Gearing up for our Winter Reprieve

OK, I know it's been a while since we last posted, but, we haven't been anywhere to write about.
On January 29, 2007 Kath and me will embark upon our annual winter solace to the Caribbean.
This time we are going to Jamaica. A little concerned about the crime rate there, but if we stay in the resorts, we should be OK.

Will update when we get back. Later!

The Last Hurahh

The summer is almost over and we were able to get some time at the Cape. As most of you know, Scusett Beach is where we love to spend most of our time. We will be back and forth throughout the last couple of weeks of the month, so if you would like to spend the day relaxing by the canal, and sharing space, come on down. Be sure to call first to make sure that w are there. You know the numbers.

When we come home we will update the blog with all of the details.

It's my hope that you are able to enjoy the remainder of the summer as well...

Later -LJg

It's still summer and we are going for all we can! Today we embarked on a week-long vacation at Block Island. We had never been here before, and are pleasantly surprised at the relaxed atmosphere and natural beauty of the island. Of course we had to take a ferry over, but once we got to the island and oriented ourselves as to where we were and had to be, we asked some people at the hotel where we should rent a vehicle. Yup, you probably guessed it... we rented a motorbike and toured the island for a few hours. Kath was a little nervous at first, but we practiced a little before we went out and voila, we were off and riding. (Kath could not get her own bike because they were out today, but there is always tomorrow)! As for what we saw of the island today, lets just saw that it is nothing like what we had expected. What a gorgeous island. Clean, quiet (on the outside of town) and quite picturesque. Jaimie joined us for the day and she enjoyed it as well, even though the island name does not have a foreign country origin. She had her bike and we had ours, we had a ball. After riding around and exploring the island, we stopped at a very busy restaurant in town where we enjoyed lunch (because of the ambiance and the company, not the food. That sucked). The view was beautiful and the temperature today was just perfect for touring. High 70's and sunny. Caught a few rays by the beach before calling it a day. Will update as things change. Chow! -LJg

Back to the Cape and Missing our Partners in Crime

OK, as most of you have figured out, we were at home in the last photo. But, we are on the road again! Yup! Back to the Cape and loving it. We miss not being able to just pick and go to Scusset when we want to. We had become so spoiled over the years we almost forgot to really appreciate what is in our "own back yard."
Well, we got reservations for just a few days, so we were determined to make them count. Our partners in crime that we usually spend time there were not able to get in, so we were all alone and missing their presence! Miss you Willie and Worm!!!!!
Arrived on Sunday afternoon. The weather was absolutely great! Mid 80's and a light off shore breeze. Monday AM we were off to Connecticut to pick up J. She has been away for two months and it was great to have her home. We returned to the Cape later that night to enjoy the next two days of low humidity, mid 80's, and off shore breezes. We enjoyed these days more than I can express in words.
Back home to reality and thought you would appreciate the picture we took of us enjoying our mini-vacation.
Stay tuned for more entries and excitement toward the end of the month.
-LJg

The Picture You Have Been Waiting For:

Sorry for the delay, but here it is... This is our most resent camp site. Will update as we move and the scenery changes.

Kath Wants a HARLEY

Well, it's been several days since we have been able to post information for you. I will have a resent picture of our location coming soon (have to take one).

We have been busy looking for an addition to our "Sled." I wanted to buy Kath a motor scooter. She doesn't really want one, but indicated that she was interested in a motorcycle. My first impression was that she means a mini-bike type thing. Nope, she wants a real motorcycle to tow behind the "Sled," that we both will ride. Crap! Better make certain that the medical insurance coverage is paid and up to date.

We looked at a few and this is what we are thinking about. What do you think?
-LJg

Figure Out Where We Are Now...

I bet you can't figure out what the next picture and location is going to be. Try and guess...

Here's a hint taken through the windshield (Kath is getting better with the camera).

Sorry for the lag in communication... The Mexicans don't like Lead Sleds in their territory.

July 25 - Stay tuned, new photo of our location coming soon.

Where, oh Where is the Erie Canal?

