Sunday, Aug.23, 2009 - Nobleboro to Watkins Glen, NY

Sun., Aug.23, 2009 - Nobleboro, NY to Watkins Glen, NY
This day would take us to the Finger Lakes area of New York.
In the early morning I shot some pictures of our creek side camping area, with the fog lifting off the water.
We rolled Southwest leaving the Adirondack Park. Stopped at Camping World for some supplies. We had made some good time on the New York Thruway, but moved to a smaller road at Syracuse. We trundled through the small towns of Auburn, Seneca Falls, Waterloo, and Geneva before turning South. Cayuga Lake was first. It started raining but it was still enjoyable to visit. The next, and bigger, lake was Seneca. It starts at Geneva, a small college town. It was difficult to access the shore of Seneca Lake. It looked like everyone in New York had a small home on this lake. On the banks of the lower part of the lake was a series of wineries with their vineyards. It had the look of the Rhine area of Germany.
We stopped for the night in Watkins Glen, at the bottom end of the lake. The state park office had closed 5 minutes before we got there, so I guess we’ll find a space & settle up in the A.M.

ATTACHMENTS:
TOP - New York Finger Lakes Wine Country
Middle - Seneca Lake, NY
BOTTOM - Cayuga Lake, NY

Aug. 21 & 22, 2009 - Brunswick, ME to Nobleboro, NY

Fri., Aug. 21, 2009 - Brunswick, ME to Lake Bomoseen at Castleton, VT
A good day for traveling far on mostly interstates. We continued South on I-295 almost to Portsmouth, NH then connected with I-95. Turned NW onto I-89, traveling in the rain almost all the way through New Hampshire. Things noticed in New Hampshire: Seat belts are only required for those under 18 years of age. Rest areas contain state liquor stores. Some of their state signs promote using common sense. I didn’t see any references to “Live Free or Die”.
In Vermont, we left the Interstate and got on Hwy 4. We started climbing almost immediately. The rain had stopped and we saw some fantastic foggy mountain scenes.
The town of Woodstock was maybe the prettiest small town we’ve ever seen. Will Google this place when time permits. The high elevation town of Killington was definitely ski country. Lots of ski lifts, ski shops (Aspen East, etal.), etc.
Rolled down the mountain into Rutland. Stopped long enough for pizza to go.
Continued West to Castleton, then North to Lake Bomoseen. Guess what? The office was about to close (they turned out the lights after us) … I think that again, we got their last site. Our luck continues to hold.
Before turning in for the day we heard singing coming from the site next to ours. It was very good. I thought it was a radio tuned to country music. There were two guys singing and one guitar. I think they sang every song that Hank Williams ever wrote. Rita and I walked over and joined them. It was a combination of three families; one from St. Johnsville, NY, located just below the Adirondack Mountains Park. The other two families were from New Hampshire.
Our campground was just about 8 miles from the eastern edge of New York state.

Sat., Aug. 22, 2009 - Castleton, VT to Nobleboro, NY
After swapping names and addresses with our new friends we headed west into Whitehall, NY. Another small town with a canal and a set of locks…nice.
Traveled NW to Lake George, NY. I heard about Lake George Resort area for years because of the Americade Motorcycle rally every summer. It was another huge tourist mecca. Think Gatlinburg with a 6 Flags placed in the center of it. We went to the beach part of the lake, had a picnic lunch, and some strawberry ice cream from their snack bar. Sat and watched water skiers, parasailors over the water, kids playing on the beach, and the paddlewheel tour boat taking folks around the lake.
We wanted to see more of the Adirondack Mtns before leaving the area, so we drove North on Hwy 9 to Indian Lake. Indian Lake is supposed to be the moose capitol of North America…could be…but today they hid well.
It was a great area with lots of mountain lakes.
As we traveled SW on Hwy 8, I was tiring so we pulled off into a scenic view area near Nobleboro, NY. The spot was along the confluence of two rivers, the West Canada and the Jessup rivers. Another awesome spot for the night.
Fired up the generator to heat up some pizza.

