We left our spot near New Haven, Connecticut yesterday morning and headed for Manhattan. The GPS said our new RV spot for the next couple of days was just a short ninety-eight miles away. We were pretty proud of the fact we had found a place that looked really close to everything we wanted to see. It was a lovely drive. We navigated through some tricky places, and we were congratulating ourselves on our ability to remain calm and follow the GPS map… and the reassuring voice of the GPS lady we have come to trust. Less seasoned RV travelers could surely benefit from our obvious expertise, we decided.

Then…for some reason, we have yet to figure out, our GPS lady turned on us.

Kip: This place is in Jersey City, right? We’re supposed to exit in a couple of miles and head west through the Bronx. I figured we’d probably stay on 95 and go across George Washington Bridge and then down to New Jersey.

MG: Remember the other day when we thought the GPS lady didn’t know what she was doing so we didn’t follow her map and we got lost?

Kip: You’re right. She must know a better way.

A little while later…

Kip: I can’t possibly turn up that street! It’s too narrow and there are cars parked on both sides. I’m going to have to go straight!

Mary: Wait! GPS is rerouting. That’s never a good sign. Haven’t we been on this street before? Watch out for the pedestrians!!!

Kip: What is that up ahead?

Mary: Let me look on the map. That’s the Queensbury Bridge. I think the GPS lady wants us to go across it.

After going around in circles to find a street that would accommodate us (never mind the Jeep we’re towing), going around a construction crew twice, and listening to two GPS ladies, (by this time, I had my cell GPS going too), we made it to the bridge that we hoped would get us closer to our destination…

Kip: We can’t go on this bridge!

Mary: What are you doing? We’re stopped on a very busy highway. We have to keep moving!!

GPS lady: Clearance violation! Clearance violation!!!

nmp

Kip: It says maximum clearance is eleven feet! We’re eleven feet and six inches!!

Mary: I think that bridge’s clearance looks higher than it says.

Kip: Me too!

GPS lady: Clearance violation!!

Kip and Mary: Shut up!!

Silence as we proceeded to go across the bridge…Both of us are ducking our heads. It had to be close, but we didn’t hear any “ripping off the roof” noises.

nmp

After we said, “Thank you, God,” we saw a tunnel up ahead. There was a guard waving at us to stop.
 Kip slowed down and managed to get his window open. The guy yelled something and Kip said, “No.” The guy nodded and we proceeded to go through the one and a half mile long Holland Tunnel. It dawned on me that all three dogs had disappeared with the cat. We later found them hiding under the table.

Mary: Did that guy ask if we had propane? (We do…)

Kip: Maybe…I couldn’t really hear him.

Silence…even both of the GPS ladies kept there mouths shut.

nmp

After getting through the tunnel without blowing up, we cautiously breathed a sigh of relief. We were on the New Jersey side. We made it to the less than beautiful, but absolute best RV spot ever. I will tell you why we love it so much when I write about yesterday afternoon and today…probably tomorrow.

Kip: Well at least we know we won’t blow up in a tunnel even though we have propane.

Me: I bet they’re trying to find us now. That guard is probably telling the authorities,”That guy had propane and lied about it!”

GPS lady: (I had accidentally hit the microphone on my cell and she thought I was trying to verbally ask for directions.) “I don’t know what to do with… that guy had propane and lied about it!”

Kip: Oh great! She’ll probably share that with Google…

So far, we have escaped the law. We plan to head out before dawn tomorrow. Stay off the streets of New York…

 nps means not my picture. I was busy when we encountered the bridges and tunnels…

We left this beautiful spot close to Provincetown yesterday morning…

And hit the road toward New York City. We stopped at a Walmart along the way to pick up a few supplies, make a quick sandwich, and walk the dogs. We decided we weren’t going to make it all the way to New York, so I called and switched our reservations to Sunday and Monday night. 

We passed through parts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island yesterday and started looking for a spot for the night when we hit Connecticut. Apparently, people aren’t adventuresome here. There didn’t appear to be anything at all, until I spotted something off the exit we were about ready to pass by. Kip managed to make the turn and we drove the eight perilous miles up narrow roads to what looked like a pretty nice park. We drove right up to the gate…that didn’t open. That’s when we noticed the little sign that said, “See you in 1919.” Now what? We were faced with unhooking the car, and trying to back SeeYa out of a pretty tough spot. We spent a couple of minutes wondering who was to blame for this predicament when we saw a guy in a truck drive by. He was inside the gate. He stopped to dump some garbage in a trash bin, and I jumped out to catch him, hoping he would be able to find a way to get us through the gate so we could turn around and leave. 

