tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63178789502053308332024-03-12T20:54:35.204-07:00New England & Maritime Provinces 2012Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-43729403674667694602012-08-05T12:31:00.001-07:002012-08-05T12:31:54.356-07:00August 5, 2012HOME!<br />
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Arrived home around 9:30 this morning. I had left Batavia, NY early in anticipation of heavy thunderstorms that (thank goodness) never transpired.<br />
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Been a great trip, saw lots of interesting stuff and beautiful scenery, good to be home. Total mileage was 6,119 total.<br />
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Next year...thinking about doing Canada again, with a different route.Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-66714672795116653292012-08-04T13:32:00.002-07:002012-08-04T13:34:46.919-07:00August 4, 2012I left Watertown to clear skies and rising temperatures all day. Took Hwy 3 south along the Lake Ontario to the town of New Haven, where I picked up Hwy 104 to Rochester. Along the way, I passed through Mexico and Texas...the towns thereof, anyway. Along the way, I diverted to catch the Ray Bay lighthouse, which turned out to have been converted to a private residence with lots of no-trespassing signs. I did get a shot of it, though, and it's very nice:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cDHLOA-lSZQ/UB2BeQDwaTI/AAAAAAAABQs/fKWmGtonv2I/s1600/Ray+Bay+Lighthouse.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cDHLOA-lSZQ/UB2BeQDwaTI/AAAAAAAABQs/fKWmGtonv2I/s640/Ray+Bay+Lighthouse.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The little town of Ray Bay was located on Ray Bay, on Lake Ontario, and consisted of about 100 or so homes.<br />
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I followed Hwy 104 all along Lake Ontario through Rochester and then took I-90 over to Buffalo for the Buffalo Transportation Museum. This summer, I had read that the Museum has had a make-over and I wanted to see it. There were many automobiles produced in Buffalo over the years, and there still is a GM engine plant and a Ford stamping plant in the Buffalo area. The two most famous makes produced in Buffalo were the Thomas (of Thomas Flyer fame) and the Pierce Arrow. Pierce went bankrupt in 1936, but the original factory still stands, although, unfortunately, the museum is not located in it. Any, the museum was pretty interesting and the facility has certainly been upgraded.<br />
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This is the entrance to the museum:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WnAbXHDyIKM/UB2CqE7T5JI/AAAAAAAABQ4/EWfSus-IETo/s1600/Buffalo+Transportation+Museum2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WnAbXHDyIKM/UB2CqE7T5JI/AAAAAAAABQ4/EWfSus-IETo/s640/Buffalo+Transportation+Museum2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And sitting in the parking lot was this:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RV05svRW-Jw/UB2C71eTWHI/AAAAAAAABRA/2P6-UZ7Cu_Q/s1600/BTM3+Auburn+Replicar.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RV05svRW-Jw/UB2C71eTWHI/AAAAAAAABRA/2P6-UZ7Cu_Q/s640/BTM3+Auburn+Replicar.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Unfortunately, not the real thing. It's a 1980's Replicar of a 1936 Auburn Speedster.<br />
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Inside the museum were a number of interesting exhibits. I didn't know it, but Pierce built horse carriages, bicycles, and motorcycles in addition to cars. I thought Frank Kramer here looked particularly determined:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Mmel5TkC5Ls/UB2DdyySh5I/AAAAAAAABRI/-UUNfRQxiqg/s1600/BTM7+Pierce+bicycles.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Mmel5TkC5Ls/UB2DdyySh5I/AAAAAAAABRI/-UUNfRQxiqg/s640/BTM7+Pierce+bicycles.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And this is a 1904-model Pierce motorcycle:<br />
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Here are a few of the more interesting cars they had on exhibit:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ao591lr4Uac/UB2EXCK793I/AAAAAAAABRY/n__tvI7rvZc/s1600/BTM16+1934+Pierce+Arrow.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ao591lr4Uac/UB2EXCK793I/AAAAAAAABRY/n__tvI7rvZc/s640/BTM16+1934+Pierce+Arrow.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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A 1934 Pierce-Arrow.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2J5dWemknWs/UB2EqNb8deI/AAAAAAAABRg/V2Qqlb71K4o/s1600/BTM26+1957+T-Bird+from+front.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2J5dWemknWs/UB2EqNb8deI/AAAAAAAABRg/V2Qqlb71K4o/s640/BTM26+1957+T-Bird+from+front.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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An absolutely gorgeous 1957 T-Bird with removable hardtop.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IRX4_HMu4Ok/UB2FEHFE-AI/AAAAAAAABRo/IrIQJFk46wE/s1600/BTM29+1963+Chevy+Impala+409.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IRX4_HMu4Ok/UB2FEHFE-AI/AAAAAAAABRo/IrIQJFk46wE/s640/BTM29+1963+Chevy+Impala+409.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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1963 Chevy Impala 409 with 4 on the floor and the original interior and paint.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EHbdXDrNgNI/UB2Fhq_L1fI/AAAAAAAABRw/pFCS15Dr2GQ/s1600/BTM35+Early+Ford+Model+T+Roadster.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EHbdXDrNgNI/UB2Fhq_L1fI/AAAAAAAABRw/pFCS15Dr2GQ/s640/BTM35+Early+Ford+Model+T+Roadster.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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An early (I think prior to 1910) Model-T Roadster from the days before "you can have any color you want as long as it's black."<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Um-biajDoTU/UB2GbqCdt-I/AAAAAAAABSE/M6C4nmH07-c/s1600/BTM24+1929+Stutz.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Um-biajDoTU/UB2GbqCdt-I/AAAAAAAABSE/M6C4nmH07-c/s640/BTM24+1929+Stutz.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And, finally, this 1929 Stutz with someone's grandmother helping sell car wax.<br />
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All in all, a very nicely done museum. I'm in Batavia, NY for the night and will be home tomorrow.<br />
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Miles today: 278<br />
