Northeast

          Hello Dear Blog Friends.  I know it’s been several (okay – a lot!) months since we’ve last posted a travel blog on Havetrailerwilltravel and I do apologize.   If you are still looking for us – let me give you an explanation and then attempt to catch you up.

H was not feeling well last March in Florida and our usually more casual trip home was speeded up by his health.  In June he endured pancreatic surgery and all of our travel plans were put on hold during his recovery.  Our annual trip up to Northern Michigan and Petosega Campground was canceled outright. Yes – he has recovered completely and his restlessness to travel has returned!  So, let’s go – 

N East was the chosen direction and the vehicle selected was the Jeep Cherokee due to quickness of travel and gas mileage - 33 mpg vs. 10!

Clayton New York, just around the corner from Lake Ontario and on the edge of the St Lawrence River is home to the Clayton Antique Boat Museum.  Our 1^st mission on this trip was to revisit it.  It’s been at least 20 years since we were there last.  Man, has it changed and expanded!  This magnificent collection of shiny varnished beauties that once cruised the waters carrying the elite folks of their day are now artfully displayed in not just one crowded building but throughout several buildings on a well maintained campus.  Sleek racing boats have their own building and smaller canoes and runabouts are in another.  Outside, several restored large vessels are moored in long protected boat slips and even accompanied by informative plaques.

Following the river to the east, the next quaint town was

Alexandria Bay.  Heart Island and the romantic but sad story of George Boldt of the famed Waldorf Astoria in New York City fame is legendary here.

George bought the island, changed the name from “Hart” to “Heart Island” and proceeded to erect a castle in honor of his beloved wife.   The castle was to be dedicated to her on the holiday of hearts – Valentines Day.  She became ill and died that January.  George was heart broken and never returned to the island so the castle was never finished.   20 some years ago the castle was still a cold gray shell but is now being completed and furnished as tho George was still overseeing it.  From the sprawling marble

staircase, to the backlit stained glass dome (4 stories above!), to the ornately decorated bedrooms – it is magnificent!  The powerhouse, on it’s own little island, the groomed gardens, the small enclosed harbor and even the miniature castle for the children – all exude the love that George had for his family!  If it weren’t for all the tourists snapping pictures and the tour boats coming and going – we were in the wealthy past of the early 1900’s!

Up across northern Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine the weather changed from sunny to gray and cool.  Calais Maine is the cross over town to New Brunswick.   St Andrews was the first destination to revisit.  20 yrs has sure changed that quaint little town too!  Now there is a long cement fishing pier with lots of charter boats moored out in the bay.  It was low tide so there was alot of muddy ground now showing around the edges of the breakwalls and shorelines. Nearby Minister Island is only

accessible at low tide and we tentatively eased the Jeep out onto the wet, temporarily high gravel “road” and drove to the island and back!  Later, on our way back to Maine, the once visible roadway was now totally under the fast moving water of the returning tide.

St John New Brunswick sits on the edge of the Bay of Fundy.  Tides in the Bay and the nearby St John’s River raise and lower by 22 feet each time the tide changes.  The Reversing Falls is caused by the tide either coming in or going out.  We arrived at almost high tide but the water was still rushing in, causing swirls and lots of rushing white water.  In a few more hours the “falls” would be rushing the opposite direction.   We drove thru the growing

downtown area next to the moored floating cities that are modern cruise ships.  We even located and drove thru the hilltop campground that overlooks the city below it.

South, out of Calais Maine, the road took us along the rugged coast and its tiny towns to Desert Island, Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. All morning long it was gray, foggy and even a drizzle now and then but now it was getting worse.  A drive thru tourist filled Bar Harbor and finally into the National Park proved to be futile – fog, mist and clouds enveloped the top of the mountain so we didn’t even drive thru any more of the park and H took the exit road off the island.

New Hampshire and the White Mountains was much more scenic, although still hazy.  The clouds hung close on top of each

mountain.  A stop at Willey Pond gave us a good view and an opportunity for a few nice photos of the dark lake and the deep colors on the hillside.  Back in New York - Lake Placid’s colors were mostly bright yellow and shades of green.   The Olympic

venues are still there and signs of the past event are everywhere!   Lake Champaign was in our way so we drove the Jeep onto a trusty ferryboat and waited to cross the white-capped water of the still busy lake.  Moored sailboats of every size were still bobbing in the gusty wind as we waited for the other cars to be loaded.

South into Pennsylvania, the colors were just starting to pop but

unfortunately the rain had still not quit.  The colors may have been mostly green but Rt 6 was scenic and passed the time as we headed for Ohio and home.

Next is a short trip to eastern Michigan with the hopes of still catching some of the state’s famed fall colors!  Then it’s pack for Florida!