7-30-07 #2

Goshdang it, I just had one of the most fun experiences I can expect on this trip. My tour, the one where I was going to get some different views of the island, took off...finally. Being first in line for this tour, I did a little extra to make sure things got off to a good start. The pilot, Phil, showed up after I had waited about fifteen minutes at the airport. He needed to get the plane from a hangar on the far side, so I got in his car and we drove around to get it. We were talking away as he put oil, and some other fluids in the plane. He said that the propeller needed turning to stir the oil up before starting the motor, so I got to give it a good spin or three. We pushed the plane out onto the runway, I crawled into the front seat, put on the headset, tightened up the seatbelt, and not 5 min.'s later we were airborn. Although the plane looks ancient, it was built in 1999, so there was none of the vibrations, smoking, coughing, etc. that I expected to experience. Actually, I was kind'a looking for that. We cruised along the coast, looping out every now and then to circle one of the smaller islands, which I guess was part of the flight plan, because the fog still hadn't burned off, and they were wrapped up. As we flew out over the water, he let me take the stick for a few minutes. I would turn left and Phil would tell me to raise the nose. As I turned back to the right, I had it figured out that as you turn, the nose drops, so I would pull back on the stick just a little as we turned. I should have been a pilot. Phil took control again as we flew back over the island. We zoomed around for an hour, then had to go back to the airport. He took this picture with me and the plane. Man, that was something else. If any of y'all ever get a chance to fly in an open cockpit biplane, I would say go for it. It's a memorable time. Tomorrow's another day in the park, so I'll talk later. Adieu!

7-30-07 #1

Well I said there was going to be a different view of Acadia coming out yesterday, but the fog and rain kept me waiting for my ride to arrive. Outside the tour starting point were these Adirondack chairs that were perfect for twiddling. After an hour or so, I made arrangements to come back tomorrow, and set off to do some more sightseeing. This second picture is of Long Lake, one of the three or four lakes in the park formed by glaciers. Clear and cold. I was getting a little hungry as the day went, so I drove into one of the harbor towns on the island, Southwest Harbor. It's typical of the towns around here with piers, and boats...boats...boats. As I took the pier picture, I noticed to my left this restaurant. It sat right on the docks and was advertising lobsters. As I went in, there were tanks with the various sized lobsters. I picked out a 2.5 pounder, didn't feel a bit of remorse as they threw it in a small net and cinched it up. 25 min,'s later I was tearing into a succulunt boiled lobster that has to be the best seafood I've ever had. Good Lord, that was good eating. After I finished eating and hosing down to clean up, I was back on the park road. This lighthouse is at Bass Harbor. A coast guard family lives in the house year around, Talk about some sweet living arrangements. If my original plans come through tomorrow, I'll give y'all that different view I was talking about. We'll talk again.

7-27-07

Let the unadulterated envy begin. Today, in the year of our lord 2007 A. D., on the 27th day of the month of July, yours truly did see and photograph the blessed sunrise. I am the first person to do so, on this day, from these United Fricking States of America. I was at the summit of Cadillac Mtn., the highest point on the east coast of Acadia National Park. Oh, there were other people on the Mtn., but I claim first sighting in honor of those who came and failed. I declare myself the "King of the Crack of Ridiculous".
After the ceremony, I roamed around part of the park for a couple of hours. This place is the most amazing piece of nature that I've seen on this trip. I thought, as I drove along the coast, that this must be a miniature version of the Pacific Coast Hwy. in Cal. Though it's not small by any means. The main park road is 27 mi., and there are a bunch of other trails, side roads, scenic points, etc. I'll be making a return trip tomorrow, and hopefully get some shots from a different angle.
On the way back to Bangor, I stopped in Bar Harbor for a bit. This has to be the most scenic town on the coast. It's on the same large island as Acadia, with docks, shops, restaurants, tour boats, and much more. After seeing more of the park tomorrow, I'm going to visit again. Hopefully it doesn't rain as they're forecasting, but if these weathermen are as reliable as others around the country I'd say I've got a good chance to have a nice day. I'll get back with y'all. Toodles.

7-26-07

I've gone up north. Took off from Philly Tuesday and headed toward the north pole. I wasn't sure where I was going to stop for the night until I stopped at the visitor's center entering New York (state). Saw a flyer for Saratoga, and had heard some good things about it, so off I went. Got to Saratoga about 3:00 and went to check for a room. Well, it just so happens that the horse racing season started the next day so there were no rooms to be found. I ended up in Glen Falls for the night. Talk about a tourist town. They have it all, outlet malls, a rodeo, a water park, a theme park, etc. It was, though, all I could do to stay out of the L.L. Bean outlet. Wednesday was another travel day, so I took a long slow drive across Vermin, New Hampster, Mange and settled into Bangor for a few days. After sleeping all morning, I took off to roam part of the city today. Their local farmer's market was going on, and a band "The Retro Rockers" was setting up. All the band is in their 50's, so it was taking them a while. I was going to wait around, but next thing I knew this other band had backed their trailer near the stage, then started to unload. I gave up. I don't know where this fascination with churches came from, but there was another one right there. It was getting a little late, and I want to get an early start tomorrow so I went to eat at the Sea Dog, on the waterfront. It's a brew pub/restaurant. I ended up getting a lobster roll, then for dessert they had choices of cheesecakes made with their beer. I had a slice of the blueberry, yep, blueberry beer. It was gooood! Later taters, we'll talk soon.

