Nova Scotia & Cape Breton

We've spent a week in Nova Scotia -- not nearly enough time to see everything. It's so much bigger than Prince Edward Island. It was expensive getting here from PEI -- $100 on the ferry. (And it's going to cost us anywhere from $350-750 to go by ferry back to New Brunswick or Maine, depending on which ferry we take and how much driving we want to do. Gas is expensive, too -- about $4 a gallon -- so either way, we're paying! Sales tax is 16% for normal sales, and about 26% for gas!)

We spent the first part of our Nova Scotia trip in the Cape Breton Highlands area -- lots of Scottish influence. We did take a day to drive the Cabot Trail loop -- claimed to be one of the most beautiful drives in North America. It was beautiful, both the coastal and inland areas, but I think Hwy 1 along the Pacific Coast has it beat! The trees are just beginning to turn color. If we had stayed a couple more weeks, they will have the Celtic Colours festival with lots of musical events and brilliant color, but we are planning to be in the New England states for the Fall colors then! Can't do/see everything, but we're getting a lot in! We had hoped to see more wildlife on that Cabot Trail -- we expected to see eagles, moose, whales, etc. We were also disappointed to have driven extra miles to get to the most northeastern spot on the island, only to find out you couldn't park anywhere! Since we were low on gas, and no gas stations in sight, we didn't try to figure out another landing spot. But we did see the Cabot monument -- John Cabot is claimed to be the first European to discover North America in 1496. (What happened to Columbus' 1492, we wondered?)

We spent a lay-over day in Baddeck, a pleasant little town on one of the lakes. It became the area Alexander Graham Bell located and spent a lot of time working on his idea of a hydrofoil and a flying machine. He flew lots of various shapes of kites in his research -- the locals thought him crazy! We went through the wonderful museum about his life and inventions. What a genuis -- his mind didn't quit! He invented so much more than the telephone. And yet he was also a family man, dearly devoted to his deaf wife, Mabel (Ma Bell?) who was his business manager. He was also very focused on understanding the physiology of hearing and elocution for deaf people. Lots of pictures of him interacting with his children and grandchildren.

Took another day to drive to the most eastern part of our trip -- Fort Louisburg -- a reconstructed fort where the British and French battled it out. The cod industry was what they were protecting -- more lucrative than the fur industry even. They had a number of costumed people in the taverns, houses, restaurants. We ate in one of the taverns and we each were given one large spoon and large napkin to tie around our necks. We were in the "lower class" tavern, we were told, so had simple food -- bread and cheese, pea soup or beans, but we did get hot buttered rum and a tart for dessert!

One of the things that has surprised us -- with all the ports and fishing in these two provinces, we've had a hard time finding fresh fish to purchase. Found a fish market yesterday though, and for dinner we had the best wild Atlantic salmon that John barbequed perfectly!

One of the most photographed spots in Nova Scotia is at Peggy's Cove. We drove on the 2-lane road to get there, hardly any cars. Then when we turned into Peggy's Cove, we were stunned -- hundreds of people and tons of tour buses all trying to maneuver around this little fishing village. Found out 4 cruise ships had docked at Halifax that day! It was beautiful, with the historic lighthouse and interesting rock formations, but we were glad to leave the tour buses behind, and sit for a bit at the nearby Memorial for the Swiss Air crash in 1998 --a very serene, sacred place. We drove further through small villages and lakes and found an out-of-the-way place on the bay for lunch. And yep! One of the tour buses had found it first! We had to wait a bit, watching them all eat lobster, so I had to at least get a lobster tail that came with steak. I don't think I've ever had steak and lobster in one meal. Lobster isn't that cheap here, really, just plentiful -- and oh so delicious!

Today we went into Halifax -- pouring rain. We got drenched on the walking tour of the citadel. So mostly we then just rode the free downtown bus to see the sights, but did stop at a crystal glass blowing place -- fascinating. And to think when we arrived here a couple of days ago they were having a heat wave and we had to get out our shorts. Today it was rain gear and sweats!

We've now put 8000 miles on the pickup in our journey to the east. Tomorrow we start our journey west and south -- and have many more miles to go!

Prince Edward Island

After leaving Kennebunkport, we drove through New Brunswick on a wonderful highway. Stopped at Frederickson, capital of NB, at a terrific find for a RV park. It was right on the St. John's River -- best view from our camping spot yet. (see view of river). It was such a beautiful, sunny afternoon so we went on a bicycle ride along the river path before it got dark. The next morning we turned on our heater for the first time! Sunny days but cool nights.