Total: 6,008Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-85047435201641695092012-08-03T17:21:00.002-07:002012-08-03T17:21:44.765-07:00August 3, 2012I left Lake George this morning to cloudy skies and a spattering of rain. I expected to get wet all day, but the clouds disappeared by about 10:00 and it was beautiful from there on. I rode north from Lake George on US9 and then up NY73 to Lake Placid. Most of New York north of Lake George is part of the Adirondack State Park and it has some really splendid scenery. I took this shot along Hwy 73 about 40 miles southeast of Lake Placid:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ir5j8a4nSzQ/UBxkEK3lIsI/AAAAAAAABOw/oDx6i9LxcaU/s1600/Adirondack4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ir5j8a4nSzQ/UBxkEK3lIsI/AAAAAAAABOw/oDx6i9LxcaU/s640/Adirondack4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Lake Placid was interesting. Of course, it was the site of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympics, and a lot of Olympic training is still conducted there. As I rounded a turn about 2 miles from Lake Placid, I came upon this:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zPwPRWYcgC4/UBxkxOyqsgI/AAAAAAAABO4/WEArR0RhlPQ/s1600/Lake+Placid5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zPwPRWYcgC4/UBxkxOyqsgI/AAAAAAAABO4/WEArR0RhlPQ/s640/Lake+Placid5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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These are the two towers built for ski jumping during the 1980 Olympics. One is a 120-meter (394 feet) tower and the other is 90 meters (295 feet). The distance refers to the "ideal" jump distance that would result under perfect conditions. It's also the distance against which the jumpers are scored. I got to go up the ski lift to the base of the towers and then up the elevator to the top of the 120-meter tower, some 250 feet above the base. Here is a view of the slope and the towers from the bottom:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Fi77Ab2xFK8/UBxnBaXfw-I/AAAAAAAABPA/An_9lhnqPn4/s1600/Ski+Jumps13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Fi77Ab2xFK8/UBxnBaXfw-I/AAAAAAAABPA/An_9lhnqPn4/s640/Ski+Jumps13.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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They actually practice jumping during the summer from the 90-meter tower on the left. What you see is a synthetic surface they jump on. <br />
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This picture was taken from the ski lift going up the hill. What you're seeing is the landing area for the 90-meter jump. You can appreciate how steep it is.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lrV-J25pF5g/UBxoDpZSbhI/AAAAAAAABPU/g6xYd1YWj4I/s1600/Ski+Jumps21.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lrV-J25pF5g/UBxoDpZSbhI/AAAAAAAABPU/g6xYd1YWj4I/s640/Ski+Jumps21.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a view from the bottom of the two towers.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NdU4nSJwKjg/UBxocX9qdmI/AAAAAAAABPc/gZobY3qEVCM/s1600/120+Meter+Tower36.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NdU4nSJwKjg/UBxocX9qdmI/AAAAAAAABPc/gZobY3qEVCM/s640/120+Meter+Tower36.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And, once you make it to the Olympics, this is the view you'll have from the starting gate.<br />
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Here are a couple views from the top of the 120-meter tower:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YOJDkyuN21s/UBxprtqGaLI/AAAAAAAABP0/RnMkBg9zwBM/s1600/120+Meter+Tower28.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YOJDkyuN21s/UBxprtqGaLI/AAAAAAAABP0/RnMkBg9zwBM/s640/120+Meter+Tower28.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This was the 90-meter tower from the top of the 120-meter tower:<br />
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And, as I left, off to my left were some kids training for free-style jumping. They jumped off the hill, did a 360, and landed in a big pool. Look closely and you can see the jumper:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zo6iFhaGFow/UBxqhSyuBKI/AAAAAAAABQE/XcOkAll42mo/s1600/360+Loop.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="376" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Zo6iFhaGFow/UBxqhSyuBKI/AAAAAAAABQE/XcOkAll42mo/s640/360+Loop.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I left Lake Placid and headed on over to Watertown for the night. Tomorrow, it's cross-country to Batavia, NY for the night.<br />
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Miles today: 295<br />
Total: 5,730Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-90653587716311964432012-08-02T18:03:00.000-07:002012-08-02T18:03:00.830-07:00August 2, 2012I left Rutland this morning to clear skies and bright sunshine for a change. I headed back east on US 4 to Windsor, NH, to visit the American Precision Museum. Along the way, I stopped in Woodstock, VT to take a few pictures. I had passed through Woodstock on the way up a couple weeks ago and it's really a pretty, picturesque New England town. Here are a couple shots:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JRlEQQkaXKs/UBsch1MHD0I/AAAAAAAABM8/TpsvU0TkR_Y/s1600/Woodstock,+NY1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JRlEQQkaXKs/UBsch1MHD0I/AAAAAAAABM8/TpsvU0TkR_Y/s640/Woodstock,+NY1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Above was one of the side streets off the main square.<br />
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And this was Main Street.<br />
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About 5 miles further east on US 4 is the town of Taftsville. I had seen this when I passed through a couple weeks ago, but wanted to stop and take a couple pictures. Below is a 200 year old covered bridge that was almost completely destroyed in the 2011 storms that hit New England:<br />
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And beside it is a hydro power plant that was flooded and is still out of commission:<br />
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There was an article in the Rutland paper this morning that the State plans to have the bridge rebuilt in 2013. I didn't read anything about the power station, but through the window, I saw one of the generators disassembled.<br />
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On down to Windsor, NH and the American Precision Museum. The museum itself is housed in a factory building built in 1846 to manufacture firearms:<br />
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The factory produced the first firearms made with interchangeable parts, a real first in American manufacturing. It meant that the firearms didn't have to be individually made by a craftsman, but could be manufactured in bulk using standardized parts. The factory also produced the machines that were used to produce many of the firearms that the Union Army used during the Civil War. The museum will filled with early-to-mid 19th Century machinery and was very interesting. Unfortunately, the batteries in the camera died while I was inside, and I had parked about half a mile up the road...<br />
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After Windsor, I headed back west on US 4 to Saratoga Springs, NY and the Saratoga Auto Museum. This museum is housed in the old bottling plant at the Saratoga Springs Spa and is featuring some of the early cars from the early days of NASCAR. It was very interesting. A few that I thought particularly interesting were these:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ppX1uoixfyY/UBsg5YHidgI/AAAAAAAABNo/hpLT4xmafxc/s1600/SAM27+1939+Ford+Coupe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ppX1uoixfyY/UBsg5YHidgI/AAAAAAAABNo/hpLT4xmafxc/s640/SAM27+1939+Ford+Coupe.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is an actual 1939 Ford Coupe that has been modified to carry moonshine and outrun the "Revenuers". Many of the early NASCAR drivers got their start evading the law and carrying illegal (i.e. untaxed) liquor to market. This included Jimmy Johnson, who spent 11 months in prison after he got caught.<br />
