And Home - #48-05

October 16, 2004 (Sat) Bernard, ME to Epsom, NH (247 miles) - Heavy rain and wind last night most of the night. We awoke several times and lay there listening to it. It was cozy in a way but the strength of the wind kept it from being really soothing. The news said that some areas nearby got as much as 1 1/2 inches of rain. There was heavy mist, almost rain, when we said a reluctant good-bye to Dick and Ruth at 8:47. Thanks so much, guys, for your generosity and good company. It is always so good to see you.

We thought the wind might have blown the leaves off the trees but the colors were still beautiful along US-3 through Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island. We took note of "The Big Chicken Barn" on US-3/US-1 south of Ellsworth. It's a good place to exchange our used paperback books if we remember to bring them next time. There were broken clouds in the sky but it was still raining as we passed through Bucksport. In Belfast (ME) the sun came out and stayed with us, more or less, the rest of the way.

Most, if not all of the public (state and national) campgrounds are closed for the season so we had no choice but to choose a private one. It's a bit unkempt but not too bad. It's wooded and we are in one of the few sites "on the river". It's a creek by our definition but we can see water out our back door. We wouldn't mind coming back if we're ever in the area out of season again.

Q007684 Epsom Valley Campground #R4 w/e/s $23.00 C

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October 17, 2004 Epsom, NH to Copkate Falls, NY (205 miles) - Up at 7, showered, ate breakfast, dumped, and off at 9:00 - 49° and sunny. The sun didn't last long. The sky clouded over as we crossed New Hampshire subduing the yellows, reds, oranges of the surrounding landscape. We went through Concord, NH - Mark's birth city - and made a half hearted attempt to find his distant cousin's farm in Contookook - half hearted because we had absolutely no information to go on beyond the memory of being there several (20? 30?) years ago. The traffic down US-7 wasn't as bad as we'd expected in this leaf peeping Sunday afternoon. The bicyclists were a hazard though. There were many! Not content to go single file in their designated lane, they were often doubled up so that one of them rode the white line defining the bicycle lane. Cars, and especially trucks and motor homes were forced to cross the center line to avoid too close an encounter which created close encounters of another kind.

We've been in this campground several times. All but the first time without the time to take advantage of the bicycle trail that passes nearby. Some day we'll come here especially to do that.

Q007889 Taconic State Park #C80 dry $13.00 +$2.50 B

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October 18,2004 (Mon) Copkate Falls, NY to Home (190 miles) - Up at about 7:30 and off at 8:14 in search of our traditional last day on the road fast food breakfast. According to a magazine article, Peter and Toni Wing built themselves a castle in the Hudson Valley hills out of salvaged materials and found objects. We thought that would be interesting to see so we programmed Henry to guide us there. It turned out to be hidden in the trees at the end (presumable) of a winding dirt driveway. Its only identification was an engraved wooden slab proclaiming "Wing's Castle". There seemed to be no public invitation to go up the drive so we went on.

We finally found a McDonalds in Pleasant Valley, NY at 10:45 got our sausage McMuffin with egg sandwiches and coffee. Q needed nourishment too but the New York price of $2.17/gal was a little steep so we got 5 gallons - enough to get us to New Jersey where we filled up at $1.95/gal. In general our final leg home gave us beautiful fall scenery in New York and reasonably light traffic in New Jersey.

Q008074 Home

To Bernard, ME - #48-04

October 11, 2004 (Mon) Tamworth, NH to Phippsburg, ME (97 miles) - 56.5° at 10:30 when we got off. We shouldn't have been so lazy! There was a long line at the dump station - everyone was going home from their long Columbus Day weekend! The news just reported snow on Mt Washington. So Guess the Summer is truly over. Along US-25 toward Portland, The foliage was breath taking - I feel like I'm repeating myself. But it just goes on and on! - There was a Winnabago Brave behind us much of the way and we thought what great fun it would be if it had been Phil and Gail.

