Monday - August 27, 2018 Sam A. Baker State Park, Missouri
This is the first day of our 5 1/2 week trip to New England and the Canadian Great Lakes. We left home around 8:45, stopped at the One Stop gas station in Prairie Grove to air up the trailer tires, then hit the road. We took I49 to Joplin then I44 to Springfield where we got on Hwy 60. We headed north on Hwy. 143 to Sam A Baker State Park in Missouri.
After we got there we decided to change campsites because #170 that we had reserved was in the sun. We changed to #169 which was shady all day. This was important because it was very hot. Even with the site change we got camp set up by 4:00 pm.
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| Mike relaxing at the campsite |
We had tacos for dinner that I had prepped the day before. Sam A. Baker is a nice park next to Big Creek. We think we would like to come back in the spring or late fall when it is not so hot.
Tuesday - August 28, 2018
After we got up and had breakfast, we hiked the paved bike trail that connects campgrounds 1 and 2. We walked about 2 1/2 miles and called it good for the day because it was already getting really hot and humid. We were done hiking by 10:30 and spent the rest of the day sitting in the shade and in the trailer with the AC running.
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| Interesting spider webs in the morning light |
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| Big Creek |
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| One shot of our trailer - home for next 5 1/2 weeks |
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| The kitchen area |
Wednesday - August 29, 2018 Fort Boonesborough State Park, Kentucky
We got up, made coffee in our new 5 cup coffee maker, and were on the road by 7:30. We got breakfast sandwiches at a gas station. It was super hot again. We went back to Hwy 60 and crossed the Ohio River and Mississippi River at the Kentucky border. We traveled to the Lexington, Kentucky area where we stayed at Fort Boonesborough State Park. Our campsite here was in full sunlight so we just hung out in the trailer in the AC.
Thursday - August 30, 2018 Harrisonville/Shenandoah KOA , Virginia
We made coffee and left camp by 7:30 again, stopping at McDonalds for breakfast. We took I64 to I81. When we were about 9 minutes out from our KOA, we got stopped in trafic because of a burning car on I81. We had to sit for over 45 minutes before the traffic started moving again.
We got to our campsite at the Harrisonville/Shenandoah KOA by 5:30. This is a very pretty KOA in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia with lots of shade. Unfortunately, it started raining after we got camp set up so we couldn't sit outside.
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| Campsite at Harrisonville/Shenandoah KOA |
Friday - August 31, 2018 Patapsco State Park, Maryland
We got up and went for a hike on the trail at the back side of the KOA after breakfast. We left camp about 10:00 am. We took I81 to Hwy 7 to Hwy 340 to I70 to the Baltimore Parkway to the Hollofield Area of Patapsco State Park in Maryland. It rained really hard the last 30 minutes of our drive. The campsite is really nice with lots of shade.
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| Campsite at Patapsco State Park |
After setting up camp we took showers, ate dinner, and headed to bed.
Saturday - September 1, 2018
We spent this weekend helping Scott move from Bowie, Maryland to Alexandria, Virginia. We got to Scott's house in Bowie around 11:00. Shortly after getting there Mike and I went and got sandwiches for lunch. After that we did some cleaning of the house before taking the kids back to camp with us. The weather was warm, but we still cooked hot dogs and built a fire for roasting marshmallows.
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| Elli and Oscar roasting marshmallows with Papa |
It was a bit crowded in the trailer. Elli slept on the couch and Oscar slept between Mike and I in the bed. It was still fun having them camp with us one night.
Sunday - September 2, 2018
We went back to Bowie to help Scott. The movers came and got the last load of stuff and Scott and the kids went to the Alexandria house. Mike and I stayed and pretty much got the Bowie house cleaned up for Scott. After that we went back to the campground for the night.
Monday - September 3, 2018
Mike and I got up, had breakfast, took a shower, and drove to Scott's new house. When we all got there, we went to the store to get groceries for Scott. When we got back to the house, Beth, Cristen, Aslynn, and Hunter came over. We did some unpacking and Scott grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner for everyone.
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| Eating dinner in the new dining room |
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| Another view in the dining room - still lots of unpacking to do |
When we had eaten Mike and I drove back to the campground. It was dark by the time we got back. It is always so hard to say goodbye.
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| Beth, Mary, Mike, Cristen, Scott, Oscar, Hunter, Elli, and Aslynn in front of Scott's new house |
Tuesday - September 4, 2018 Hickory Run State Park, Pennsylvania
We left Patapsco State Park about 10:00 am. We took I95N to I81N. Traffic was really heavy as we drove past Baltimore, but lessened as we got north of there. We stopped at a Giant Grocery Store in York, Pennsylvania to get gas and supplies. We then took Hwy 534 to Hickory Run State Park in Pennsylvania. We had camp set up by 2:30. This wasn't a very long driving day.
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| Entering Pennsylvania |
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Tree roots by campsite. The tree started growing out of
old stump so roots become exposed when the stump rotted. |
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| Mike relaxing at the campsite |
Hickory Run SP is a very large park with over 200 campsites. However, there were not many campers while we were here. We had a very nice campsite with electric hookups, but not water, which is okay. It was very hot and humid, like the rest of the trip so far, so we were glad to have electricity to run the AC. We fixed hot dogs, corn on the cob, and leftover macaroni for dinner. We were ready for the beginning of the true vacation. We were glad to be able to help Scott move and to be able to have the grandkids camp one night with us, but were ready to be true tourists.
Wednesday - September 5, 2018
It was cooler this morning so we hiked to Hawk Falls which was a 0.6 mile hike one way. We had to hike down to the stream then walk through a tunnel of philodendron to get to the falls. This is in a very pretty location.