ATTACHMENTS:
TOP - West Canada Creek campsite at lower end of Adirondack Park in NY
MIDDLE - Rita in Lake George
BOTTOM - Village of Whitehall, NY

Aug. 19 & 20, 2009 - Calais, ME to Acadia National Park, ME

Wed., Aug. 19, 2009 - Calais, Maine to Acadia National Park, Maine
We followed Hwy 1 south along the coastal shores of Maine, with one deviation to scenic Hwy 182, which bypassed the town of Harrington. As we got to Trenton we turned off Hwy 1 to take us into Acadia National Park. We made a stop at the visitor center, where a call was made to check on camping availability. One campground was full, but the Seawall Campground had a space for us, yea!
We were able to use our National Park Pass to get into the park free, then pay only $10.00 to camp. Our best deal yet.
Since it was only 4:00 P.M. we still had plenty of time for seeing more of the park before dark. We hiked about a mile or so out to the beach to an area called ‘Wonderland’.
I took pictures of some sailboats, a schooner, and some rocky shorelines.
We continued to drive around the south end of the island to the lighthouse (yes, another one). Surprise, this lighthouse was inhabited by a U.S. Coast Guard family. I was glad to see one that was not completely automated.
Upon returning to camp, we only had 20 minutes time before generator running was not allowed (not after 7 p.m.). Rita did it! The generator allowed the use of the electric skillet and the microwave oven. We had a great meal of salmon croquettes, corn, and broccoli.
At 8:00 we attended the ranger talk at the amphitheater.
The program was called Nature’s Gifts, the story of the National Park Service. It was excellent. It was fun for us to reminisce about all of the National Parks that we have visited in the past.

Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009 - Acadia National Park, Maine to Brunswick, Maine
We spent most of the day driving through Acadia Natnl. Park. Took a lot of pictures from the top of Cadillac Mountain. Should a person get up early enough, he or she would be the first in the U.S, to see the sunrise if they were on top of Cadillac Mountain. We were camped about and hour from the top of that mountain, meaning we would have to arise at 4:30 A.M. to get there at 5:30...so we’ll take the ranger’s word for it.
Had lunch at Jordan Pond House ‘cause Rita wanted to try their quiche. Enjoyed the meal and had a great view of the pond. We were warned earlier of the crowds in the Park. They were right. This is their high/peak season. Lots of people enjoying the views. On our way out, we drove through the town of Bar Harbor.
We left the Mount Desert Island (Acadia) around 4:00 make some time.
We made it to Brunswick for the night. Since it was late, we chose another free night at a Walmart parking lot.

ATTACHMENTS:
All of these pictures were taken in Acadia National Park

Aug. 17 & 18 - Grand Manan Island, NB to Calais, ME, USA!

Mon., Aug. 17, 2009 All Day on Grand Manan Island
The whale watch tours were all booked for Monday so we booked a midday tour for Tuesday. Today we spend time exploring the island. We drove to the South end lighthouse. Lots of fog. Took some pictures of the foggy conditions, eerie. The lighthouse fog horn blasted every 15 seconds…pretty loud when you’re right beside it.
Trundling back up the coast, we stopped for a picnic lunch on a cliff overlooking a wide expanse of beach. Lots of folks enjoying the beach, though the water here is very cold (says Rita).
We drove to the North end of island and to the Hole In The Wall Park. This is the camping area that we’d been told about earlier on our trip. There’s lots of hiking trails along the cliffs offering great views. We checked in and met the owner, Basil, who escorted us to our site. He was quite a character. He rode up on a 4 wheeler. He had oxygen tubing attached to his nose, the tubing was attached to a tank. Later he told us he uses 10 tanks of oxygen per week…it’s delivered each Monday by ferry.
He asked if we’d recognized the woman who’d just left his office, we told him, no. He said she’s famous. She’s the widow of Dr. Benjamin Spock, the noted author of the “Baby and Child Care” book. He said that she still handles all of Dr. Spock’s business interests. While on our hike later, we saw her again. I started talking to her, mainly about the beauty of the area. She liked our accents. We talked awhile about Dr. Spock’s book and other things. She told us she was camping on a bench (a cliff ledge) nearby in a tent. She appeared to be an amazing woman and we were honored to be able to meet and chat with her. Basil had told us earlier that she wants to go to India and write an Indian culture version of Baby and Child Care.