7-25-07 #2

Howdy! Today's trip took me up to the falls in Bush Kill, Pa. It's about 85 mi's north of Philly in the Delaware Water Gap Area. The trip was going smoothly until I got to within 7 mi's of Bush Kill when the traffic came to a dead stop. After crawling along for a bit, I figured I'd rather loop around than spend another hr. or two vegetating. Whipping out my trusty map, I found a road that would take me through the forest, and come into the falls from the north. The only trouble was there is no hwy. no. on the map, so I took off kind'a blind.Well, after an hour or so, I was at this gravel road intersection staring at the map. This guy in an old International truck with a canoe on top pulled up and asked if I needed some help. Next thing I know I'm taking a "left at the A-frame house" onto Snow Hill Rd. (unmarked), then another left.....eventually I reached the falls. These falls are known as the Niagara Falls of Pa., which is a pretty good misnomer if you're looking for giant misty falls with tour boats, which I wasn't. I guess they got that name from their upmost falls with names like Bridesmaids and Bridal Veil. Once again, I found a nice park that put a good walk on me. First on the trail is the Main falls, 1st picture. After a real good 30 min. or so steadily uphill trek I reached the upper Bridesmaid falls, then circled around to this other trail that took me back down. The trail map showed this water stop at the highest point of the hike. At this point, there is a green plastic building, about 10 ft. x 10 ft., with those fold up covers like you see at fireworks stands. Believe me, I wasn't the only one trying to pry up those locked covers just in case there was some water in there. It was shut down tighter 'n Tiger Woods golf shirt. Auugh! Any way I made it back down to the snack stand at the entrance, and commenced to do the rehydration thing. After a few recovery min.s, I drove on up to Dingman's Falls where I met my little buddy, the chipmunk. We shared a few moments on the trail before he/she (can you tell?) made it back into the woods. After seeing these falls, I went into this little town called Dingman's Ferry, hoping that wasn't a lie. Ends up there was a ferry at one time, but had been replaced with this nice old bridge. On the road back along the river, beautiful, I saw, and had to have a picture of this neat old barn. I whipped into a roadside produce stand, walked back up the road, and got on the other side of this "Privaty Property, No Entrance" sign so I could get this shot. No trouble. JUST realized there is a limit on prose on these blogs, so I'll talk later. Adios.

07-25-07 #1

Buenos dias todo el mundo! Sheyite Muslim...I didn't realize until today as I sat down to make a new post that y'all had been sending all those comments. I didn't know to look for them, just making posts and not paying attention, I guess. Well I'm going to start looking for them as I go from now on. To catch up on some, Betty..I'm sorry about missing that stuff in the Keys, but I'd love to go back (hint,hint), Curtis..Hah! get your own ribs, David and Susu...I'm going the round-about way, but I'm coming, Cheryl...Haven't forgotten about lunch, Tim...I'm catching plenty of shit from Bad Bob, Danny Boy...Nekid dancing girls? Yuk-yuk!
Okay, now that's out of the way. I got to Philladelphia on Saturday and met up with my tour guide for the day...Miss Sue (on bridge). She tooled me around in her blue Toyota Spyder sports car...rag top down, and cruising in style. I'm perfectly satisfied with staying out of big cities, so we drove over to these twin towns on the Delaware River. New Hope, Pa. and Lambertville, N.J. For lunch we had crab cake sandwiches at this little cafe overlooking the river, then took a nice walking tour around. Many shops, restaurants, a brew pub or two, and these great old churches, one of which had been transformed into a restaurant. God probably likes sea food, don't ya figure? I had a great time just walking, talking, checking out a few of the shops, and slurping on mango ices. Very relaxing. After that, we took a ride through the countryside along the river. It was sooo nice to be able to just ride and check out these beautiful old brick houses and barns, without having to worry about driving. We finished the day up with an Italian meal. Clams in marinara sauce, and goat cheese pizza. Mmmm-mmm! Thanks for a beautiful day, Sue. :-)
During the day, I was told about this Delaware Water Gap Nat'l. Rec. Area, so after I go check that out, I'll post again. 'Til later, ta-ta kids!