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This is a 1952 Hudson Hornet driven by Herb Thomas.<br />
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A 1960 Ford Thunderbird, back when race cars looked like a real car.<br />
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And this is Richard Petty's 1985 Pontiac.<br />
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The museum was really worth the stop and very interesting.<br />
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Tomorrow it's off to Lake Placid and then to Watertown, NY for the night.<br />
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Just so's you'll know, this is my little cabin in the woods for tonight:<br />
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Miles today: 200<br />
Total: 5,435Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-91077772268967492852012-08-01T17:59:00.000-07:002012-08-01T17:59:22.762-07:00August 1, 2012I left Bangor this morning in a pouring rain that lasted for about 100 miles, more or less to the New Hampshire border. By the time I got to Gorham, the skies had cleared up enough that I decided to go ahead and try the Mt. Washington Auto Road to the top. The auto road was opened in 1861, making it the oldest man made tourist attraction in the US. The road is 7.6 miles long and climbs 4,618 feet from the base to the top in that distance. Almost one mile and almost straight up. The start of the road, at the base, looks like this:<br />
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You can see the road climbing up. Nice, paved not real steep, right? Ha!<br />
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This was from a pull-off about half way up the hill. The road is quite a bit narrower now, and quite a bit steeper. There are pull-offs about every half-mile down the hill and signs encouraging you to use first gear and stop and let your brakes cool off. For some reason, about 5 miles up the hill, there is a section a mile or so long that is DIRT. Now, I paid $15 for a motorcycle to go up the hill. Cars paid $25 for the privilege. Now, you're gonna tell me they couldn't widen and pave this last darn mile? (It did also get narrower. Looks like one of those roads in South America that clings to the side of the mountain where trucks fall over the side on a regular basis.) Well, I did manage to make it up without dropping all 4,618 feet to the bottom, and the trip down was actually a little easier.<br />
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With all the rain we'd had today, the top of the mountain was pretty well clouded in. I did get a couple shots on the way down below the clouds, and on a clear day the scenery would have been spectacular. (Did I mention there are no guard rails to get in the way?)<br />
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At the top of the mountain is the weather station where, on April 12, 1934, winds were measured at 231 miles/hour:<br />
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I wonder who stood out there holding the anemometer??<br />
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The top was interesting. It's dominated by the weather station, which is manned year-round. I'd love to be up here in the winter. Tip Top House is one of the original structures on the mountain, having been built in 1854:<br />
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And, if you have any doubts about the weather up there, these are chains holding this building down:<br />
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Anyway, pretty interesting and probably more so on a clear day.<br />
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I arrived in Rutland, VT around 5:30 for the night. Tomorrow, it's the Norman Rockwell Museum in Rutland, a museum in Windsor, NH, the Saratoga Auto Museum in Saratoga Springs, and on to Lake George for the night.<br />
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Miles today: 356<br />
Total: 5,235Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-33443392624176708202012-07-31T12:37:00.000-07:002012-07-31T12:37:11.017-07:00July 31, 2012Sorry, no pictures today. I left Moncton this morning and headed west on the Trans-Canadian Highway to the US border between Woodstock, NB and Houlton, ME. Weather was really nice, a few clouds this morning, but they were gone by 10:00 or so. Crossed the border without incident, then headed toward Bangor on US2A and US2 through the back country. I was a little surprised that Maine is as flat as it is, but I guess that's the glaciers plowing everything down. Lots of scrubby trees and lots of pulpwood trucks hauling logs somewhere. I went through downtown Bangor, which is actually pretty quaint. Staying at a Motel 6 on the south side of town. I'll be heading across Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont on US2 tomorrow to stay off the interstates. Tomorrow night I'll be in Rutland, VT for the evening.<br />
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Great day, no incidents to report, didn't get hauled into jail at the border!<br />
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Miles today: 311<br />
Total: 4,879Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-4218204276014300032012-07-30T17:25:00.003-07:002013-02-27T08:35:35.698-08:00July 30, 2012I left Sydney around 7:00 this morning in a rain that lasted until around noon. Stopped in St. Peter's for breakfast, and then boogied down the Trans-Canada Highway to Moncton, NB for the night. I stopped at the Nova Scotia Museum of Industry in Stellarton, and that was quite interesting. I didn't realize it, but in the 19th and up to the 1960's or so, Nova Scotia was a big coal-mining, iron-and-steel-making, and manufacturing hub for railroad equipment. As times changed, though, those industries slowly faded away, and the province is struggling with replacing those jobs. The mines in and around Stellarton were particularly deadly, as they released a relatively lot of methane gas, and consequently, were prone to deadly explosions. Some of the exhibits in the Museum are below:<br />
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This is the "Samson", the first locomotive in Canada and the first locomotive in North America that ran on iron rails instead of wooden rails. It was build in 1838 and shipped over to Nova Scotia for service in the mines in and around Stellarton. Interestingly, the engineer sat on a stool to the right in the picture and the fire box, where the fireman would shovel coal, was in the front of the engine.<br />
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This is an ingot of steel about 6 feet long and 2 feet square as it was cast in a Nova Scotia steel mill. It weighs about 10,000 lbs.<br />
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This is a 1912 McKay automobile produced by the McKay brothers in Kentville, NS. Pretty nifty, but the company only built about 175 cars before folding up in 1914.<br />
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At any rate, the museum was interesting with a lot of unique displays. I left Stellarton and headed west toward Moncton for the night. Tomorrow, it's on to Bangor, Maine and the good ol' US of A.<br />
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Miles today: 302<br />
