If you read our last update, you may have sensed that I was really frustrated. I had all the pictures, text and comments in a draft copy on the blog site that covered our travels from the time we left our MMAP project in Corry, Pennsylvania on July 26th to our travel adventures through the 11th of September. Then, POOF, three quarters of it just "went away". I’m not sure what happened. I think it was a glitch with the blog site - but whatever caused it, all that information and countless pictures are somewhere deep in cyberspace, never to be seen again. Fortunately I have all the pictures saved on my computer. I just needed to reconstruct the text (since I was typing it in on the fly.) I've learned my lesson and won't do it that way again. I am now writing it up off line on my computer, saving a copy then doing a cut and paste to the blog site. (All this, I know is technical jargon many of you don’t understand….or if you do, you’re saying “Duh….no kidding. You’re just now figuring that out!”)
Anyway, we are now ending our stay in Williamsburg, Virginia and will be heading back to Arizona. Our sightseeing for this year is coming to an end (as all good things must do.) We will travel from here at a pace of about 300 miles per day (with a three day stop near Ft. Worth, Texas to visit with my aunt.) God willing, we should be back in Arizona by the first week of October. When we get back to Arizona, we will tell you about any exciting things that we may encounter on the way back.
In the meantime, we hope to bring you up to date on our adventures between July 26th and September 21st. It may take two or three separate updates because we have seen and done a LOT of things in less than two months. A quick view of our travels in time-line form looks something like this:
| DATE | LEFT | TRAVELED TO | MILES | STAYED | SOME THINGS SEEN |
| July 26th | Corry, PA | Cooperstown, NY | 308
| 3 days | Baseball Hall of Fame | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| July 29th | Cooperstown | Thousand Islands, NY | 172
| 3 days | Thousand Islands |
| Aug 1st | Thousand Islands | Lake Champlain, VT | 165
| 4 days | Rock of Ages Granite |
| Aug 5th | Lake Champlain | Dummerston, VT | 164
| 5 days | Ben & Jerry's, VT
Teddy Bear Co | | | |
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| Aug 10th | Dummerston | Bethlehem, NH | 141
| 3 days | White Mountains |
| Aug 13th | Bethlehem | Epsom, NH | 97
| 1 day | just an overnight |
| Aug 14th | Epsom | Orland, ME | 202
| 4 days | see blog re Maine |
| Aug 18th | Orland | Robbinston, ME | 122
| 3 days | " |
| Aug 21st | Robbinston | Hermon, ME | 115
| 10 days | " |
| Aug 31st | Hermon | Mansfield,MA | 285
| 6 days | Boston, Quincy,
Plymouth |
| Sept 6th | Mansfield | Milford, PA | 243
| 1 night | o'night at Wal-Mart |
| Sept 7th | Milford | Carlisle, PA | 171
| 5 days | Gettysburg |
| Sept 12th | Carlisle | Dumfries, VA | 155
| 6 days | DC, Arlington Cemetery |
| Sept 18th | Dumfries | Williamsburg, VA | 123
| 4 days | Colonial Williamsburg |
Wheee...That's a total of 2364 miles!! Just looking at all of that makes me tired! How about you?
So (as the old saying goes), let’s eat this elephant one bite at a time. We will start with Cooperstown and see how far we get before you and I get too tired. Then we will continue with the rest of our adventures on another day or two. How’s that sound?
OK – Fasten your seat belts and let’s get started……………….
NEW YORK-
The area around Cooperstown is rural, with rolling hills and many farms.
Cooperstown
The village of Cooperstown was part of a land contract of 10,000 acres purchased in 1785 by Judge William Cooper. Judge Cooper was the father of renowned American author James Fenimore Cooper, author of
The Leatherstocking Tales, a series of novels which includes
The Last of the Mochicans. The Village was established in 1786. The village and the surrounding land sit on Lake Ostego (our his beloved "Glimmerglass" in Fenimore Cooper’s writings.) Driving through the tree covered hills, past the lake shore I could almost imagine seeing Hawkeye and his Mohican "brother" Chingachgook in the shadow of the trees.
However, the main draw for us to this area was, of course, the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Many of you know that I am passionate about baseball and this was truly a highlight in our travels. We spent the entire first day of our sightseeing at the Hall.
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| Honoring Jackie Robinson, who broke Organized Baseball's unwritten color line in 1946. Robinson was the first black player to be elected to the Hall of Fame. |
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| There is an exhibit to honor the women in baseball. Many of you know a little about this from the Tom Hanks movie "A League of Their Own". |
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| What a great Berra line! |
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| The Padres are the favorite team of Caleb, our oldest grandson, while the Giants team is the favorite of his brother, Isaac. |
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| All you Mariners fans can appreciate these two exhibits |
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| Helen and some of the "other fans". This was a fun exhibit! |
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| In 1937, Cy Young - elected to the Hall of Fame in the second year of voting - generously donated several artifacts, including the 1910 ball from his 500th win and the circa 1911 uniform he wore with Boston. |
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| The crown jewel of the Hall is the Plaque Gallery - home of the bronze plaques of the game's greatest players, managers, umpires and executives. |
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| Jim, "hanging out" with The Babe and Ted Williams |
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| These are the first five inductees to the Hall, elected in 1936. Through 2010 only 104 names have been added to that list. It is truly a rare honor for a ball player. |
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| These five were the first inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1936. Through 2010 only 104 other names have been added to that list. It is a true and rare honor for any player. |
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| Play Ball! |
Our other sightseeing in this area was to Glimmerglass State Park
to see Hyde Hall, and to Fly Creek Cider Mill and Orchard.