OK, since we have seen much of what we set out to see, we decided not to go over the border into Canada for a couple of reasons. There was an average 2+ hour wait to get through customs, and we had too much booze on board the "lead sled." (Kath must not have been drinking as much as anticipated)

So since we were not going the Canadian route, we thought maybe we would follow the Erie Canal and see some "working locks." Not!

We followed that GD route for miles and miles and never saw a lock, just an occasional muddy river view. Now driving for several hours, through that tremendous heat and humidity we started the task of finding a campground that we could stay in for the night.

Now, several days ago it rained like Hell in NY and the campgrounds were flooded, SO we were limited as to where we could go and whether we would sink into the mud. Shit... That would not be funny!

After an exhausting trek through mountainous back-roads country, we finally came across an information sign on the road... Stopped in, asked questions and we were directed to go XYZ for about 15 minutes up the road. Well, let me tell you, we never found the _____ places that this moron was directing us to, and it was now 4+ hours and many miles later. We could have driven home!

We got back to the main highway. Kath found a site in the Woodall's book, called it and they gave us directions. As it turned out it was about 45 miles away, but it was getting dark and my Buddy was hot, tired and hungry. Oh, and of course thirsty.

Got into the site hooked up, thought all was well and turned on the air conditioner. Brown-out!!! Went out to ask the owner about the power voltage and he told me that the power company cuts back the power and sends it to NY city especially when it's so hot. He said that they only had 104 volts coming into the campground and that was all we could get. "Shut off the air and open the windows." I had already converted the refridge to gas, but it was 92 degrees out and very humid. Kath needed air conditioning!!!!!

The campers next to us were not there, so we used the generator to cool down the house and cook dinner. Decided that the rear air is only occasionally used so we will take a chance with that one. Cooled it down to maybe 85 for the night. And a long night it was.

Alexandria Bay and the 1000 Islands

After leaving that wonderful campground on the island, we were convinced that we were never to find a site that we would enjoy as much. True, but we found one almost as nice. On an island in Alexandia Bay, just over the bridge to Canada called Wellesley State Park.

Since we wanted to spend the day in Alexandria Bay and the 1000 Island area, we got on the stick to find a campsite first, then we were off to play.




Stopped at an information area just before the Bay and booked tickets for a Bay tour and stopover at the Boldt Castle. We had about one half hour to park the "lead sled" and get our butts on to the docks for the boat. It was hot as Hell! But, once out on the Saint Lawrence Seaway it was comfortable and quite scenic and enjoyable. The boat tour was about 2 1/2 hours in length departing from Alexandria Bay, through international waters with views of historic and scenic wanders in both the Canadian and American sections of the 1000 islands (actually over 1700 islands) before it dropped us off at Heart Island where the Boldt Castle is.

The Castle: bought by George Boldt in September of 1899, to build a castle for his wife and present it to her on Valentines Day. This was to be a gift of love, but his wife died suddenly from a heart attack just 18 months prior to it's completion.

It has an indoor swimming pool, rises six stories in height, and the castles 120+ rooms were served by an elevator. The Castle itself was modeled after buildings of the 16th century, with classical details applied to the towered, medieval forms, combining traditional elements with such modern features as large, plate glass windows and extensive wrap-around porches. The castles massive granite walls were ornamented with decorative details of cast terra cotta, and roofs were tiled with the same material.

The day after Mrs. Boldt's death, George Boldt sent a telegram telling all of the workers to stop construction and the island stayed as it was at that moment.

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.

Truly a beautiful tribute and a awesome tour.

One to Enjoy

This is by far one of my favorite pictures of the trip so far. It was taken from our campsite.
Hope you enjoy it as much as we did. -LJg

Lake Ontario Area

Today we continued driving around the Lake Ontario area.
We drove in and around several small harbor towns. Nice drive for a car... NOT a house though.

Found a campground located on an island just off of Henderson Harbor in the 1000 Island area of Lake Ontario. The island is accessed by a 1300 foot causeway.

