Some of the New England States

We left New Jersey for the next adventure - the New England States and the beginning of the Yellowstone Trail.  We crossed a corner of New York state and drove through Connecticut to our next destination of Brimfield, Massachusetts.

 

We crossed the Hudson River and drove through some very pretty areas in New York State.

We stopped at the Connecticut Welcome Center but the information center wasn't opened - only the restrooms.  We had seen some rest areas closed but this was the first information center that wasn't opened.

Hartford, CT, was set in a hilly area with lots of trees and interesting old buildings.

Lots of old churches, too.

There was also the part of Hartford with skyscrapers and newer businesses.

Connecticut was the first of the NE states for us to see and Massachusetts was the next one.

We spent a week in an RV park near Brimfield, MA, and we spent some time exploring from there.  Our first day took us towards Boston and Plymouth, MA.  We followed the route of the Yellowstone Trail through Worcester, Boston to Plymouth.  We didn't find anything marked for the Yellowstone Trail.  We saw many very old cemeteries.  They were so amazing.

Sorry about cutting off the top of this church but took the picture on the fly.  It was so beautiful.

There were a lot of old municipal buildings as we traveled and some of them had these ornate structures on top.

These were some of the first buildings (probably apartments or condos) we saw as we got to the Boston area.

There was a college campus along the way.  There were football stadiums, dorms,etc. but we never did see the name of this one pictured below.  We know it wasn't Boston University because we later saw it but weren't able to get a picture because of the direction we were traveling on the freeway.

Before we got to Boston, we passed by the sign for Gore Place.  (Former VP Al Gore)  I felt impressed to see the beautiful area of MA where he had his home.

We got to our destination for the day Plymouth, MA, where we got to see Plymouth Rock.  It's a lot smaller than you would think - about 4 ft by 6 ft - but it was inspiring to be there.  We couldn't help but think of the Pilgrims and the hard times they endured after they arrived.  It was during the winter months and it is said they would not have survived (many didn't) if the Indians had not helped them.

We had a great seafood meal.  The halibut was great but our friend, Suzy, must have gotten some bad clams.  She was pretty sick all night.  Took a few days for her to feel good again but she was a trooper about it. 

We find these type of monuments in many places.  This one was in a city park where we stopped for lunch on our way to Boston.  Some of them honor an era like the Civil War and some of them honor individuals.  It would be difficult to remember all of them but we are thankful to see all these memorials and grateful someone initiates and completes them.

We left our RV's for three days to make a trip to Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.  As part of this trip, our first stop was at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA.  For me, it was a real highlight.  I have collected Norman Rockwell items for many, many years.  Mugs, plates, prints, books, bells, jigsaw puzzles, glasses - to name some.  My kitchen at home is my display area for them.  We have purchased some of the collection but many things have been given to me by friends and family which makes it even more meaningful.

The museum was housed in this elegant building in a very nice, rural setting.  It was so interesting to see the oil paintings of all the prints we have loved.  We had a gallery tour and learned about how Norman Rockwell used photos of his models to put his ideas together for a painting.  The guide told how down-to-earth he was and how he used many local people for his models.  The photos of every day life is what we like best about his work.

This is the actual studio that Norman Rockwell used for his work.  It was moved from where he lived in the town of Stockbridge to this location.  All of his easels, desks, etc. were on display in his studio.

Oh, did I tell you that we have a special traveler with us. Here's a picture of Milo, Pete and Suzy's adorable companion, while he waits patiently for us to visit with someone. He has been an excellent traveler.

The next post will be about our travels in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

On to New Jersey

After driving back to NC, we saw Al again, hooked onto our trailer and met Pete and Suzy to continue our trip.  We stayed in Front Royale, VA, one night.  Then, we rolled through West Virginia (23 miles) and Maryland (12 miles) on Hwy 81.  We have been to West Virginia previously so we have counted it as a state we have seen.  But, here's the debate.  Since Maryland was only 12 miles wide and we didn't even stop, does it qualify as a state we have seen?  Do you need to eat a meal in it, stay over night, stop at the welcome center or drive so many miles through it?  Let me know what you think? 

We did get a picture of the welcome sign for Maryland.

We traveled through Pennsylvania on their turnpike.  We expected a turnpike to be this amazing highway.  Well, we were able to travel quickly but the roads were a little bumpy.  It went thump, thump, thump.  We got through Philadelphia during rush with no problems.  As we traveled from west to east in Pennsylvania, we saw a lot of farms.

Loved the billboard ad.

Here's the Delaware River as we crossed into New Jersey.

Another welcome sign.  Our destination of New Jersey was to visit family.  Bill's 2nd cousin, Sonja, and her husband, Kent Hardwick live in a beautiful community - Medford Lakes.  We parked our RV's in their driveway and enjoyed a very nice weekend with them and their family.

Here's there log home that they built from a kit about 18 years ago shortly after they were married.

Good looking couple and very, very hospitable.

Here's their oldest son, Tre, getting ready for school.