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| Fly Creek is a working water-powered cider mill, farm winery and mill store marketplace. |
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| Built in 1856, Fly Creek has a broad reputation for its delicious sweet apple cider, hard ciders and apple wine. |
From Cooperstown, he headed north to the Thousand Islands region of New York. Dubbed the "Garden of the Great Spirit" by the native Iroquois for its bountiful harvest and beauty, the Thousand Islands (a group of islands that straddle the Canada-US border in the Saint Lawrence River as it emerges from the northeast corner of Lake Ontario) became a highway to the interior of Canada and the U.S. for many explorers. Jacques Cartier discovered the St. Lawrence River in 1535, forging the path for notable explorers such as Champlain and others.
The islands (actually 1,793 in all) stretch for about 50 miles downstream from Kingston, Ontario. The Canadian islands are in the province of Ontario, the U.S. islands in the state of New York. The islands range in size from over 40 square miles to smaller islands occupied by a single residence, to even smaller uninhabited outcroppings of rocks that are home to migratory waterfowl. The number of islands was determined using the criteria that any island must be above water level all year round, have an area greater than 1 square foot, and support at least one living tree.
It is also a place full of great memories for Jim. Being born and raised in Rochester, New York, Jim spent many summers in his childhood and teen years at his aunts cabin in the area. We stayed in a great RV park overlooking the St. Lawrence and took a 2 1/2 hour sightseeing cruise through the scenic islands. The tour also stopped at the famous Bolt Castle on Heart Island.
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| Relaxing at the RV park, enjoying a cup of cider and a great water view. |
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| Sunset view at the RV park |
The boat tour-
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| Our narrator gave us many facts and added lots of entertaining stories about the islands and their history. |
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| One of the larger islands. The home is owned by a local builder. By the looks of the boat, business is very good! |
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| These folks boat house is also a guest house. Sweet! Wish they could be my new best friend! |
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| A bit smaller |
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| Even smaller |
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| This one meets all the criteria - above water all year, over 1 square foot, and a living tree! |
Bolt Castle-A very sad love story
At the turn-of-the-century, George C. Boldt, millionaire proprietor of the world famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City, set out to build a full size Rhineland castle in Alexandria Bay, on picturesque Heart Island. The grandiose structure was to be a display of his love for his wife, Louise.
Beginning in 1900, Boldt’s family shared four glorious summers on the island in the Alster Tower while 300 workers including stonemasons, carpenters, and artists fashioned the six story, 120 room castle, complete with tunnels, a yacht house, a powerhouse, Italian gardens, a drawbridge, a children's playhouse and a dove cote. Not a single detail or expense was spared.
In 1904, tragedy struck. Boldt telegraphed the island and commanded the workers to immediately “stop all construction.” Louise had died suddenly. A broken hearted Boldt could not imagine his dream castle without his beloved. Boldt never occupied the castle and never returned to the island, leaving behind the structure as a monument of his love. In fact no one ever occupied this grand edifice as Bolt forbade any of his heirs to live there.
For 73 years, the castle and various stone structures were left to the mercy of the wind, rain, ice, snow and vandals. When the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority acquired the property in 1977, it was decided that through the use of all net revenues from the castle operation it would be preserved for the enjoyment of future generations.
Since 1977, several million dollars have been applied to rehabilitating, restoring and improving the Heart Island structures.
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| Views of the island and the castle from the boat |
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| Alster Tower where the Bolts stayed for four summers while the castle was being built. |
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| This stone arch structure was intended to be used as the formal entry to the island from the St. Lawrence River. |
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| The renovated grand staircase and reception room is a marvel of old world craftsmanship |
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| A portrait of Louise Bolt hangs over the richly carved wooden mantel |
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| This bedroom suite was intended for the Bolt's daughter, Clover. The improvements include hardwood flooring, ornate plaster, new fireplace mantels, granite inlays, period furnishings and more. |
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| The stained glass dome shows 1900s oplulence |
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| Looking out from the fourth floor |
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| These rooms on the fourth floor are yet to be renovated. |
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| It is striking to see how much in disrepair the castle became in the 73 years before the Bridge Authority started rehabilitating it. There is still much work to be done. |
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The island is now available for weddings, and interestingly enough the one taking place while we were there was for the great grandson of George Bolt. We wondered exactly how the bride must have felt knowing that if circumstances had been different in 1904, all of this possibly could have been hers. Fascinating, wouldn't you agree......"What could have been".........
We will close this update for now. Our travels have only gotten us through New York, but I'm sure by now you are a bit travel weary from this virtual tour. Next time (in a day or two) as we continue our reconstruction of these updates, we hope to get you at least through Vermont and New Hampshire. Until then spend your time enjoying what "is"....not wishing for what "could have been".
The village of Cooperstown was part of a land contract of 10,000 acres purchased in 1785 by Judge William Cooper. Judge Cooper was the father of renowned American author James Fenimore Cooper, author of The Leatherstocking Tales, a series of novels which includes The Last of the Mochicans. The Village was established in 1786. The village and the surrounding land sit on Lake Ostego (our his beloved "Glimmerglass" in Fenimore Cooper’s writings.) Driving through the tree covered hills, past the lake shore I could almost imagine seeing Hawkeye and his Mohican "brother" Chingachgook in the shadow of the trees.
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