to complete the task, as we ran out of Tyvek. Perfect day to do the walls as the wind was
very calm, it was cloudy, but no rain. A
good day of work! Lots of light hearted
banter among the workers. We Oregonians
were accepted and questioned. Some had
ties to the state which was fun to compare ‘notes’. We were back in the car and ready to roll
for home at 2:20pm. I like these
Care-a-Vanner hours!
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Shining Sea Bike Trail
Falmouth,
MA to Wood’s Hole, MA
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| We got on the path around #7 in Falmouth. Down to Wood's Hole (#1) and back. |
A
beautiful morning in Mashpee!!! We arise
on a lazy schedule, finally breakfast around 8:30, and by 9:30 we are on our
way south to Falmouth, MA for a ride on the Shining Sea Bikepath. We unload the back seat of the truck and load
Jim and Denise’s bikes on top of ours for the day. It works, although we have a tower of bikes
in back!!
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| Shining Sea Rail Trail |
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| Oyster Pond swans |
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| Horseshoe Crab Skeleton |
The
ride is wonderful, tree lined at first, but then a mile long section of open
trail right along the water’s edge. We
stopped a couple times for Denise to show me some horseshoe crab shells – they
molt up to 20 times in their lifetimes and can grow to about 8-10” in
diameter. They have a long, sting-ray
like ‘tail’. I wish I could have brought
home the big shell we found. Instead, the pictures will have to do. We see some swans out on Oytster Pond. The Trunk River connects the pond to the
ocean. It must be about 50 feet
long. Makes the Depoe Bay river look
big!
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| Playing with the lobster in Wood's Hole |
We
walk around Wood’s Hole, but due to government shut down OR late season, the
aquarium is closed, as is the Oceanic visitor center. L Stop at a little shop for a pin
and some postcards and end up buying sweatshirts as well. Good thing Denise has baskets on her bike to
carry our bounty back!
The
wind is brutal on the return trip. The
sunshine is leaving us and it is getting colder. A bit slower trip on the return!
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| Jim wouldn't pose with the lobster! |
Once
back in Falmouth we are ready for some lunch!!!
Schneiders recommend the Quarterdeck, built to resemble the underbelly
of a sailing ship. Good food. Rick had some fish chowder with huge pieces
of haddock. We didn’t get the
lobster….:( Tonight will be a casual
soup meal because we ate well for lunch!!
Our treat.
We
walk a little lunch off around Falmouth.
Some fabulous old buildings and churches here, many which date to the
late 1700’s. This is also Rachel Carson
area (Silent Spring conservationist)
and Kathryn Bates hometown, writer of America
the Beautiful.
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| Nobska lighthouse at so. end of Cape |
Back
to the house for a little R&R. Rick
and I clean up the truck a little, open the trailer to put some things away,
and I help Denise by picking all the tomatoes in the garden, both red and
green. They are leaving early next week
so are starting to prepare to close up the house.
Evening
of watching the Dodgers lose (L), soup, salad, and yummy bread, and an early bedtime! All that fresh air was exhausting today!
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| Rick kicks back along the trail during a rest stop. |
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| Cruising down the ocean side path. |
SUNDAY, October 13, 2013
Mashpee,
MA to Wilbraham, MA
Home
of Karen & Tom Wadzinski
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| Route for today |
136
Miles
A bit
overcast and windy day as we leave the Cape Cod island around 9am. Jim had prepared us some veggie omelets (he
just kept saying we had to do our part in using up the food in the house before
they leave on Tuesday!) and we wanted to get ‘out of their hair’ so they could
finish departure preparations!
 |
| James |
Amazed
by how much the color has come to the trees in just a few days! Far more of the freeway corridor is a splash
of orange and gold now than just a couple days ago when we arrived! We head back over the Sagamore bridge and up
I495 toward Worchester, MA. There on to
the Massachusetts Turnpike for a few miles (and 1.45 worth of toll) and the
rest of the way into Wilbraham along Route 20.
Went through a couple of towns that are MAJOR antique auction
centers. Perfect place – everything back
here is OLD! If a building was built
after 1900 it is considered NEW construction!!
 |
| Our 'camping' spot |
Wilbraham
is a small village, anchored now by a private prep academy that is 200 years
old, that winds through the tree covered hills east of Springfield, MA. After our arrival around 12:30 to some
excited boys, we later took a walk through the ‘centre’ and checked things
out. Very laid back little community. Greta has driven over from Grafton to join us
for the visit – one stop visitation for us!!