We’re thinking this was our best camping site, ever. We were about ten feet from the cliff edge. What a view!
Down below us, at water’s edge was a sardine weir, a fenced enclosure for trapping sardines. These enclosures served as a buffet for harbor seals. From our campsite we saw three seals around the weir.
We hiked around the north end of the island. Two viewing platforms were located along the trail. Along with more harbor seals we spotted a finback whale!
The trail continued along the cliff in a fairly difficult area for walking. The sun was beginning to set, and we did not know exactly how far we were from the hole in the wall rock formation. There was a fork in the trail and a sign posted that read ‘Park Entrance’ with an arrow. We took that trail. It was the first exit from the trail that we’d seen. This new, exit trail was almost straight up but I was happy to see it. We later found out that if we’d continued about another two minutes we would have seen the unique rock formation that extends into the water.

Tues. Aug. 18, 2009 - Grand Manan Island to Calais, Maine
We left our most excellent campsite, rolled down the hill, and turned onto Lighthouse Road for another closeup look at one of these beacons on a hill. This particular light, named the Swallowtail Light, had kept us awake a lot the night before with it’s fog horn blasting every 15 seconds (I counted). Apparently the fog had rolled in about the time we were ready for bed. Most all of the area lighthouses have been on automatic for several years, making it no longer necessary to have manned lighthouses.
After our hike to the lighthouse we continued on down hill to the marina, where our sailing boat was ready for a day of whale watching. It was excellent! We went southerly for about 20 miles before we started to see whales. Onboard was a marine biologist who identified the whale types. We saw that the whales like to travel and play in groups, or pods. Many times we saw four and five running together.
The camera was busy. At the end of the day, when Rita asked Laurie, the biologist lady, if she had a number that were spotted, she said we’d seen about 30 finback whales, around 10 right whales, and about 7 humpback whales, for nearly 50 in all. It was a good day.
We docked, and had almost an hour until time for our return ferry to the mainland. Again, we ate while on the ferry.
We departed Blacks Harbor with the goal of spending the night in Maine, USA.
We crossed the border at Calais, Maine. This crossing took a little longer than when we entered Canada. The customs officer was nice and polite while asking his questions, but he also searched inside our camper.
As we drove south on Hwy 1, I turned in at the very first campground I spotted.
We stayed the night at Keene’s Lake campground.

ATTACHMENTS: Whale Watching in Bay of Fundy (1&2)
Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick (3&4)

Aug. 15 to 16 - Spencer's Island, Nova Scotia to Grand Manan Island, NB

Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009 - Spencer’s Island, NS to Penobsquis, NB
We learned from our next door campsite neighbors , who have a permanent set up for their campsite, that last night’s wind was an anomaly. She said they’ve been coming there for years, and she’d never seen the wind blow that hard before last night. She said they got very little sleep.
I apologized for bringing the wind with us. She said, “I accept your apology, but please do not ever do that again.”
The morning was very calm. Her husband, Gordon, was already out on the water fishing for flounder. Later, he told me he caught his limit, 10.
Their 2 dogs were Bernese Mountain dogs. The breed originated in Bern Switzerland. They were big and beautiful and very gentle, with a thick coat of black, brown, and white fur. The dogs had one trait that was funny. Upon approaching you for attention, they turn around and sit down on your foot, with their back to you. Maureen told us that was seen as a protective gesture.
As it was near dark when we arrived last night, we bought a takeout meal from a restaurant adjacent to the campground. The food was a little pricey, but excellent. We had buttered chicken with local vegetables of carrots, cucumbers, rutabagas wrapped in grape leaves, and some mixed vegetables with a light batter. The restaurant was not equipped for takeout but they let me take the plate and silverware with me to our camper. I returned it Sat. a.m.
We were reluctant to leave our beachfront spot but had to move on. We followed the winding road north along the shore of the Bay of Fundy. We were told that this road is known as Little Scotland. It’s curves are very popular with local motorcyclists, we met several of them along the way.
We went into the next costal town of Parrsboro. While there, we visited the Ottawa House, the bayside summer home of gentleman named Tupper. Tupper was one of the group of men who helped form the confederation later known as Canada. Before leaving Parrsboro, we stopped at Glooscap for a slice of strawberry rhubarb pie and coffee.
We headed north to the town of Springhill, the home of singer, Anne Murray. The Anne Murray Centre is located on Main Street. Closed, sorry. Took a few pictures. Lots of flowers in front.
Drove north to Amherst to complete our loop and our Nova Scotia experience.
As we reentered New Brunswick, we turned southwest toward Saint John.
We stopped alongside Hwy 114 in a picnic area for the night.