Total: 4,568Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-84267031230798843412012-07-29T16:42:00.000-07:002012-07-29T16:45:08.619-07:00July 29, 2012I left Baddeck this morning early and in a little fog and headed south on Hwy 105 to Port Hastings and then back up the eastern side of the island. First stop was Lenoir Forge Museum in Arichat. Unfortunately, since this was Sunday, the site didn't open until 1:00 and I was way early. You can see from the picture of the harbor, though, that the town was pretty picturesque:<br />
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Even if I didn't get to see the site, the scenery was beautiful. <br />
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Next stop was the town of St. Peter's, home of the St. Peter's canal and locks. This was pretty interesting. St. Peter's sits on an isthmus between the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast and Bras d'Or Lake, which occupies the entire center portion of Cape Breton Island, to the northwest. The canal connects the two, is 2600 feet long and was completed in 1869. It replaced an old "haul road" where vessels were hauled over the hill on a road made of logs. The other interesting thing is that this is the only canal in the world constructed with double lock gates, one set facing in each direction. This is because, at times, the level of the ocean side might be higher or lower than the level of the lake, and they had to be able to operate under either condition. Pretty interesting stuff! <br />
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You can see the hill on the right that had to be removed to build the canal.<br />
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And here, you can see the double lock gates. Pretty place.<br />
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And this is the end of the canal facing the Lake of Bras.<br />
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Next, it was on up to Louisbourg and the Fortress of Louisbourg. This was also very interesting. In 1713 the French build a fort at Louisbourg where they had a thriving village of Cod fishermen. As the docent explained it, there are some 145 days a year that French Catholics don't eat meat, and they ate Cod on those occasions. The fort was seized by the British in 1745, ceded back to the French, and recaptured by the Brits in 1758, after which it was systematically destroyed by British engineers. During the 1960's through the 1980's, the Canadians restored the fortress and surrounding village, creating something that reminded me of Colonial Williamsburg, complete with guides in period costume. The site is about as big as Colonial Williamsburg, too, so there's a lot to see.<br />
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Above is the main gate into the fortress, and you can appreciate the workmanship that went into the whole facility. Interestingly enough, the guns were mostly facing the sea and, of course, the British came from the land side to seize the fort both times. <br />
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Here you can see part of the village to the left, part of the fortifications to the right, and the main barracks building in the center.<br />
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This is a picture of some of the buildings in the village. They had houses, a blacksmith's shop, bakery, restaurants, you name it. All staffed with local people in period costume who really knew what it was they were portraying. <br />
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Above is the village smithy making a tool of some kind.<br />
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And, finally, this is a shot of the village from the ramparts of the fortress. Anyway, very interesting and very well done.<br />
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Tomorrow, I'm starting back home and will be riding down Hwy 104 all the way to Moncton, NB for the night. I had stayed in Moncton two nights on the way up.<br />
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Miles today: 265<br />
Total: 4,266Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-87903188145272043822012-07-28T16:31:00.000-07:002012-07-28T16:31:59.870-07:00July 28, 2012What a beautiful day. Sun was shining and the temperatures were mild. I left Pictou and headed east on Hwy 104 to Cape Breton Island, the north most portion of Nova Scotia. I went up Hwy 19 on the west side of the island to Magaree Harbor, where Cape Breton Highlands National Park and the Cabot Trail start. The Cabot Trail goes all the way around the park, some 180 miles in total. The Trail hugs the coastline and has steep inclines and declines all along the way. It's one of those places it's tough to watch the road because you never know what you're going to see around the next bend. At random, here are some shots I took along the way:<br />
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The picture above was actually taken at the town of St. Rose, just before you get into the Park.<br />
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You should be able to get some idea of how steep the road is in places. In the background you can see a cut in the hillside where the road starts to go downhill. It must have dropped 500 feet in no more than 3/4 of a mile.<br />
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(In case you thought that only the shoreline was impressive). Anyway, it was a beautiful day with lots to see.<br />
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On the way south along the east shore of the park, the road came to a sudden end at the waterfront and I had a little ferry ride across St. Ann's Bay. This ferry really packed them in:<br />
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It was a really nice day today. Tomorrow, it's on around the east end of the island to Sydney for the night.<br />
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Miles today: 306<br />
Total: 4,001Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-7987578564256807102012-07-27T16:05:00.001-07:002012-07-27T16:06:50.628-07:00July 27, 2012I left Yarmouth this morning to steady, sometimes vigorous rain that lasted until around noon or so. Anyway, that's part of not having a roof over your head. My sight-seeing stops went pretty much like this:<br />
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Gilbert's Cove Lighthouse: Oh, crap, it's down a dirt road and it's raining cats and dogs. No way, Jose!<br />
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Cornwallis Military Museum: Looks interesting from the outside. The have a real neat Sherman tank and a T-33 jet. But, it's 9:30 and they don't open until 10:30. Crap.<br />
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Fort Ann NHS in Annapolis Royal: Well, it's raining cats and dogs and I'm making good time. I'll save this one for another trip.<br />
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Middleton RR Museum: Same story, and besides, it's just a bunch of old trains.<br />
