New England

Wednesday Oct 10- Oct 16 (thus far) Days 33 - 38

We said our goodbyes and thank yous before continuing our journey East via Rt 90 and paralleling the Erie Canal (Lake Erie to the Hudson River). No doubt in my mind that Tomie will see her family again SOON. On our drive we encountered our second Dunkin' Donuts of dozens (no pun intended - really) to come. Tomie's favorite donut was sold out at our first stop. Behold. There it was, a chocolate covered with sprinkles begging her to indulge. Yes, we have donut!!! Our first covered bridge 'Paper Mill Bridge' photo opp. found us in Bennington, VT. Did we have New York pizza in New York? No. We did stop for some in VT though. Then, a treat for me, we stayed at The Wilson House where Bill Wilson, the cofounder of alcoholics anonymous, was born and lived his early years. I was humbled and overwhelmed with gratitude.

Quiz time. What are the 6 states of New England? ME, NH, VT, CT, RI, MA - approximately half the size of CA.

Thursday Oct 11

64 degrees and foggy as we began the drive on scenic route 100 in VT heading north. We paused at Moss Glen Falls, ate lunch in one of the countless quaint, tiny towns that VT showcases, and then we found ourselves in Waterbury, VT. YES, we went on the Ben & Jerry's factory tour! Yes, we ate ice cream. Yes, I was happy. We arrived to Burlington , VT and Church Street Mall. The skies were again cloudy and rain was intermittent. We enjoyed yet another Starbuck's coffee (pumpkin spice lattes) courtesy of Miss Melanie. We picked up Melissa, Amy, and Fergie in Borders. They joined us for dinner at Ri Ra Irish Pub and immediately began entertaining us once we got back to the car and the CD player. We have new music!!! Good buys. Missy and The Waifs still rock, they just have some new sistas to chill with.

Friday Day 35

Chilly, foggy, and rainy at times. Lunch at Roque's Restaurante Mexicano on the Lake Champlain waterfront. (Half of Lake Champlain is in NY and half is in VT. It separates the Adirondacks in NY from the Green Mtns. in VT). A short walk along the water was WINDY and COLD - 45 degrees. Lots of hours in the car today - getting a bit tougher for me to tolerate, I must admit. Entered NH about 5 pm. Treated ourselves to an Inn in Bethlehem, NH. Par for what we've encountered on our trip, the Inn owner and the other guests were friendly and add to our total trip experience. More emails exchanged.

Saturday Day 36

I repeat, Saturday. Remember what that means to us. More people out and about. First, went for a peaceful walk on the Inn grounds - 15 miles of trails through a wooded, color-saturated area. Visited Flume Gorge in the White Mountain National Forest, hiked Boulder Loop Trail, viewed Lower Falls. Burgers ( a staple in our diet lately) and more ice cream (Lava Cake) before returning to the Inn. Okay, I have failed to adequately mention the foliage. Like on our Grinnel Glacier hike way back in Montana, Tomie and I uttered "Wow!" Amazing, beautiful, incredible, like an artist's palette. Simply awesome! 'Take it in. Take it all in. Now is a time that will not come again. Take it in. Take it all in. This is a day that is (and it's) here for the livin' ' - the Waifs.

At the Inn again tonight. Half price for a second night and just the excuse needed for us to stay again.

Oct 14 Sunday

On the road to Acadia National Park in Maine - the only National Park in the Northeast USA.

49 degrees, drizzling and overcast. Not for long! Welcome to Maine - New England's largest state. The skies cleared. Tomie and I ate our PB & J along the roadside. We needed our nourishment for what awaited us. Obviously, words cannot describe what my mind could not believe to be possible. The trees, the trees, the trees. The colors, the green grass, the lakes, the amazing blue sky. The inlets, the bays, the streams.

Maine gets our foliage color award, hands down. The leaves are not even at peak yet. Although difficult to believe, I guess it does get better than this at peak color time. Again, a gift to us as far as our timing and not missing the color.

We watched the sunset atop Cadillac Mountain (1530 ft) in Acadia National Park. We had recently seen sunsets in the car or as we ran, but this was Tomie's first 'go specifically to photograph' sunset in many days. The Park is on Mt Desert Island and is surrounded by numerous inlets and bays and other smaller islands and the Atlantic Ocean. There are lakes galore. Breathtaking.

In Bar Harbor, we checked into our motel (forecast was 30 degrees overnight - I, clearly, left my cold weather camping motivation in Wyoming) and went to a pizza-movie cinema. We walked the 357 steps that our hotel clerk told us it would take to get to the cinema - he was right on! We had been hoping for one of these establishments for some time. It did not disappoint. We lounged on a real couch and ate and beveraged while we watched 'Rocket Science'. Tomie did more networking and information sharing in prep for her trip overseas. Aaron, who lounged in front of us with his wife, talked about a trek in New Zealand and appeased some of Tomie's concern by talking about how to spend her short time in India.

Monday Oct 15 Day 38
5:30 am alarm for 6:40 sunrise to be among the first people in America who get to watch the sun rise.

We stayed out the entire day and returned to our hotel about 8pm after a gorgeous sunset and a delicious dinner (no ice cream). We spent time at Sand Beach, Jordan Pond, walked ~ 4 miles around Little Long Pond. This was more difficult than running 4 miles. Almost simultaneously, Tomie and I both asked " Who's idea was it to walk around the entire lake?"

We drove south to see a lighthouse and to see specific sites that were suggested to us. The wooden bouys are on the side of The Mount Desert Lighthouse Wedding Chapel building and is apparently a shot that is found frequently in magazines. The waterfront view was amazing. The seasonal restaurants and amenities (drive-in, mini golf, etc.) in the area are mostly closed for the season and few fishermen were on the docks. Gigantic cruise ships entered the harbor daily just prior to the cruise season also coming to an end. Tomie watched the sunset while I souvenir shopped in downtown Bar Harbor. No burgers or ice cream for dinner before returning to our hotel where we spent time on our blog, a labor of love.