Sunday, Aug. 16, 2009 - Penobsquis, NB to Grand Manan Island, NB
Today we continued on into Saint John, NB, crossed a toll bridge and went on to the ferry crossing at Blacks Harbor. Our goal was to spend the night on Grand Manan Island. The ferry crossing takes 90 minutes so we had the time to eat while on board. Upon arrival on the island we set out to find Anchorage Provincial Park. We checked in and got lots of info regarding whale watching tours. The choices were to tour on a fishing boat or on a sailing yacht.

ATTACHMENTS:
1. Rita being 'guarded' by Bernese Mountain dogs
2. Lighthouse at Cape D'or, Nova Scotia

Aug. 12 thru 14 - Prince Edward Island thru Murray Beach Pr.Pk., NB

Wed., Aug. 12, 2009 Prince Edward Island
A.M. - Sunset CG at Cavendish, PEI
P.M. - Holiday Haven CG, near Charlottetown, PEI
Started the day with Rita’s blueberry muffins. By the time we checked out it was lunch time. Just outside the CG was a small shopping area. We chose this day to have some English fish and chips for lunch. Mistake. I think it was a combination of the grease and the malt vinegar but my stomach ached the remainder of the day.
One of our propane bottled was empty so we stopped at the first refill station that we spotted…$36.00. Propane needed for hot water heater, refrigerator, furnace, and generator.
We were getting low on U.S. dollars. We had $21.00 left. As we drove to see more of the island, I spotted a used book shop. A couple of used books took most of the cash. We’ll look for a bank Thursday in Charlottetown. We’re trying not to end up with carrying too much Canadian $$ back into the U.S.
Spent most of the day on the North side of the island checking out the beaches and lighthouses. Rita says there are about 50 lighthouses on Prince Edward Island. They’re smaller than the ones on the Outer Banks in N.C.
Ended the day near Charlottetown at Holiday Haven Campground (CG). It’s right beside the water.



Thurs., Aug. 13, 2009 Prince Edward Island 2
Left Holiday Haven CG and located the library in Cornwall. Used their Wi-Fi to check on some Internet things regarding utility payments, etc.
Also stopped by Post Office and mailed Sara a post card…$1.03 postage (yikes!).
We drove into Charlottetown and played tourist most of the afternoon. We’ve noticed that every time we stop and consult our map someone will always walk up to our truck window and offer assistance. That happened today in Charlottetown. A gentleman who used to live in Charleston, SC offered us tips on how to get to some places of interest.
Our biggest expense of the day was to toll fee of $42.50 to drive back across the Confederation Bridge.
We opted to stay at a different camping place near the New Brunswick side of the bridge. We are staying the night at Murray Beach Prov. Park.
We arrived in time for some sunset photos.