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Greenwood Military Aviation Museum in Greenwood, NS. I actually did stop for this and it was pretty interesting. Greenwood Air Base was one of the air bases that, during WWII, was home to the escort and anti-submarine planes that helped protect the Atlantic convoys. Today, it's still active in anti-submarine and drug-interdiction roles. Anyway, they did have some interesting exhibits, including these:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xC2JyI9Zxgw/UBMcTXNdmqI/AAAAAAAABGk/V99Psa6_2ks/s1600/Greenwood3+Rolls+Royce+Merlin+Engine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xC2JyI9Zxgw/UBMcTXNdmqI/AAAAAAAABGk/V99Psa6_2ks/s640/Greenwood3+Rolls+Royce+Merlin+Engine.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a V-12 Rolls Royce "Merlin" engine that powered the Spitfire and P-51 fighters as well as a number of British bombers.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z3vOqKYiHbQ/UBMdj_jS9GI/AAAAAAAABGs/e1ZG1-vBgPA/s1600/Greenwood7+Wright+Engine2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z3vOqKYiHbQ/UBMdj_jS9GI/AAAAAAAABGs/e1ZG1-vBgPA/s640/Greenwood7+Wright+Engine2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a cut-away view of a Wright 14-cylinder radial engine used in a number of post-WWII military and civilian aircraft.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-999PjrggBK4/UBMeOcz-zQI/AAAAAAAABG4/D4jwQ6OGxUA/s1600/Greenwood16+Avro+Lancaster+Bomber.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-999PjrggBK4/UBMeOcz-zQI/AAAAAAAABG4/D4jwQ6OGxUA/s640/Greenwood16+Avro+Lancaster+Bomber.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And, finally, this is an Avro Lancaster, a British bomber from WWII that was later used in anti-submarine duty.<br />
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After Greenwood, it was a straight shot to Pictou, NS for the night. Tomorrow, it's on to Cape Breton Island and the Cabot Trail.<br />
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Miles today: 317<br />
Total: 3,695Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-27605138719395372202012-07-26T17:24:00.000-07:002012-07-26T17:24:03.799-07:00July 26, 2012Well, it looks like the nice weather is going missing for a couple days. I left Halifax this morning to sunny skies, and by 11:00 there was a light rain the rest of the day. At least it wasn't a deluge like it was on Tuesday.<br />
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First planned stop today was Lunenburg, 60 or so miles to the southwest on the coast. Along the way, I stopped in Marriott's Cove for gas, and took a couple shots of this pretty little town at the north end of Mahone Bay:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rkOy8JpfEAg/UBHTC2yib2I/AAAAAAAABFU/SYiytCa64TI/s1600/Marriott's+Cove3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rkOy8JpfEAg/UBHTC2yib2I/AAAAAAAABFU/SYiytCa64TI/s640/Marriott's+Cove3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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On down the road was Lunenburg, which was having a "Tall Ships" festival. You can see the number of tall masts that were visible on the harborfront:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dqlbsjSJ3ts/UBHTjp_oN4I/AAAAAAAABFc/VFmmP9cIN_0/s1600/Lunenburg+Harbor6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dqlbsjSJ3ts/UBHTjp_oN4I/AAAAAAAABFc/VFmmP9cIN_0/s640/Lunenburg+Harbor6.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The attraction I came for was the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic, which was going all-out for the Tall Ships festival. The museum was interesting, though, with a lot of good information about the Lunenburg area, the fishing industry there, and the shipbuilding industry there. I thought this was an interesting display showing the construction details for a fishing dory:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DM7_26p-vvE/UBHcnWp2z9I/AAAAAAAABF4/L8t9vnGFbV4/s1600/Fisheries12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DM7_26p-vvE/UBHcnWp2z9I/AAAAAAAABF4/L8t9vnGFbV4/s640/Fisheries12.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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They also had an interesting display showing how they made sails:<br />
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After visiting Lunenburg, I headed further down the road to Liverpool and the Fort Point Lighthouse Park. This lighthouse was a little different in that it is at the end of the bay in front of Liverpool, rather that out at the entrance to the harbor. It was designed to guide ships into the harbor rather than away from hazards outside the harbor. It wasn't real big, either:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uT5_6UXwYUk/UBHe_N3oXFI/AAAAAAAABGI/P3upQt6v424/s1600/FPLP21.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uT5_6UXwYUk/UBHe_N3oXFI/AAAAAAAABGI/P3upQt6v424/s640/FPLP21.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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After leaving Liverpool, I headed on down the coast to Yarmouth for the night. Tomorrow, it's back east along the north shore of Nova Scotia to the big town of Pictou.<br />
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Miles today: 233<br />
Total: 3,378Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-10945564724209523462012-07-25T15:52:00.000-07:002012-07-25T15:52:08.330-07:00July 25, 2012After yesterday's torrential downpours, I decided to stay in Halifax all day today to take in the sights. The city is really interesting, with a long history and lots of things to see and do along the waterfront. I took a ferry over to the Halifax side of the harbour this morning and the first stop was the citadel, which overlooks the city to the west. The Citadel was one of several fortifications erected by the British in the 18th and 19th centuries to protect the harbor and their rather tenuous hold on Nova Scotia. Sitting on the hillside in front of the Citadel is the Old Town Clock, erected in 1802:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-F-fGBCGr5Co/UBBrnJxfQKI/AAAAAAAABCw/Qn-QNRQxNts/s1600/Halifax+Town+Clock5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-F-fGBCGr5Co/UBBrnJxfQKI/AAAAAAAABCw/Qn-QNRQxNts/s640/Halifax+Town+Clock5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The citadel is a large fortification that sits on top of the hill behind the clock tower, with gun batteries facing in all directions. This would give you some idea of the extend of the facility:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2b6ZtFqdZOU/UBBscJDUc3I/AAAAAAAABC4/3OZtaCSmXPI/s1600/Citadel33.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2b6ZtFqdZOU/UBBscJDUc3I/AAAAAAAABC4/3OZtaCSmXPI/s640/Citadel33.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The citadel was completed in 1856 and was actively occupied through World War II. Here are some of the displays I found most interesting:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a94xgQ9FWfA/UBBto8maS3I/AAAAAAAABDA/ErvaG-nUHkU/s1600/Citadel16+Soldier's+Quarters.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a94xgQ9FWfA/UBBto8maS3I/AAAAAAAABDA/ErvaG-nUHkU/s640/Citadel16+Soldier's+Quarters.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Above are soldier's quarters. Pretty cozy, actually.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MIT2jKPqabk/UBBuMHTXAeI/AAAAAAAABDI/ykw_F8LlFVI/s1600/Citadel14+Bag+Pipe+Player.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="626" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MIT2jKPqabk/UBBuMHTXAeI/AAAAAAAABDI/ykw_F8LlFVI/s640/Citadel14+Bag+Pipe+Player.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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There was a lot of marchin' goin' on, including this chap playing the bag pipes.<br />
