MAINE, VERMONT and UPSTATE NEW YORK JULY 8 thru JULY 28

The lure of visiting two more state capitals and of seeing the world’s largest rotating and revolving globe, EARTHA, made us settle on our path for the rest of the month before our commitment as camp hosts in August.
Eartha was designed and built by employees of De Lorme, a computer map-making company in the little town of Yarmouth, Maine. The 140 gigabytes of map data needed for Eartha to be developed was obtained from satellite imagery, shaded relief, colored bathymetry (ocean-depth data) and information about road networks and urban areas. Most people are probably impressed by the sight of oceans and continents rotating past them but Eartha also gives one a feeling of the awesome nature of our beautiful, blue planet, Earth.

Along with the better known Maine cities of Portland, Augusta, Bangor and Bar Harbor we experienced the smaller towns of Searsport, Belfast, Bucksport and Ellsworth. Travelers to Maine are told to expect to see a rocky, rugged, pine-rimmed coastline punctuated with inlets, islands, harbors and coves; to spot colorful fishing boats and windjammers quietly moored or briskly afloat; to view majestic sea captains’ mansions in towns that evoke the spirit of their maritime roots; to sit under a shady umbrella on a pier while lunching on delicious local seafood. We managed to see and do all these and more.
The Penobscot Narrows Bridge at Bucksport with an observatory at the top of the 42’ tower.
Along the Shore Trail in Bar Harbor

View from fishing pier in Freeport

Along the road near Ellsworth

Victorian building in downtown Belfast


We vied at spotting the “MAINE-LY ____ ”or “MAINLY MAINE _____ ”signs that are
popular on shops. There must be a Maine tradition that towns display the American flag all summer. No town or township matched the number we saw in Dorrington. The flags, attached to every other telephone pole, went on and on for miles, even where there were no longer any homes or businesses.

The Maine State House in Augusta was designed by Charles Bullfinch and closely resembles the Massachusetts State House but is built from local granite. The Maine State Museum was located in the same complex as the State House and was well worth the $2 admission. The social history on the top floor was especially interesting.

Mike remembering having a car just like this.

Our stay in the hamlet of Newburgh enabled us to take many day trips around the Bangor/Arcadia area. By invitation our RV was parked on the Piper Mountain Christmas Tree Farm. Our hosts were owners Jim and Norma Corliss. We were treated to fresh raspberries from their garden each morning. Jim is a retired air traffic controller and a private pilot who lands in the grass fields when he flies about Maine. He and Mike talked about their adventures. Jim was the president of the National Christmas Tree Growers Association for several years so he got to deliver a couple of the National Christmas Trees to the White House. On one visit, George W. Bush invited Jim and Norma into the Oval Office for a visit and photo op (a picture he proudly displays). Jim remembers commenting that never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would be in the Oval Office. Bush quickly responded “me too”.

We encountered many logging trucks as we followed the Androscoggin River into New Hampshire. We still find ourselves wondering at all the rivers, lakes and water we see. Guess that is because we lived in dry and arid Los Angeles so long. We set out to drive to the top of Mount Washington, the highest point in NH at 6,288 feet, but decided the visibility was not going to be good enough for such a trek. Mike was amazed to learn about the record wind velocities recorded at the top of what is not a very tall peak.

The scenery changed as we headed into Vermont and approached the Montpelier region. The forest opened up to lush, rolling, green pastures dotted with barns. We did not see many cows as they were probably inside the barns keeping cool. We were told on the tour at the Cabot Creamery, cows are delicate creatures. Vermont dairies provide milk for the famous ice-cream and cheeses made here.

Vermont’s State House is located in the smallest capital city in America, Montpelier. The intimate size and the exacting restoration of its interior made it one of the jewels among the state capitols we’ve visited. Montpelier’s downtown has a very casual, hippy-like atmosphere. Donna’s birthday was celebrated at Rainbow Sweets Bakery and Café in Marshfield. The owner gives a witty and unique spiel that acts as the menu. Most items come from the huge black oven that dominates the café’s space. One of the signature pastries is a duo of warm caramel encrusted balls filled with custard, sitting on a whipped cream covered pastry shell. The owners have been known to call this “balled” desert after tough guys, Sean Connery, Johnny Depp and Brad Pitt.