Friday, Aug. 14, 2009 - Murray Beach Prov. Pk., NB to Spencer’s Island, Nova Scotia (NS)
Another day another Province. The day started routinely with a trip to the laundry and getting ready to checkout of the campground. We were so close to Nova Scotia, and we’d always heard stories about it, that we had to venture there. The first thing noticeable about Nova Scotia (NS) was the wind. All the flags at the visitors center were standing straight out from very strong, gusting wind. As we gathered brochures to learn about the place, I asked if all of Nova Scotia was this windy. I was told, no, it’s because the visitor center area lies closely between two large bodies of water, the Bay of Fundy (I love that name) and the Northumberland Strait. Somehow that makes for lots of wind, most all of the time. We sought a loop route that would allow us to sample the island in a fairly brief time period.
We drove Southwest to the small village of Joggins, where there is a fossil museum. It turns out that the island has a pretty interesting geological history, check it out.
We continued to another small village (one store) called Advocate Harbor (yes, they spell it harbour). We saw two shrimp boats in the harbor. Until I know more, I assume that the locals subsist on fishing, farming, and perhaps mining. We saw signs for Cape d’Or and it’s lighthouse.
The sign read 6km to Cape d’Or lighthouse, restaurant, and accommodations. What the signs did NOT say was that the 6km distance was almost straight up another unpaved road. Again, 4 wheel drive was needed, and came through quite well. Our truck camper saw roads steeper than ever experienced by us. Imagine a motorcycle hill-climb type road. Rita and I both agree the effort was worth it. The view atop the cliffs, looking below at the lighthouse, the Bay of Fundy, and the swirling waters was fantastic. The result was a few nice pictures and more great memories.
We stopped the night at the beach at Spencer’s Island, a village with a history of ship building.
We found this to be another very windy area. The wind off the water was stronger than I ever remember coming off Lake Michigan in Chicago, and this wind was all night long. We had to lower all four jacks on the camper to keep it steady. The brace on one of our roof vents is broken and needs a part. The wind kept opening and closing the vent. I had to climb up on the roof and place a large rock on the vent to keep it closed…fun.
The campsite this time involves a shaggy dog story that I’ll save for another time.

ATTACHMENTS:
1. Murray Beach, NB Prov. Park
2. The 'Anne of Green Gables' house on Prince Edward Island

Aug. 7 thru Aug. 11 - Quebec City thru Cape Tormentine, NB

Friday, Aug. 7, 2009 - De La Joie CG in Quebec City to Le Bic Natn’l Pk near Rimouski, QC
Highlights
…older couple roller blading w/ski poles
…popsicles at rest area.
…the drive as close as possible to the St. Lawrence River

Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009 - Le Bic Natn’l Pk to Roadside park along Matapedia River
…driving day
…stopped at viewing area for the night, along with about 4 other campers.

Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009 - From Roadside stop along Matapedia River To Kouchibouguac Natnl. Pk., New Brunswick (NB)

Monday, Aug. 10, - From Kouchibouguac Natnl. Pk. To Cape Tormentine, NB

Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009 - From Cape Tormentine, NB To Sunset CG at Cavendish, Prince Edward Island (PEI)
This day started quite special! When we turned out of the Tormentine RV park, I either misread the GPS unit or it was trying to ‘torment’ me and send me the wrong way. As we traveled down a road we saw a sign that read “bridge construction, local traffic only” . I thought we’d be turning before I got to the construction area, so proceeded onward.
Apparently the GPS provided a detour route for us. We turned onto a dirt, actually muddy, road. The unit told us this detour was only about 2 miles long. No big deal, I thought, since we’re in 4 wheel drive.
Well, we’re riding along at a pretty good clip…the bushes are brushing against both sides of the camper….we’re having to gun it through long mud holes…having a ball.
Then, up ahead the road disappears into a creek then it continues on the other side. The bank on each side is about six feet down to the water.
O.K., sometimes even Conrad and Rita know when to retreat.
We backed up about 100 yards to a clearing just wide enough for us to turn around. We retraced our route back to Cape Tormentine for a fresh start at looking for the Confederation Bridge over to Prince Edward Island (or PEI).
We’re pretty sure that we had the muddiest truck camper on the island that day.
Confederation Bridge connects New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island and it is 8 miles long. It is a toll bridge.
There’s no cost to travel over it to Prince Edward Island but for vehicles with 2 axles, the toll fee is $42.50 to leave the island and return to New Brunswick.
PEI is divided into 3 mail sections. Due to time constraints we followed the coastal roads around the center section of the island. The roads are a little rough in places but the scenery is fantastic.

Attachment:
Le Bic National Park, Quebec near Rimouski

Ottawa, Ontario through Quebec City, Quebec

O.K., I'm a little behind on these posts. We've been busy!

Sun., Aug. 2, 2009 Lake McGowan, ON to Gatineau, QC
We kept the truck in 4WD and very carefully came down from our lofty site at Lake McGowan, oh yeah, it had started to rain.
We drove into Ottawa. Parliament Hill, the seat of government for Canada, was interesting. Impressive buildings.
Rita had spotted a place called Gatineau National Park about 30 miles NW of Ottawa, so we went to their visitor center (centre?) about 5 minutes before it closed for the day (have you noticed a pattern here?). We were able to secure a site for the night. It was one of those wilderness areas, nothing but nature. We have yet to see a moose while on our trip. Lots of warning signs on the highways but nothing so far.