Fifteen minutes later, he did just that, and we got out of there and headed back to the highway. About an hour later, we were considering the prospect of finding a place to boondoggle when I found another spot on the internet. Their website said they were open all year, so we took the exit. This time we called before we got there. (You might have to hit us over the head with a board, but sometimes we learn.)

On the third try, a guy answered and said to come on in. And here we are. It’s Sunday morning and we’re preparing to head out! First, we’ll stop at this quaint little restaurant for a delightful breakfast.

If you have been inclined to say a prayer for us, now might be the time to do it! This place we’re going to sounds like our best option to be able to see the sights and take care of the dogs and cat. The reviews stink, but it’s all about choices. It’s within walking distance to a short ferry ride to the city and we’re supposed to be able to see the Statue of Liberty from our camping spot which in the pictures looks like a parking lot. 

Stay tuned! Kip and Mary camping in New York City could get interesting! Gotta go!

When you’re on an RV trip, sometimes you have to shoot from the hip. There is virtually no way you can adhere to a schedule, and if you get thrown by an interruption or a change in plans, then RV Travel is not for you.

After our long day, and our eight mile walk through Boston Common and beyond, Kip and I were a little slow getting going yesterday morning. We had intended to drive to New York, but there was an issue…I wanted to see Cape Cod, which is only about forty miles from the Boston/Cape Cod KOA where we were staying. We decided to walk down to the office and pay for another day. It was a good plan.

Unfortunately, there was no room at the inn. They had booked the entire park for the whole week-end. We hurried back to the RV and got everything ready to go before the eleven o’clock check-out time. Then we headed for Cape Cod.

I had taken a few minutes to check online for a reasonably priced RV park that hadn’t closed for the season. I found a couple that looked like they would work, so we headed down the road without calling either of them. Why? Well, because we didn’t know how much time we wanted to spend there. I had been terribly disappointed the night before, when while doing some research on a TV show that had made me fall in love with Cape Cod, I discovered it had been filmed in Mendicino.  Cabot Cove was in California of all things. The entire ‘Murder She Wrote’ series was 3000 miles from the truth!

Anyway it all worked out!

In the last pic, we were turning into Sweetwater Forest RV Park in Brewster, MA. I forgot to take pictures when we got here, but I will later this morning. It’s next to a horse ranch and the off season rates aren’t bad at all.

After we got settled in, we put the dogs in the Jeep and drove to Provincetown. It was just like I had pictured the little town of Cabot Cove would look like.

Pilgrim Monument was built in 1910 to commemorate the first Pilgrim’s landfall in 1620 and the signing of the Mayflower Compact in Privincetown Harbor.

The downtown area has numerous quaint bed and breakfasts. I can imagine Provincetown is covered up with visitors in the spring and summer.

I wish I had captured more of the neighborhood homes. The streets are very narrow and the town is hilly. The homes are all two story and almost all of them have the New England style shake siding. I love them!

I was trying to show the picures of the weathered old women painted on the side of the building in the distance.

Below are pictures of the sand dunes.

I can’t wait to see what today brings! Happy Saturday!

By the time we packed up and left Maine, Wednesday, and got settled in at the Boston /Cape Cod KOA, it was almost 3 pm, so we decided to spend the remainder of the beautiful afternoon taking the dogs for a nice long walk and then we ran some errands.

Arriving in Boston

SeeYa did not like the tunnel and neither did the rest of us. We lost the GPS signal in the middle of it. This tunnel requires a lot of lane changes and there are a couple of exits inside there. Kip remained calm and managed to get us out. Then he skillfully backtracked through the tunnel and found the correct route, while I yelled, “Come back GPS lady! Come back!”

Time to relax

We took the dogs for another long walk in the morning and after getting them all settled, we headed to catch the train to Boston. It was an hour long ride to downtown. When we arrived, it was bitter cold. We finally made our way to Boston Common where the Freedom Trail begins. There was a nice little coffee shop across the street, so we warmed up with coffee and thick slices of banana bread. By the time we got started on the trail, the wind had died down, so it was considerably more comfortable.

