Aaaah, THE LAZY, HAZY DAYS OF SUMMER

At the beginning of Wednesday morning....no deck, just the pool. Dawn Thursday....WOW!
Dean, Jacob, and Jake Taylor (Steph's cousin) worked all day...and look what the result is. a beautiful deck. Just have to complete the gate at the top of the steps.
This was Stephanie's dream: to relax in the sun while watching the kids in the pool. This would be much closer than from the deck of the house.

I can't remember the measurements, but it's something like 8' by 16'. And of course the little ones immediately started playing in the shade underneath once the deck was put on.

Very nice. Thanks Dean, Jacob and Jake.

Sunday, July 26; OHIO CAVERNS and then HOME!

On Saturday we left Winchester, VA about 9 a.m. and in the sun. We continued driving west on U.S. Hwy 50. Within a short distance we left Virginia, traveled into West Virginia, then into Maryland, and then back into West Virginia....do you think that we got schizophrenic? There are little parts of all three of these states right up there south of Pennsylvania. We wound up and down hills all day. It was beautiful. Couldn't really take any pictures, because there were no places to turn off. There were loads of motor bikers out because it was a truly beautiful day. We ended up in Athens, OH, home of Ohio University. Sunday morning we went to Mass very near the campus, a 115 yr. old church. We were fortunate we had an African Archbishop offering the Mass. (We had a bishop offer our Mass in Anchorage, AK, too) Since I had my camera there because I like to take pictures of the different churches we attend Mass at on our travels, I had to sneek in a picture of his very colorful vestments.
We had given Dawson the choice if he wanted to go to the air museum at Wright Patterson Aif Force Base, or go to the Ohio Caverns. Well....the following pictures tell you what was his choice.

These caverns were discovered in the 1890's by some farm person who found a sink hole in the farm and saw how deep it went. It has been a family operation since 1922. We took our kids there about 15 years ago....and now we take a grandson. The person there said that happens all the time. It was a wonderful 1 mile walk in a constant 54 degaree cavern.

Our tour guide was a geologist who graduated from Ohio State University. He certainly was knowledgeable. There are some types of formations here that one can find nowhere else in either OH or in the U.S.

This is called a "soda straw" type of formation. Looks a little bit like a water pump, doesn't it?

Dawson was obviously enjoying this out of the ordinary walk.

Then it was a mere 3 hour jaunt home to sleep in our own bed.

It's been an adventuresome month. Done many things and saw many beautiful and varied sights. We hope that Dawson will have many memories. I know that we will.

Won't miss the amount of rain that we had. Perhaps that rope is tied from a cloud to our bumper and it travels with us, just like it did in Alaska and the northwest U.S. Hope the next jaunt leaves that cloud at home.

We will be taking a short trip next week back up to the Icebreaker Maritime Museum Mackinaw, where Chris will attend his crew reunion. Will update the blog then about the reunion.

Until we "connect" again....

July 25: West Virginia....and more....

What day is this…yes, it’s Saturday….it’s Virginia. (why this "cut & paste" goes in with underlining....but "oh well" can't do anything about it) A far cry from New England. But we did all we wanted to do in New England, so we just kept on going. After the wonderful day in Gettysburg, we got up on Friday and headed south to Maryland. Yup….we crossed the Mason-Dixon Line into the South. Here the “pieces” of states are so close together that you can get into three states in fairly short order. We headed toward Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia. We would have gotten there before noon, BUT we got stuck in the longest traffic jam that I have ever been in. Coming down the Blue Ridge Mountains, and approaching the bridge crossing the Potomac River into West Virginia, we got stuck for 1 hour and 40 minutes! We thought it was for an accident, but it was for some road work. YUK! Then, continuing our Civil War theme, from Gettysburg, the battle that changed the course of the war, to Harpers Ferry, where the abolitionist movement really got started. It was there that John Brown decided to capture the arsenal and begin a kind of guerrilla movement from the hills, in his opposition to slavery. It was in Harpers Ferry that he was hanged, when most of his followers were either dead or captured. I kind of think that was the beginning before the actual Civil War. So it was nice to be there and see the town. Chris walked a short piece of the Appalacian Trail to Maryland and back to West Virginia…all in Harper’s Ferry!

This is a reconstruction of "John Brown's Fort"

Shenandoah street now....with folks in the different stores, in period dress, telling the visitors how it was back then.

Looks very much the same as it used to....I think.

