The End

My summer is drawing to an end. It's time to head back to Texas. It's always bittersweet, but I've had an amazing summer! :)

I've had the opportunity to enjoy some wonderful quality time with my family, meet up with some awesome friends, eat some of the finest foods in the nation, and explore the refreshingly green and beautiful east coast. For all of that, I am so grateful :)

My rig has now been to all of the lower 48 states in the nation. Here is our updated map :)



I still have Alaska to go and I'm waiting for that bridge to Hawaii ;) It's time to dream new dreams and set new goals!

Thanks for following along with me :)

New York Adirondacks

I put the rig on the ferry in Vermont to cross Lake Champlain into Crown Point, New York. And, it's still free!



Another oncoming ferry



Beautiful Lake Champlain :)



Crown Point



And a Welcome to New York on the other side :)



Upstate New York has the most magnificent views of not only the Adirondack Mountains, but multitudes of mountain lakes and streams :) I drove up scenic route 22 to go visit my friends Nancy and Kathy. We had an awesome visit and they spoiled me good with Hors d'oeuvres and a fine steak dinner with all the sides you can imagine!

They have a gorgeous home tucked way up north overlooking the beautiful ADK's from their balcony!



My friends Kathy and Nancy



Thank you both again for your kind hospitality and awesome visit! :)

I stopped by Lake George, another favorite area on my way back to PA for some final hugs before heading back to Texas.



Dubbed the "Queen of American Lakes"

Vegging in Vermont

I drove down scenic route 100 of the Green Mountains enroute from New Hampshire. Unfortunately, it was raining fairly steady and I was unable to get any good photos. The following day, it rained all day long, non-stop! But, I stayed an extra one to make up for it. Vermont is a another gorgeous, plush, green state. The next day, I attempted to take photos despite the continued showers.

Quechee Gorge is known as Vermont's little grand canyon



It's like a rain forest here. Literally ;) With gorgeous ferns covering the forest floor.



The town of Woodstock was named one of America's prettiest, and I can see why. The architecture here is so picturesque. They are celebrating their 250th year!














There are still many covered bridges left in the Northeast, and still in use today.



Just outside town is Sugarbush Farms, where they make maple syrup and homemade cheese!

The "sugar shack" where the sap is boiled down into syrup.





Here's some interesting numbers regarding this farm. That's a lot of sap! And the maple trees tapped are between the ages of 40 and 100 years old.



Inside the farm house kitchen, you can find the family processing home made cheese! They make a variety, and you could sample each kind! ;)





Each block is hand dipped in wax and wrapped for preservation



The town of Weston is know for it's old general store, where you can still find old and hard to find items. It's like stepping back in time.



Shelves of old penny candy. Which is no longer a penny by the way ;)



And chocolate galore! ;)



And shelves of Maple syrup!



Next, it's off to the Adirondacks in New York. Yet another gorgeous mountain range and I have some sisters there to go visit! :)

Northern New Hampshire

Today, I'm in the gorgeous White Mountains of New Hampshire with a fun-filled day planned ahead! I'm heading out to go moose hunting! I was disappointed that I didn't see any in Yellowstone last year, so I'm going to try it again here.

But first, lunch with another RV sister! I met my friend Liz and her sister-in-law in Sugar Hill for lunch at the infamous Polly's Pancake Parlor!



This an amazing place. The same family has owned it down through the generations since 1938 and make their our homemade pancake mixtures and maple products. We all got the pancake sampler with your choice of six 3" cakes of Plain, Buckwheat, Whole Wheat, Cornmeal or Oatmeal Buttermilk and you could choose to add Blueberries, Walnuts, Coconut or Chocolate Chips to any of them and your waiter would make them to order hot off the griddle, 3 at a time! They also serve NH smoked meats and a potatoe cake special that day!

What a feast! Had to eat a pancake before I could get a picture! ;)



We had a real nice visit over lunch and it's always great to see Liz. Was nice meeting her sil too! Thank you for joining us! Thanks again Liz, and I'll see ya back in Texas this winter! :)

Sugar Hill is beautiful little hamlet with gorgous views.



The girls told me to go visit the cute little post office in town, so off I went. And it was adorable! :)



And I also passed by this sweet little white clap board Episcopal Church so typical in New England.



Now then, there is an area called "Moose Alley" on scenic Rt 3 heading into Canada. So with camera in hand, off I went in search of the elusive moose! Now I understand the best time to spot them is at dawn and dusk. Well, that just isn't going to happen. I don't care to get up before the sun when I'm on vacation nor do I care to drive at night and risk the chance of wearing one as a hood ornament! ;) And I have read it is possible to see them during the day in this area.

When I arrived at Moose Alley, I read this sign!



I'm all excited with anticipation now! So I'm thinking maybe I should have my bear spray handy just in case one tries to charge me while I'm photographing it. If it can shoot 30 feet and works on a bear, it should surely work on a moose!

And it's a gorgeous drive through a lot of pine forests



and beautiful mountain lakes



and streams :)



Then I arrived at the last turn around before the Canadian border. And no moose. But that's Ok, I still have all the way back for another chance!

Finally, I arrived at the other end of Moose Alley, and still hadn't seen any other this one.



I guess that will have to do for today. LOL

Bar Harbor, ME

Enjoying my last coastal views of the summer in Bar Harbor. The weather has been less than cooperative, but at least it's not raining today. But the fog is so thick it's hard to get good photos.

A view of the harbor right from my RV Park :)



I took a ride through old town Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. Here was my view from the top of Cadillac Mountain!



Now here's what it is supposed to look like! LOL

But all was not lost. It's still a beautiful area to visit.





My final fresh lobster meal of the summer at a local lobster shack where they actually steam them in big kettles outdoors. The current market price here for fresh maine lobster is $4.50 - $4.99. So I don't know why its so expensive in restaurants!



Love those lobster rolls!



Maine is also well known for it's wild blueberries. And they are everywhere! You can pick and eat your fill or buy them at roadside stands. They are small, but flavorful!



Now, I need my mountain fix before heading back to Texas! We're off to the White Mountains in NH, The Green Mountains in VT and the Adirondaks in NY. And, we have more sisters to visit along the way! :)

Historic Boston

We stayed at the Boston/Cape Cod KOA this week, which is centrally located to all the areas we wanted to visit. Within an hour, you can be on the Cape, visit RI and tour Boston.

I had never been to Boston before, have never been on a subway and it's not someplace I would go by myself let alone drive in the city. I am grateful to Kathy, she lead the way to the Freedom Trail!

We drove to the T subway station and parked there for the day. It's an impressive system. Fast and efficient!





We started at the Boston Common and Statehouse and boarded an on/off trolley to visit the historic sites on the Freedom Trail.



The architecture is just amazing here. It's hard for me to comprehend how it was all accomplished back in the early days of our nation without all the tools and equipment we are accustomed to today.







The Old North Church is still in use today. In 1775, two lanterns were hung in the steeple as a signal to warn Paul Revere the British were coming by sea. "One if by land, two if by sea". He was then able to warn his fellow "Son's of Liberty" John Hancock and Samuel Adams.



The pews were interesting. I had never seen any layed out in a cube fashion before.





The Boston Harbor



USS Constitution



We worked up an appetite taking in all the sights and history of this great old city. So off we went to the Union Oyster House for more great seafood! It's the oldest restaurant in the US. And the food was delicious! ;)





And for dessert? A piece of the original recipe Boston Cream Pie! ;)

Tomorrow, I'm losing my travel partner. Thank you Kathy for such an awesome time! See ya back in Texas! :)