It's true. We'll admit it - because we can't hide it any longer. We're L.L.Bean junkies. We thought it was Concourse Q but Destiny Q does the same thing. Whenever we get near an L.L.Bean store we tune in and stop! It was the factory store in Freeport today. Great bargains! Even better prices than the outlet in North Conway.

Henry kind if let us down this afternoon. When we got lost outside of Freeport looking for a campground and turned to him for help, he couldn't find a satellite signal. We had to find our own way back to US-1. This is a new campground for us. It's OK for a stop over but a little out of the way and expensive. It looks to have been an old apple orchard but most of the trees have been cut down. So it's mostly open.

Q0072049 Meadowbrook Camping Area #21 w/e $10.00p C

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October 12, 2004 (Tue) Phippsburg, ME to Camden, ME (105 miles) - On our way through Meadowbrook, ME we saw a roadside mail box painted bright red. Below it, also painted bright red, was a garbage pail labeled "Junk Mail". Sounds like a good idea. We got lost in Bath, ME! After several tries to get onto US-1 north we asked directions. It turns out that there was no sign at one of the turns so we missed it. Since we had only 52 miles to go today we took a detour to Boothbay Harbor. A typical little Maine seacoast fishing/tourist village near the end of one of Maine's many peninsulas. It was a sightseeing venture without stops to shop - well almost. Joy spotted a fabric store on the way. She subscribes to the philosophy "No fabric/quilt shop left behind".

On the way, again, up US-1, we saw a sign directing us to "I'm Puzzled". We thought that sounded like an interesting shop so we detoured again. It turned out to be a private home where the garage had been converted into a place to sell new and used jigsaw puzzles and, as it turned out, clams and other seafood. We didn't stop.

After setting up in Camden Hills State Park outside of Camden, ME we hiked up to the summit of Mount Battie - 500 feet up in 2 miles. After 4 grueling miles we were ready to sit back and relax.

Q007354 Camden Hills State Park #4s dry $13.00 (off season rate) A

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October 13, 2004 (Wed) Camden, ME to Bernard, ME (83 miles) - Adventure at the dump station - no not that kind. While taking on fresh water, a van rigged for camping pulled into the dump station in front of us. No problem. The wait would be minimal if any. When we'd finished filling up and were ready to move up, the old fella (about our age) was rinsing off/out his port-a-potty with the dump station hose. When he finished he did it again paying particular attention to the cap. Then he did a thorough job of rinsing off the dump station overflow basin. Then he went back and worked on the port-a-potty again, Then the basin got another rinse. Had he had problems dumping? We hadn't noticed. He finally put the cap back on the port-a-potty and the turned hose on his windshield! When that was clean, presumably, he turned his attention to the side of his van. Had the port-a-potty exploded or something? Mark was about to politely toot the horn when he finally turned the hose off. It took a while for him to properly stow the port-a-potty in his van before he left.

There's an L.L.Bean outlet in Ellsworth, ME - we stopped. Lunch was KFC chicken strips in a shopping center parking lot. We arrived in Bernard at about 3:00 to Dick and Ruth's hugs and warm greetings.

October 14, 2004 (Thu) Bernard, ME - It's great being with Dick and Ruth - much visiting and relaxation. This afternoon we went for a walk into downtown Bernard to see two docks, the post office, a couple of antique shops, and the house featured in the opening scenes of Steven King's "The Storm of the Century"

October 15, 2004 (Fri) Bernard, ME - Our adventure for today was to go into Bar Harbor with Dick and Ruth for lunch at Galyn's and then a little browsing in several interesting shops. It rained during the night and has been drizzling, more or less, all day. Even so the trees along the roads are beautiful. The mist gives the colors a special quality all their own - not as brilliant as they are in the bright sun but a soft pastel accented by wisps of fog behind. What a great time of year to be here!