Grafton is near Worchester and we probably passed within a couple miles
of her place on our way over.
 |
| A few Walker women |
Karen
and Tom have a perfect wide spot in their driveway for our trailer, and after
the walk we get it set up because little 4 year old James really wants to visit
OUR house (he had given us a tour of HIS house earlier!) He is another red-head thunderbolt of
energy! Karen and Tom have three boys, 7th
grade, 4th grade, and James at 4.
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| Martin, Rick, and James....Luke has made an exit! |
Hors
d’oerves of cheese and crackers. Tom
likes exotic cheeses so I was brave and tried a number of different ones,
including gorgonzola (I think it had blue mold) and a truffle cheese which was
quite firm and good! They cracked open a
bottle of red wine which Rick enjoyed.
Dinner
of tacos – fat ones! Karen apologized,
“I wanted to prepare a good New England style dinner, but….this is what I know
how to cook!” We laughed! Rick took James out to the trailer for a book
read, while the rest of us played a game of Apples to Apples Junior! Fun time.
Out to
the trailer shortly before 10 to finish up directions for tomorrow (Tom had
connected me to his internet) and call my Mom on the west coast!!
G’night!
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| Today's route! |
MONDAY, October 14, 2013
Wilbraham,
MA to New Milford, CT
Scott
& Trish McLean Family
98
miles
Up around 7:15 to come inside the house and
find Tom busy making scones for breakfast!
Plain ones and then some apple-cinnamon scones which were marvelous! What fun!
The boys were all very excited.
We leisurely eat, visit, and admire the beautiful sunshine and crisp air
outside!
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| Church in some small MA town! |
By
10:15, Rick and I are all packed up and ready to roll from Wilbraham. Tom has helped us pick the most sensible
route through Springfield to get us on the interstate freeways heading south. We successfully maneuver our way into town
via Route 20, stopping for a quick coffee enroute! Then south to Connecticut!
Trees
are changing everywhere! We spy the
Basketball Hall of Fame alongside the freeway.
It is hard to miss with its spire and orange ball on top, plus the huge
round shaped main building! The
Basketball HOF as we remember was one of the most ‘interactive’ ones with
plenty of things for the boys to DO!
 |
| New Milford Art Center |
We are
quickly into Connecticut, as Springfield is relatively close to the
border. Through the mass of Hartford and
on to I-84 heading west toward New Milford, which is very close to the NY
border. At exit 15 we leave the freeway.
Quick stop at MacDonalds for drinks and potty, lunch on trailer top, and then
off on Route 67 to weave our way up and down the country roads to New
Milford. It is a beautiful 18 mile
stretch: creeks, changing colors, small farms, etc. We miss the turn once, but find the road to
Trish & Scott’s on the second try, arriving at 22 Dean Road around
1pm.
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| Posh parking sites! Works great! |
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| I LOVE classic little country churches! |
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| Ashley and I read a book in the bookstore! |
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| Spencer patiently waits for a dinner decision! |
A
little baseball and football on the TV while we visited. Kids up way too late for a school night! We said goodbyes to Spencer and Scott, as
they will probably leave before we get up.
Talked with Strider and will make connections with him in the morning
over at Vassar. Left a message with Rick
Ufford Chase, so we will arrive at Stony Point rather ‘cold’, but sure it will
be OK. This is short and sweet because
it is LATE!!! G’night!
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| Ashley and Spencer designing bracelets. |
TUESDAY, October 15, 2013
New
Milford, CT to Stony Point, NY
 |
| Today's route |
via
Poughkeepsie and Vassar College
101
miles
Ah….another
busy, but rewarding day!! Up early to
the disconcerting sound of a car coming straight through my head….until I
remembered we were parked right along the edge of the road! Heard Scott and Spencer leave for work and
school, then had a few moments with Trish and Ashley before we packed up the
trailer and left. We have a breakfast
date to make!!
 |
| Vassar colors |
The
drive over to Poughkeepsie is only about 36 miles, but they are convoluted
paths on windy and hilly country roads!
It takes a good hour to make the drive (we crossed the Appalachian Trail
twice enroute!) Make a wrong turn
getting into Vassar and have to call Strider to tell him to come find us at the
tennis courts! Successful
rendezvous!
 |
| The castle library at Vassar |
Strider
gives us a little tour around this 1861 college – the buildings are quite old,
mostly brick and stone. The chapel has
an incredible pipe organ rimmed in ornate wood holders. The wood sculpting is most amazing. Library looks like a giant castle, and the
student center is a historic building of massive proportions! Strider is especially enjoying FALL for the
first time in all its beauty. Bandon
does not get these kind of colors.
 |
| Strider checks out the chapel with us |
From
Vassar we head south and find a Weight Watcher’s store front – weigh-in #10, so
I can renew my card now! I had gained a
little, but then again, I JUST ate a big breakfast!
 |
| West Point Visitor Cntr |
We
arrived at Stony Point at around 2pm, having stopped at West Point
briefly. Much of the visitor center was
closed due to the government shut-down.