After a very hot afternoon, walking through the restored village, we then headed out to find a camp site. But it was still very hot and we were not ready to cook dinner in the heat. We tried a wonderful Chinese buffet, then headed further west, into Virginia and low and behold, there was a Wal Mart parking lot beckoning to us. By then it had cooled down….

I thought this picture is very exemplary of Dawson "in a hurry"....yup....it's hard to move him a little faster. He's brushing his teeth. And I'm waiting patiently to come in and do my "stuff" in the camper.

Tonight we're in Athens, OH.

So, until we "connect" again....

July 23: The Battlefield at Gettysburg

Today was a wonderful day, if not tiring...
Began early because we were advised to be there at 8 am in order to get a personal guide for a tour of the battlefield. Of course, we were there early....like 7 am. We took the guy at his word; and we were first....ahhhh....about 1/2 hour before anybody else showed up at the visitor center.
This is the 36 star American flag; I had never seen one before. But the Union flew this flag throughout the war, even though the Confederate States had seceded from the Union....or so they thought.

Our early bird tactics paid off. This is Bill, an extremely knowledgable man about the Battle of Gettysburg. He has read so much about the war and all of the personalities, i.e. generals, etc., in it, that he has actually figured out his ideas about their motive, the reasons behind what they did, etc. He had the psyche of the personalities all figured out. He said that this battlefield was way too small for all the egos unleashed there in the north and the southern troops.

Here Bill is explaining some dynamics of of a part of the three battles.

General Meade had a "fish hook" strategy. It was their line of defense andn was about 3 miles long. Behind that was the protected area: food, injured, weapons and supplies. Bill used these hand made "teaching tools" to explain this theory. The larger hook was General Lee's line, and it was about 5 miles long. It was too long to send messages back and forth.

This is Little Round Top (to the left of Big Round Top). It was the eye of the Union fish hook. It was from the middle of the fish hook that the Union blew apart Pickets Charge.

Bill had all of this so well digested and explained, it made everything so real. One thing we figured out by the end of our 2.5 hour tour was that he had 2 different presentations: one if his people on the tour were northerners, and another for southerners. This means that to us he explained that from the end of the battle on July 3, Lee was defeated and retreated to south of the Blue Ridge Mntns. to leave Pennsylvania. To southerners, who still think the battle was a "draw" between the two armies, Lee just withdrew to the south to regroup his soulders. OK....whatever it takes. They are still fighting the Civil War.

Was an educational day...

Until we connect again....

July 22; GETTYSBURG

Don't have any pictures since we traveled the interstate (yuk....nothing pretty to see) to get here from Jim's house....
So, I decided to look back at where we've been these last three weeks and what we've seen...
And....I don't think this is an exhaustive list. It's just off of the top of my head.

1. Saw Niagara Falls
2. Rode on Maid of the Mist
3. Walked through the Cave of the Winds near one of the Falls at Niagara
4. Fished from a canoe in Bennett Lake, Ontario
5. Saw the locks of the St. Lawrence Seaway
6. Slept on an island in Lake Champlain
7. Drove to the furthest north point in the lower 48 states.
8. Went to the furthest east city in the U.S. (Eastpoint, ME)
9. Rode on a car ferry
10. Tried to see the whirlpool in the Bay of Fundi
11. Went to Campobello Island where FDR spent much of his younger years.
12. Dawson drove Uncle Jim's 42 foot Grand Banks (like a drunken sailor)
13. Slept in WalMart parking lots twice
14. Deep sea fished
15. Ate crab
16. Had a rope and zip line adventure in New Hampshire
17. drove across wooden covered bridges in Vermont
18. Drove across the world longest covered bridge in New Brunswick
19. Geee.....and we're still not done....Gettysburg we will see tomorrow.

If you want to look at the campsite were at today. It's right across the street from a place of one of the battles of Gettysburg. Check out this website:http://www.artilleryridge.com/

So, untill we connect again....and I hope I'll have some pictures...

Ahoy, Matee! Onward launches

You all may know that by now that we deviated from our planned itinerary because we wanted to see Gettysburg in southern Pennsylvania. That change brought us to visit my brother, Jim, in the Atlantic Highlands. Of course, if the boat is in the water...ONWARD(about the 5th "Onward" that he has had) has to set out to sea.
Here is Dawson as he deftly pilots the boat out of the River to the sea. Really???? Uncle Jim was right next to him watching closely.

