Week 1 proved to be entertaining and a learning experience much of way. We headed north basically the entire way from Marion. For a short while, we head east after leaving Vermont, destination- Acadia National Park on the coast of Maine.
Lesson #1 Everything takes longer driving a camper. You can't drive as fast, there are more things connected to things, stopping and starting takes forever, gas takes longer to pump. You name it, it takes longer than it does in a car.
Lesson #2 Toll Roads are either the smartest/annoying things in the world. Why? Because it makes the people who use the roads, pay for them……
Lesson #3 Sleeping in a camper hooked up to a campground is pretty sweet. There is air conditioning, tv, and internet at some places. I can't ever remember a bad situation that involved both a tv and an air conditioner. It is like having a traveling home.
Week 2 took us to Maine for 3 nights, Boston 2 days and 1 night, a casino parking lot in New York 1 night and Niagara Falls 1 night.
So after departing from Burligton, Vermont we made the long haul to Acadia National Park in Maine. We left Burlington about 2:30 pm on Day 9. Ahead was about a 8 hour drive. The offices for campgrounds are usually only open until a certain time- unlike hotels, where there is someone at the front desk 24 hours a day. We arrive at a campground outside of Acadia National Park at about 10 pm, well after the office had closed. I had called earlier and told the office to leave my information in the door about what campsite to go to, but they thought we weren't coming. Not knowing what to do, we decided to hook up to an empty campsite anyway. It ended up being okay though, I just paid in the morning and ended up being one spot away from the one they had reserved it. Most people are pretty laid back about staying and leaving. Checkout is usually 11 or 12. We might have made it out before checkout once in two weeks. Campgrounds range in price from about $25 to $60, depending on where you are, the type of campground, and what hookup you want. To have only water and electric is about $5 cheaper than having the full-hookup….. Water, electric, and sewage pump.
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| Just passing through |
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| New Hampshire Lake |
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| Whewwwwww!! |
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| Hey wait a minute |
The next day, we stopped at a local seafood place for lunch. Bub and I had a lobster roll, basically a lobster sandwich while Allen had a bbq sandwich. We were told by multiple people that Maine was the place to have lobster. Man, were they right, that sandwich was right on point. But not so fast…. a full lobster meal is in store while in Maine as well. We got to the park in the afternoon and did a few of the hiking trails right along the water. You could walk on the huge rocks down the coast or take a trail right by the road. Acadia would prove to be the best stop on the trip so far, and the first National Park of the trip. Big mountains right along the water, scenic drives, it was awesome. This is the kind of place that makes an 8 hour drive well worth it. We attempted to camp in the park, but every spot was taken. You need reservations for some of these places, who would have thought. But like night 1 proved, the camper is the place to be at night.
After a few easy trails and getting a feel for the park, we decided to give the hardest trail at Acadia, The Precipe Trail, a whirl. I haven't hiked all that much in my life, but this put every trail I have been on to shame. We were basically climbing up the side of a mountain- at times you could walk on the trail, but at times, you had to hang on the iron bars that were put on the trail to keep from falling off the side of the cliff. Some were like a ladder going up, while others were put there to hang on while you scale across the side of the mountain. It was something serious. Well unless you saw the guy doing it in no shoes go right past us. With a hard, straight up-hill hike, the end result was worth the hike. It put us at the highest point of the park with a great view of the ocean. This was in the late evening and made for some great views of the park and the ocean.
After the climb up took about an hour and a half, we were faced with a decision. It was getting kind of late, the sun would be going down in an hour or two, and the trail we just hiked was grueling. Going up ladders and the side of a mountain is one thing, but going down is another. We made the irrational decision- lets just take another trail down the mountain. Well, this trail didn't quite take us back to the where we parked. In fact, it took us to the complete opposite side of the mountain from where we started. We got down the mountain and ended up walking at least 2 miles back to the truck. It wasn't that bad though, don't have any sympathy for us- the road was flat. Taking a trail that you don't know the end result of is not a good idea. We shouldn't follow that model. But it worked out this time.
