Day 36 – (09/20) Home Again

Kenisee’s Grand River Camp looked a lot better in the morning.  The day is overcast, but the rain has stopped.  Thank you very much.

Site #A3

Swimming pond with a fountain

A little color on a gray day

Today’s drive of 192 miles included no touring.  We’re just going home.  The route:  I-90 west to I-271, I-271 around Cleveland to I-71, south on I-71 to I-270, and west on I-270 to the Roberts Road exit … and to Lee’s RV Storage Lot.

The day was mostly cloudy with temperatures in the high 60s.

We got to Columbus at about 2:30pm.  It took a couple of hours to unload.

We traveled 4,985 miles, towed the Airstream 3,823 miles and had lots of adventures.  We've got some fixing up to do, then we'll go again.

Day 35 – (09/19) Geneva, OH

We woke up to another nice day.  It was sunny ... for a while. The temperature reached the high 60s by mid afternoon.  The clouds increased as we drove west and the rain started as we approached Rochester.

Saying goodbye to The Villages at Turning Stone –

Site #320

Gazebo

We share the pond with the ducks

Hiking trails are well marked

The 322 mile trip was really simple.  We got onto I-90, drove west, paid NY Thruway tolls and stopped at Geneva, OH.  Voila, we’re 185 miles from home!

We’re staying at Kenisee’s Grand River Camp.  This place has ponds, a fountain, a play area, and many other amenities.   It’s raining and there are only a few campers.  We think it would be more attractive on a sunny day.

Day 34 – (09/18) Verona, NY

We woke up to another nice day.  It’s sunny.  The temperature started in the low 50s and reached the high 60s by late afternoon.  We got on the road around 11am.

Heading out from site #12

Not many campers here

Ausable Chasm was near the campground and on the way to I-87.  The campground manager told us the water level in the chasm rose 60 ft. when the rain from hurricane Irene flooded the area.

Up close

Further back

Even further back

The most depth we can capture

Downstream view.  Can you see Carol on the bridge?

The 253 mile drive to Verona was delightful.  The route:  US-9 south to Keeseville, NY-9N south to I-87, I-87 south to Albany, and I-90 (NY Thruway) to Verona.  Traffic was very light until we approached Albany.

I-87 passes through Adirondack Park.  We got to enjoy the 90 mile section from Keeseville to just north of Glens Falls.  The sun made the changing leaves glow and the mountain views were awesome.

The day ended with a bit of déjà vu.  We’re camped at The Villages at Turning Stone.  This is a great campground and it just happened to fit into our return itinerary.  We camped here two weeks ago when hurricane Irene blew through.  In fact, we’re in the site (#320) we had to move from during the rain on September 4^th.  It’s MUCH nicer today!

Site #320 - The Villages at Turning Stone

Day 33 – (09/17) Ausable Chasm, NY

We needed to catch up on lost sleep and didn't wake up until 9am.  It’s sunny and cool. 

We planned a slow start and a short driving day.  We got on the road at noon, drove 148 miles, and ended at Ausable Chasm, NY.  The driving route:  west on US-2 to Montpelier, north on I-89 to Burlington, then south on US-9 from Port Kent to Ausable Chasm.

The trip was much more exciting than the route suggests.  The day was sunny and the views were wonderful.  Fall colors are beginning to show in NH and VT.  The mountain ranges are impressive and the ferry ride across Lake Champlain from Burlington to Port Kent was delightful.

Some views from along the way ...

Snow on Mt. Washington

Lots of small towns on US-2

Lots of moose warnings, but no moose

Fall colors are beginning to show

It won't be long until the color explodes

Vermont capital

We had a very nice fish and chips dinner at Shanty on the Shore as we waited for the ferry in Burlington.

Views from the crossing ...

Trailer waits for the ferry while we have dinner

Leaving the Burlington harbor

Sunset on Lake Champlain

Ausable Chasm Campground is probably a 3 on a scale of 10.  It’s old and worn.  We see some damage from hurricane Irene.  That said … it’s OK for us.  There are many open sites; it’s quiet.  We have water and electricity.

Day 32 – (09/16) Shelburne, NH (Day 2)

Sleep didn't come easily last night.  Today showed up anyway.

The campground manager connected his pickup truck to the TrailBlazer hitch and we got it back onto firm ground.  There was front-end and some side damage.  The engine started and ran fine.

We contacted a GM Superstore in Gorham.  They agreed to take the TrailBlazer in right away and determine if it could be driven home.  The Body Shop Manager (Chrissy) and Service Advisor (Brandon) were phenomenal.  They offered a loaner vehicle and did everything they said they would do.  We had a road-worthy vehicle within 5 hours.  It isn’t fixed, but it should get us to Columbus.