The ONWARD

Here is the boat actually comming into the slip (parking space) on our return. It was amazing how smoothly Jim can back this huge 42 foot Grand Banks into this teeny, tiny spot, that would be the right amount of space for our camper....

We all enjoyed our liesurely day at sea. Here's Chris settling in as we left the marina. Note the cool hat I encouraged him to buy at LL Beane in Freeport, Maine. Looks good, doesn't he?

Here's Dawson relaxing

I loved soaking up the rays; which I seldom do.....

Dawson's relaxation progressed to a full blown "crash" as we pull up to the dock to refuel on the way back.

OK, here's the picture of my niece, Holly. We had a fleeting time to hug, say hi, and ask how's the wedding preparations going. She is now a Dr. of physical therapy and just received some additional prestigeous endorsement that she studied extremely hard for and took a 6 hour test for! Dad, my brother Jim, is so very proud of her. So he bought her this lab coat with her name and title on it. She will probably never wear it....but he thinks, as does pround Auntie, that she deserves it.

She said the actual "initials" for her credentials are wrong....but what the heck....it's the thought that counts, right?

And, our smallest traveler crashes real hard at the end of the day....and here she is totally crashed.

Until we connect again....

JULY 18: WHITE MTN. NAT'L PARK, N.H.

First off, a sad and tragic note....a deer friend of mine has lost her son in an accident. Trish has been my friend since before Charolette was born....and that's a LONG time ago. Sean was about 4 or 5 years old when I met her and the family. He was about 39 years old, or there-abouts when Jesus called him home. I ask all who read this to remember Sean and his mom, Trish, and his siblings, in their prayers. May he rest in peace....
This is the "Lower Falls" that we stopped to walk along as we drove across this National Park. It was lots of fun....and those granite boulders are awesome... Of course, had to try the "self portrait"; Chris is holding the camera, so I couldn't tell him to smile....I look like I just got dropped off of a hay wagon. But we had been camping in a National Park for 2 days....so we did look a bit rough. You can see a bit of the falls in the rear. The....ta dah, continued along across New Hampshire, into Vermont, toright, you guessed it, Ben & Jerry's!

It was a fun tour that was followed by a taste of their chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. Yummy and creamy.

Dawson was enjoying his waffle cone, as did we all! Didn't need dinner that night. :-)

We just arrived at my brother's house. We re-strategized our route since we'd like to take in Gettysburg. So, we get a couple of days lay-over here to visit with Jim, do wash, and relax a bit.

Until we connect again....

MONKEY TRUNKS

When we got to the WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK in New Hampshire, as we drove to our campground, we saw this awesome place to expend energy....and we promised Dawson that we would go back to it. We did.....and here are some of the self-explanatory pictures. The smiles tell it all.

Chris was at the top of the climbing wall shooting most of these pictures.

This swing was lots of fun, as you can see.

And there he goes on his zip line....about 100 feet long!

They did a ground school for all the participants before they began the course; safety, proceedure and how to transfer his hooks to the next rope. I got tired even watching him. It was 2 hours of fun to watch and participate....on a beautiful, sunny day.

Until we connect again.....

July 15: 4 DAYS IN ACADIA NATIONAL PARK, MAINE....WOW!

Ship ahoy, Matees! Thar she blows ... Shiver me timbers! Yesterday was our day for a deep sea fishing adventure. Once again...these days are totally in reverse. It goes back to last Saturday....so here goes. Here's the guys getting onto the Vagabond. There were 26 fishermen; 3 crew. There was a large group of teen agers from a summer camp in southern Maine. The day was beautiful and we all enjoyed the chilly 1 hour ride out to the fishing site. Dawson enjoying the ride.

Chris chatting with the captain.

Stopped by an island on the way to see seals basking in the sun and spotted a young eagle in the tree.

Chris stole my camera to document the fact that I had a pole in my hand...

Here was the deck hand putting rubber bands ont he lobster claws. After we fished, on the way back to dock, they picked up their lobster pots, got out any lobsters and re-baited them. He had a string of about a dozen pots. Got quite an education on lobsters. Then there was a lottery for who got the lobsters....about 10 of them, and the clams. Dawson won a lobsteer and I got 6 clams.

Self portrait...

He had bands on his claws....but we had to do every bit of coercing we could do to get Dawson to hold this lobster up....Didn't have time to get a better background so the lobster would show better. I just got what I got and that was that.

At the dock there was a take out sea food place that cooked our catch for us. They did it for nothing so we felt obligated to buy the fixin's. Lotta work to get a little food....but it was yummy.