We drove across the 9 mile bridge to get to Prince Edward Island -- an engineering feat! What a charming, delightful place here on PEI. The weather has been absolutely perfect -- warm sunny days, cool evenings. The blue, blue water just glistens; the salt air is so clean and refreshing, and every village is neat and clean. The people are very friendly. We're staying at Cavendish, which is the setting for the "Anne of Green Gables" series by L.M. Montgomery -- written in the early 1900's. We went to Avonlea one day -- a reconstructed village from that time. Because things are already closing down for the winter, we didn't get the full schedule of activities, but we did enjoy the lessons we learned from the weaver, and the music from the native accordian player who got us all singing and laughing as he told stories from his own experience on the island. Afterwards he gave us a demonstration on shucking oysters, and invited each of us to taste one. (Photo of John "tasting.") I'd never had a raw oyster before and wasn't sure I could actually swallow it, but I actually liked it!

We took a picnic lunch and our folding chairs to a red sands beach. We were the only ones there, along with the snowy plover birds (endangered species), a babbling spring brook that fed into the Gulf of St. Lawrence with the lapping waves (not big waves like on the Pacific Ocean) -- it was the perfect picnic spot. We've also seen many blue herons -- one of the roadways is titled "Blue Heron highway."

We walked through a beautiful, peaceful garden area along one of the waterways with a butterfly house. Didn't see any butterflies, but the gardens were lovely. They are trying to add make this a place of rest for the terminally ill.

We tried to get into one of the Lobster Suppers advertised on the island, but since a bus load of tourists and tons of other people beat us there, we ended up at a small place close to our campground -- and yes, we had lobster and a seafood platter! I don't think we'll get tired of the seafood--ever! (Found out that lobster used to be the "poor man's" food!)

Today we went to a museum of the Acadian culture -- early French settlers who were driven off the island for awhile after the British took control. Interesting history. Then we went to an Acadian buffet luncheon -- meat pies, a traditional potato layered dish, mussels and other items -- served in what looked just like a church social hall, by what could have been the women's group. We missed the entertainment of the fiddlers (the tourist bus left just as we were arriving), but did have a nice chat with the couple who teach fiddling.

If it's Maine, it must be lobster!

We whizzed right through Vermont and New Hampshire on our way to Maine, but plan to spend a lot more time in those two states when we return from Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. We were also anxious to get to lobster country! We were not disappointed. Ordered 4 small ones ahead (already cooked and hot when we arrived). With candles, wine, guitar music on CD, we had a superb meal --at half the cost of a restaurant.

We are staying in Kennebunkport, a very touristy town with a nice beach area, and lots and lots of motels, inns and restaurants. We drove by the Bush mansion, but since they didn't invite us in to dinner, we had to stop at a clam shop for fried clam strips for our dinner. A lucky lunch stop was a little place on the road -- the Maine Diner that advertised chowder (clam chowder was another one of our "musts" for this area!) It was the busiest little diner ever, and in the summer season people will wait 2 hours to get in. They've been featured on the Today show, and they are advertised on American Airlines. We sat at the counter so the wait wouldn't be so long, and it was just like sitting at a 50's diner with waitresses coming and going like crazy. They've won awards for their chowder--we can see why. (We're very partial to the clam chowder at Bodega Bay, too, and this just may have surpassed it.)

We enjoyed walking through the Rachel Carson Wildlife Reserve. Her book "Silent Spring" is one John has been reading--a radical environmental book. She was quite a researcher and spokeswoman that helped change the way we think about the environment. I had read her earlier book many years ago, "A Sense of Wonder," and still wish I could use that title to write a book myself!

We have been disappointed, though, that we can't drive along the Atlantic and see the ocean easily. We did drive to Portland, Maine, in the rain today to go through the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow home/museum. Built in the early 1800's, and lived in by Longfellows until 1901. Interesting home and life. Found another little Chowder House that was raved about. Can you tell we like the food in Maine?

Finger Lakes, Adrinodacks

Whoever said New York was all about city? We have been experiencing the beautiful countryside and mountains of up state New York.

The drive through small towns going east from Niagra Falls along Lake Ontario, was charming -- older, quaint homes and small villages right along the road.

We spent several days in the Finger Lakes area, which is one of the 20 "points of interest" listed in our 2007 Atlas. We went first to the Seneca Falls Women's Rights Historical Museum where the 1848 Convention of Women's Rights was held that started the movement. Cady Stanton and others had organized it and printed up 17 grievances now listed on a water wall next to the walls of the church, which are still standing, (see photo). The Wesleyan Chapel is sometimes called the "Great Lighthouse" because of the stand they took against slavery and for women's rights. (Go Methodists!) I felt very grateful for these early women pioneers and the community that supported them, knowing I have benefited because of them. All of us have actually!

