Fall Colors

We drove through the Adirondack mountains, stopping two nights to see the sights and watch the trees turn. We looked around Lake Placid (very small), drove up to the top of Whiteface Mountain and could actually see Montreal in the distance. We went to Ft. Ticonderoga and took the motor home on a ferry across Lake Champlain!

We drive into Vermont where we camped on Lake Champlain for two nights. We went to Montreal one day and toured the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream factory the next day! It was on to New Hampshire from there to tour the White Mountains and look at more fall colors. Every day the colors grow brighter. This next month promises to be beautiful.

We drove into Maine where we took a side trip to New Brunswick, Canada and then drove as far north as possible in the US. It was a beautiful drive. From here we travel southeast to the coast. Stay in touch!

Niagara Falls

Wednesday was a beautiful day in New York and we spent the whole day at Niagara Falls! We have both been to the falls on different occasions but we both did the Canadian side. This time we did the American side and had so much fun.

We got experience the force and might of the Niagara River as it cascaded over the falls because we played "tourist" to the hilt. We went right up to Horseshoe Falls (Canadian) in the Maid of the Mist boat and glad for the plastic ponchos they provided. We walked along the edge and rode the trolley to Goat Island where we got real close to the edge and saw the American Rapids.

After lunch, we donned another plastic poncho and rubber sandals and braved the walk to the bottom of Bridal Veil Fall where you go on the hurricane deck at the base of the fall. We got totally soaked but again we were thankful for the poncho and sandals.

We did venture to the Canadian side but only drove around for an hour or so. It was beautiful along the gorge road, but parking was at a premium and we wanted to get back to the American side to see the Aquarium and the falls at night - they light them up.

It was a wonderful experience and glad for the perfect weather! It rained the next day while driving through Rochester, Syracuse and as we set up camp in Watertown, NY.

Next stop - the Adirondack mountains.

Memory Lane in Ohio

We entered Ohio in Union City. It's a city on both side of the border - half in Indiana and half in Ohio. It's very small but part of Ken's history. From there we went to Greenville, OH. It's northwest of Dayton and is where Ken was born. We saw the hospital where he was born

and the home where he lived right after he was born.

While in Greenville, we ate lunch at Maid-Rite (very tasty crumbled beef on buns) and went through the KitchenAid Experience, a museum/store of KitchenAid. Stopped by the Annie Oakley park to see Ken's parent's names on a brick. Also went to the local graveyard to see the family plot. It was a special time to walk down memory lane.

From Greenville, we went to Dayton to see more of Ken's past. He lived there until he was 7 years old and we spent an afternoon driving around and letting Ken remember. We also toured the Air Force Museum and the Wright Brother's cycle shop. A city rich in history.

We enjoyed an entire week in Southern Ohio, going to flea markets, a corn festival, and driving through Columbus a few hours before the Ohio St. vs. Miami, FL college football game. It was a sea of red as everyone supported the home team. We enjoyed watching the game and feeling some of the enthusiasm.

From S. Ohio, we drove northeast to Akron and Cuyahoga Falls to walk down more of memory lane. Ken moved to Cuyahoga Falls at age 7 and I moved to Akron in the mid-80's. We both enjoyed seeing places from our past and talking about events and feelings.

Fall is definitely in the air even though the weather remains warm. We are even beginning to see the leaves turn as the days get shorter so we are anxious to get to New England.

Our next stop is Niagara Falls so I'll be sure to share that great experience in my next note.

Repairs

Since the car needed some repairs and we had an appointment for the motor home to have some repairs done, we decided to skip Mackinac Island, Michigan and headed south to Elkhart, Indiana. Ken did a great job going through downtown Milwaukee and handling traffic on the West Chicago toll way. We got as far as Joliet, Illinois where we found an RV park. A rain storm developed while we were setting up but it felt good to have cooler temperatures.

The next day we drove past Notre Dame University and got to Elkhart where we got both vehicles worked on. While waiting three days for the repairs, we toured the Notre Dame campus and the rich heritage of the Amish/Mennonite communities in the neighborhood of Elkhart. We saw a lot of horse-drawn buggies and on the back roads, it got a little tricky.

Finally on the road Saturday. Stopped in Ft. Wayne, IN and stopped to see Johnny Appleseed's grave site. Also looked for a large rose garden but it was a disappointment. The roses weren't blooming but it wasn't a very large garden either. Oh well.

Heading to Ohio so we'll cover that in the next "note". Thanks for "listening".

Door County!

Door County was wonderful. For those of you who don’t know where that is, it’s the “thumb” that sticks out into Lake Michigan above Green Bay, Wisconsin. Friday night we looked around Sturgeon Bay and had dinner at a fish boil. They put everything (fish, carrots, red potatoes and onions) in a big pot over an open fire outside and cook the food. At the last minute they pour kerosene on the fire, it flames up, the pot boils over and dinner is ready. They serve it to you swimming in butter, but it’s very good. Ken even ate it and he doesn’t like fish!


Saturday we traveled the loop around Door County, stopping at cute little shops and markets. We went up the east side of the “thumb” and stopped at Sister Bay to visit Al Johnson’s Restaurant. It’s Scandinavian and they have a sod roof with goats eating the grass on the roof. From there we went all the way to Northport where you can catch a ferry to Washington Island, but we were running out of time so we turned around and continued down the west side of the “thumb”. We had great views of Green Bay and Lake Michigan, and more shops and parks. Cherries are very big in Door County – they grow there – so I had a cherry margarita with lunch! Yum.

We lost the linkage rod from the transfer case on the Durango so we just sat and rested on Sunday. It’s always good to catch our breath and relax. We’re retired and really don’t have to push. That’s the best part of this life – no schedule. Stay tuned for our next stop!