The concessionaires were operating however! We took a quick look and moved on down the
road!
When we arrived at Stony Point, Rick U-C, the
director, left a meeting to come meet us and tell us where to get settled. We are parked next to one of the empty ‘dorms’
– with our plug going in through a window.
The rooms haven’t been cleaned yet, but we can use the bathroom and
shower! Hurray!
 |
| Labyrinth |
 |
| Stony Point pigs! |
We
have some dead time until dinner.
Relaxation time!!! Rick takes a
short nap, I talk with Luke on the phone (finally!) and take a short walk around
the place – finding the labyrinth and the pigs!
Since
the dining hall is partly closed, dinner is a community affair up at the U-C
house. About 12-15 people amble in and
out to grab a meal. I made some hummus
mix and grabbed a jar of salsa and the pita chips and pretzels. A contribution anyway!
 |
| Our 'campsite' along the Walnut Housing unit. |
Evening
spent in trailer reading, writing, checking maps, and updating such things as
this blog!!! Cool now and the sleeping
bag is inviting me inward!! G’night!
WEDNESDAY, October 16, 2013
Stony Point Center Volunteer Day
 |
| Nothing like starting off the day with a little Cafe Justo! |
Ah….I
just took a Vitamin I (Ibuprofen!) pill with a little glass of wine. That should fix my back and muscles from the
morning’s endeavors! It was a good
morning of labor we did….and no Care-a-Vanner mid-morning break either!!
We are
up this morning and ready to roll down to the dining hall for breakfast at
8am. Pleased to see that Café Justo is
now being served here at Stony Point also!!
They had a nice display on the wall of the Cooperative
Participants. I keep forgetting to ask
at church if the coffee experiment is going well or not!
At
8:30 we head over to the small chapel (glass on one side which reminds us of
Westminster Woods chapel) for morning devotions. On Wednesdays they sing, and today we were
going through some of the new songs from the new purple hymnal. It was nice to be able to see and handle the
new book. It is nice – over 800 hymns
but not thick or heavy. We sounded great
on some and struggled on others. Just
five of us there.
 |
| Rick shovels up another load of dirt. |
 |
| Bringing the wheelbarrow down the narrow aisles. |
Promptly
at 9 we are to meet Matthew out by the greenhouse (a mere 50’ from our
trailer!) A new greenhouse is being
built – framing all up, and raised beds built, but they had settled
considerably and needed more dirt added.
More dirt to the tune of at least two wheelbarrel loads into each
one. There were a total of 26 new raised
beds to fill. It took us all morning,
but we finished by lunch. Matt got us
started and then went up to other garden plots to erect the structures to be
ready for frost protection over the lettuce crops. Eventually Rick and I got a process going
working together to fill the middle 16 beds.
He did the shovel and wheelbarrow work while I did the raking and
smoothing and working the soil to the corners.
Who was it that said volunteer travel is all glamour work!? This was GRUNT work and we were happy to help
out!
 |
| Ginger spreads dirt. |
Before
lunch, Matthew took us on a short tour of some of the rest of his garden
projects. He is experimenting with some
different techniques, some of which have worked, others not so successful! The center raises MUCH of the produce they
need in the kitchen. They are overrun at
the moment with tomatoes and peppers. I
picked some peppers and strung them to bring home. They are now hanging from the door handle in
the back seat of the truck! We look very
‘southwesty’!
Earlier
this summer the center had nearly 200 lbs of eggplant and the kitchen said they
couldn’t use any more!! So they cut a ‘deal’
with a local CSA and swapped eggplant for winter squash. A win-win for both groups as the CSA hadn’t
had a good eggplant year!
Lunch
was fabulous vegetarian pizza, and little vegan and spinach rolls, whole wheat
bread (excellent!), fruits, squash soup, etc.
The kitchen really does have a challenge when you have so many of
different cultures and faiths, with various food restrictions, dining together. There are always vegan and vegetarian options
at every meal. Tonight for dinner orders
were being taken for Greek style food from a local restaurant. Rick decided to eat a couple more pieces of
pizza and go lean on dinner!
 |
| The friendly pigs of Stony Point |
After
lunch I went into the fair trade store, eventually buying a book on ‘coloring
your prayers’ (I can’t wait to get started….a new form of doodling! Plus I think it would be a fun activity to
introduce to WSG or the Youth Group). By
1 we were ready to get back to work.
