First WIRELESS post!

I’m baaaack! Got to LOVE Erie, PA, for having a wireless connection on their town green! If only every city adopted this idea.

It’s been a rather harried trip so far—what with the breakdown and all—but I think I’m finally finding my groove.

Since my last posting in Vermont, we have had some lovely adventures. Since I’m paying long distance for my dial-up (why didn’t I get the local numbers before I left?) I’ll try to sum up now, and add more detailed posts on Friday when I have a day off in Minneapolis (and access to my sister’s high-speed access.)

Saturday, as you will recall, was a rather hectic day, but it ended well with Roxie II speeding along happily over the mountains and through the woods in a dense fog. After taking an hour to drive 26 miles from St. Johnsbury, VT, to Lancaster, NH, we gave up for the night and found a cabin at a campsite. When we woke up on Sunday, everything looked bright and new in the gorgeous White Mountain morning sunshine. We immediately and eagerly headed toward Mt. Washington.

At Mt. Washington, we decided to drive to the top (after all, it was there,) but when we approached the gate, we found that it cost $25 for the quick hour jaunt. Since Steinbeck didn’t mention going there, and Judy and I live only a few miles away, we decided we’d bag the mountain climb this trip and pick it up again at some later date. Besides, we were anxious to get to Deer Isle.

After taking approximately 8 hours to cross Maine, we finally arrived at Deer Isle and went directly to the campground headed by the charming Capt. Bill. It was a beautiful place and I was seriously sorry we no longer had Roxie because I would have loved to stay there on the water. However since we now had the van and Capt. Bill didn’t have any cabins (although he offered to get us a tent for cheap,) we made a call to a local motel in downtown Stonington. We luckily found a room at Boyce’s Motel on Main Street. (I will be back on April 1 to take that boat ride, however, Capt!) Then we had a quick seafood dinner at the only restaurant that seemed to be open at 7:00 p.m. on a Sunday night, the Fisherman’s Friend Restaurant, and hit the hay early.

When Judy and I woke up in the morning and stepped out of the quaint apartment/motel room for our morning walk, we were immediately stopped in our tracks when we saw the harbor. The sun was just rising, but there was already a scurry of activity by the docks. Mist was rising over the water, and gulls were swooping over the lobster traps. It was like a living, breathing postcard. It was quite possibly one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen. I was simply stunned. We went for an extra long morning constitutional and grabbed a quick breakfast before heading over to Brenda Gilchrist’s home.

Brenda greeted us with a warm smile and lots of stories about not only the house and Steinbeck’s visit, but also of the Isle and its history. We met Gabi, her corgi, (who is famous in her own right being the subject of several books Brenda wrote and illustrated) and we were shown the room in which Steinbeck most likely ate the lobster dinner he raved about in “Travels with Charley”. Brenda graciously let us photograph the house and property and even gave me some copies of her books. On Friday, I will put up some photos of these beautiful booklets, and if anyone would like to order any, please let me know and I will forward your requests to her. (She doesn’t have a web page yet, but if there is enough demand, she said she would probably get one.)

We reluctantly left Deer Isle around 12:30 p.m. and decided to try to get to Bar Harbor to see the Queen Mary 2, which had docked early that morning on her maiden voyage. By 2:00, we were stuck in traffic, and still had a good distance to go, and since we were already two days behind schedule, we decided to sadly turn around and head back toward Vermont. Also, due to our delay in Massachusetts at the beginning of the trip its effect on our limited timetable, we were unable to do the northern Maine loop that we wanted to do.

In the end, it proved to be the right decision, since we got to St. Albans, VT, late on Monday night, and drove “hell for leather” toward Erie, PA, yesterday. After a brief but moving visit to Niagara Falls (I was more freaked out by the rushing water than Judy was!) and a fabulous roast beef dinner at Schwabl’s in Buffalo with some friends, we finally arrived in Erie late last night and are once again back on schedule.

Now that we’re out of the mountains of New England, I suspect it will be much easier for me to keep this blog updated. I have to admit I was frustrated and extremely surprised to find that New England was so technologically challenged. I guess that’s the trade off we make for all that natural beauty.

For today, we’re heading for the Windy City. On Thursday we should be in the Twin Cities, and Friday is a much-needed day off for catching up on communication, doing laundry (Judy and I are starting to smell like we’ve been on the road a while,) and seeing friends. Our adventure will begin once more on Saturday with clean underwear and a fresh film crew!

Thanks for all the kind thoughts and e-mails! Keep ‘em coming!

Read the post from September 30 (Pennsylvania to Illinois)

Comments

[Dennis]

WSEE in Erie, PA covered your visit during their newscast. Short article on their site -
http://www.35wsee.com/news2a.cfm?more=6657&category=1&news=fullstory

[Jon Schwartz]

Congrats on your journey! Fred and Ginger send their best to Judy, who may never respond the same again to "Ya wanna go for a ride?"

Much love,

Jon