Monday, Aug. 3, 2009 Gatineau Nat. Pk., QC to Laval, QC
Before leaving Gatineau Park, we drove to most of the lakes in the park. Lake Taylor, Lake Rideau, and Lake Philippe. As we exited the park, we met about 50 cars and campers lined up to get in the gate. We found out that Monday was a Canadian holiday. Did I mention that they love to camp up here?
On the road to Montreal. We arrived at the Laval campground well before dark, yea!

Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2009
Today was a downtime day in Laval, QC. With Wi-Fi available, we spent time posting the blog and e-mailing. Also a good day for catching up on laundry. All of the facilities at the CG in Laval were 1st rate. This may be the nicest campground in which we’ve ever stayed. It does cost more, at $43.00 CDN per night.
Around 5:00 p.m. we headed to downtown Montreal to try to see some of the sights. Mistake. It was frustrating trying to negotiate the rush hour traffic in town as well as the Interstate approach. We were trying to get to the theater district to check out some Cirque du Soleil type shows. We finally gave that up and just parked and walked around some. Before it got dark we made our way down to the old waterfront area. The area looked interesting but no parking to be found. We drove back to the campground just as it was getting dark and the rain began.

Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2009
We left the Laval C.G. near Montreal around 1:00 p.m. and headed to a local IGA for a few groceries.
Back on the road heading South then East, through Montreal and onward East with a destination of Quebec City, Quebec. Beautiful, open, green fields along the way. This day was longer than most of our previous days, about 150 Miles.
We had a brochure for a campground called De La Joie in Quebec, Quebec. With GPS help, we arrived there around 7:00 p.m. One of the main reasons we picked this campground was that they offered transportation into the old Quebec City. Up to now, we’ve encountered some difficulty navigating our camper through some of crowded city streets (of Toronto & Montreal). So, on Thursday we leave the driving to the locals. We registered for 2 nights.


Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009
At 1:00 P.M. we rode in a shuttle van from our campground into Quebec City. Spent the afternoon just walking around on our own taking pictures. I took 108 pictures for the day. Nothing was in English, so I really don’t know names of buildings, monuments, etc. It’s o.k. We had a great time.
For lunch we found a small deli and bought a chicken salad sandwich and shared it. It was very good, plus we were starving. All the restaurants were expensive, so we passed them by. It was a very good day for people watching. In every park there was a street performer doing various stunts, delighting families.
The van picked us up at 6:30 P.M. returning us to our campsite. That saved us the long walk up the steep hill to our camper. We were both exhausted from the walking, but Rita took the time to prepare red beans and rice for supper.
A most excellent day.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Rita in Old Quebec City, Quebec
2. Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario

Saturday, Aug. 1, 2009 Bon Echo Pr.Pk./Cloyne to Lake McGowan C.G.

We left our campsite at Bon Echo about 2 p.m., parked the camper, and walked to the tour boat area to check on tickets. We were told the tours are fully booked, so we rented a canoe instead. We paddled across the Mazinaw Lake to the cliffs area. We were able to see several pictographs (red markings on the cliff rocks). Paddling back was more difficult as we were paddling into a headwind, and were battling the wakes of larger, faster, power boats.
Leaving Bon Echo we retraced Hwy 41 South to Kaladar, turned East on Hwy 7 toward Ottawa.
The next two prov. Parks were booked but we found one site left at a private campground at Lake McGowan.
This was our first ‘interesting’ site of the trip. 4WD was required to get us up a very steep hill on a gravel road.
We were welcomed by several boys on bicycles who enjoyed watching us maneuver our huge truck camper through a very crowded campground.
When we checked in, the lady in the office told us the site had no ‘hydro’. So, we asked “what about electricity?”.
She gave us a puzzled look. Apparently, hydro means electricity here. Who knew?