Matthew
was done for the day, and our job was finished, so we went to ask “Turtle”
(Yes, that’s her name!) at the front desk about some other job she had
mentioned. I said something about all
the trash on the grounds from the previous group, and she said it would be
wonderful if we could look into that.
So, Rick and I grabbed a couple of grocery bags and picked up a bagful
each of balloons, candy pieces, ribbons, more candy wrappers, etc. I think they must have had several piñatas in
different places.
 |
| Multi-religions artwork at entrance to SP |
Then a
call from Rick U-C who had another job for us….loading some paintings into the
center van to return to the artist. We
had to get the van, take it to one of the garages and unload two seats, then
down to another building to pick up the artwork. There were 13 pieces we wrapped in wool
blankets (these said Red Cross, but they were just like the CWS blankets!) and
anchored to each side of the van, leaning them up vertically along the sides. We couldn’t find any rope, so I grabbed a couple
of bungees from the trailer and we strapped the paintings so they couldn’t tip
over using the seat belts. Now 3:30 and
we figure….we are done for the day!
Showers, phone calls, and a few pictures in the dining hall round out my
afternoon.
 |
| Such a dichotomy of trees: one bare, the other glorious! |
Dinner
tonight was the Greek meal and a movie, Freedom
Summer, down in the same building we got the paintings from. It also has a room with a large screen TV set
up for viewing! The movie is about the
Freedom Project in the summer of 1964 centered in Mississippi. That year a number of white college students
went south to help in the civil rights movement, especially to register black
citizens to vote. Three youth were
murdered. I was not aware of some of
these pieces of history, so from my standpoint, the movie was educational, even
if it was a movie of a stage play, and not all the acting was all that
good. We discussed some of the reactions
afterward, but I think most noteworthy to me what that Maryanne, the PPF secretary,
LIVED in Mississippi during this time, and the husband of her church’s
secretary was one of the men indicted in the case. She said it was a rather major event for her during
her college/young adult years.
Talked
with Mike Braymen right before dinner and then Don Bovais as we got back to the
trailer. Making the plans for the next
stage of the trip!
BTW, I
had cheese and spinach spanakopita, some sort of zucchini fried, greentomatoes
and onions, etc. for dinner. Plus some
soft pita bread. Pretty good stuff!
G’night! Tomorrow we bypass NYC and
Philadelphia!!!
THURSDAY, October 17, 2013
Stony
Point, NY to Phoenixville, PA
170 Miles
Warm
night! The clouds came in and held all
the heat in – it was 64 degrees in the trailer this morning, just down 2
degrees from last night! Wow. Both of us slept too warm! Rick woke up during the night and was on his
Kindle figuring the tolls for the turnpikes.
He really doesn’t want to go that way, regardless of the expense.
Up
around 6:45 to begin packing things up and trying to organize and think through
the next week, in which we will be staying ‘inside’ with friends. What clothes will we need? We know two days of Habitat work is
included….where are those clothes? Think
through it all, because once we get to Bovais, the trailer is going over to a
church until Sunday!
During
breakfast we are joined by Spencer, one of the local residents who approached
us yesterday and apologized profusely for missing the dinner at Rick’s house
the night before and the chance to welcome us then. He remembered Luke well when we told him our
thin connection with Stony Point! It was
a short, but brief conversation, as we left to join the morning devotion group
up at the chapel. I was hoping Rick
would be there so I could say goodbye and thanks. At first it was just Turtle, but then Rick
joined us. A song, a reading of Psalm
148, reflection and prayer. I gave Rick
a copy of Make a Joyful Scribble Unto the
Lord along with a donation check to cover our expenses and meals.
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| Fall is moving southward! |
 |
| Our route today! |
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| Don and Sally's house in Phoenixville |
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| Another pristine rural farm scene! |
Evening
of good conversation, reminiscing, checking out my Scribble books and their
scrapbooks from a recent trip to France.
Sally made an excellent chicken dish for dinner along with a tasty
salad. Pumpkin roll for dessert. After three days of fine eating at Stony
Point, it is a good thing I won’t be weighing in for a few more days!!
We
make up our lunches for tomorrow’s 7:30 am departure! Early!
Early to bed!!
FRIDAY, October 18, 2013
Chester
Co. Habitat for Humanity
Team
Bovais!