We needed to find a way to kill time waiting for the repair.  The service advisor recommended a great place for a late breakfast.  The Moonbeam Café was a delight.  Carol had a grilled blueberry muffin, scrambled eggs and home fries.  Dick had a western omelet with homemade cinnamon raison whole wheat toast.  Everything was wonderful.  This meal brought something very nice to a difficult situation.

To make a long story short … we’re coming straight home.  ETA is Tuesday at the latest.

We're really grateful for this picnic table

This is a lonely site when you have no tow vehicle

This is like driving a car with no teeth

We were really looking forward to touring the White Mountains.  We need to come back.  The temperature is dropping.  It's below freezing on Mt. Washington.  The first snow has fallen.

Mt. Washington in the distance

Day 31 – (09/15) Shelburne, NH (Day 1)

The day began with rain, brightened a bit and ended with an accident.

It started to rain as we finished hooking up at Deer Farm Campground.  We planned a route that connected with about half of the National Geographic Rangeley Lakes Scenic Byway (Pg. 20-21).  Clouds hung low over the mountains and it rained most of the day.  Fall scenes were subdued. 

The 125 mile trip followed ME-142 west to Phillips, ME-4 west to Rangeley, ME-16 west to New Hampshire, NH-16 west to Gorham and US-2 east to Shelburne.  The roads were narrow, rough and heavily travelled by timber trucks most of the way.

The town of Rangeley and Rangeley Lake brightened a somber day.  Rangeley has lots of tourism and some neat history (e.g. the unsinkable Rangeley Boat).

Rangeley Lake

 

Rangeley Inn

This was not a good day for sightseeing.

Along the way

Ominous greeting as we pass
through Gorham toward Shelburne

We stopped at Timberland Campground with intentions of touring the White Mountains tomorrow.  The touring didn’t happen … here’s why.

We started set-up at site #20.  It was raining.  Side-to-side leveling was done and all hitch components but one were disconnected.  Dick had trouble disconnecting the trailer coupling from the hitch ball.  He moved the car back and forth a little to help release the ball and left the car in neutral to allow an easier release.  This was a BIG MISTAKE … he didn’t notice or remember that the car was on a downhill incline.  He raised the trailer coupling off the ball.  The car started to roll when the ball dropped.  He chased the car, got the door open on the 2^nd try, reached in, grabbed the bottom of the steering wheel and lost his footing.  He was dragged down the hill (legs and hips hanging outside the car) until it crashed to a stop.  The pictures and outcome confirm our belief in Divine Intervention.  The car passed between a tree and a trailer, damaging the trailer awning.  It crashed into a picnic table, tore out a phone connection box and came to a stop with the front wheels hanging over a cliff edge.

The park owner took Dick and Carol to the hospital (about 20 miles away) and came back to get them after 1 ½ hours of emergency room services on Dick.  He got a tetanus shot, a few stitches and the worst “rug burn” of his life.

It was a long ride down.
How did we miss the big stuff?

The trailer awning didn't fare well

The picnic table provided the stopping power

This slope drops off to a railroad track

The ride provided some very sore legs

We’ll deal with the details tomorrow.

Day 30 – (09/14) Kingfield, ME

We started the day in Houlton, just a few miles west of New Brunswick, Canada.  This was “decision day” for where go next.  Go north?  There’s not much new to see and campgrounds are very sparse up there.  Go south?  We just came from there.  So, we’re heading southwest in hopes of seeing some of the fall foliage color change on the way home.

It rained most of last night.  Skies are cloudy this morning with patches of sun.  My Brother’s Place Campground was pretty empty last night.  The end of camping season is showing up all over.

 Nice grounds and no campers

We traveled 194 miles.  The route: I-95S to Howland, ME-6 west to Lagrange, ME-16 west to Kingfield.  The sky was overcast most of the day.  After we left I-95, the roads were 2-lane, pretty rough and heavily traveled by timber trucks.  The region felt remote and very isolated.

Towns and villages were very small along the route.  Milo was one of the larger towns.  We found a delightful place for lunch there.  Elaine’s Café and Bakery offered a wide selection that included grilled cheese sandwiches on homemade bread, delicious chili, hand-cut fries and homemade onion rings.  We had some of each and really enjoyed them.

Elaine's Cafe

Milo from Elaine's parking lot

We ended the day at Deer Farm Campground.  It’s high in the hills and deep in the woods.  The place is isolated and dated.  We were one of only two resident campers.

 Site #30 - Deer Farm Campground