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Day 0 Friday June 15, 2007
Today is the day we pack and shop and load up the coach for our summer trip. Neither of us is as enthusiastic as we usually are before a big trip, probably because we have only been back for five weeks and would have liked another month in Lowell. Still, the road beckons and we need to get to western Idaho in early July for the “Life on Wheels” conference. As an added bit of irony, Lowell is having a Jack Kerouac (a Lowell native) celebration this weekend, marking the 50th anniversary of his classic book entitled “On the Road”.
Day 1 Saturday June 16, 2007
We took the short scenic route across NH, VT and NY today. We drove 360 miles and arrived in Corning at about 5 PM. After getting settled, we read a bunch of brochures to prepare for our day at the Corning Glass Museum and other local attractions. Ginger traveled quite well.
Day 2 Sunday June 17, 2007
We started the day with a short run around the campground. As we were getting ready to leave for the day, Carl kept finding Father’s Day cards around the coach along with gifts of CDs and DVDs. Even before we left Lowell, he had gotten a beautiful Israeli silk tie from Alan & Barbara and a plush L. L. Bean bathrobe from Scott & Tara.
We had heard about the museum at Corning Glass a long time ago but had never been in the area. Since it was on the way to Niagara Falls, we could spend a day. When we read about the museum, it said, “Plan to spend three hours!” We wondered how one could spend that much time at a glass museum, at least until we got there. We spent about four hours enjoying the exhibits about the history of glass making, examples of glass throughout the ages, contemporary art glass exhibitions and a special exhibit of glass flowers and animals from the collection at Harvard University. We also saw a glass blowing demonstration. All of that was on the second floor. The first floor was the museum shop. Yes, it was the size of the whole museum and included a large Steuben Glass display and products from Simon Pierce in Vermont, Waterford and Reidel. Oh yes, they also sold “Corning Glassware! Much of the shop was more like a continuation of the museum!
We were pretty hungry by the time we left so we headed for the supermarket. Not just any supermarket but Wegman’s where they have a huge selection of different prepared foods to take out or eat at their café. We both ate so much that we didn’t eat supper! To walk off our lunch, we wandered down Market Street, mostly window shopping but enjoying the work of some additional Glass artisans. We also walked across a bridge spanning the local canal. All in all a pretty little town.
In the evening we enjoyed another of Carl’s Father’s Day gifts. We watched the first episode of the first season of 24. We’ve never seen it on TV but enjoyed the DVD a lot (Good thing since there are 23 additional episodes!)
Day 3 Monday June 18, 2007
Today started out with an easy, 127 mile drive to Niagara Falls, ON. We are in a lovely little campground across the street from the Niagara River about 9 miles south of the falls. Over lunch, we talked about all of the things we wanted to do and see. Fortunately, we have two full days after today so there is no need to run around like crazy trying to do it all today. (Remember that as you read on ;-). After lunch we drove to the falls and stood at the edge of Horseshoe Falls feeling the rumbling power and feeling the cooling mist. We walked further north, out of the mist and watched one of the “Maid of the Mist boats glide beneath a double rainbow arching across the falls. Almost too picturesque. We continued our walk north until we got across from the American Falls, enjoying the changing views and filling the cards on our digital cameras. At a kiosk across the street we bought package tickets for four area attractions that we knew we wanted to see. First on our list was “Journey Beneath the Falls”, a 150 foot elevator ride that brings you out on a very wet ledge very near the base of Horseshoe Falls. The roar and the vibration was awesome. From this vantage point the boats were framed by the rainbows; very picturesque but very wet. Back up top with most of the water shaken off we made dinner reservations for a table overlooking the falls then stopped at the terrace for a drink and a little rest. Before dinner we walked back to the Maid of the Mist office to see if we could get tickets for the first boat tomorrow. No luck, they only do them for the same day. Back to the restaurant for a lovely dinner with a priceless view. After dinner we decided to go to the top of the Skylon Tower to watch the falls get lit up at 9 PM. We had great views before sunset then the lights finally came on. Pinks, yellows, blues and greens illuminated both falls. Very pretty but hard to capture in a photo. By 9:45 we were ready to head back to the coach where we poured two glasses of wine downloaded our photos and wrote this journal and generally unwound from a wonderful day.