Q007437 Dick and Ruth's driveway (x3)

White Mountain NF - #48-03

October 8, 2004 (Fri) Gorham, NH (49 miles) - Nearly 50 miles and we're right back where we started. We had some email that needed to go out and some supplies to pick up so we took off in search of a good phone signal and a grocery store after the breakfast chores were done. We were able to take care of the groceries in Gorham (north on US16) but we couldn't find a good signal until we were almost back in North Conway (south on US16). We were a little perturbed with ourselves for not taking care of these chores yesterday but the ride was worth it. The trees are all in full color - reds, yellows, oranges, and all shades of green. The mountains between Gorham and North Conway are spectacular! The observatory on the top of Mt. Washington was clearly visible, as it was yesterday. Since they say the mountain is cloud covered 365 days a year, that must make this year at least 368 days long!

When we got back we donned shorts and summer shirts and sat under our awning enjoying a beautiful Indian summer afternoon. It's hard to believe that it's October in the New Hampshire mountains. We should be worrying about snow, not sun burn!

October 9, 2004 (Sat) Gorham, NH - Sponge baths this morning as our fresh water supply is getting low (We should have topped off at the KOA!) and the rest rooms have no showers or hot water. There is no easy way to get water into the tank. The only spigots that we can find in the campground that will accept a hose connection are in the restrooms. Even if we had the nerve to park in the road near them our hose would never reach. This has been a study in poor planning.

After breakfast we donned our hiking cloths and headed for the Great Gulf Trail. It is one of several that goes to the top of Mt. Washington - 8 miles from where it started in the campground - crossing the Appalachian Trail along the way. We went part way and called it exercise enough especially since we'd walked to the trail head from our campsite. We spent the afternoon reading, napping, knitting and people watching - the campground has really filled up for the weekend! There's a loud birthday party going on somewhere close. Hope it doesn't go on too late!

Q007052 White Mountains National Forest, Dolly Copp Campground #27 dry $9.00g B (x2)

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October 10, 2004 (Sun) Gorham, NH to Tamworth, NH (88 miles) - We ran out of water this morning, before we could get the breakfast dishes washed - and the monitor indicates we have half a tank! Mark looked for the problem and found that the bottom two probes are below the output to the pump and still under what water is left. So the system thinks the tank is 1/2 full.

Other than that it's been a pretty good day. It's somewhat cooler (53° at 9:00) but under a beautiful blue sky. As we drove down US16 toward North Conway - again! - the clouds were drifting across the mountain tops looking a lot like a wind tunnel test. (We couldn't see the top of Mt Washington, E&K) The colors were, if possible, even more vibrant than they have been. "They" predicted an outstanding year for fall foliage. They certainly got it right!

We passed a young woman jogging down US16 in short shorts, sport bra and mittens. OOOKAAY. In North Conway we stopped at the L.L.Bean outlet again and while there we picked up our email, made several phone calls, and checked our answering machine at home. Keepsake Quilting was almost on the way so, of course we had to make the detour.

This campground, although we were greeted by a fat little, short legged goat standing in the middle of the road blocking our way (escapee from the petting zoo, we think) we probably will avoid coming back. The mouse turds on the backs of the chairs in the rec/laundry room tipped the balance against! We're sitting here in Q waiting for the laundry to finish listening to the latest noise the young call music wafting across the road at us. We look forward to and hope for solitude in our wooded campsite.

Except for house keeping neglect, it's not a bad campground. The winding road through the trees could be a little tight for big rigs but doable. Gunshots in the distance are a little troubling but it's quiet.

Q007140 Tamworth Camping Area #21 w/e $10.00p C-

To Crown Point, NY - #48-02

October 5, 2004 (Tue) Crown Point, NY - Today was a day to slow down and catch up. The wild and reckless pace of the last few days was replaced with laziness. We got up late, ate a leisurely breakfast, and went for a walk through the campground and park. There were only two campsites occupied at that point - a fishing group (by the looks) several sites away behind us and a fifth-wheel with a couple of tame motorcycles half way across the park. Our walking tour included the light house that we climbed (about 200 feet up a winding stairway) for a beautiful view of Lake Champlain in two directions and the Green Mountains in Vermont across the way.

