Days 19 - 22

Again we are falling behind with our posts. Who would have thought writing in the blog wasn’t going to be our priority, but enjoying our trip would be? (There really needs to be a sarcasm font)

Day 19

Well we woke to the noise of people. It kind of made the decision as to whether we should stay another day or not. The decision was finalized when we got out of the tent and our view had gone from this:

 
To this!
 

It looked, and sounded, like the Beverly Hillbillies were moving in. There was an additional tent being pitched too, and they even had two huge box fans with them. Not sure how that was going to work without electricity. Can only assume they were going to also bring in a generator. Definitely time to leave.

We broke out the stove, had oatmeal for breakfast, packed the tent and headed to Niagara. It seems like every time we have to repack the chair which is strapped to the roof of the car, we end up with a whistling/air buffeting noise. We pull over, adjust the chair, perhaps add more tap to the bag, get back on the road and it is fine. Again today we had to stop.  I broke out my penknife, which was a very nice knife and a father’s day gift from the kids. We got back on the highway, all was quiet, and Niagara arrived without further incident.

The falls were great, and the boys had a good time on the Maid of the Mist boat ride which takes you right into the falls. We got wet! It’s been almost 14 years since Mayzie and I were here, our honeymoon. When I think about it it’s a bit weird actually. We visited when we were staying in the USA, and now we are visiting as we leave.

It would have been nice to stay to see the falls lit up at night, but since this was an unscheduled detour anyway, we decided to leave and head to our next destination.

After 30 minutes  or so we stopped for dinner and then drove for another 30 minutes or so and tried to find a cheap motel. With $100 for a cheap hotel we decided to camp. Another 5 minutes and we were pitching the tent for the first time in the dark. Ryan just loved all the bugs which were attracted to the cars headlights! (Where is that sarcasm font?) J

Day 20

Today we go to camp! It’s been 14 years since we were last there. Oh my, what are we thinking? There is much I could say about how the camp has changed, but it wouldn’t mean much to most reading this. It has gotten bigger, there are more activities for the kids to do, but as Mayzie pointed out the kids still look exactly the same (even though they are not the same kids which were our campers).

There are a few of the same counselors still working there from when we were, and some of “our” campers who are now counselors. But for the most part we didn’t recognize anyone. However, we got the distinct feeling that should we decide to return as counselors we would both be welcomed. Not that we have any plans to  again be counselors there, but since we have given ourselves 12-18 months to get settled in the UK before we consider moving back stateside, you never know what might transpire!

The weirdest thing for me was the climbing wall, where I worked for my tenure at camp, has been condemned! The end of an era.  Again. Just like Niagara Falls.

After camp we headed to Monticello to see our friends the Krevats, and their dog Ramsey. What a cutie. Here we rested up and got caught up with our laundry. Also experienced a comfy bed and good working  A/C.

Day 21

After a delightfully long sleep in and some breakfast, we were invited to go with the Krevats to a friend’s house. The house was beautiful and located on a river. We had some BBQ, and then the kids, our two and three belonging to the homeowners, along with myself, Jeremy Krevat and the homeowner were invited on his (the owner) speed boat. It was so nice to be relaxing and feeling like we were on holiday.

After we returned to the Krevats, we were treated to a wonderful home cooked meal, thanks Jeremy, and some continued to play some Texas Hold ‘em. Ryan is actually starting to understand poker I think.

Day 22

Unfortunately we said goodbye to the Krevats, but said hello to New York City. Well we did after we spent 3 hours sat in traffic. Oi vey!

At least we had some rain. With the brief exception in Glenwood Springs, we have had no rain since our adventure began. Unfortunately the car leaked and we all got wet. OK so the car didn’t actually leak. What has happened is I have used some ratchet straps to hold the roof bag down tightly onto the car. We do not have a roof rack and the roof bag attaches to the car via straps which pass through the car. The ratchet straps do not have the same water repellent attributes as the straps which came with the bag do. The water absorbed into the straps and dripped at the low spots, inside the car. Fortunately the shower wasn’t all day, thought Mayzie did get an awfully wet shoulder. :)

We had found a hotel with free parking in Brooklyn, and checked in about 5:30 PM. New York pizza for dinner and we are spending the evening just hanging out in the hotel. The kids need a good night sleep as we have a lot planned for the next 3 days in the “City”.

Cliff