Dawson got to my camera after washing the butter off of his fingers and snapped this one. He didn't eat much of the crabs....we sure encouraged him to, though.

Monday morning as we left our drive of the Seawall campground, look what was there to greet us. Isn't she beautiful?

A lighthouse on Dessert Mountain Island....named by the explorer Champlain because the mountains didn't have trees on top and he thought from a distance that it might be a dessert. This is the same island where Bar Harbor is, and the Acadia National Park, and where we spent from Sunday noon-ish to Wednesday noon-ish.

The tide is out.

Dawson at a ranger program in the park: Bird-ology

This was one huge rig in the camp with us....on a Mercedes truck. They brought it over on the boat from Germany. It is HUGE. That is 7 steps to get up to it. It's on a Military vehicle. No power steeri.ng, no AC, veery bumpy. A bit of over-kill I would say, but the owners hope to go to Iceland some day. Personally looks to me like it'd be great in Alaska

Dawson on the dock in Eastport, Maine, the furthest east town in the U.S.

Ordering our food at the little fish carry-out that the "locals" told us about. No tourist could ever find it. It was down a dirt road and on the shore. We had lobster rolls. From seeing how little meat you actually get from a whole lobster, I think I will continue to order the lobster roll...ya get lots of lobster and it's very yummy. Dawson doesn't know what he's missing when he doesn't order one.

OK....now jumping back in time. On Sunday we left Deer Island by car ferry and in the rain and went to Campobello Island, where Franklin D. Roosevelt spent most of the summers of his boyhood, as did most of the victorian wealthy of his era. The room above is the school room in their home (They had a tudor).

The living room. Has an awesome view of Passamaquoddy Bay (spelling???)

The Roosevelt home. This island is in Canada, but the home is a historical site run by both countries as a symbol of our friendship.
Quite a beautiful and lavish place. FDR was quite an athlete and sailor. It was here that he was struck with polio as an adult.

July 11, 2009 Deer Island, New Brunswick, Canada
This is a glorious little island right in the middle of the Bay of Fundi, off the eastest city in the USA, Eastpoint, Maine.
Our camp is right on the bluff beside the exact point where Old Sow Whirlpool may form just before high tide. So, I’m going to be out there with a camera watching for it.

(The above is the best picture I got of the disturbance that I could tell from the whirlpool. All the conditions have to be just right)
You may or may not know that the Bay of Fundi is the one place in the world with the highest tide. The second place is the Turnagainarm south of Anchorage, AK….and we saw that last year.
We drove around the island after we found the camp site. It’s about the size of Mackinac Island. Took many beautiful pictures. There are about 700 year round residents. We took the car ferry here from Eastpoint, ME. From here we have to hop another ferry to Campobello to tour that island tomorrow. Then we take the bridge back to Lubec ME. It’s kind of nice to have these passports because we can just pop over to Canada. And would you believe that getting off the car ferry here on Deer Island and going through customs, it was the FIRST TIME that the customs officer asked if we had a permission letter to have Dawson along with us. She said that they are real big on lost children here in New Brunswick.

Our evening on Deer Island was lots of fun. A primitive camp right over-looking Passamodoquoddy Bay (right across the island from Bay of Fundi). We were camped where we could have a ring-side seat for one of God’s spectacular shows of the Old Sow Tidal Whirlpool. If all the conditions are right, it is the western hemishpere’s largest whirlpool….like it can open a 40 ft. deep hole in the center. (I’m not going to bore you with all the factors that make this phenomenon). Well….we were waiting, sitting and watching….but no whirlpool. We saw definite disturbances in the water; saw little areas where the water current was going different ways….but alas and alak…no whirlpool. But it was fun trying to see it.

The tide is in. Saw this little boat as we got on the island.

The tide is out.

While watching for the whirlpool, this "pirate ship" sailed past.

Look close. As we were waiting for the fery to Campobello, these divers were going down. Saw lots of divers. They said this area is fantastic for diving. The conditions were awesome. And...doesn't matter if it's raining, right?

Our camp on Deer Island, accross from both Eastpoint Maine, and Campobello Island, Canada.

The car ferry that took us to both Deer Island and Campobello Island.

Sorry these pictures were patheticly out of order and I turned you all into schitzophrenics trying to remember what I wrote earlier.....I can blame the program, computer, or what have you. But, that's the way it is. Don't have a lot of time when I post the blog to mess around and make it perfect.

So, until we connect again.....