Later Mark worked on the newsletter while Joy read and started a new knitting project. After lunch we read, napped and just hung out - inside as it was too cold to sit around outside. Late in the afternoon we got neighbors - in the next site! Why, when the whole campground is empty, did they choose to park right next to us? Joy said it's because it has the second best view. She's right. Ours has the best.

Q006745 Crown Point Campground #6A dry $13.00 A

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October 6, 2004 (Wed) Crown Point, NY to Twin Mountain, NH (148 miles) - We're turning into lazy stay-a-beds! It was after 7:30 when we finally got up this morning! And it was cold. How cold was it? Q said it got down to 35° during the night. The TV said 37° in nearby Burlington, VT. We took showers anyway - Q does a good job of warming it up in here. It was 47°, sunny and beautiful at 9:40 when we got underway.

Some of you may be wondering why, when we're traveling through New England (New York State is almost in New England:) in October, we haven't said anything about the Fall foliage. Well, there's been nothing to talk about. The trees along the road and in the mountains have been mostly green with only a splash of red or yellow here and there. Even the famous US-7 was disappointing all the way to Burlington. But as soon as we turned East on US-2 the colors began to brighten. The skies had turned overcast by then but the colors were awesome all the same. And when the sun was able to peek through on a nearby mountain, they were spectacular.

This is one of those expensive pack-um-in commercial campgrounds that we try to avoid but we are here to meet up with Ed and Kathy. They are just coming off one of the caravans they lead. When we got here we were told that the group hadn't come back from their train trip yet but as we were setting up a bus load of people, all waving, passed by our site. A few minutes later Ed came by to say hello. Later they invited us to an impromptu farewell party with their group at their site. Dinner, BYO sandwiches, was just the four of us at our place.

Q006893 Twin Mountain KOA #10 w/e/s $35.00 C

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October 7, 2004 (Thu) Twin Mountain to White Mountain National Forest (111 miles) - Ed and Kathy had planned to get off at 7:00 this morning but must have come by earlier. When we walked up to their site, it was empty. Three of the four hurricanes to hit Florida this year , hit their town. Their neighbors reported to them that the house sustained no physical damage but everything in their refrigerator and freezer had to be thrown out. They are anxious to get home. Hope you made it as far as Carlisle, PA as planned, E&K, and that you find as little damage at home as reported. It was good to see you!

We plan to spend some time in the mountains - probably without hook-ups - so we filled up on propane before we left the KOA at 9:30. We had several public (state & national) Campgrounds to choose from and settled on the Dolly Copp National Forest campground at the base of Mt. Washington. We've been here several times. We picked a site we've had before, unloaded our bicycles and put a table cloth on the table to stake out our claim on it and took off for the North Conway (NH) discount outlets - L.L.Bean was having a Columbus Day sale! On the way back to the campground we stopped at a model railroad museum just outside of North Conway that displayed hundreds (maybe thousands) of models in all scales and gauges from all over the world. There were also twelve (at least) operating model railroad layouts in N, HO, S, O, and G gauges. There was also an G gauge layout outside the museum as well as a train, still a model, large enough to ride on. Very interesting place!

Back in camp we took a walk through the campground, very large, and have come back for a relaxing evening. It's been a good day.

Q007004 Dolly Copp Campground #27 dry $9.00g B

Hedges Lake - #48-01

October 1, 2004 (Fri) Home to Hedges Lake (236 miles) - It was 56° and sunny when we got off. We had planned to wait until after the crush of commuters had reached their offices in New York and surrounding cities. It was good that we had because the morning traffic reports described big delays on the northbound garden State Parkway due to a serious accident. It was cleared away by the time we passed by the site so we barely had to slow down. In fact there were no problems all the way to the New York State Thruway. At 11:50, we stopped for lunch at a Thruway rest area and were rolling again at 12:45. Arrived at Hedges Lake at 2:55.