Night number 10 brought us to Bar Harbor, Maine, (Or with a local accent "Baah Ha Baa.") a town about 15 minutes from the park, with a lively downtown at 9 pm. We sat down to dinner at a place right along the water for a true lobster dinner. After an appetizer, 2 rounds of beers, and an hour later, we mentioned to our server that it had been over an hour and we hadn't gotten our food yet. We weren't complaining by any means; really just checking up on the food since my stomach was about to eat itself. (Allen actually tried putting ketchup on his pinky finger and chewing on it for a minute.) A few minutes later, the manger comes over, apologizes for the delay on the food, and says that all beers on the house, including 1 more round to go with the food. Free beer while you're waiting on food? Worse things have definitely happened. The lobster was all that we expected and more. The little pieces of tender goodness dipped in butter are something that will go down in food eating history- along with sweet and sour sauce from McDonalds, Brazilian steak houses, PF Changs, cheeseburgers and salt and vinegar chips.
Post-dinner festivities took us to a local bar in Baa Haa Baa after Bub agreed to be the DD for the night. After going into a local bar and making small talk with some of the people around, we meet a guy who used to live in Old Fort. We had traveled about 20 hours north of Marion and we finally meet someone else from McDowell County. We only had to go to Maine to do it.
Day 11 brought us to the first embarrassing/stupid/how the hell did we get to this point moment of the trip. The crew went back into Acadia for a 2nd day of hiking. We went back to the hiking because of the other missed opportunities in the day. Our first thought- renting kayaks to go along the shore with. We attempted the rent kayaks from a local place. The conversation went something like this.
Me: Uh hello sir, I was seeing about renting kayaks.
Kayak Guy: We only recommend that experienced kayakers go out on the water. Are you an experienced kayaker?
Me: Yea, sure. I have experience with a kayak
KG: Do you know how to do the reverse rescue flip? (I can't remember the actual name but I had to act like I knew what he was talking about in order to sound legit.)
Me: Ummmm, yeaaaaaa
KG: So what is it?
Me: You uh you like put the boat and then you uhhh yea…..
KG: Ok, so you don't know how to do it?
Me: No not really. I just want to rent 3 kayaks.
KG: You should be experienced if you go out there. You only have a 50 percent chance of living if you aren't an experienced kayaker.
Me: 50 percent? To live?
KG: Yes it can be brutal out there. But let me check……. Nope we don't have an kayaks available to rent today
Me: Well thanks, you have been very helpful today.
Ok, so I really don't have much experience at all with kayaks but the last time I checked you paddle one, right?. It doesn't quite seem possible that you only have a 50 percent survival rate
A) In a kayak
B) Within swimming distance of the shoreline
C) In a lifejacket
D) Combining all 3 of these things
Maybe the guy was being extra cautious but did he really have to go through all of that and then say, "Oh we don't have any available today." Those kinds of things light me on fire. Next time just say you don't have kayaks buddy.
So after missing out on a whale watch that was canceled to go 0 for 2 on opportunities, the three of us decided to do another hike in the park. This hike wasn't horrible, but not the easiest thing in the world. We started it a little too late in the evening and by the time we get to the top, it was beginning to get dark. Wait a minute, we will just turn on the headlamps and hike in the dark. Damn, we don't have head lights? Ok, this isn't good. Being unprepared sometimes cannot be fixed. This being one of those cases. So what did we do? We hiked down another trail that we didn't know the end result to. Come on! Why would we do that? Why would we hike late in evening with no lights? Why would we take another trail when we didn't know where that trail went to?
We start down on a different trail not really knowing where it leads. It worked out for us for yesterday so it has to work out today. After a few minutes and it being quite dark, we come up on a few houses. Fast forward to 20 minutes later.
"Okay, this isn't good, but let's just keep walking, it will work out."
"Yo, we're lost."
"Yeah this sucks, we can't walk back."
"There aren't really many options here."