ATTACHMENT: The cliffs containing pictographs. Bon Echo Prov. Park & Lake Mazinaw

Friday, July 31, 2009 Presqu'ile/Brighton to Bon Echo/Cloyne, ON

After leaving Presqu’ile Park, we drove Northeast to Bon Echo (that’s right…another Prov. Park). We arrived just before dark (apparently, our routine thus far). We knew this was supposed to be a very popular park, and the weekend was just starting. We were lucky to get a campsite as we had no reservation. Reservation fees in Canada are $12.00, so we don’t do those (or haven’t yet).

Thursday, July 30, 2009 Oakville to Brighton, ON

A.M. - Pulled out of Bronte Creek Provincial Park at Oakville, ON near Toronto. Drove to park’s day use area for a picnic lunch. Before we left the camping area, Vicki, one of the staff members gave us tons of info about all of the other Provincial Parks throughout Canada and along our route.
Rita had read about an attraction in Toronto called Casa Loma, an old castle in the heart of the downtown residential section. We drove to the castle around 5:00 P.M. (!) Way too much traffic, with no place to park and see it up close. We continued on out of the Toronto rush hour traffic heading East. Around 8:30 we made it to our next Prov. Park destination. This time it was Presqu’ile Prov. Park near the town of Brighton…right on the shores of Lake Ontario.
From our campsite we could hear the water lapping at the shore.

We’re not sure how we would find these Parks and many other places in Canada without our GPS unit. There’s a scarcity of signage in parts of Canada. There is, however, plenty of speed limit signs.
ATTACHED: 2 pictures of the Presqu'ile light house on Lake Ontario.

Wed. - July 29, 2009 Lockport, NY to Oakville, ON, Canada

A.M. - Checked out of Niagara County Camping Resort near Lockport, NY. Bought some groceries at Tops Grocery. Continued into Lockport so we could see the Erie Canal locks system. We found the locks in downtown. The Erie Canal system starts where Lake Erie reaches Buffalo, NY and flows all the way to Hudson River near NYC. (See attached Pic)
Rolled out of town in the rain headed west toward Ontario, Canada. We were unsure of the cost of diesel in Canada so we topped up the tank in Sanborn, NY (located on the Tuscarora Indian Nation).
P.M. - We crossed over the Lewiston bridge into Canada around 5:00 p.m. We think this crossing may have been on Monday. As we were crossing over Lewiston Bridge we looked down to our right and saw the stage and the park where we saw the Starship free outdoor concert the night before!!
Going through Customs was pretty much a non-event. I guess we looked harmless. We punched in Toronto on the GPS and headed out. Traffic was fairly heavy but moving well considering the time of day. We wanted to spend a little time in Toronto, so we stayed the night near Oakville, on the western outskirts at Bronte Creek Provincial Park (campsite pic. attached)
It was a very fine example of a place to camp. Clean, large spaces, quiet, clean restrooms & showers, lots of greenery & birds. I’m sure we’ll seek out more provincial parks along our route.
First impressions of Ontario, Canada are all Thumbs Up, eh?

Tuesday, July 28 Niagara Falls to Lockport, NY

A.M. - North Niagara Falls, NY….Sam’s Club parking lot. Fired up generator to power up coffee pot..nice.
The plan for the day is to return to the Falls and spend time walking around on Goat Island, checking out the American side of the Falls.
P.M. - We did spend most of the day walking to all the viewpoints of the American side of the Falls. Yes, lots of pictures.
Rita had mentioned before that she read of a place called Artpark located in Lewiston, NY just north of Niagara Falls, that had free outdoor concerts by well known artists every Tuesday during the summer. We headed for Lewiston. No signs were posted telling who might be playing, but we saw lots of folks walking toward the park. When we approached the ticket booth in our camper, we asked and were told Starship would be playing for the evening. The concert was free. Parking $10.00.
It was a great concert and a great venue. The stage backed up to near the edge of the Niagara River gorge, the sun was setting over the Canadian side of the gorge (Is this the origin of the term, “gorgeous” ?).
As we arrived at the park, we noticed lots of Harley riders. Apparently, there have been noise issues in the past. We saw two prominent, lighted signs posted by local police stating; 1) Bikers, please show respect for local residents.
And 2) Noise ordinance strictly enforced.
As the concert ended, it was fairly late and we had no campsite for the night. Out came the camping directory. We found a reasonably priced ($30.00) site 20 miles east, in Lockport, NY. We called the place, were told that office had just closed but to come on and someone would meet us.
The end of another great day on our journey.

