Day Thirty-two

Day thirty-two we went for a cruise on the Erie Canal on the Colonial Belle.  We drove to Fairport, NY, which is close to Rochester, and boarded a double-decker boat for a leisurely cruise up and down the canal.  Along the way, the boat captain gave a lecture about some of the history of the canal, and the small towns along the way. 

The Erie Canal was started in 1917 and took eight years to complete.  It runs 363 miles from Albany, NY on the Hudson River all the way across New York to Buffalo, NY at Lake Erie.  We passed under several low bridges, and we even had to duck our heads a couple of time if we were sitting on the upper deck, because we could literally reach up and touch the bottom of the bridges!

It was a beautiful day for a boat ride, and very relaxing and entertaining.  At the halfway point of our journey, we went through a lock in the canal, and Sam especially loved that experience!  We were all amazed at how quickly the water rose and fell within the lock chamber, just from gravity!  We rose/fell a distance of twenty-five feet!

Some dinner at a local eatery finished up the excursion for the day, and we headed back to the coach.

Day Thirty-one

Oh boy!  I haven't posted on here in a few days - I can feel my ears burning!!!  :)

Okay, on day thirty-one we went to the Rochester Museum and Science Center - another freebie thanks to my annual pass with Great Explorations!  The first thing we did when we arrived was eat lunch at their cafe - we sat outside in their courtyard to eat.  While we were out there, we got to see a sample of the airshow that was going to perform on the weekend - the Blue Angels kept flying over doing some different aerobatics and formations - cool!  A couple of times they passed over pretty close and made everyone jump from the noise!

The Science Center was very cool - lots of cool exhibits about electricity.  There was one area where they had small mechanical displays that were interactive and explained all manner of things, like light switches, disc brakes, locks and keys, etc.  I found it very interesting, as did the whole family!

There was a beautiful exhibit room about the different tribes of Indians that had inhabited the region - a little over Sam's head, but mom and dad enjoyed it!  :)

Day Thirty

Day thirty was spent at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge.  This a nice, large refuge that is home to lots of different birds, as well as some small mammals.  We drove the car trail, and Sam had a blast while getting the best view from standing up and hanging out of the sunroof!

We walked one of the trails to check out the view from an observation tower.  Along the driving trail, we stopped at a trail to a photo blind that was set up for visitors.  Unfortunately, (for us) there was an airboat in the marsh practicing his skills, so the noise scared away most of the birds in the area for a while.  We will go back another day to check out more trails.

At the visitor center, there were two large bird houses set up for martens, and they were plentiful.  Inside the visitor center, the docent was very helpful explaining the trails and species to view.  There were several nesting sights for ospreys, and also a couple of bald eagle nests in the refuge.

While walking around, we saw a small millipede, leopard frogs, lots of dragonflies, some cool forest snails all over the milkweed plants, and lots of different birds.  We spotted great blue herons, canada geese, one unidentified goose, martens, robins, red-winged blackbirds, ospreys, greater yellowlegs, semipalmated plovers, and one beautiful yellow bird that we believe was a species of warbler.

When our stomachs began to growl, we drove into Seneca Falls and had lunch at Parker's Grill and Tavern.  Seneca Falls is a quaint small town with the typical Main Street lined with old brick buildings - reminiscent of my childhood.  We had a yummy lunch (late lunch) and meandered back to the coach to relax for the evening.

Day Twenty-nine

Day twenty-nine was bookwork day - gotta work sometime!  The only trip for the day was a drive to Ovid to the post office to pick up the mail.  Ovid is a VERY small town, with a Dollar General store, and I stopped at their grocery store, Big M, for a couple of items.  There are a lot of Amish living in this area, and I saw one horse and carriage in town.

Day Twenty-eight

Day twenty-eight found us heading to NY state – camping in a town called Ovid which is on Cayuga Lake, and near Rochester and Syracuse.  We were sad to leave Pepere’s house, but also excited to be back on the road.  It was a nice uneventful trip, and we are all setup and settled in for the night.  Relax time!

Day Twenty-seven

Day twenty-seven was a slow starter, since Jim and his Dad stayed up most of the night talking.  J  We all went to the new Connecticut Science Center in Hartford – Jim’s dad had free passes for the whole family.  It was a beautiful place!  Sam had a blast with all of the interactive exhibits.  We spent the whole day there, and it was great!  I think we all learned something new.

After dinner, we watched some old home movies – Sam was so excited to see himself as a baby!  There were some more videos of a boat cruise we took around Manhatten Island with Jim’s dad and his brother, Robert, in July of 2000.  Sam said Jim and I looked different – no way!  J  Some solemn moments came when we saw the twin towers in place.  At one point, Jim’s dad placed the camera inside it’s bag while it was still running, and that was a hoot!  Sam wanted to see that again and again!  Ha Ha!!

Some older movies were then pulled out showing Jim when he was about three years old, along with two of his sisters, and his mother.  Sam and I really got a kick out of watching those!  The biggest shocker came when one shot showed Jim’s dad – OMG!  George – you are the spitting image of your father!!  You could be twins!  Wow!

Day Twenty-six

Day twenty-six and it was time to leave our home away from home.  After a leisurely morning, we packed up the rig and headed down the road to Manchester, CT to visit Jim’s dad.  We were sad to be leaving!  We arrived at his Dad’s house, and parked the rig in his driveway/parking lot.  His dad told us about a festival they were having on the river in Hartford with food, bands, and fireworks, so we opted to head out.  What a crowd!!  We all snagged something to eat at the food booths while working our way in the direction of the river.  After finding a spot, we settled in for a little while to watch the fireworks display.

The fireworks were actually being sent up from barges in the river, and police boat presence was overwhelming!  What an awesome fireworks display!  Music was played to accompany the display, and it was awesome!  The best display I have ever witnessed live!  Quite the crunch to work our way out of there afterward, but we made it home, where Sam and I dropped into bed.