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| Mary by Mud Run |
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| Mike at the beginning of the philodendron tunnel |
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| View of highway from trail |
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| Hawk Falls |
After viewing the falls, we had to hike back up the trail. By this time it was getting warm and very humid. We drove to the Sand Lake picnic area and ate lunch. After lunch we walked by the beach of Sand Lake and then did the 1/2 mile Nature Trail Loop. This was a pretty trail through old growth trees and lots of ferns, but the mosquitoes were bad so we didn't linger.
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| Sand Lake beach |
We went back to camp, took showers, and grilled pork chops and drumsticks for dinner. We planned to have several nights of leftover meat. We also fixed steamed broccoli and potatoes and corn on the cob. After grilling dinner we just hung around camp the rest of the day.
Thursday - September 6, 2018
We slept in this morning. After breakfast we drove to the park office and hiked the Shades of Death Trail to the campground amphitheater and back (2 miles round trip). This trail was very pretty with old trees and running by Sand Springs Run, but it was very humid again.
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| Mary in front of old CCC dam |
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| View of Sand Spring Run |
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| Mike by Sand Spring Run on Shades of Death Trail |
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| Old Church building next to park office |
When we were finished hiking this trail we drove to Lehigh Gorge State Park that was about 10 miles away. On our way to the park we stopped by an old tannery that was next to the Lehigh River.
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| Remains of the old tannery |
We drove down to the Rock Port river access point and ate lunch in the car. There were no picnic tables in this area. After lunch we walked about 1/4 mile on the biking trail to Ruby Falls. The Lehigh is a pretty river that many people raft on. There is a popular bike trail running next to the river for over 20 miles.
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| Ruby Falls |
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| Lehigh River |
After our short hike we returned to camp and cleaned things up, getting ready to leave the next morning.
Friday - September 7, 2018 Clarksburg State Park, Massachusetts
BLOW OUT #1
We left Hickory Run State Park by 7:55. We took Hwy 535 to I80 to I88 to I90. While Mary was driving on I88 we had a blowout of the tire on the driver side of the trailer. It was kind of scary. We were near Cobleskill, New York. Mike called Shelter Insurance Roadside assistance. While he was on the phone, a New York state trooper stopped to be sure we were okay. He contacted a local state trooper to come check on us later. The roadside assistance guy came in about 30 minutes and got the tire changed. While he was there the second state trooper showed up, put out flares behind our trailer, and left. After the tire was changed and the assistance guy left, we were not able to start our car because of a dead battery, so we had to call the guy back. He just made a U-turn and was right back. We figured out that the trailer batteries were bad and had let the refrigerator drain the car battery.
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| Entering New York |
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| Waiting for tire to be changed |
Once started, we went to a Wal-Mart that was about 6 miles away in Cobleskill and bought a new tire and rim. They checked our car battery and showed that it was good. After leaving Cobleskill, we entered Massachusetts. On the way to our campground we drove through the Berkshires, Willamstown, Massachusetts and Williams University. This was all a very pretty area. Williamstown is a very pretty, historic college town. We got to Clarksburg State Park in Massachusetts and discovered that the trailer lights and awning were not working. UGH! Clarksburg is a pretty state park with no electricity, but a nice new bathhouse.
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| Entrance to Clarksburg SP |
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| Our campsite - it was a little muddy |
The weather was cool, but there were huge mosquitoes so we didn't sit out.
Saturday - September 8, 2018
It got really cool overnight (good thing since we couldn't use the AC). I fixed sausage and egg burritos for breakfast. After that we walked to the park office and got hiking information. We then hiked the Pond Loop Trail around Mausert's Pond (about 3 1/2 - 4 miles total). This was a pretty and easy hike with lots of colorful mushrooms, a couple of bright orange salamanders, and many large ferns. There are sometimes moose by the pond, but we saw none (kind of an indication for the rest of the trip).
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| Mausert's Pond |
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| Another view of the pond |
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| Mike on the trail |
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| A pretty, orange mushroom |
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| Orange Salamander on a spider's web |
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| Mary on the trail - nice day for a hike |
We ate lunch at the campsite and then took showers, We took them quickly because the water stayed fairly cold the whole time. BRRR! We had soup and hot dogs for dinner. It got so cool overnight that we closed the windows and used two quilts. It felt good for sleeping.
Sunday - September 9, 2018 Augusta/Gardiner KOA, Maine
We left the campground by 7:30 and headed north on highway 8. It was only 3 miles to the Vermont state line. In Wilmington, Vermont, we stopped for gas at a full service station. We asked the woman who filled our car where there was a good place for breakfast in town and she directed us to Dot's Restaurant. We found a parking lot where we had room to park the trailer and walked about 1/4 mile to Dot's. We shared a ham and cheese omelet and each got 2 pancakes with Vermont maple syrup. It was a delicious breakfast. Wilmington was a very pretty historic town.
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| View of bridge on the way to Dot's |
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| Dot's Restaurant |
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| Mary on bridge next to Dot's |
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| Mike on the way back to the car with Dot's in background |
After breakfast we drove Hwy 9 to 202 to 111 to I295N to the Augusta/Gardiner KOA. It was a nice KOA with lots of amenities and shade. I washed clothes while we were there. The weather had become very nice. Much better than the hot, humid weather we had been experiencing. It got really cool overnight.
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| Campsite at Augusta/Gardiner KOA |
We had been traveling for 2 weeks. Monday, September 10 we headed to Acadia National Park to continue our 5 1/2 week journey.
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