Destiny Q is 3 feet longer than Concourse Q was, so getting into Ruth and Gordy's driveway was a bit of a challenge. It took several back and forth maneuvers to get us in properly - 6 feet from the house, front wheels at the grass line, and back steps 6 inches from the one lane dirt road. Tight!

It was good to see Ruth and Gordy again and sitting around visiting with a panoramic view of the lake out the window was a relaxing way to end the day.

October 2, 2004 (Sat) Hedges Lake - Last night we watched the moon come up over the lake - well the hills across the lake. This morning we watched the sun come up through the fog over the lake - from our bed. Sometimes Joy has gotten up and gone for a swim as the sun comes up. Not this morning - too cold - 48°! We lay in bed until after seven - very late for us.

This was the weekend for the Annual Manchester (VT) Craft Festival, a quality event, so we dusted off our credit cards and trekked over there with Christmas shopping in mind. The food exhibit tent (huge) treated us to home prepared food samples of a wide variety - jellies and jams, cheeses, mustards, spreads, dips, etc. All very good. We wanted to go back for seconds. But the craft tent (even bigger) awaited. Some of the crafts on display (and for sale) were high class with prices to match but most were quite affordable - but still high class. We bought several things that will be wrapped and held for the end of December, others have already been put into use. There were food vendors, of course - there always are. We stood in line at Ali Babba's Kabob booth for Greek food in wraps - Mark had lamb, Joy Steak, and Ruth curried something. Gordy had a hot dog. On the way home we stopped for home made ice cream.

October 3, 2004 (Sun)- Our excursion for today was a trip to Camping World in Amsterdam, NY, planning to stop somewhere along the way for some intentional exercise (walking). As soon as we walked in the door we were offered a hot dog, soda and chips - free! The RV dealership associated with this Camping World was having an open house. We thanked them by walking through some of the rigs they had on display. As the clerk in Camping World ran our credit card she said "I don't believe it!" and started to ask if we knew this name or that name. We didn't. At first we thought maybe there was some kind of fraud involving our credit card but it turned out that she had grown up in Red Bank. We had quite a little chat about people we both knew and some of the things happening around Red Bank - while Ruth and Gordy stood by their car wondering why we were taking so long.

On the way back we looked up a couple of trails suggested by Henry and learned that he is better at navigating roads than picking walking trails. We went to Saratoga Spa State Park (near Saratoga Springs, NY) for our walk. It was a beautiful walk and on our way back through the historic spa area we came across a wedding about to start by the reflecting pool. We sat on some nearby steps and watched. We talked about crashing the reception for our dinner but decided that we weren't properly dressed.

Q006643 Ruth & Gordy's Driveway (x3)

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October 4, 2004 (Mon) Hedges Lake to Crown Point (102 miles) - It got cold last night (420) but it had warmed up to 54°, sunny and clear when we got on the road. Thanks Gordy and Ruth for a great couple of days! After stopping at a Walmart in Glens Falls, NY, we drove up along Lake George. Jeff and Jennifer will probably remember the hilly, winding road up to Hague where Mark's parents lived for a while. The road seems more built up now and there are many small changes in Hague - buildings fixed up and more flowers and grassy areas. The garage over the brook taken out by the flood that time has not been replaced.

Crown Point is the site of two forts - one British, one French - used to defend the area before and during the American Revolution. They are in ruins now but preserved. We walked over there after setting up our campsite and relearned some of the history of the area.

It's cloudy and threatening rain now. It seems warmer than last night but is supposed to get cold. We're sitting here with Lake Champlain and the Champlain Bridge (to Vermont) out our dining room window. And the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse is not far from our rear door. We've been here before. It's a nice park with roomy (especially with so few occupied) grass covered sites. The lack of hookups discourages long stays in cold weather but we'll be here 2 nights.

Q006745 Crown Point Campground #6A dry $13.00 A (+$2.50)