Happy Anniversary To Us

Tim and I are celebrating our second wedding anniversary today.  Being married to Tim is the best thing that ever happened to me, and I am so grateful that he is willing to put up with all of my foibles.  Who would have thought that Tim and I would be traveling around the United States in an RV with a cat on our second anniversary?  Certainly not us, but I can’t think of a better way to celebrate.

Thearaputic Riding Academy Against a Colorful Mountainside

A Beautiful Vermont Country Road

Our drive today took us through southern Vermont and one of my favorite picture postcard villages, Newfane.  It’s as charming as I remembered, but we only took time to snap a few photos.  We were on our way south to the Berkshires of western Massachusetts.

Courthouse in Newfane

The Steeples of Newfane

We again encountered damage from Hurricane Irene during our travels.  Our planned journey across the Mohawk Trail in northern Massachusetts was derailed because most of the highway was closed due to road damage.  We were only able to sample a taste of the Mohawk Trail from Greenfield to Shelburne Falls, where we stopped at a wonderful organic market for supplies.

The alternate route, however, was lovely, and it took us south and west along several beautiful scenic byways where we continued to see more and more fall foliage.

Lovely Lake in Massachusetts

Ducks a l'Lake

Sunlight, And Sadness, In Vermont

It has been an unseasonably warm Columbus Day weekend in New England, but we are not complaining.  It’s another beautiful day with lots of sunshine, the perfect ingredients for a drive through Vermont. 

We started in Woodstock, one of the prettiest villages in Vermont, and it did not surprise us that the town was packed with tourists.  We bypassed the downtown area and headed for the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park.  A relatively new park created in 1992, Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller is the only national park to interpret the history of conservation and the evolving nature of land stewardship in America.



The Farm At the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park



Cows Are Still Raised On the Farm



Pretty Tree On the Farm

The park encompasses the home and farm of the three men who had owned this property since the early nineteenth century.  Remarkably, all three men, George Perkins Marsh, Frederick Billings and Laurance S. Rockefeller, were early conservationists, and all left behind a legacy of stewardship.  The park is a partnership with the Billings Farm and Museum, which is a working dairy farm and museum of agricultural life.



Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller Mansion



Note the 1806 Date On the Gable End of the Mansion



Side Porch On the Mansion

On the way out of town, we found a great restaurant for lunch, Woodbridge Café and Coffeehouse in West Woodstock.  Haddock and chips and pumpkin pie kept us going for the rest of the day.



Pumpkin Pie May Be My Favorite

Our drive south through Vermont was a sad one as we witnessed the devastation wrought by Hurricane Irene just last month.  Flooded houses and shops, washed out bridges and roads and piles of debris were reminders of the destructive power of water.  But we also witnessed the resilience of the local population.  Signs in front lawns thanking everyone for their help lined the roads.  Highway crews were everywhere, and almost every road has been repaired, or is in the process of repair.  For a small state, Vermont has made an amazing recovery, but there is still a lot to do. 



Road Crews Are Everywhere



Repairs Are Underway



Even the Highway Department Building in Grafton, Vermont, Was Damaged

We drove on back roads and witnessed more fall colors here than we have seen in previous days.  There are lots of bright red, orange and yellow leaves, and the colors only add to the charm of the small towns and byways.


This Is the Fall Color We Came to See



Cheese, Bridges and Cogs

Kevin and I planned a stop this morning at Cabot Creamery, a farm-family owned cooperative since 1919.  Vermont produces wonderful cheeses, particularly cheddars, and we wanted to taste a few.  As we were waiting in the parking lot for the visitor center to open, we started to chat with an interesting couple from Moscow, Idaho.  The woman commented on the RV and was intrigued that I travel with a cat.  She also travels with her cat, but in a car, and had never considered the possibility of owning an RV. 



Cabot Creamery

Kevin and I were the only two people on the tour at Cabot Creamery.  Thank goodness the tour bus was late.  During the tour, Kevin asked the guide, “What if one of your cheese tasters becomes lactose intolerant?  Do they get disability?”  Without batting an eye, the guide smugly pointed to one of the brochures in the rack that read, “Our Cheese Is Lactose Free.”  Touché!