Originally owned by a utility company (National Electric Light/Lamp) many years ago for training and retreats. In the late 1950's it was donated to the YMCA for the development of recreational programs and the like.

Sold by the YMCA to the non-profit group called the Association Island Recreation Group, in 1973, and was used for national renowned sailing regattas.

In 1999 the Island became privately owned and operated and remains such today.

What a wonderful place to camp! The waterfront campsites are absolutely great. We lucked out by finding this place. We stayed a couple of days. Enjoyed the facilities, live entertainment, wading in the refreshingly cool water, sunset and moonlit views from our camper, and cocktails by the fire. Even on the hottest of days (94) there are light breezes off the lake.

We will definitely go back, and invite those of us that have facilities, to join us. Maybe next July???

KEUKA Lake

Today we began our trip around KEUKA Lake in the Ontario county area. We began at the south end of the lake with a goal of seeing "a working tour" of a winery at the northern end of the lake. This winery is the only "working winery" in the state and has been owned and operated by the Hunt family since the early 1900's. Wines and champagnes are bottled under the name of Hunt Country and Foxy Lady.

The tour was personal (just me and Kath) and educational. From the vines in the fields to the bottling plant.

Upon it's conclusion we sampled several of the wines and were on our way, again. This time we are heading north towards Lake Ontario, Canada.

The scenery in the upper lake country was enjoyable. After many hours of countryside touring, we found a campground in Bluff Point (close to the Canadian border) where we stayed the night.

Off to the lake tomorrow.

Wednesday and Time for Wineries

Ok, after a rainy night last night, we finally decided to just go for it and see what we could find. Rain or not.

Headed toward Watkins Glen at the south end of Seneca Lake. What spectacular views of water falls on the side of the road in Montauk. I guess people whom live here just take it for granted, but we were in awe, to say the very least. We had to drive through some really small, narrow, hilly, and crowded areas that were a little stressful, but well worth the time and effort overall.

Due to the rain, we decided to stop in the town (after finding a large enough space to park the lead-sled) to have coffee and whatever. It was a quaint village Italian bakery/deli. It was absolutely wonderful, and we got to view the lake from here as well. A nice way to start the day!

Moving on to the next lake region where we wanted to find a couple of wineries to tour. Thought it would be a good day for that, since it was rainy and all, but we really do not need to have a reason, right?

Headed toward the township of Hammondsport. A great place to visit and do a walking tour, BUT, not to drive a house through. Of course we found that out after the fact, bit certainly would not change a single thing. Stopped over for a bit at the lakes-side, to evaluate the map and decide where we were to go next, when Kath goes out to ask a couple of "OLD GEEZER'S" sitting in their car at lakeside, how to get to Pleasant Valley Winery. They sat back, looked at her, and said "that's a pretty big THING to be way down here". Then they gave her directions...

Off to the winery. Small winding hilly roads, and not a lot of space for a house, but we made it to the winery.

Pleasant valley Winery is the oldest winery in the US. It's trade-named wines and Champagne are classically known as Taylor Wines, Great Western, and Pleasant Valley.

The tour was informative and interesting. Kath kept on slowing down by the wine barrels. She said she was just resting, I think she was smelling the fermentation process, which was very pungent. Of course, the best part of any tour is the tasting part on the end.

Kath had to taste ALL of the champagne's (me too). They were excellent and embellished by the two of us to the very last drop. Afterwards, we were able to purchase some, but found out that we can only have so much "BOOZE" in the coach if we go over the border to Canada, so we only bought 4 bottles of champagne. We figure we will maybe be able to drink these before we get to the next winery, then buy some more. EDUCATION... That's what we are doing here, folks. Educating ourselves.

Met up with a couple in the winery that were staying in a nice campground close by. Since we now had spent much time in the winery, we thought that we would stopover locally and have a fresh start in the AM.

More wineries tomorrow, and heading toward Lethchworth State Forest, close to Canadaiuga Lake.

Will post again when we get internet access.

Stay tuned.

LJg

Well... We made it!!!!

Yup, we finally made it happen. After much to-do with the coach, etc. We finally are off and on the road.