We also enjoyed the winery trails in the area -- not as many as Sonoma County or as good, of course, but quite a number of them in such a picturesque area with lakes, rolling hills and vineyards. One of the wineries was in a rustic cabin, and would have had a roaring fire had it been cold. We were invited to sit in rocking chairs as they poured the wine and served food nibbles and chatted with us. Another lake area had even more wineries, so on one of the rainy days we stopped at several more -- all with such unique, friendly experiences. (Photo doesn't capture the beauty because of the rain, unfortunately)

On Sunday we took a hike through a gorge with waterfalls but it was raining so hard and the puddles got so deep we turned back. (One of the photos has John standing under one of the waterfalls--too dark to get the idea, unfortunately.) We drove through Ithaca and found Cornell University. We're noticing the more "liberal" spirit here with organic grocery stores (where we loaded up on some things), etc.

Then on to Lake George and the Adirondacks. We "stayed home" most of one day because it was raining, and because we needed some "down" time. But we did find a restaurant for lunch on a beautiful small lake near our campground. Today was a glorious day with more sun -- we drove up into the Adirondacks on the best highway ever -- four-lane, with fantastic scenery of the hills. We're getting a hint of the change of color -- it's going to be spectacular! We left the highway to drive to Lake Placid and toured the Olympics Sports Center where they held the 1980 and 1932 Olympics. Many athletes train there all year round. We met one of the Olympic team members--a pusher on the women's bobsled team. Saw the ice arena that had one of the most spectacular sporting events in the last 100 years -- USA beat USSR in ice hockey (portrayed in the film "Miracle on Ice", which incidentally, was filmed in Canada, not in that ice arena!) Unfortunately I don't have pictures -- I left the camera memory card in my laptop by mistake. It was beautiful and I'm so sorry not to have pictures, just good memories!

Niagra Falls

What an amazing sight -- 750,000 gallons of water a second flowing over Niagra Falls. Awesome! We took the "Maid of the Mist" boat to the base of the Falls -- and were more than grateful for the rain gear that were given to all of us on the boat. We were drenched! But then after that we walked up steps to another spot for more drenching--great fun, actually!

Today we went on the tunnel walk under the falls -- again with water splashing us as we stood right next to the falls --in yellow disposable rain gear this time rather than blue! Felt like a ferocious rain storm. After drying out, we splurged and had dinner at the top of the revolving tower for a grand view of the entire area. We've never seen anything quite so amazing as these Falls!

Getting here traveling through Ontario had its challenges. Construction on the roads and a wrong turn (my mistake on directions!) and afraid of running out of gas on the bridge at the border (we didn't stop for gas in Ontario because it was very expensive) created a bit of stress. Then we were the lucky ones to be randomly selected for a complete inspection at the border of Canada/US--thank you, Homeland Security! That took an extra hour! I had loaded up on fruits and vegetables, meat and wine in Michigan (all of which they searched) but they only "confiscated" an avocado and a lime they assumed came from Mexico -- we felt lucky as a car next to us had a bunch of vegetables taken away from them.

It's been warm and humid, so having an air conditioner in our trailer feels great! We're enjoying our KOA gift certificates! On the way here we stayed at another KOA that had a pool and a spa -- a treat for long travel days! John does most all the driving, but those 8 or 9 hour days are pretty hard on him. We won't be traveling such long days from now on, though, as there is so much to see that will be new and different for us. We feel so fortunate to be able to have these experiences -- experiences of a lifetime! What a gift!

Jennifer and Jerry in Traverse City

We spent a day and a half with Jennifer Weil and Jerry Welhelm in Traverse City. What a gorgeous home they have. They bought it new and moved last October (much to the distress of Christ Church!), and have spent the year finishing the basement area (with a wonderful guest room, bathroom, living area and kitchenette, and media room complete with a staging area for magic shows [Jerry is a magician] and dramatic events), putting in a huge lap pool and deck on a steep slope in their back yard, and doing all kinds of improvements. It's a house that definitely should be featured in home shows! We were treated like royalty, and loved the drives to Sleeping Bear Dunes one afternoon, and Old Mission peninsula another afternoon. Jennifer fixed wonderful meals that we ate outside by their pool, and they treated us to a fancy dinner on the 16th floor overlooking Lake Michigan. It was so much fun to catch up with them and see how happy they are here.