Day 4 Tuesday June 19, 2007
We slept in this morning, now grateful that yesterday they would not sell us a ticket for the early Maid of the Mist trip. Plan B was great. We drove up to the Butterfly Conservatory about five miles north of the falls. The butterflies were beautiful and numerous though so were the tourists. It reminded us that we should take more advantage of the Butterfly Place in Westford, MA when we are in Lowell. The Butterfly conservatory is sited on the grounds of the Niagara Falls Botanical Gardens, a large and beautiful series of gardens. We wandered around, almost by ourselves, in sharp contract to the throngs at the Butterfly Conservatory. Next we drove up to the Flower Clock. The face of this working clock is about 30 feet across, all flowers, commemorating the tenth anniversary of the Butterfly Conservatory. We now turned south, stopping at Niagara Glen for a hike down (and we do mean down) towards the river. It was hot and humid and we turned around before we got to the river. Next stop, the Great Gorge Walkway. Here we got to take an elevator down to the river level and walk along the Class VI rapids in the Niagara Gorge. This is where many people tried (and some died in the effort) to swim, row and tightrope walk across the raging torrent. The water was so turbulent that it amazed us that anyone would try to get across but in those days they charged admission to see the daredevil shows. As we were getting ready to leave, the heavens opened up. After we finally got to the car, we decided a boat ride would wait until tomorrow. A quiet evening and early bedtime prepared us for the final day at Niagara Falls.
Day 5 Wednesday June 20, 2007
Today dawned cool and clear and we sure made the most of our last day in the area. First stop was Maid of the Mist, the boat ride that goes right up to the face of the falls. We were at the very front of the upper deck and it was fantastic. The center of Horseshoe Falls was shrouded in heavy mist that blew in our faces and billowed our blue plastic ponchos. To the right the air was clear so we could see the torrent of water 150 feet above us pouring over the edge. What a ride! Next stop was more sedate; a walk through the beautiful greenhouse and gardens where the Niagara Parks Commission grows all of the lovely plantings growing throughout the area. Next we drove to Dufferin Islands, a quiet spot above the falls where we ate our picnic lunch and watched the ducks and geese and ignored the gulls who came looking for a handout. After the picnic we drove north to Niagara on the Lake, a lovely little town located where the Niagara River empties into Lake Ontario. This is also wine country so we stopped at a couple of wineries for tours and tasting. At the Peller Winery, the tour included a taste of their signature Ice Wine. It was sweet and delicious (and $72 for a 375ml bottle which we did not buy). Back at the coach we grilled a piece of salmon and enjoyed our last evening in the Niagara Falls area.
Day 6 Thursday June 21, 2007
Today we drove to Hawkestone Ontario to visit Ken & Judy Smith, a couple we met on the Mexico/Belize birding trip in 2005. An easy 150 mile drive brought us to this lovely lakeside community about 50 miles north of Toronto. We had a great reunion, caught up with news about family and birding trips we’d each been on and had a delightful time. After supper we were sitting in the coach chatting with Ken and Judy and there was a knock on the door. Their son Conrad and his girlfriend Brenda stopped by for a visit (they have a trailer in this campground). Since Ken & Judy have a winter place in Brownsville, TX we talked about getting together when we are in the area next winter-before we go back to the swamp!
Day 7 Friday June 22, 2007
It is hard to believe it has only been seven days since we left NH. We have settled into the groove of living and traveling in the motorhome and it seems more like a month. Ken and Judy were wonderfully hospitable, showing us around Hawkestone and Orellia, taking us to some of their favorite local birding spots and having us for dinner. It was a fun day.