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As you would expect, there were many displays of uniforms and weapons.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Hi-xwFre1Y0/UBBu2xHFqqI/AAAAAAAABDY/XK0rmcLGfQc/s1600/Citadel26+WWI.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Hi-xwFre1Y0/UBBu2xHFqqI/AAAAAAAABDY/XK0rmcLGfQc/s640/Citadel26+WWI.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Canada, of course, sent troops to fight in World War I and World War II. I found the poster in the background to be revealing. During WWI, Canada lost just under 60,000 men killed, out of a population of less than 8 million.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zUMwMzCuykM/UBBvYP5P9iI/AAAAAAAABDg/UORx2QUT_KM/s1600/Citadel32+Ramparts.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zUMwMzCuykM/UBBvYP5P9iI/AAAAAAAABDg/UORx2QUT_KM/s640/Citadel32+Ramparts.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This was one of many guns still in place on the ramparts surrounding the fort. I wonder if the folks in the apartment building have ever looked out their window?<br />
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After visiting the Citadel, I walked down to harbor side and the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. This, too, was very well done and very interesting. Nova Scotia (and Canada in general) has a long maritime history and the museum presented it very well. Samuel Cunard, who found Cunard Lines, was a native of Halifax and started his steamship business there. Here is one of his early ships, the Franconia:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TuFozMsQM0M/UBBwjCDOZoI/AAAAAAAABDo/HOd0X_zFciE/s1600/MMA59.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TuFozMsQM0M/UBBwjCDOZoI/AAAAAAAABDo/HOd0X_zFciE/s640/MMA59.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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When the Titanic sank in 1912, ships were dispatched from Halifax to aid in rescue and recovery operations. Many of the recovered dead were returned to Halifax, where they are buried in one of the city's cemeteries. <br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kDKtMZa6zyA/UBBxY3DgRFI/AAAAAAAABD0/0UOsW7tQB6M/s1600/MMA56.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kDKtMZa6zyA/UBBxY3DgRFI/AAAAAAAABD0/0UOsW7tQB6M/s640/MMA56.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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On December 6, 1915, the munitions ship SS Mont Blanc, loaded and waiting to join a convoy to Europe, exploded in Halifax Harbor in what has been described as the largest man-made explosion in history prior to Hiroshima. Much of the city was leveled in the ensuing blast and fires, and some 2,000 people were killed. The area below (in red) was destroyed as a result of the explosion and the lighter-colored area received substantial damage:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QF6DZZIQmb8/UBByqCWHSkI/AAAAAAAABD8/Vra4oIiSkBM/s1600/MMA51.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QF6DZZIQmb8/UBByqCWHSkI/AAAAAAAABD8/Vra4oIiSkBM/s640/MMA51.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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On a brighter note, the Museum contained some really interesting examples of locally-made boats:<br />
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I left the Maritime Museum and went over to the harbor area to view the SS Acadia and the HMCS Sackville. The Acadia was build in 1912 in England and was used for some 60 years as a vessel to survey the waters surrounding Canada (which, reportedly, has the longest coastline of any country). <br />
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Here's a picture of the Acadia:<br />
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The HMCS Sackville was a Corvette built in St. John, NB and launched in 1941. She served during WWII and was reactivated in 1952 and converted into a research vessel for the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries. In her present state, she is preserved in her original WWII role. You can see the Sackville in the background of this next picture, but I just realized I didn't get a good shot of her:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-87zXvODCb24/UBB1WaevwVI/AAAAAAAABEU/_PDZjVDIEEw/s1600/Harbor66.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-87zXvODCb24/UBB1WaevwVI/AAAAAAAABEU/_PDZjVDIEEw/s640/Harbor66.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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After leaving the harbor area, I hiked across town about 20 miles to the Maritime Command Museum at Admiralty House. Here, during WWII, plans were made and executed for the convoy system that ferried men and supplies from America to Europe. Many of the ships in the convoys moved up the coast and gathered in Halifax, where they were matched up, supplied with escort vessels, and dispatched across the North Atlantic. <br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YfTsWxPYSlk/UBB2SPIA2hI/AAAAAAAABEc/GNqzaJRMCOo/s1600/Maritime+Command+Museum+Admiralty+House94.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YfTsWxPYSlk/UBB2SPIA2hI/AAAAAAAABEc/GNqzaJRMCOo/s640/Maritime+Command+Museum+Admiralty+House94.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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One of the interesting themes of the displays in the Museum has to do with Canada's unwillingness to maintain any really significant military presence except to guard its own coastline. They have contributed troops and suffered casualties in every conflict from Korea to Afghanistan, but there has been a steady deterioration of their military capability. This struck me when I took this picture:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nUvekrJSgFM/UBB2-QLUAlI/AAAAAAAABEk/5f7nTqS2-Pg/s1600/MCM+Ship's+Bells102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nUvekrJSgFM/UBB2-QLUAlI/AAAAAAAABEk/5f7nTqS2-Pg/s640/MCM+Ship's+Bells102.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This picture is just part of a room full of ships bells from decommissioned Canadian warships. I'm not sure how many they have left, but it can't be many.<br />
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As I left the museum, I walked across the Angus L. MacDonald Bridge, one of two bridges spanning Halifax Harbour:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-28uL0tQz4C4/UBB33ACWrgI/AAAAAAAABEs/8XWeRClW1CQ/s1600/Mac+Donald+Bridge103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-28uL0tQz4C4/UBB33ACWrgI/AAAAAAAABEs/8XWeRClW1CQ/s640/Mac+Donald+Bridge103.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And here is one last view of Halifax Harbour from the middle of the bridge span:<br />