Pictures: Jennifer and Jerry; Jerry & John--look-alikes; their home

Davenports & Petoskey

We've had fun with Jim and Helen and their 3 kids, John, Sarah & Erik. They moved here from San Jose five years ago. Jim is also a contractor, and has built a number of homes in Petoskey. Unfortunately, the housing market here is worse than in California, and he hasn't been able to sell a couple of the new homes -- beautiful work, too. Anyone want to own a home in a subdivision with lots of privacy and trees all around? We can make a great referral!

John is a senior in high school, and works as an asst. chef in a restaurant right on Lake Michigan. We were so surprised when we went out to dinner there last night that when we went to pay for the meal, it had already been covered. That's a first --a grandson paying for a nice meal for parents and grandparents! Sarah is on a (so far) championship varsity volleyball team, and works as a hostess at the same restaurant. Erik has been practicing for Junior High football team all week. School starts for all the kids on Wednesday.

We had a wonderful day today on Walloon Lake in Jim's boat -- beautiful way to spend Labor Day. Pictures include: Jim & Helen; Sarah at volleyball practice; Erik; John driving the boat; Jim, Helen, John and me by Lake Michigan after a wonderful dinner.

We leave this beautiful area on Wednesday, heading East.

Michigan families -- Muscotts

We have spent most of the last two weeks in Petoskey, Michigan, where John’s two children and their families live. Unfortunately, we don’t have a good picture of both families together. Between their schedules of work and sports practices or games, we’ve hardly been together! Four of the six grandkids are teenagers, so it’s quite different than earlier get-togethers. But we have had fun being part of their lives for a short time.
Our trailer is parked at Ann & James (Muscott), so that has been home-base this time around.

The weather has been mostly very pleasant, with a few rainy days in between. The day we picked up the youngest, Elizabeth, from her kindergarten orientation, though, the rain came down so hard and so fast that one of the parking lots flooded while we were in a store for a few minutes!
We’ve attended two United Methodist Churches while here. The Bayview United Methodist Church is part of the Chautauqua movement – combining recreation, worship and learning in a beautiful setting. They bring in well-known preachers/teachers for classes and Sunday services every week during the summer, but it closes down in the winter. They had a wonderful pipe organ, but the service was very traditional. Last Sunday we went to a small, rural, UMC near Ann’s home (where we are staying in our trailer.)

On one of the really nice days, James took us out on his boat to…. Pickerel Lake. So we had to have a picture of a Pickrell fishing on Pickerel Lake! Other pictures: James, Ann, Natalie, Elizabeth and grandpa on the boat; Ann and James (John’s daughter who is married to James, who was in Iraq with the National Guard a year ago); Elizabeth (going into kindergarten); Lauren & Ann.

Cornfields, and more cornfields; friends

Did someone say ethanol was big business? We saw lots and lots of cornfields passing though South Dakota and then Wisconsin. But we did find a cheese factory to stop at in Wisconsin to do a bit of cheese tasting and buying! Even here in Michigan, where we would have vineyards in Sonoma County, we're seeing small cornfield acreage.

We've managed to avoid the flooding that has been a little south of where we've been. Picked up a nail somewhere so John had to change a trailer tire just a few miles out of Petoskey, MI, which has been our destination. I'll add a photo of the Davenport families and grandkids when I can get a good picture of the two families.

We also connected with Karen Hagen, a former Director of Children & Youth Ministries at Christ Church, who is now a Presbyterian minister in Milwaukee. She was traveling through Petoskey just as we were arriving. So good to see her.

Renewing a Friendship; Side trips

Friends from St. Andrew's UMC, Palo Alto, will remember Endale Safaye, one of the last of the Ethiopian refugees that the church sponsored. John and I spent part of the evening with Endale tonight in Souix Falls, S. Dakota, and met his wife and 3 darling daughters. (Another child is expected next month.) Endale is buying a house, and is forever grateful for all that the church did to help give him a new life. He is active in a Lutheran Church, and he seems like a great dad. We are so glad to have re-connected.

A couple of side trips on our travels: Wall Drug Store, Wall, SD -- started out as a drug store, but now covers a block or so of adjoining shops -- sort of like a forerunner of the modern mall. Anything you can think of to buy is there -- including a shop of saddles and western wear that was a serious shopping trip for some people there. We think there was a drug store somewhere, but it got lost in the memorabilia and things to buy. Of all the things we could have purchased, we focused on their 5 cent coffee that had been advertised! Wasn't bad for the price!

We also went to the Lakota Native American Historical Museum. It was a new center filled with wonderful displays, photos and videos. Much of it was centered around the Massacre of Wounded Knee -- a part of our country's history that was certainly a tragedy!

