Winter Schedule

We are nearly ready to head out for the winter and are looking forward to an early Christmas with Brian. Our Canadian renter will again enjoy the winter sun in our Ocala home. In the spring we will get back to see her off.

Winter Schedule

Early Christmas with our son in Tallahassee    12/17 – 12/20/2016

Tropic Winds in Harlingen, TX                        12/23 – 1/6/2017

Voyager RV resort in Tucson,                           1/10 -- 1/17

Pilot Knob RV resort near Yuma, AZ               1/17 -- 1/24

Palm Springs resort in Palm Desert, CA          1/24— 2/07

Wilderness Lakes in Menifee, CA                   2/07 – 2/21

Rancho Oso in Santa Barbara, CA                  2/21 – 3/7

Ridgeview RV in Bullhead City, AZ                3/8 – 3/15

Verde Valley in Cottonwood, AZ                    3/15 – 3/29

Medina Lake near San Antonio, TX               4/1 – 4/8

Family and friends in Tallahassee, FL

Back to Ocala, FL home                                4/15            

Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia

Last summer blog

Through Pennsylvania. 

 We have visited the Hershey area several time and always 

enjoy the plentiful, fresh produce and beautiful country side.

We attended America's largest RV show 

in Hershey, restrained ourselves, 

  and are still in the Revolution.

Tom and Judy on the courts at Hershey Thousand Trails.

We met Tom and his wife, Jo Ann in Florida.  

Sis Rose joined us one evening for a few games too. 

It is nice to run across new and old friends.

Maryland route

We have driven by this park several times-finally stopped for a visit.  

Greenbelt Park, near DC is where we RV'ed and based our tours.  

In a long day of touring, Rock Creek was our first stop.

The restored Peirce Mill is in Rock Creek Park.

In the gardens of  Meridian Hill is a monument to James Buchanan.

Judy is the Presidential site Queen!

Also John Q. Adams moved here after his presidency. 

Wolf Trap is the only National Park 

dedicated to the performing arts.

At the entry, looking for the passport stamp

 and whatever else we can see.

Great Falls Park is part of the George Washington Parkway.

George was instrumental in beginning the first canal around these falls.

A hike downstream.

Visiting the newly established (April, 2016) 

National Monument. 

  Most likely, Alice Paul is not a relative.

We missed the opening of the

 Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture

by a couple of days-next visit?

The visitors Center for Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad NHP 

was a couple of weeks from opening when we visited. 

 The Blackwater NWR served that purpose.

Assateague Island National Seashore

 was the 366th National Park site we have visited.

Looking for wild horses!  

Turns out that we did not have to look very hard.

They were even grazing in the campsites.

Here is one with a free loading cattle egret.

Of course the seashore was worth a visit.

And we had the place to ourselves.

On our way off the island, some of the wild horses

 were in the tidal marshes.

Back through Virginia after DC and Maryland.

Our second and a quick stop at Cedar Creek and Belle Grove NHP

 gets us headed to Indiana and family visits.

After a week or so in Indiana with family, 

we will spend a long weekend with Brian in Tallahassee

 then make our way to Ocala.

Massachusetts

Massachusetts

This year's route.

Our view from Sturbridge Resort, an ROD park.

http://adventureresortsofamerica.com/sturbridge/about.php

Springfield Armory NHS.  At its height, there were 14,000 employees 

working to produce over a million guns year.

https://www.nps.gov/spar/index.htm

 

The muskets never shiped.

We found yummy treats at a local grocery. 

 Fresh lobster, corn, and tomatoes--that is enough!

A trip to Salem, the only port that remained 

open during the Revolutionary War.

https://www.nps.gov/sama/index.htm

The Custom House.

On the red line walk to find witches-here is one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch_trials

Some more on the downtown pedestrian mall.

Nathaniel wrote "The Scarlet Letter" while working

 at the Custom House pictured above. 

 Literally, he was fired because he was writing instead of working.

He added the "w" in his last name because his 

ancestor was the judge who hanged the witches.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_Hawthorne

Our 360th National Park visited.  

Happy birthday National Park Service.

https://www.nps.gov/sair/index.htm

Both of us got put work in the forge.

These iron works are the oldest working ones in the USA.

In Virginia a plant was completed before this one, 

but an Indian raid killed most of the people

 and the iron works never operated.

Brimfield is the home of the largest? and oldest?

 Antique/Flea Market in the country.

10 to 12 display areas deep on both sides of the street!  

And it went on for a mile!

We saw it all--well, some of it.

https://brimfieldantiquefleamarket.com/

Western New York

WESTERN NEW YORK

The route so far.

Our Allegany Mountains home base.

Weekend activities-old cars, old songs, and of course,

LOTS of old people!

Lake fun as well as mountains.

Our site.

The large Allegany State Park 

took us a long day to fully enjoy.

The standard pose.

At the lodge in the Red House area.

"Climbing" on Thunder Rocks.

Our Niagara area base, Niagara Lazy Lakes.

  The water current under this bridge is about 28 miles per hour.

The water depth is about 175 feet and in

one minute approximately six billion (6,000,000,000)

        pounds of water cross under the Rainbow Bridge.

From the Observation Tower in Niagara State Park

you can view the American Falls

and the Canadian Falls.

We stayed way past our bedtime.

It is a lot safer using a barrel to go over the Canadian Falls.

After that ride we enjoyed the views

and lunch at the Skylon Tower.

The Erie Canal links back east with the expanding west.

In Lockport a series of 5 locks were built and

were an engineering triumph for the day.

 

The "flight of five" locks on the Erie Canal in Lockport.

These five lock raised/lowered boat 60 feet. 

10 boats, 5 up and 5 down could be handled at the same time.

Very impressive for 1825.

Of course, the pose.

 

Olcott a small fishing village on Lake Ontario.

A relaxing place.

Fort Niagara State Park in Youngstown.

This light house was open,

so of course we climbed to the top.

The French Castle was built to look like a French Chateau

was built in 1727 but the fort dates back to 1679.

Interesting reading.

The Queen and I in the French Castle.

We stayed for a British cannon firing demonstration.

On Lake Ontario there was an ongoing sailing class

and this artillery master said that today's

target would be one of the sail boats, then fired.

Got one!  They were capsizing all afternoon in

order to practice up-righting their craft.

Still, the timing was fun.

We always try to visit presidential sites. 

This one in the Millard Fillmore's home in East Aurora.

Millard Fillmore's tomb in Forest Lawn, Buffalo.

The Anchor Bar was a short trip from Forest Lawn.

The history was worth every penny,

but the wings would only garner 2 or 3 stars.

We enjoyed them anyway!

See.

A picnic stop in the Catskill Mountains

on our way to Massachusetts.