Here's T.J. preparing for his day.  Next to him, is their lovable retriever, Squirmey.  Their daughter, Tiel, was already at school but we have a picture of her when we went to Philly.

This is one of the beautiful lakes in the community where they live.

This isn't a gimmick.  The canoe was actually wrapped around this tree during a major flood.  Let's just say that the community decided to leave it there for a momento.

The homes are required by the covenants to be similar to the log home styles.

Even the community hall has the same style.  This area started out as summer homes but now almost all of the residents are full time.

Here is an old mill.  One of the older buildings in this area.

Not very far from Medford Lakes there are some homes owned by some of the Philadelphia Eagles players.  This one is owned by one of the Eagle's kickers.

We are getting ready to do some sightseeing in Philly.  The little girl is Logan, a daughter of friends.  Then there is Tiel, Kent and Sonja's daughter.  The handsoome boy is Tre.

Here we are by the Liberty Bell.  We are seeing so many awesome historical things.

Loved this picture of the Liberty Bell with Independence Hall behind it.  Lots of people taking pictures.

Independence Hall where history was made for the United States.  Independence Hall is actually the Pennsylvania State House used by Pennsylvania for their legislative meetings.  The only time it was used by the US Congress was when they drafted and signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

In the court room, this box was where the defendant stood during the trial.  This may have been why we now say a person is standing trial.

I got this picture of this painting depicting Congress in the assembly room of Independence Hall but when we actually got to the assembly room, my camera battery went dead.  Bummer.  (New battery or new camera????)

We ended this full day (Mother's Day) by going to a park near an art museum.  It was beautiful but a bit chilly.  The kids and dads had fun playing ball, etc.  There were hoagies and other good things to eat.  We enjoyed meeting more of Kent's family.  Thanks to Kent's mother, Marilyn, who acted as tour guide in Philly and Sonja, who bravely and capably drove the busy streets.  Oh, Kent picked up some Philly cheese steak sandwiches on the way home and there is no way to describe how delicious they were.

Here's our RV's by their home.  We so enjoyed this visit and we hope to see all of them again soon.

Enjoying the East Coast

We were only 50 miles from Georgia when we left Jacksonville.  It didn't take us long to arrive at the Welcome Center.  Loved the sign.

We wanted to go up the coastline but in some areas there were huge bays to go around and we would have had to zig-zag a lot.  We passed by many pretty rivers on our way to South Carolina.

You will see a lot of these state welcome signs because it doesn't take long to get from one state to another on the east coast.

It is unusual to see this type of gateway to a state but this was very nice.  We found a small state campground outside of Charleston, SC, so Suzy could see her sister's son who is an instructor at Ladson Airforce Base.

The state park, Givhans State Park, had a very small cemetery.  It is interesting because the cemeteries are older than in the NW.  This one was for a child who died in 1818.  When we left this park, we headed to North Carolina and Kentucky to visit family while Pete and Suzy headed to Myrtle Beach to visit family.

Here's another welcome center.  Don't you have to stop at the welcome center to say you have visited a state???????

We visited Al Royster in Nashville, NC.  Al is Bill's cousin's, Kolleen, husband.  We lost Kolleen a few years ago but have kept in touch with Al.  Kolleen always said he took really good care of her and we appreciated that.  We enjoyed seeing Al, meeting his brother, Thurman and his wife, Dorothy and his friend, Maxine.  Also, met his cousin, Henry.  They all were some of the friendliest people we have met.  We hope to see them again.

The next part of our adventure was to leave our trailer in NC at Al's and drive to Kentucky to see Bill's cousin, RC Day and his wife, Frances.  On the way to Kentucky, we saw Pilot Mountain (above) as we got to the city of Mount Airy, NC.  Do you remember the Andy Griffith show?  Well, Mount Airy is the city where Andy Griffith grew up.  There was a Andy Griffith Museum, a Mayberry Inn and Aunt Bea's Cafe.

It's very beautiful on the way to Kentucky from North Carolina.  Springtime has lots of shades of green in the scenic mountains.  We began to travel in the Appalachian Mountains when we reached the southwest corner of Virginia. 

We saw lots of rural areas and traveled mountain highways.

We were to surprised to find Tacoma in Virgina.  It sure looks different than the Tacoma, WA, we are used to seeing. 

After driving 350 miles, we arrived in Kentucky.

Some of the mountains of Kentucky.  Sorry for catching the guardrail.  I take a lot of my pictures while traveling or we would never get anywhere.

We had a wonderful two day visit with RC and Frances.  They drove us to Cowan where RC's brother, Dick, and son, Scott, live.  Enjoyed a visit with Dick and Lois Day but Scott was busy working (in this economy, you work when you can).  We mailed a package at Jackhorn, KY, where Scott's first wife is the Postmaster.  RC is also a retired Postmaster so Bill, RC and Alice got to talk shop.  Bill attended a Rotary meeting with RC so Frances and Teri enjoyed a lunch out.  This is the third time we have visited in Whitesburg but we are always in awe of the beauty of the area and appreciative of the southern hospitality shown to us by RC and Frances.