Badlands

What an interesting area the Badlands National Park is in South Dakota. Unusual formations of jagged edges and colorful peaks and valleys formed by erosion. Layers of rock were deposited between 23 and 37 million years ago. Many fossils here also. The picture I've attached is what we saw from our campground. During the night we experienced about 45 minutes of non-stop lightning right above us, almost like constant fireworks that lit up the sky. Hard rain on and off. Hardly any thunder. We were thankful to be safe and dry in our trailer -- felt sorry for the tent campers, many of whom rushed to their cars.

Black Hills of South Dakota

We have thoroughly enjoyed the drive through Custer State Park and the Black Hills of South Dakota today. The rock formations are something else! We also went on two cave tours today, Crystal Cave and Wind Cave. We were 220 feet below the earth in one of them, marvelling at this vast dark maze that is still being explored. Ever been in a cave when they turned out the lights? It's pitch black!
We ended the day with a walk around Sylvan Lake, and enjoyed a wonderful walleye (state fish) dinner at the lodge there. So far we haven't done any fishing, so we have to order it from a menu!
Today was beautiful, but last night it poured buckets of rain as a tornado swept through (not right where we were, thankfully!) and even flooded a grocery store in Custer, we learned today. You never know what to expect when traveling the country!

Mt Rushmore & Crazy Horse

We marveled at the work of Gutson Borglum who created this masterpiece at Mt. Rushmore National Park. It was left unfinished when Borglum's son took over after his death. Because of the lack of money, he declared it complete. We also noted that the government has probably spent more on the facilities and parking garages than they did on the work itself!

It was also very impressive to see the sculptor work going on at Crazy Horse nearby. Fifty years after a Polish immigrant had been commissioned by the Lakota people to do the work, only the face has been completed. He has since died, but his wife and 8 children are completing it -- without any money from the government, which was their commitment. It is to honor the Native American people and their sacred connection to the earth.

Yellowstone

We have spent several days at Yellowstone. It is such a big park that it takes a long time to drive around to see things. Then if you get caught in a traffic jam because bison are crossing the road, (happened to us a couple of times!) it is even slower! We stayed at an RV park so that we could have hook-ups after 4 days in the Tetons with no hook-ups. Everything needed charging! We were also told to keep everything inside as there was a grizzly bear in our area! We didn’t ever see it, but the ranger was keeping people out of an area nearby because the bear was close to where we were. Our first drive was to see Old Faithful, the obvious destination! We not only got to see Old Faithful twice, but the Beehive Geyser behind it, which only goes off several times a week. It shoots twice as high as Old Faithful. Other days we did short hikes around the many bubbling mud pots, multi-colored and/or varied formations of the geysers or steam vents, plus the waterfalls, river, and Yellowstone Lake. The last day we enjoyed a short bike ride to Natural Bridge, a picnic by the rapids of Yellowstone River, and catching up on things (like laundry!) Even had buffalo patties for dinner!

No cell phone service, nor is there any place to connect to the internet in the Park. I’m finding it is not as easy as I thought to get on-line, so we apologize for not posting on the blog often enough! Finally got on-line at a KOA campground in Buffalo, WY -- we're using our KOA Gift Certificates -- thank you, Christ Church! We had to drive many miles out of our way today, going west and north instead of east to get out of the park. The Columbine Fire that has been burning uncontained for days meant the east exit was closed -- lots of smoke in the park much of the time we were there. Driving north there was another fire in western Montana -- a smoky day! Jason is on a bulldozer crew right now dealing with the wildfire that has been burning for weeks in Santa Barbara County, so we have been thinking of him during this time.

The Grand Tetons

Our first major destination was The Grand Tetons. We were not disappointed! The mountain peaks are awesome! The weather has been great, even with a few sprinkles mixed with sunshine a couple afternoons. We were finally able to relax a bit, take some short hikes and bike rides, enjoy eating every meal outdoors, play games, read. One of our picnics was by a stream, watching a moose across the stream watch us. It moved only slightly the whole time we were there. On Sunday we enjoyed taking a ferry across Jenny Lake, and hiking up to Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point. As Christ Church was beginning their worship on that Sunday, we were at Inspiration Point being filled with spirit. We even sang a few hymns of praise and thanksgiving! We also went to the Moose Visitor Center that had just opened on Saturday. We avoided going on Saturday, even though we could have seen Dick Cheney, as well as the Secretary of the Interior and other top officials. We understand there was a protest going on in Jackson – we would rather have been part of that, given the lack of support by this Administration for natural resources!