Here
we go on another Habitat experience!! Up
around 6:15 to do a little writing and catching up on computer in the loft
area. Both of us are downstairs by 7 to
enjoy a bite of breakfast and cup of coffee.
Sally has put a spread out of options for our breakfast pleasure!
 |
| Team Bovais! |
On our
way west to Coatsville by 7:30am. It is
a bit of a drive to get to the Habitat site.
The Chester Co. affiliate obviously covers a fairly large range! We find our spot on a terraced hill
overlooking the city of Coatsville and the abandoned steel mill. We passed near a beautiful OLD railroad stone
bridge as we came into town, and it is easily seen from the Habitat complex.
The
houses are being built on land that once housed a HUD subsidized housing
project which fell into abuse and drug use in the 70’s and 80’s. It got quite a reputation among local
authorities….the post office wouldn’t deliver, the cops wouldn’t come unless 5
or more cars. It was BAD! So HUD decided to raize the building, removed
all the tenants and start over.
Eventually there will be nearly 50 houses on the hill.
 |
| View of steel plant and RR bridge from top floor of house - Coatsville, PA |
 |
| Moving the wall into place. |
Our
job is to sheath, line, and insulate with thin foamboard the outer part of one
of the upstairs walls. We get it all
ready to go, and with a great deal of teamwork, slide the wall into place,
anchoring with a few braces. The wind is
blowing INWARD which makes it easier than if the other way! But it is blowing! Right as we finally get it set right, Anthony
stops, ponders the plans, and says, “You guys are going to kill me.” We had the wall on the wrong side of the
house. We now had the bathroom window in
the bedroom, and a bedroom size window all ready for the bathroom. Time to stop…reaccess….brain storm
options.
Net
result? We leave the wall in place,
saws-all part of the bracing in the second wall, rebuild a framework smaller
for the bathroom window, and get the wall sheathed as much as we can….we ran
out of sheathing! By then…LUNCH
TIME!!!
 |
| Finished Habitat homes further down the street. |
Following
lunch, Anthony got word that more sheathing wouldn’t arrive until 2pm at the
earliest, so we anchored the set wall into place better and went down the
street to work on a punch list for two places that are almost completed. Cleaned out electric and plumbing messes,
sanded walls that had been patched, and worked on the door panel for the attic
egress. We were done at 2pm!
 |
| Don and Sally at Iron Hill Brewery |
We
come home to visit, shower, and prepare to hit Iron Hill Brewery for dinner….our
treat! Downtown Phoenixville on a Friday
night is hopping!! Lots of people and
traffic. We all order sandwich/burger
type menus, Rick a pulled pork sandwich and I a portebello mushroom cheese
sandwich. It was delicious!!!
Back
to the house around 7 to visit, dessert, pack our lunches for tomorrow, play
Yatzee (Sally and I) and into bed by 10!!!
Whew!
SATURDAY, October 19, 2013
Chester Co. Habitat Work – Team Bovais Returns!
Smooth
machine this morning, although Sally has pulled no stops and has some cinnamon
French toast on the grill for our morning fuel!
Wow! So spoiled we are!
 |
| Our houses on the hill. |
Later
in the day we drive to the top of the hill and see the park and playground that
has been built for all the kids on the Habi-Hill town. Nice.
I was glad to know there was a place for the children to play because
some of the homes have NO yard!
 |
| Sam and I lay down some insulation board. |
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| Rick helps push the wall into place. |
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| Checking that all the plates have been nailed down! |
 |
| Don hard at work |
Showers,
football, and a lazy afternoon and evening.
I got ahold of Mike Braymen and Wyatt to confirm some plans for Sunday
and later in the week. Got caught up on
some emails, and posted all the pictures from the Chester Co. Habitat
times.
Sally
made a wonderful tortellini pasta dish and salad for dinner and we ate in the
dining room just to make things fancy. A
very nice time with a little soothing background music. Don said it was a CD called ‘Dinner
Music’!! I have more information
somewhere else, but it was really good.
Sally
and I played another three rounds of Yatzee before we went to bed. I had another great round with 2 Yatzees in
it. J
Visiting
with Don and Sally is like 30 years have never gone past. I guess that’s what happens with good friends
who are comfortable with one another. I
love it. We may get to have lunch with
Chris while in DC. I hope so! He is doing work very similar to what Uncle
Bill did in the 50’s! He is Head
Engineer for the Naval Lab Research Institute.
Great ‘kid’!
G’night!!
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| The girls team for today |
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