Farewell Adirondacks and New York

This is what we did a good part of the day on Friday!  A rest day was badly needed!

Bolton Landing, New York - May 18, 2012

Greetings from Vermont!  To be specific, Colchester Point, Vermont just outside of Burlington.   If we were any further out on Colchester Point, we'd be in Lake Champlain!  Our home until Wednesday morning, is, without a doubt, the most incredibly beautiful spot we've ever been privileged to find, sight unseen!  At some point, I'll recap the trip and talk more about how I find the places we rent for our Summer Adventures, but suffice it to say, that's all part of the adventure.  Most are great places, but sometimes you hit the jackpot and this time, we did!

Unfortunately, the downside is that the cabin internet is not working and so far, the owner has made no effort to fix it.  We're hoping that since we arrived on Saturday perhaps he was waiting until a weekday to take care of the problem.  We do carry a backup Verizon MIFI2200, but with a limited amount of data.  Out here on this point where Verizon indicates NO signal, we are lucky to have coverage at all.   We've been able to check email, but that's about it!   My plan is to write this post and get to a WIFI hotspot either this afternoon or tomorrow in order to post it!

MONDAY MORNING UPDATE:  Internet now fixed!  Yippee!

Our last day in Bolton Landing (Friday) was exactly what we both needed.  I had so looked forward to a bike ride with my friend, Lori, but after two full days of scenic touring and some things left to do and see right in Bolton Landing, I made the decision to stay close to home.  We were up and out early Friday morning for a short bike ride to The Sagamore Inn,  The Sagamore has an incredible history you can read about here.  It first opened in 1883, has been severely damaged by fire twice, fell into disrepair and was closed in 1981, purchased by a NY real estate developer and restored to its former grandeur before reopening in 1983.  We love visiting the old luxury hotels and this instantly became one of our favorites.  It is just beautiful.  There were obviously very few guests and the staff seemed more than happy for us to roam around.  The picture above was taken from the main beach area where there were probably 100+ deck chairs set up in perfect formation.  We were the ONLY people out there and we settled in those chairs for at least an hour of conversation and relaxation simply watching the water, the hills and the boats.

Truthfully, we didn't do much else on Friday except rest, there was some napping and in addition to getting caught up with travel updates, a lot of planning was done for the next phase of our trip.  In the evening, we took a long walk around Bolton Landing one last time.  Of course, ice cream was involved!

Saturday dawned bright and clear.   We only had 101 miles to travel, but as usual, lots of fun was built into those miles.  We loaded up (something we are proud to say we've learned how to do in less than one hour) and pulled out just before 10.  Here are a couple of last pictures of Bolton Landing and Lake George.

Remember to click on any picture to make it larger

Our Bolton Landing, NY apartment was the second floor of this building! The middle window was our bedroom which had a distant view of Lake George.  On the back side was a lovely screened porch with views of the mountains!  

 

Last view of the far northern end of Lake George not far from our ferry crossing into New York!

Two very happy and content southerners after a magnificent week in Adirondack Park.

 May 19, 2012

We were excited about heading into Vermont, but I cannot leave New York with expressing how pleasantly surprised we were by our entire experience there.  Sadly to say, we both had preconceived perceptions that all of New York would be like the hurried, abrupt and brusque atmosphere found in NYC.  Notice, I did NOT say rude!  We have never experienced rudeness in NYC, just a manner that is different from what we know.  But our experience in upstate New York was quite the opposite.  These were the friendliest, most helpful and kind folks we have encountered anywhere on any trip.  We never passed one person on the bike paths and in the towns who did not speak and smile!  Adirondack Park is simply stunning in its beauty and all I can say is that I hope I have the opportunity to one day return as we only scratched the surface of this unique area of our nation!

But on this day, it was time to move on.   Excitement awaited as we neared our chosen path for getting across Lake Champlain.  The lake is roughly 125 miles long and 14 miles wide at its widest point.  One doesn't have much choice (until recently) except to cross by ferries which are sparsely located and some only operate seasonally.  Pays to do some planning.  We had chosen to cross at the southernmost crossing near Fort Ticonderoga.  It is a privately owned ferry.  The crossing takes 7 1/2 minutes and your longest wait is 30 minutes.   The ferry accommodates 13 cars.   When we arrived, the ferry was just leaving the other side, so our wait was approximately 15 minutes.  It was fun.

 Patiently waiting for the ferry to arrive!

 Here it comes!

 About halfway across looking northward!

 Approaching the Vermont side!

   A first look at Vermont after leaving the ferry.

May 19, 2012

Turns out there was a bridge after all.  Its was just so new we didn't know about it. And it didn't matter, we would've taken the ferry anyway.  Too much fun to pass up!  But with respect to the new bridge and the Champlain Bridge reopening festival came the most serendipitous coincidence that could possibly happen on this trip.  I learned about the bridge festival last Tuesday on our rainy day in Bolton Landing as I researched the upcoming days while Bill napped.  But I still didn't connect any possible link between that and my new blog friend, Kyra. Kyra is writing in the healthy living blog community, but is an artist by profession.  When I began my goal to find a blog friend in every state and province, she wrote that she'd like to be my first friend in Vermont.  I love her writing and have enjoyed following along as she prepared to be a vendor at a weekend festival.  Somewhere along the way, it occurred to me to ASK her exactly where in Vermont this festival might be.  Can you believe that it was the Champlain Bridge Celebration festival at which Bill and I had already made plans to visit?  We love finding these types of celebrations and there is no better way to walk in and immerse yourself in local culture.  This was small-town America at its best and we loved every minute we were there.  Seeing the beautiful bridge and meeting Kyra was icing on the cake.  Kyra was obviously working, so there wasn't much time to chat, but she is lovely, so gracious and a fantastic artist.  While Kyra and I were chatting, Bill picked out a whimsical print that will be a cherished souvenir of our time in Vermont.  Chris, Kyra's husband, and her daughter were there as well.  If you are a sucker for puppy pictures, check out her new puppy post and by all means, take a look at her art website.

Kyra and me! - May 19, 2012

Every friend I meet through this blog is special whether it be Lori, a meeting planned five months in advance, or Kyra, a maybe/maybe not meeting planned 24 hours in advance.  These fine women are now both off the page and into my life forever!   As I always say, don't pass up the chance to meet a blog friend - it'll enrich your life in an entirely different way.  There is no substitute for the friends I have at home and I wouldn't want to do without a single one of them.  But I love the relatively new concept (to me) of friends all over the world! 

Here are a few more pictures of the bridge celebration festival including one of the guest of honor.  

 No, not the guest of honor!  Trying a new-to-him food, a chicken and cheese Samosa.  He declared it, "delicious."

 The British were there! Obviously, they haven't given up on winning back the colonies!

 Chimney Point State Historic Site at end of new bridge.

And the guest of honor!

Leaving the festival, we had only about 50 miles to travel and looked forward to seeing our new home in Colchester Point, Vermont.  And upon arriving, all we could say was, "oh my!!"  Here's a preview.........................

Last nights sunset from our deck. - May 20, 2012

View to the east and south are even better!

More to come.............thanks for reading!