Nestled between the Green Mountains of Vermont and the Adirondacks of New York is Lake Champlain. It is the 6th largest freshwater lake in the U.S. We crossed the lake by way of the string of Lake Champlain Islands from Burlington, VT. The Chazy Reef, the oldest known fossil (coral) reef in the world, is near these islands. The road took us by fields of corn and hay and very low-key villages with no fast-food or brand-name stores to be seen. Boating and biking seem to be the main attractions for vacationers here. After crossing the bridge to Rouses Point, NY, we came within eyesight of the Canadian border.

From our campsite along the AuSable River we set out to explore some of the vast Adirondack Park. Lake Placid was our destination but a wrong turn at Au Sable Forks took us over some high country to Saranac Lake instead. Finding our way back to Lake Placid we explored some of the shops on its Main Street with hordes of other tourists looking to do the same thing --- not very placid. A stop at the Wilmington Flume Area enabled us to have a brief experience of walking high above the rush of water that still is carving its way through the stone underground. Out of the High Peaks the AuSable River is joined by numerous streams as it spreads out and empties into Lake Champlain. The river was once the principle highway and power source which helped the towns along it to grow. But, as late as 1999, tremendous floods caused by ice jams in the river’s bends, have wiped out bridges and businesses in this area.

From Mount Defiance we had a great view of Fort Ticonderoga and its strategic location above the narrow choke-point between Lake Champlain and Lake George. No wonder this fort saw many battles for control by French, British and American forces.
In the town of Ticonderoga one can view the system of dams, falls, and canals along the La Chute River that were built to support the mills operating there. One of the mills was the American Graphite or Lead Mill which made plumbago from a nearby graphite mine. This plumbago was used in the manufacture of lead pencils by the Dixon Company of Jersey City, NJ. To sell more of its pencils, the historical exploits of the Green Mountain Boys at Fort Ticonderoga were used in Dixon’s advertising promotions thus linking the two names, Dixon-Ticonderoga. The small Ticonderoga Heritage Museum offered excellent displays and information about this and the pulp and paper industry so important in the town’s industrial history.

During a stay in the outskirts of Schenectady, we drove through Amsterdam into the southern area of the Adirondack Park around Speculator. A later trip to Albany and the New York State Museum explained the cool and misty nature of that Adirondack wilderness. The World Trade Center exhibit showed how the distinctive steel pieces were interwoven to build the internal skeleton for the Twin Towers. The jagged silhouettes of those pieces are what make photos of the aftermath of 911 so poignant.

Passing through the Susquehanna Heritage Area, we got to see several historic wood carousels. The word carousel originally referred to the tournament in which knights participated. The knights would train for spearing contests by lancing rings as they rode wooden horses that revolved around a center pole. These training devices also became known as carousels. Here in the greater Binghamton area there are six of the 19 remaining Allan Herschell wood-carved carousels known to be operational. George F. Johnson, a local shoe manufacturer, along with his family donated them to the community because he felt carousels provided a recreation that contributes to a happy life. Along with the joy of riding a “jumper” and hearing the Wurlitzer Band Organ music, carousels are works of art, each offering unique details to discover.





Up at the Kopernik Observatory in nearby Vestal, there was a hubbub of activity. This observatory is dedicated to introduce young people in grades 1-12 to astronomy. We were shown around by the manager of programs at the center. She, a mathematics major who wants to teach at the high-school level, was enthusiastic about being able to work with the 1st and 2nd graders who were there that day and was proud of the spirit of the people who work to have such a resource in their community. The Polish Cultural Society of Binghamton provides the funding for this observatory that started as one man’s interest and obsession. This was quite a different experience from our visits to the noted Kitt Peak, McDonald Mountain and Palomar Observatories.

In the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania we had nearly reached our August destination in Virginia. A resident in the town of Tamaqua ,where we were staying for the night, said we should go to Jim Thorpe if we were looking for an interesting place to visit. The town’s location on the banks of the Lehigh River between several steep mountains has kept it the “best preserved 19th century town in Pennsylvania”. Coal and the Lehigh Railroad brought prosperity and tourism to this place called the “Switzerland of America”.
I9 of the country’s 26 millionaires at that time had a residence here.
The town’s original name of Mauch Chunk was changed in 1954 to Jim Thorpe when his widow brought his remains from Oklahoma to be enshrined there. The citizens thought the name change might help revive the lively and thriving spirit of the town.