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That's it from Halifax. This is really an interesting city with very friendly people. Tomorrow, it's down the coast to the west to Yarmouth, on the western coast of Nova Scotia.Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-8429774248075959972012-07-24T15:44:00.000-07:002012-07-24T15:44:01.825-07:00July 24, 2012Well, all I've been saying about the beautiful weather pretty much went in the tank today. I left Summerside this morning and headed for the Confederation Bridge back to New Brunswick and then on down into Nova Scotia. The wind was gusting the whole way down to the bridge and out in the middle of the span it must have been gusting up to about 60 mph. It was bad enough on a bike, but the guy ahead of me had a fifth-wheel trailer on the back of a pickup truck. That must have been a handful.<br />
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After safely getting off the bridge, I headed down Hwy 16 to Hwy 2 to cross over into Nova Scotia. I thought the main part of Nova Scotia was an island, but it sure isn't. I headed down Hwy 242 and 209 to the Joggins Fossil Cliffs Museum, which was really quite interesting. Joggins is a little town on the north coast of Nova Scotia overlooking Chignecto Bay. Once upon a time, Joggins was a coal mining town and there were wharfs on the Bay for the ships that carried coal out of the area. The cliffs are about 50 feet tall and date back about 350 million years. Reportedly, they're full of fossils. This'll give you some idea of the terrain at low tide:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R4KqHtccRjE/UA8iaMR1y2I/AAAAAAAABBk/aOzuek_TOjY/s1600/Joggins7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R4KqHtccRjE/UA8iaMR1y2I/AAAAAAAABBk/aOzuek_TOjY/s640/Joggins7.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can see the fossil-filled cliffs on the left. Well, the only fossil I found was this one:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2T0r9U42Sew/UA8i5UhYpQI/AAAAAAAABB0/CypbksA9Pm4/s1600/Joggins9+Tree+Trunk.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2T0r9U42Sew/UA8i5UhYpQI/AAAAAAAABB0/CypbksA9Pm4/s640/Joggins9+Tree+Trunk.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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What you're seeing is a fossilized tree trunk about 300 million years old. A better example was in the visitor's center:<br />
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And, finally, I did make a new friend while I was there:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-udEJP6F9GVQ/UA8jl6oZkkI/AAAAAAAABCE/gqCzsE7gnmA/s1600/Joggins+Fossil+Cliffs1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-udEJP6F9GVQ/UA8jl6oZkkI/AAAAAAAABCE/gqCzsE7gnmA/s640/Joggins+Fossil+Cliffs1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I actually enjoyed the museum. It was quite interesting, and if I'd taken the guided tour (saved $5!), I think it would have been much better.<br />
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After leaving Joggins, it began to rain, but like a fool, I continued on around the peninsula. The highway runs right beside the water and the scenery, when I could see it through the rain, was very nice. I stopped for a bowl of soup at Parrsboro, a little fishing village on the south side of the peninsula, facing Minas Basin. The waterfront was pretty:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6K1ALUUfy5U/UA8kewa487I/AAAAAAAABCM/zuDPA284y6w/s1600/Parrsboro16+Minas+Basin.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6K1ALUUfy5U/UA8kewa487I/AAAAAAAABCM/zuDPA284y6w/s640/Parrsboro16+Minas+Basin.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And the little town was also:<br />
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Despite the lousy weather, it was a nice day and I would have had more pictures if I'd stopped to take some. I'm in Dartmouth, across the harbour from Halifax for tonight and tomorrow night, and I'll be taking in some of the sights tomorrow.<br />
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Miles today: 261<br />
Total: 3,145Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-59002448371748615212012-07-23T17:52:00.000-07:002012-07-23T17:52:54.893-07:00July 23, 2012I left Charlottetown this morning and headed over to the western side of the island. Once again, the weather was beautiful (if a little windy) and the skies were clear. I headed around the north and west coasts of the island on Hwy 12 through a string of little towns, most of them fishing villages. The terrain on Prince Edward Island is generally small rolling hills interspersed with inlets, rivers, and lakes of various sizes. This shot was taken this morning at the point where the highway went over Grand River on the north coast:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bE-VVzbODDg/UA3pdTE9HmI/AAAAAAAABAI/bfL0B9zT0iw/s1600/Grand+River+PEI2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bE-VVzbODDg/UA3pdTE9HmI/AAAAAAAABAI/bfL0B9zT0iw/s640/Grand+River+PEI2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This was typical of what I saw every time I came around a bend in the road. One other thing I've noticed here on PEI is the proliferation of churches. Most are small chapels, painted white, with a steep roof and tall steeple on top. Most are 150-200 years old. And most, but by no means all, of them are Catholic churches, reflecting the Acadian (french-speaking) settlers of the area. (I've also noticed a lot of people speaking French. Not sure what they're saying about me, though.) I came upon this church alongside the road and thought it was pretty remarkable:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7GEMKFFFXyw/UA3qWsk_hLI/AAAAAAAABAQ/1QIMmCRj0AU/s1600/Church+on+Hwy14+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7GEMKFFFXyw/UA3qWsk_hLI/AAAAAAAABAQ/1QIMmCRj0AU/s640/Church+on+Hwy14+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The first stop of the day was the PEI Shipbuilding Museum in Port Hill. There wasn't really a lot there, but what was interesting was that there were as many as 150+ small shipyards on PEI in the 19th century building everything from fishing boats to full-sized ships. The shipyard in Port Hill was typical, and it stayed in business until the local timber supply was decimated around 1880. Below is the area where they would build the vessel and the wooden device in the center is a "steam box" that was used to steam wood so it could be shaped during construction of the ship. Interestingly enough, most of the ships built on PEI were loaded with cargo (lumber, principally), sailed to Europe, and then both ship and cargo were sold. Some 4,500 vessels were built on PEI between 1800 and 1900. <br />
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You can see the "steam box" on the left and the swayle in the top center is where the ships were launched into the adjoining stream.<br />
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From there, I rode on up to North Cape, the far northwest corner of the island. From there the next thing on the horizon is the North Pole. There is a lighthouse there (of course) and it's pretty much like the rest of them:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WX0KXuHcev8/UA3tBJ7BfsI/AAAAAAAABAg/SCP87lkGTfM/s1600/North+Cape21.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WX0KXuHcev8/UA3tBJ7BfsI/AAAAAAAABAg/SCP87lkGTfM/s640/North+Cape21.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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What's interesting about North Cape is it's the home of the Wind Energy Institute of Canada, a facility that conducts research into harnessing wind energy, including the engineering of the wind turbines themselves. It's not hard to see how they ended up at North Cape. The wind was doing about 30 mph the whole time I was there. Surrounding the lighthouse and all along the west coast of the island are hundreds of wind turbines of various designs. You can see several different styles in this photo:<br />
