Two Baths in Two Weeks

In New Hampshire two weeks ago, we stayed in Twin Rivers campground located in a town named BATH.  We came to New York and found ourselves in another town named BATH.  So that's two baths in two weeks.  One BATH per week -- that's plenty.

Day Trip: Keuka Lake, Amish Farm and Seaplanes

On Friday afternoon, September 17, we arrived at Camp Bell Campground in Campbell, NY, just off I-85 between Binghamton and Rochester, NY. We're making our way northwest to Niagra Falls and Buffalo before heading south. The nights are cool enough to use our electric blanket now and the days are getting a bit chilly when the sun doesn't shine.

Camp Bell Campground is nice and comfortable with back-to-back sites but lots of vacancies. Nearly deserted when we pulled in Friday afternoon, many locals did arrive that night and the place is humming with activities Saturday morning.



We're in site #84 that's grassy and gets full sun.  That's good in cool weather.

 We are both still quite impressed by the beauty of New York state which we never knew was so mountainous and heavily wooded. 



There are 21 north-south valleys that form the Finger Lakes (in case you can't read the sign above)

 Saturday morning brought a warm and sunny day. We took a day trip to the nearest of the Finger Lakes -- Keuka (prounounced "cuke-a").  Each community in the region feels it's particular lake is the best and the same is true here. Senaca is the largest of the Finger Lakes and it is to the east of Keuka, which is within 20 miles of Campbell.  Keuka Lake is "Y" shaped with an eastern and western upper lake portion.  We traveled north along the western edge of the lake from Hammondsport (south) to Penn Yan (north). The highway was good but narrow along a steep cliff with private property perched along narrow strips of land between the road and the lake. There is no beach area, the mountains reach right down to the water. 



One of the few places we could actually see the shoreline.

 Our trip down the eastern side of Keuka Lake took brought us to a stop at an Amish Farm where we picked blueberries. Unlike the blueberry fields in Maine, where berries grow low to the ground, these were on bushes -- 3-4 foot high.



Blueberry bushes

The Amish farmers (husband and wife) were nice but had lots of body odor. They explained the growing of blueberries and grapes.




We picked this quart of blueberries.  Imagine... Wayne on a farm.

 From the blueberry bushes, we walked over to the large vineyard and picked a quart of grapes.  This area is loaded with vineyards and wineries.



Wayne and Lyda, the Amish farmer's wife



We left the Amish farm with our blueberries, grapes, tomatoes and corn, making our way back to the southern tip of Keuka Lake.

The annual seaplane homecoming was being held in Hammondsport so we stopped in to take a look.

That evening, we watched on tv as Auburn hosted Clemson for an overtime game that finally resulted in an Auburn win.  War Eagle!

It's Getting Cold Up Here

A few weeks ago, while still in Maine, I pulled on a pair of long jeans one cool morning but changed back into capris in the afternoon as the temperatures warmed.  The following week, I got into jeans and stayed in them all day.  These days, I'm not even thinking about wearing capris and have rummaged around under the bed to find my favorite fleece and hoodie.  We're using the heater occasionally and haven't used the air conditioner in quite a while.  I guess that means, for sure, winter is on the way.  It also means we'll be headed south soon.

Meanwhile, we're traveling today into the New York Finger Lakes region and plan to see Niagra Falls before heading south.    Oh, and yes, we do have SEC football fever. We've been able to see the first two Auburn games on tv here, but we're getting itchy to go to the lovliest village.  War Eagle!

A Visit to Fly Creek Cider Mill

Along their way to meet us in Cooperstown, Tom and DJ stopped at a local cider mill they knew about and brought us a dozen apple cider donuts. Don't make that face -- they are SUPERB donuts. Moist and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. Along with the donuts, she brought a brochure for me to see. I'd been thinking about the autumn apple season in New England and hoped we'd find a nice cider stand somewhere along our travel.

So we decided to make the short 10 minute ride back to Fly Creek Cider Mill and Orchard, located at Fly Creek, New York. What a delightful experience. Here are some of the photos we took....

That' me. I'm in heaven among the apple cider, cheeses, 16 fudge flavors, wines and other food goodies.



Look closely to see the names of all these goodies. Notice the "moon pies" -- they are "Whoopie Pies" in Maine.
Remember, I'm in love with Maine -- Moose or no moose. 



DJ and me in our Maine sweatshirts... after several apple wine samples. Oh joy.