"Well, should we suck it up and call a cab?"
"A cab?"
"You have any other ideas?"
"A cab?"
"You have any other ideas?"
You know, there's really not much else to say
While we are waiting for this cab on a random street intersection in who knows where, Maine, a old truck pulls up beside us. A half second at this stop sign and this guy starts spinning tires without thinking twice about it. Smoke is everywhere, it's loud, we are slightly startled and the guy just drives away. This sucks. The cab finally comes for a minimal fee and returns us to the truck….. barely. The cab driver broke 50 when the speed limit was 15 and almost wrecked us about 500 feet from the truck.
Okay guys, this is a lesson learned. Let's lick the wounds, and not let this happen again. We can't make irrational decisions when hiking, who knows where we might end up.
Other than having to take a cab while hiking, Acadia was awesome, and the area of the trip we are all 3 looking forward to the most, the National Parks
Day 12 led us to the 2nd city of the trip, Boston, Massachusetts. Destination for the Boston trip- Tom and Becky Nehiley. Their daughter Aimee and Rachel met freshman year at NC State and Aimee now resides in 4301 Driftwood Dr. Aimee was supposed to come up and show us around but decided against it after knowing we hadn't shaved yet. Just kidding, but I didn't see a Red Sox game so there is always redemption Aimee! Tom and Becky were nice enough to let us sleep in their driveway in the camper for a night. We ran a drop cord to plug a fan and we slept like babies. All you need is a little air circulation to sleep comfortably. None of the 3 of us had ever met Tom or Becky before this trip so we felt a bit awkward asking to sleep in their driveway. Bub and I were talking back in forth with Aimee on the way there. "Are you sure they don't care if we sleep in the driveway?" Not only were they fine with us staying but they even left doughnuts for us in the morning. I mean, what more can you ask for? We got to their house about 8 o'clock and went over to nearby Plymouth on their recommendation. Plymouth is the site the Pilgrims hit land the United States in the 1600s after invading Peru and New Zealand. On a 3 month road trip, you get sucked into going to certain places, like Dinosaur State Park. The city Plymouth comes up and what did we think- ahhhh Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower. Let's go check it out. Well, Plymouth Rock is well, a rock. The Mayflower is a supposed replica of a 1600s ship that costs like $40 to go on in the daytime. Luckily we didn't have to pay for either, and it wasn't much of a detour. Let it be known that Tom and Becky only suggested where to eat, not tourist destinations.
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| First View of Boston |
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| The crew with Becky and Tom |
Dinner for the night- seafood at a local place- Cabbyshacks. Our waiter claimed to be the owner's brother and claimed they had the best clam chowder (Or chawdah) soup. Sure, I can have a cup of that. This did not disappoint at all, hands down best clam chowder soup I have ever had. Only drawback- it was very filling. I ordered stuffed fish with fries and finished about a third of it. The fish was great- but the stomach could only handle so much. If Paul Limone or Jordan Vance were around, this would never have happened, they wouldn't let me drop to those levels. Bub and Allen had clams and shrimp, but both struggled after a bowl of the clam chowder soup.
As mentioned before, we woke up the next morning to doughnuts and then headed out to see the city. We drove about 30 minutes away to take the train into the city. A good alternative for driving, dealing with traffic, getting rocked by parking garages, etc. Boston is a big city in terms of population- but fairly small in terms of area…. or at least it felt that way. The first stop- food. Right out of the train station, there was a festival/ large gathering of people with all kinds of vendors selling foreign food. Who doesn't want to go somewhere on a sunny Saturday afternoon where there is all kinds of food. I had Thai food, Bub and African food, and to the best of my knowledge, Allen had some combination of Asian food.
The Afternoon in Boston
-A beer at America's oldest tavern
-A homeless guy with a crazy sign that he obviously didn't make. The sign isn't quite appropriate to show.
-A walk on the Freedom Trail through the city and to Paul Revere's House. It follows the trail he rode to warn the local militia of the British invasion during the Revolutionary War. Those damn Brits.