We made a quick detour to the north to visit a concentration of covered bridges.  Mosquitos were vicious, but the locals were friendly.  One gentleman who had lived in the Northeast Kingdom all his life offered to take our photograph and pointed us in the direction of another bridge.  Another man called to us from his truck, commented on my Colorado license plate and noted that his daughter lives in Colorado.  We found three of the bridges and even drove the RV through the last one.



School House Bridge



Chamberlin Bridge



Sarah and Kevin at the Chamberlin Bridge



Miller's Run Bridge

Every day the autumn colors become more and more pronounced, and driving the back roads is glorious.  As we crossed into New Hampshire, however, it started to rain.  We had hoped to ride the Mount Washington Cog Railway this afternoon and headed that way just in case the weather cleared.  The rain never stopped, but it wasn’t too bad, and we decided to take the train anyway.  This is the world’s first mountain-climbing cog railway, and has operated continuously since 1869.  It climbs steeply to the summit of Mount Washington, elevation 6,288 feet.


Mount Washington Cog Railway



Our Train

Kevin is a train nut, and was in his element.  The weather deteriorated as we climbed, and the visibility at the top was only 50 feet.  That was fitting for Mount Washington, however, home of the world’s worst weather.  We had a great time anyway and enjoyed the ride.



Climbing Through the Raindrops

The View On the Way Down

Tonight we parked the RV in front of the ski house that belongs to Jane’s sister Mary.  Located in Sugar Hill, New Hampshire, the house was just a short drive from the Cog Railway.  Thanks, Mary.

Through the Adirondacks to the Northeast Kingdom

What started out as a foggy morning evolved into brilliant blue skies and a gorgeous autumn day.  A detour to Lake Placid, New York, along scenic byways seemed in order.  The higher in elevation we climbed, the more color we saw.  The town of Lake Placid is just as charming as I remember, and Kevin and I walked throughout the downtown area and bought multiple flavors of popcorn.



On the Way to Lake Placid

In the Adirondacks



Mirror Lake in Lake Placid

Kevin’s request for the day was a crossing from New York to Vermont on the Lake Champlain ferry.  On the way to the dock, we stopped at Ausable Chasm, an early tourist attraction featuring a deep gorge with waterfalls. 


Ausable Chasm

We arrived at the ferry dock with plenty of time to wander around and chat with fellow passengers.  The Kat Karrier continues to garner plenty of attention.  Her first boat ride was a total success.



Waiting for the Ferry



On the Water



I'm Not Seasick



Kevin on the Ferry

After docking in Burlington, Vermont, we had time for only a quick overview of the downtown area.  When Kevin got out to take photographs, several college students on the sidewalk where I stopped began to drool over the Kat Karrier.  They asked me, “Is this a personal vehicle?  Are you on the road?” and commented “I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”  I continue to marvel at the reaction of most men to the RV.  If I were single, I would have no trouble meeting men in this thing.  Thankfully, though, I’m not.

We couldn’t travel in northern Vermont without stopping at Ben and Jerry’s.  It was amusing to see all of the flavors that never hit the stores, and we took with us “Late Night Snack,” which is vanilla bean ice cream with a salty caramel swirl and fudge covered potato chip clusters.  Yum.



Ben and Jerry's Cowmobile



Who's Ben, Who's Jerry?

After a stop in Montpelier to photograph the Vermont State House, it was time to find a campground.  We pulled into an iffy one adjacent to an RV sales lots.  If we had stayed, Kevin was certain that we would have been sold by morning as we were the nicest RV on the lot.



Vermont's State House at Montpelier

A bit farther north in the middle of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom was a much more suitable choice, the Groton Forest Road Campground.  For a change, there were no mosquitos, and we could enjoy a bit of time outside.  Kevin even had a chance to bond with Kitty.  I think Kitty misses a man’s voice and has been very affectionate with Kevin, who’s not a cat person at all.  Kevin says that she has her “purr motor” on when she’s with him.  Don’t you just love his “Kevinisms”?



Kevin and Kitty



An Apple a Day