After sampling everything in the store, we made our way outside to have warm apple dumplings on the patio. Later we walked around back to see the non-sensicle stuff...

I'll call these "fluffy" ducks

A duck having a bad hair day



A duck having a REALLY bad hair day -- with an attitude



That's all for now!

If you find yourself planning a visit to Cooperstown, you should include Fly Creek in your itinerary.

Cooperstown and the Baseball Hall of Fame

Cooperstown, NY is a small but beautifully picturesque lakeside village nestled between the Adirondack and Catskill mountains in the central part of New York. It was settled in the late 1700s by a judge named Cooper who's son, James Fenimore Cooper, was the author of the famous and timeless "Leatherstocking" tales including The Last of the Mohicians. His stories have been repeated in books and movies throughout the years. That fact alone was enough to put Cooperstown, NY on the map.


Statue of James Fenimore Cooper, whose family name is responsible
for the town's name -- Cooperstown.  He authored the great Leatherstockings Tales.





The graves of James Fenimore Cooper and his wife in the Cooper family plot of the Christ Church Episcopal Cemetery not far from the Baseball Hall of Fame.

 But Cooperstown's fame was cemented further in 1907 when it was designated the birthplace of the great American pastime -- Baseball!

A decorated Civil War Union Army officer is credited with the invention of the game of baseball in 1839 at Cooperstown.  His name was Abner Doubleday and the critical fact that he was at West Point during 1839, not in Cooperstown, has long since been forgotten. Doubleday lead soldiers at Gettysburg, but that point has been forgotten too. 

Wayne, Tom and DJ as we make our way into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

Our Oneonta, NY campground, Sesquahanna Trails, is less than 30 miles from Cooperstown. We made the short ride over today to see the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Our friends, DJ and Tom, are currently based about an hour north of there and have agreed to meet us.  DJ is from that area and knows it well. She's agreed to show us around.



Wayne looking at statues of Lou Geherig, Jackie Robinson and Orlando Cepeda





Baseball Hall of Fame Entrance

The photographer (yours truly) blurred this photo of Lou Geherig's locker and valuable NY Yankees memorabilia. Sorry.

After touring Baseball's Hall of Fame, we strolled around the rather "touristy" town, ate lunch and visited the original Doubleday Field.

A view of the old grandstand from right field.

Another famous landmark is also located in Cooperstown.

I always knew he was from a famous family...

The weather is just great. Sunny and about 55-60 degrees which, for us, is perfect for the days activities. Because Labor Day is past and school is back in session, there are no crowds and no long waiting lines. It was a terrific day and we enjoyed spending it with friends -- thanks Tom and D.J.



DJ with the Sandlot Kid statue



The 398th Walmart

We're in Oneonta, New York for a few days and found outselves looking, again, for the closest Walmart.  Funny how some "familiar" things seem to become necessities.  Everywhere we travel there is a Walmart to visit and of course, spend a chunk of money.  It has become a standing "inside joke" for us to give some random number everytime we find ourselves needing to go there.  "Ready to find our 398th Walmart" or some such statement.  So yesterday, we went to the local Oneonta, NY Walmart....

A Stroll Down Memory Lane in Bayside, NY

After our tour of West Point, we drove on over to Long Island to visit Wayne's childhood home at Bayside. We found the place and spent some time walking and driving the area to see memorable places for him during his childhood time there

4241 Corporal Kennedy Boulevard in Bayside

PS130  Elementary School in Bayside NY.  Wayne attended 2nd, 3rd,4th and 5th grade here.

West Point Military Academy

We spend several hours on Sunday, September 12 on the grounds of West Point Military Academy. We toured the Museum and Visitors Center, saw the parade grounds, the old train depot and the famous statues.

Wayne in the West Point Museum

The Railroad Depot at West Point

Wayne standing by the captured British cannon on the point overlooking the Hudston River.

At the famous parade grounds

The headstone of General Westmoreland

Headstone of Astronaut Ed White

Tombstone of General George Armstrong Custer

Overlooking West Point and the Hudson River

9-11 in New York

It wasn't any great plan that we would be so near to New York City on 9-11; on the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 World Trade Center Attack.  But on the morning of Saturday, September 11, 2010, we found ourselves in the area of Orange County, New York at Black Bear Campground.  Sheer coincidence.

Country Bumpkins at Country Bumpkins and Twin Rivers in Bath, New Hampshire

By early afternoon of Labor Day 2010, Sept  6th we arrived at our new campground destination, Country Bumpkins at Lincoln, New Hampshire. The summer and holiday rush was over and we settled into our campsite immediately adjacent to the kiddie playground area.