-Sucked into a street performance by 2 guys with random talents.
-5 innings of AAA Baseball at Fenway Park. We were planning on taking a tour of the park since the Red Sox were out of town, but we lucked out and there was a minor league game that night- The Red Sox Triple-A affiliate. Great atmosphere, even at a minor league game and all 3 of us can technically say that we've seen a game at Fenway.
In seeing big cities on the trip, we usually limit it to one afternoon and then hit the road again. We planned to head west towards Niagara Falls that night. Like Philly, Boston got high marks from all of us. An old city with a historical impact but with some modern looking buildings, an easily walkable city, things to entertain you for the afternoon and Boston was cleaner than most other big cities. Throw in Fenway Park, and a good time all around.
We ate leftovers from the night before and watched the end of the Boston- Kansas City game with Tom and Becky before hitting the road. Thanks for everything Tom and Becky!
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| Street Food |
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| Sam Adams |
We slept in the next day after a long night and headed to Niagara Falls. We arrived in the evening and found a campground on the American side of Niagara Falls to leave the camper. (The Falls are right on the border of the US and Canada.) We arrived just as it was getting dark and decided to drive over to the Canadian side to see the Falls at night and…… another casino!!! Niagara Falls is strange. It is a like a small city half in the US and half in Canada. On the United States side, nothing special. But on the Canadian side…. a beautiful walkway all along the falls with nice looking gardens and flowers, places to eat with views of the Falls, huge hotels and casinos. Maybe Canada has it figured out after all. To get across to Canada, we had to go through a border patrol station, show our passports and answer a few questions about our intentions in Canada- where are we going, how long we were staying, did we have any drugs or weapons on us, and how much we planned on winning at the casino. (They actually asked that. Pretty friendly people) Even with the cover over our truck and plenty of people getting stopped and inspected, we didn't face any problems getting to Canada. Although, I don't think the three of us look very threatening to anyone. Well except maybe Bub and his mustache. To get through the border station took about 45 minutes, the only drawback. That night we only saw the Falls from the American side before going over to the Canadian side. It only for a few minutes before it was dark, and on the American side- not the best viewing point, but still pretty amazing. Just to sit and listen to the water going over and see the mist was something else.
Casino night 3 also proved very successful, amount X was more than doubled for the night. The last two casino experiences took place in a matter of less than 24 hours, which is by far the best I have ever done. I was in the Niagara Falls casino for all of about an hour and 15 minutes. I won my money, walked away from the tables with a smile on my face and the wallet a little heavier than a few hours before.
The following day, after going back to our campground on the American side the night before, we went right back to the Falls to see the real deal. This time, we parked on the American side and took the pedestrian bridge over to Canada. It was basically the same process as the day before to get to Canada- but this time on foot instead of in a car. The wait wasn't nearly as long, and the questions were about the same….. what were our intentions in Canada and how long did we plan to stay, etc. The walk from the American side to Canada gets better as you go. Niagara Falls consists of two separate waterfalls, Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side, the much bigger and better one, and Bridal Veil Falls on the American side. The most powerful waterfall in North America.
Ahead was a 5 hour drive to Sandusky, Ohio- home to one awesome amusement park and our stop for night 14 and an official end to week 2. Thanks JHW 3, for supporting a hell of a road trip so far.
Miles Traveled- Approximately 3,000
States (14) - NC, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Ohio and into Canada
Miles Traveled- Approximately 3,000
States (14) - NC, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Ohio and into Canada
Quotes
With homeless guy with the inappropriate sign- "Hey buddy, can I take a picture with you for a dollar?" "You give me another dollar you can kiss me." "You know, I'm gonna pass on that kiss for now."
"50 percent change of living?"
Talking with cab company- "Yes sir, we are on the side of the road. Well, we got lost hiking."
What a week that was! I am loving all the food descriptions! And how about the bandana headband!
ReplyDeleteYou guys are crazy!! I'm so jealous though!
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