Monday, July 22 - Evangola, NY S.P. to Niagara Falls, NY

Before pulling out of Evangola, NY S.P. we took a few more pictures of Lake Erie, then trundled N.E. along Hwy 5. We followed the lakefront rather than follow I-90 to Buffalo. Stopped in Lackawanna for some laundromat time. I had 5 people in a drug store giving me directions to the nearest laundromat. This was an example of New York friendliness not found in New York City.

We spotted giant windmills along the lake front on the eastern end of Lake Erie. Following local streets into Buffalo, we used the GPS to direct us to Niagara Falls. I-190 took us to American Falls Park area of Niagara Falls. We went directly to the Information office and signed up for a 4 hour tour of the Canadian side of the river. The tour was excellent. We went across Rainbow Bridge to Canada. There was a fairly long wait at Customs. We were asked to leave the bus, go inside to have passports checked, and to answer a few questions. It was a speedy process.

Our group was made up of tour guide, Leena, originally from Chicago, a couple from Bentonville, AR, their daughter-in-law from Watertown, NY, a couple from Reno, NV, a couple from Long Island, NY, a younger couple from Germany with their daughter, and their uncle from Murfreesboro, TN (!). Oh, and ConRita. A fun group. We all enjoyed Leena showing us all the sites. We were taken upriver, past a huge dam used for generating power, to the Floral Clock (see pictures). The clock symbolizes the water treaty between the U.S. and Canada. We also drove by the Niagara School of Horticulture. Their work was displayed throughout the park. The park follows a gorge along the entire length of the Niagara River that extends all the way from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario.

The tour included a boat ride on the 'Maid of the Mist'. Everyone was provided with raincoats, which helped keep us from getting completely soaked rather than mildly soaked. We were taken very close to the falls, and stayed there for several minutes. My main concern was keeping the camera dry.

We later made a stop for souvenirs, pizza, water, & some fudge. Of course, we got a magnet for the fridge.

The tour included a 'Journey Behind the Falls'. This attraction was at an area named Table Rock. We took an elevator down to a series of tunnels. We followed the tunnels for an up close view about 10 feet behind the roar of the falls. Awesome power. Very impressive.

Since our tour ran into the night we were able to see the multi-colored lights shining from the Canada side over to the Falls.

The Canada side of the river has lots of tall hotels, shopping districts, restaurants, etc., while the U.S. side is more quiet and subdued.

The attached pictures show the American Falls seen from Canada side, and ConRita in front of Floral Clock.

Saturday, July 25 Romance, WV to Geneva, OH

Upon leaving the Rippling Waters Campground, we drove to Pocatalico, WV library, accessed their Wi-Fi, and posted a trip report to the blog.
Had some feelings of frustration today. I was envying those other campers who were taking the time to kick back, relax, and do some fishing in the lake. But I knew we had to make some miles if we planned to reach Niagara Falls in the near future. I'm glad we took the time at the library. Rita sent Lola an e-card for her birthday on July 26. I sent several pictures to our BMW club newsletter editor of scenes from the rally we attended in Johnson City.

As we drove north on I-77 toward Parkersburg, WV it dawned on me that I was supposed to take I-79 in Charleston to route me through the edge of Pittsburgh, and on to Buffalo, NY.
Instead, I had stayed on I-77 which took us north through Ohio to Lake Erie, where we accessed I-90 and traveled east.
About 22 miles east of Cleveland, Rita found a good prospect for our night's stay. It was Geneva (OH) State Park.
NOTE: CAMPGROUND ANOMALY > We came across what appeared to be a club campout/rally for Geo Metro automobiles! They were gone the next morning. I wanted to get a picture for Sally. We counted eight Metros at two campsites.

We drove through rain for most of the day, but the sun appeared as we neared Cleveland. Our spirits were lifted as we felt like we'd made good progress in our travels today, about 297 miles.
The terrain flattened somewhat as we left West Virginia and rolled into Ohio. Southern Ohio is beautiful, with rolling green hills and farms.
Traffic increased as we rolled through Canton, Akron, and through the southeastern edge of Cleveland.