On the train…

Coffee shop…

We decided to walk the red path on the Freedom Trail that takes you to several points of interest.

Thank you for the suggestion, Anne. It was a great way to see a lot of history.

You can see the red Freedom Trail in some of the pictures. It should have been easy to follow it for the easy 2.5 miles. Right?

Kip’s favorite stop…The USS Constitution

John Paul Jones, Kip McNinch, and his flapper hat wife, Mary, all graced the decks of the oldest commissioned ship in the United States Navy…just not at the same time…

Is there a bakery in Paul Revere’s house? No? Oh, wait! Here’s one!

Unfortunately, we lost track of the Freedom Trail a couple of times and the 2.5 miles turned into eight! (This was according to my fitness watch.)

I was beginning to wish we had followed cousin Bobby’s advice and taken the bus tour, but then the banana bread and danish along with the nice lunch of pumpkin soup and delicious cornbread would have showed up this morning. My only mistake was wearing those boots.

When we got back to camp, we decided to put the dogs in the car and drive the 15 miles to see Plymouth Rock.

Here it is…

Actually, Plymouth was beautiful…

It has taken me two hours to download these pictures (slow internet). Some of these are Kip’s. My battery ran down because I had to use the walking GPS a couple of times. I have several more and maybe better pics, but I have to get a move on. My feet hurt and the dogs need walking before we pack up and head for our next adventure!

We had a busy day yesterday, and I was so full and so tired after enjoying a wonderful trout dinner at the Muddy Rudder, I chose bed over blog. 

We were really excited to get to spend time with our friends, Pat and Jerry Davis’ daughter, Amy Rorer, her husband, Keith, and almost 13 year old son, Nate.

Kip had thought about it all day and decided he was going to tackle a WHOLE Maine lobster. He almost chickened out, but the server told him they didn’t have four pound lobster tails.

Amy took some priceless pictures. Kip and I were both grateful that Keith was sitting close enough to show him how to dismantle his dinner. He loved every morsel of meat. He even went whole hog and upgraded his potatoes. (On the way back to the RV we stopped at a gas station to air up a jeep tire and I went inside and got him an apple turnover for dessert.)

The process…

(The first challenge was to get the durnned bib on.)

(Keith quickly showed Kip how the cow ate the cabbage…an old Wyoming expression.)

My trout was delicious and we really enjoyed the time we had with this fun family!

******

Earlier in the day we drove to Cape Elizabeth and Two Lights State Park. The day was sunny and crisp, but there was no wind and it felt good to walk along the trails. Everywhere we go, the puppydogs get lots of attention, especially Cyndie.

Old army bunker on the beach…

The dogs enjoyed the 10,000 sq ft dog park at the KOA

Today, we’re off to Boston! Anybody have any relatives there?

Who knew 95% of the RV campgrounds in the Northeast close on the 15th of October? We’ve actually been challenged with finding good spots this past week. Niagara Falls was no problem, accept even the KOA’s wanted $100.00 per night! Now that’s enough to ruin a good time! I managed to find the Niagara Falls RV Park, which was around seven miles from the falls, and had everything we needed for $55.00 per night.

This afternoon, as we neared Bangor, Maine, we couldn’t find zip. Everything closed yesterday. Finally, I called a park, which is near a lake and a little remote. I got a recording that said, “Your call is very important to us and we’ll call you back,” (instead of) “We are closed for the season.”

While we waited for them to call us right back, we decided… or rather I decided, we should go ahead and drive out there. I got worried when we turned onto a very bumpy road and after driving a couple of miles, pulled into what looked like a nice, but desserted boy scout camp. A guy came walking out of the office to tell us they closed September 30th. He must have seen my panicked look, because he said, “If you want to pull into a spot and you don’t need any services, I’ll show you to a nice one.”

We have our generator, and fresh, grey, and black water storage tanks, so we…I mean I, decided we should go for it. The place is full of motor homes, but there is no one in them. The owners spend the summers here, then winterize their RV’s and let them sit here empty until spring.

The guy, Tim, who let us stay here, said, “Feel free to walk all over with your dogs. There’s no one else here. “Then he said, “Personally, I think it’s kind of creepy… but the sunset is beautiful!”

After we checked it all out, we let the dogs run all over without a leash. Cyndie went up to everybody’s door. She couldn’t figure out where all the people were.