THE GREAT RIVER ROAD and BEYOND - JUNE 3 thru JULY 8

It was now time to set out for the east coast. Crossing into Louisiana we went across the 25 mile Breaux Bridge. It is a four lane road raised above the Atchafalaya River and its watery surrounds. It gives one a sense of what lies in bayou country, a wild and unforgiving place. This is the area where exiles from Arcadia were allowed to settle. They were able to survive because they were hunters and fishermen. Hopefully, we will be able to explore this area more fully someday

Mike had thought the Great River Road would give us a sense of how the Mississippi River affects the places along it, much like we experienced when following the Natchez Trace. It turned out there were very few places to really do this as the road bypassed the towns, museums were closed on the days we wanted to visit and there were not many places to view the river itself. In Louisiana the look of the land was that of plantation country with stately tall oaks draped with moss, old lichen covered gravestones, and lots of vegetation. There were grand homes once former plantations, small wood cottages and ornate Victorian houses and businesses to be seen around St. Francisville and Port Gibson.




Our trip into Baton Rouge and the state capitol was done in the pouring rain. But southern hospitality was not dampened any. The security guard in the capitol building told us to look at a new bicentennial display showing the first Lone Star Flag that flew over what was then part of West Florida for 74 days. The observation deck up on the 27th floor of the 34 story building was closed due to the rain. The building resembles the Empire State Building, which was built the year before. We talked with Peggy, the clerk at the gift shop on the 27th floor, about herself and her travel dreams. We left with gifts of our visit with her. The officer outside the legislature escorted us in to sit near the pages to hear the business being done.

Baton Rouge on the Mississippi - Capitol in background


After the capitol visit it was time for lunch. We ate oyster Po Boys and crawfish etoufee to sample some Louisiana cuisine.



Traveling on through Mississippi the land turned to corn and cane fields. We found the Great River road to be mostly boring so we left it just north of Memphis, Tennessee. We drove through Kentucky on a previously traveled route to West Virginia.

As we traveled through West Virginia we marveled at the sight of houses and roads in the hollows far beneath us as our roadway took us across bridges spanning hill after hill. Why did they choose to live at the bottom and shadow of the hill instead of on its top? We thought we would stop and walk around downtown Charlestown as we missed doing that when we last came through. However we missed the exit and again missed seeing if Charleston was as interesting as advertised. But, that gave us time to later see Clarksburg’s historic district and to have dinner in a home turned into a spaghetti restaurant. The Italian miners who came to work in the coal mines took salami, pepperoni, or bologna with hunks of hearth-baked bread down into the depths of the coal seams in their lunch pails. The Pepperoni Roll, a Clarksburg favorite was thus invented and has endured till today!

In Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New Hampshire we visited with family and friends. A high-school graduation celebration, two christenings and several cookouts were main events. We had 8 year old Kate Levesque with us traveling from Yardley, PA to Nashua, NH. Her first trip in an RV was made longer and more exciting as we had to take several detours on the way. The detours were reminders that sometimes bridges on back roads can be too low or cannot support our 16 ton RV.

Kevin’s graduation party



Kristen, Tim and Charlotte Wood



Paul, Fran and Granddaughter Kate Levesque



Mariah, Kira, Erin, Johnny and Johnathan Baranowski








We drove into Trenton, New Jersey to visit the State House. Close by, in Hamilton, NJ, was Grounds For Sculpture. Here, more than 250 sculptures by renowned and emerging artists are installed in a marvelously varied landscape of exotic trees, flowers and waterscapes. Seward Johnson founded this parkland of art and nature. His life-like sculptures are scattered in sometimes hidden pockets of the park. In fact, when we were having our lunch at an outside table tucked in a corner beneath some bamboo, a woman stared at us for awhile and then apologized because she said she thought we might be one of his sculptures. Here are examples of some of the sculptures and their settings.





One hot day while in NH, we decided to drive to Providence, Rhode Island to visit the State House. The white marble façade and the many stairs leading up to the building were dazzling in the hot sun. We then learned that the public entrance was on the opposite side. Once inside we found it was not air-conditioned. We, needless to say, did not spend much time on our self-guided tour.

The steps and white granite façade of the Rhode Island State House


Though the downtown looked interesting we decided to stay inside our air-conditioned car and drive down to Newport where along Naragansett Bay and the ocean it might be cooler. Rhode Island is aptly nicknamed The Ocean State.