Today we drove through MA and into NY.

Finger Lakes Region of New York:
Drove up the coast of Lake Cayuga, through Auburn, NY; Seneca Falls; Waterloo (the birthplace of Memorial Day); Geneva; and down the west coast of Seneca Lake, almost to the base when we finally stopped for the night (369 miles).

The sights from the coach were absolutely breathtaking and fantastic. Being up higher than a car gives us such a better panoramic view.

We had no idea how beautiful the landscape was, so close to "home". We saw miles and miles of green valley's, corn fields, and grape vines. Such a relaxing and scenic ride.

Stopped over in a corn field for the night. It rained like "A Rainy Night in Georgia", with thunder and lighting that would rock even the most soundest of sleeper (except Kath) out of bed. The first roar, I actually thought that Kath fell out of the bed... She was OK!

Plan to do Watkins Glenn at the base of Seneca Lake and Montauk Falls tomorrow.

I will update again soon.
LJg

Almost there...

Ok, It's Monday and we had Joe the Guru put the new power converter/charger in the coach yesterday, and guess what? The thing actually works! The batteries are charging and the power is being converted. Yahoo!

I am beginning to think that the converter has most likely been the route of all of our problems. Including the slide-room, because that will not work without 12 volt power. If the converter was not working, consequently we had no 12 volt. In retrospect, I can see that we have probably been experiencing intermittent issues with that thing for probably a good year. Should have had Joe fix the coach in the first place. Then it would have been fixed a long time ago.

So, maybe we will leave for a trip tomorrow... Have been reluctant to fill the refridge etc, but the vodka stash is up to par! We really don't need much more than that. Well OK, maybe some ice.

Hope that tomorrow will be the day. Will keep you updated.
LJg

Closer to the Road

Well, it's time. We are about to embark on our trip to the Finger Lakes of New York, possibly up to Canada and down the east coast.

I invite you to come along for the ride because you know that it will be a memorable one. Wish us luck.

LJg

Oops!

Well, I thought we would be on the road again... Motorhome is rebelling, so we are still home a week later.

After getting it all cleaned up and serviced (slide room), the service center said "the batteries are very low, you need to charge them". OK, so we did. Great! Ready to go... No, not yet!

In the drivers seat and ready to move the coach. Put on the dash air and NOTHING! It apppears that the service technicians blew out several fuses while looking for the relay to the slide room. Meanwhile, Rich is out in the street waiting for me to move, and I come out and wave him in to check out the air (I could see him talking to himself). Two hours later and the location of a couple of blow fuses, still no resolution. Phone call to a freind who fixes just about anything and owns his own coach. He arrives and finds that both fuses go to the air and they both have to be replaced at the same time. Go figure! He puts relays in to hold us until we replace the 25 amp fuses. So... move the coach to Shrewsbury.

Wednesday - Fuses in and working. Ready again? A last minute check of the batteries (just to be sure) revealed that something is drawing them down. We can not even consider going to unknown destinations without battery back-up. Back to the drawing board and yet another phone call to Joe, the Guru. He checks things out again and finds that "somehow" the power converter/charger was not functioning. No one has the part, except a place in Bridgewater. Rich to the rescue from work gets the part and it is here and ready to be put in the coach.

We will try to leave again on Tuesday... will keep you posted.

LeadSled on the Road Again

Finally... on the road again.
As most of you know, we did not do any "road trips" last year for a variety of reasons. Consequently it was a really long winter. This year however, we were bound and determined to go somewhere.
Our first thoughts were to take a trip across the country, again. This time it was to be on the high side, around the Great Lakes and back through Canada. We got delayed for a couple of weeks by the high gas prices and most importantly the repair of the slide-room (again) which kept us grounded longer than anticipated.
We then changed our itinerary to the Finger Lakes of New York and possibly some of Canada.
Time is the issue. Health issues and work has kept us both grounded, so we need to squeeze some time in for a some good times!
Stay tuned as we will update the site as often as we can get internet access.
Please feel free to comment at any time as we look forward to sharing our trip with you!
LJg