Kip was able to get several TV channels with just the antenna and is happily watching the Cowboy game.

We had another great day on the road. At my friend, Nancy’s suggestion, we stopped and walked through a couple of the old cemeteries that dated back to the Revolutionary War days.

Here are some shots taken from SeeYa’s windows. I think they’re better than yesterdays.

So, here we are at the Pushaw Lake Campground…I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars…Thanks Tim!

We left the Niagara Falls RV park yesterday morning…

We drove through beautiful country and stopped for the night in Lake George, New York. Today, we drove through Vermont and parts of New Hampshire. I could fill a book with all the pictures of barns, churches and fall colors I have taken these last three weeks. Most have been taken from SeeYa’s window, but Kip doesn’t like me to yell, “STOP,” everytime I see something picturesque.

We drove on good roads and passed through quaint little towns that were like none I have ever seen before. We stopped for lunch in Woodstock, New Hampshire. This slideshow has photos of some of this charming mountain town… (And also, what we had for lunch.) Oh, and Bigfoot is in there too, and a few pumpkins. I almost forgot to include the one of Kip staring down the end of a cannon.

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We are now in Tamworth, NH. The campground is woodsy and beautiful. It was a crisp fall day… and it was perfect.

I’ve had some problems with the blog, but I’m hoping all is well now and you can enjoy these photographs of Niagara Falls, the beautiful Niagara Gorge, and Whirlpool State Park.

When I see a woman wearing layers of makeup, I always wonder what she looks like when she washes her face. I have never worn much more than a light foundation, some mascara, and…Mom always insisted women should put some color on their lips… so I always do. 

My skin care products all too often include only soap and water and whatever moisturizer is on sale at Walmart. I have come to regret not taking better care of my skin.

When we were visiting my son’s family in Wyoming a couple of weeks ago, I noticed how great my daughter-in-law, Amy’s skin looked. She started telling me about a new skin care line she began using and she loves it so much, she became a consultant. It’s not make up, it’s skin care. She has also had great success with the eyelash treatment. 

I’m going to start using these Rodan + Fields  products. I’m in my sixties (okay, 67 on 12/31) and I’m looking for a skin care regimen that doesn’t take a lot of time and gives me measurable results. I want my skin to be resilient and look it’s best. 

I’m willing to try something different. 

I’m including some before pictures. Keep in mind, I write a blog that often speaks of the humorous side of life. I will offer my honest opinion and unretouched photographs.  There is no vanity showing up in these shots…

If you get curious and want more information on Rodan + Fields, you can email me at: kmtexas2@gmail.com 

I am a new consultant, but right now, I am concentrating on my personal experience with the above regimen.

Here we go!

Oh dear…I’m going to have to take my neck and chin out of the shadows I see…

Thinning eyebrows and no eyelashes whatsoever…seen enough?

 We shall see what we shall see 🙂

Last night we stayed at this beautiful KOA in Thompson, Ohio. 

We knew our our friend, Ron Spahlinger’ s parents, Fran and Merrill, lived somewhere in Ohio, so Kip sent Ron a text just to see if we were anywhere close to them. Ron and Barbara are travelling, too, but Ron got back to Kip this morning and it turned out we were only about an hour away. These gracious people said they would love for us to drop by. In fact, Ron’s brother, Rick, suggested we park SeeYa in the American Legion parking lot and he was there waiting for us when we pulled in. He drove us the short distance to Fran and Merrill’s lovely place on Lake Milton.. Rick and his wife, Rita, have a beautiful home right next door. We really had a great time! It was a glorious day to sit out on the back deck and look at the amazing view of the lake while we all talked a mile a minute.

I wish we could have stayed longer. We had the pleasure of meeting Rick and Rita when they were visiting Ron and Barb in Texas, but we had never met Fran and Merrill. They’re the kind of people who make you feel like you’ve known them forever. They told us they are both turning ninety-five next year and will be celebrating their 75th wedding anniversary. They are both so young at heart and I know the musical talent in the Spahlinger family is amazing.

Fran said Ron and Barb’s granddaughter, Kaylee, loves to play this when she visits.

 

It was an afternoon we didn’t want to end, but we knew we had to hit the road if we were going to make it to Niagara Falls. We got here right before dark.

I’m loving this trip!

More Ohio photos…