A nice little spot notwithstanding the proximity to Kiddieland.

After dinner we made one last attempt to find moose -- taking a car drive back up the Franconia Notch Parkway at dusk.  No luck. Pity.

On Tuesday we drove the area found the Energy Management Systems repair location who suggested we come to the Twin Rivers Campground in Bath, NH to have the system checked and wait for any parts that might need to be ordered and shipped in.  Upon return to our site at Country Bumpkins Campground that afternoon, we found our new friends, DJ and Tom, would be coming in that evening. We met them at Shady Oaks and we look forward to visiting again.  They pulled in just about dinnertime, so we invited them to eat with us.  As luck has it, I got sick and missed everything.  The next day we pulled out and resettled in Twin Rivers at Bath just to learn our system checked out okay.  We would stay on here two nights and watched the Auburn game win over Mississippi State. 

Tom and DJ taken at Twin River Campground, Bath, NH

We had satellite for the TV  but no cell or internet air card service at this campground.  We met up again on Friday morning, Sept 10, with Tom and DJ as they were leaving the White Mountain area in route to St George, NY.

It's really nice to make and visit with friends along the road.

Seeing the Western Side of The White Mountains

On Sunday, September 5th, we pulled up stakes and left Shelburne, New Hampshire (pronounced "New Hamp-sha"). We headed west to see the other side of the great White Mountain range.  The short 25 mile ride was delightful; the sky was bright blue with big puffy white clouds, the sun was bright and the temperature was near perfect.

There were small patches of changing leaf colors among the trees we pass and I snapped pictures out the side window of the coach in hopes of catching more than just a blurr.  Other signs of fall are the apple trees, some growing wild, it seems, along the roadside.  Most of the trees are bent over their limbs are so full of apples.

Traveling south along I-93 we reached a spectacular stretch of highway through Franconia Notch State Park.

Ski slopes - photo taken through the windshield

The Franconia Notch is a mountain pass that winds between the peaks of the Kinsman and Franconia mountain ranges. This is an area of many ski slopes and in summer they are easily seen. 

We passed the Robert Frost Place and the New England Ski Museum, but didn't go into either. We took a photo of the rocky faced mountain and later learned that it is the location of the "Old Man of The Mountain",  a site discovered in the late 1800's for it's resemblence to the profile of a man's face. The "face" fell off in the spring of 2003 and the bare stone face is now some kind of shrine.  Weird.

Flume Gorge is a narrow granite passage with steep waterfalls. 

We pulled into the parking lot, enjoyed the area and had a nice lunch.  

We continue to see "Moose Caution" signs, but we've still not seen a real live moose.  I know now that  moose are nocturnal and we are not.  We are just not going to change our habits to accommodate a moose sighting.

Over the last few nights, Wayne has begun hearing a sound he first thought was a bird flapping around on the slide cover.  He's come to believe now, though, that there is a "Mickey" mouse trapped somewhere between the ceiling over our bedroom and the outer part of the coach roof.  Oh joy.  We have our "LIVE TRAP" used successfully when we got a mouse family in Evie.  We also have a good supply of sticky boards -- get one of those stuck to you and you'll never forget it.  Anyway, we'll be working on the mouse project now too.

Still uncertain about the performance of our Energy Management System and the "fault" signals we're getting, we are watching the situation closely.There is an authorized repair person for the system in the area and we might make a call to him. Yet another project.  It's good we're retired as we have so many things to keep us busy. 

Riding through New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York

Entry to Twin Rivers Campground, Bath, New Hampshire

When we left Twin Rivers Campground in Bath, New Hampshire, we crossed the Connecticut River into Vermont and began a day-long drive south along a beautiful stretch of interstate highway. I watched for opportunities to snap pictures of fall foliage again -- and again getting mostly blurs of color. There were a few good pictures though.

The ride was particularly nice and we stopped for fuel and picked up some Popeye's fried chicken with red beans and rice for lunch. Our first greasy indulgence in a great long while.

We drove down I-91 through the afternoon traffic in Springfield and then on into and through Hartford, Connecticut where we turned westward onto I-84 to Waterbury and then Danbury.  Still early in the day, we made our way on into New York, stopping finally in Fishkill (love that name!) New York where we parked and slept in the parking lot of the Sam's Club / Walmart property.

Somewhere in Vermont, I think.