7-23-07 #2

One of my biggest regrets for this trip was that I only had one day in Annapolis, Md., but I was on a mission from God. Once I got there I headed to the visitor's center for maps, etc. I found that this is a pretty simple city to drive around in without getting lost, which was a big relief for me. It was recommended to me to head down to the pier area for a late lunch and boat tour. The tour was pretty neat, going by the Naval Academy, checking out the skyline, and looping around the bay. Notice the dome on the far right. The top of it is actually gold. I can imagine the "plebes" scrambling around with their Brasso keeping it polished. As we cruised on the north shore this sailboat, looking like it was preparing for an America's Cup race, got to cutting in and out behind us. The general consensus on the boat was that it was the Academie's. One thing about the tour was these little sailboats lined up, and being towed by a small fishing boat. They were filled with little sailors who had no control of their little boats at all, but were just enjoying the ride.
After we docked, I went wandering around the shops, bars, restaurants, etc. This one bar and grill, McGarvey's, was suggested to me for a meal. I didn't see a date on the building, but the eatery next door had "Est'd. 1750" posted on it. Talk about longevity. Anyway, I ended up at McGarvey's for a steamed seafood plate with oysters, clams, mussels, and shrimp. Once again....YAAAR!
That's all the time I had, but I would love to return some day to see much, much more of this charming city. I'm off to Philly, so we'll talk again.

7-23-07 #1

If I'm going to keep this blog going, I guess I should start keeping up a little better. After spending a couple of days in Roanoke, Washington D.C. seemed to be the next place to hover for a while. I knew I wanted to see an Air and Space Museum, so I stayed out by the airport to visit the new annexation from the main museum in downtown D.C. This was a pretty neat hangar with everything from Wright Brothers to space shuttle. It's seems to be getting to the point that an indoor museum is going to have an I-Max theater, and this place is no exception. I saw "Fighter Pilot", a coverage of war games at one of the western Air Force bases with planes from Europe, Asia, and U.S. .... jets out the ying-yang. There's not enough room here for all the pictures I took, so I just picked these.
Later on in Washington, I headed out to the Bull Run historical park, from the War of Northern Aggression. I'd always thought that Manassas was one of the last battles of the war, but there were actually 2 separate battles. Bull Run is the name of the creek running through the area, and one of the more important features was this bridge. It was rebuilt after the war, due to the retreating forces having destroyed it. There's a time and place for burning your bridges. This is one of the original houses that the Union found a good site for building their monument to the dead. That's the rock spire on the right of the house. It still amazes me how many people were killed during that war.
I never got the urge to head down to the National Mall area especially after reading some brochures that recommended taking a taxi, using a bus, whatever, because there is very limited parking. Actually that was just another excuse to get out of town. If I had it to do over again I'd probably just skip D.C. and stay in Annapolis, Md. That's where I was off to next.

7-16-07

I'm trying to keep up with this blog, but computerese gets in the way sometimes. That was the last time I'll stay at a Holiday Inn Express, no matter how smart the TV ads claim I'll get. Their WI FI has trouble with Macs, and that's directly from their tech support. Phooey! Anyway I just left Roanoke after a couple of days. For a pork rib fan, things just keep getting better. I was turned onto this little BBQ joint, Henry's Memphis Bar B Cue, and had a slab about the size of a Gideons Bible. They had a habanero sauce that kicked me all over the floor. What's for dinner Grandpa?
The Natural Bridge park is about 25 mi's east of town, so I found this country drive to get out there. The Natural Bridge is something else. The land it sits on was originally surveyed by George Washington. In the one picture notice the rectangle painted on the side of the rock. It's about 25 ft. up a sheer cliff. If you zoom in on it, you can somewhat make out Washington's initials. The G is fairly clear, but I really had to use my imaganition to see the W. I guess since 1750 there has to have been some weathering.
I spent some time after seeing the Bridge on an out of the way ride to get back to Roanoke. On the road map I use, a Rand Mcnally, there is this little town that I was determined to get a picture with their city limits sign. I found the town, but there were no signs, and no stores or businesses named for their town. I guess I can see the reluctance in people flaunting "Saltpetre" as their home town. If it was me, I'd be selling t-shirts, and holding an annual party. Oh well, I'm heading toward Washington D.C., so I'll catch y'all later.

7-12-07 #2

Headed out this morning for the Smokys. I've got to say, first off, that in every turn in the roads to the mountains and back some amazing view would just leap out at me. Beautiful ride. About halfway across the park was Clingman's Dome. It's a 7 mile trip off the main road. A ranger at the welcome station said that was the highest point in the Park, and it had an observation tower about 45 ft. up. What he didn't say is there's a 0.5 mi. trail to the tower, and it rises 330 ft. There was a lot of moaning and groaning on the way up, and I did my share. I would guess there were 300 to 400 people at any time on the trail. They ranged from couples in their 70's, 6 yr. old kids on their fathers shoulders, die hard hikers, to this young mother pushing twins up in a stroller. As we rounded the last curve before the crest, this other trail merged. The sign said it was the Appalachian Trail. It struck me just how long, remote, and elevated that trail is. If I ever meet a person who has walked it, I will fall to my knees and shake their hand.
After the Dome, I forged ahead through the Park. At the other side is this town, Gatlinburg. It's pretty touristy, but I did get a great BBQ pork rib plate for a late lunch. I'll talk later from the "land of iced tea".