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All told, there must have been 50 windmills in the immediate area and a couple hundred more up and down the coast.<br />
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I headed on down the coast on Hwy 14 to West Point, PEI (no relation to the other West Point). At West Point is the Lighthouse Museum in Cedar Dunes Provincial Park. The West Point Lighthouse, which is still in operation, is the largest of the 140 or so lighthouses along the coastline of PEI. They did have a lot of interesting information about how the lighthouse was build, how the technology for the light itself changed over time, and how the light keepers themselves lived. This was an early kerosene-powered light:<br />
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In the display below, the bottom item was used to screen the light from German submarines and ships during WWII. It allowed some light to escape to aid navigation, but greatly reduced the usefulness of the lights to the Germans:<br />
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The lighthouse itself was a little unusual in that it has living quarters (a small house) attached to it for the light keeper and his family:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HO52fLX4wtY/UA3wtTx12EI/AAAAAAAABBE/eN9OjOs_aq8/s1600/West+Point+Lighthouse27.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HO52fLX4wtY/UA3wtTx12EI/AAAAAAAABBE/eN9OjOs_aq8/s640/West+Point+Lighthouse27.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And judging by some of the furnishings in the parlor, the light keeper must have been doing pretty well for himself:<br />
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After finishing up at West Point, I headed east to Summerside for the night. Tomorrow, it's back across the Confederation Bridge, through part of New Brunswick, and over to Halifax, Nova Scotia for the evening. So far, everything up here has been beautiful!<br />
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Miles today: 230<br />
Total: 2,884.Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-85406207744914358582012-07-22T17:44:00.000-07:002012-07-22T17:45:08.440-07:00July 22, 2012I left Moncton this morning and headed down Hwy 2 and up Hwy 16 to the Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island. The bridge is about 9 miles long and crosses over the Northumberland Strait. I remember seeing a documentary about the building of the bridge in the late 1990's and the challenges they had with engineering it to handle the ice floes that made their way down the Strait. Well, the result was pretty spectacular:<br />
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After crossing the bridge, I stopped at the Car Life Museum, which had a few interesting tidbits, including Elvis' 1959 Caddy Convertible:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WY6ziuYgqoE/UAyYVod6NrI/AAAAAAAAA-Q/IxdEBbyF8A0/s1600/Car12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WY6ziuYgqoE/UAyYVod6NrI/AAAAAAAAA-Q/IxdEBbyF8A0/s640/Car12.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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On into Charlottetown, the Provincial Capital, and out the other side to Hwy 1 along the coast. As was the coast of New Brunswick, the coast of PEI is equally spectacular. First stop was the Point Prim lighthouse, which is on a peninsula that juts out into Northumberland Strait about 5 miles. The lighthouse was typical of the ones I've been seeing:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QHfwEQcjql0/UAyZUjbNAlI/AAAAAAAAA-Y/6-zVJK9UzHw/s1600/Point+Prim+Lighthouse13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QHfwEQcjql0/UAyZUjbNAlI/AAAAAAAAA-Y/6-zVJK9UzHw/s640/Point+Prim+Lighthouse13.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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This was a really remote location; it's hard to imagine living there as the lightkeeper 150 years ago. You can see how rugged the shoreline is:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gMF-I4W7H-A/UAyZ0V-hf4I/AAAAAAAAA-g/Hf5-GWOvqsg/s1600/PPL17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gMF-I4W7H-A/UAyZ0V-hf4I/AAAAAAAAA-g/Hf5-GWOvqsg/s640/PPL17.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Next stop was Cape Bear Lighthouse about 35 miles further east and off the coast of Cape Breton Island, the northern island of Nova Scotia. The interesting thing about Cape Bear was that it had a radio receiving station (aka a "Marconi" station) at the lighthouse and was the first station in Canada to report having received distress signals from the Titanic. Below is a copy of the Times of London on April 16, 1912 carrying the story of the ship's sinking:<br />
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Below is a picture taken from the top of the lighthouse off shore. If you look carefully in the right portion of the pic, you can see Cape Breton island off in the distance:<br />
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After leaving Cape Bear, I headed north to Souris and the lighthouse there. The lighthouse itself was pretty much a carbon copy of the others:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9tGwQj_QZRI/UAycHVkMkjI/AAAAAAAAA-8/R3tM4CZkeOk/s1600/Souris28.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9tGwQj_QZRI/UAycHVkMkjI/AAAAAAAAA-8/R3tM4CZkeOk/s640/Souris28.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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But I thought the Bay was pretty:<br />
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The final stop of the day was at East Point, the furthest northeast point on the island. facing out into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. I also thought East Point was in the prettiest setting of the lighthouses I've seen so far:<br />
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And the scenery was really something, too:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E1lGKx7TdnA/UAydp9sLjaI/AAAAAAAAA_k/XkFB1QAFvTw/s1600/East+Point+Lighthouse40.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E1lGKx7TdnA/UAydp9sLjaI/AAAAAAAAA_k/XkFB1QAFvTw/s640/East+Point+Lighthouse40.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Anyway, this was another beautiful day with a lot of gorgeous scenery to take in. Tomorrow, it's around the other side of the island and more sights.<br />
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Miles today: 331<br />
Total: 2,654Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-61928788233940136812012-07-21T18:07:00.001-07:002012-07-21T18:10:42.032-07:00July 21, 2012I spent the day in the Moncton area today. First stop at right after noon was Tidal Bore Park in downtown Moncton to watch the tide come in from the Bay of Fundy. The Bay of Fundy has the highest tides in the world, reaching 50 feet in some locations. In Moncton, which is about 20 miles off the Bay, the tidal surge is less, but is still around 10-12 feet. What happens when the tide comes in is pretty interesting. Here you can see the tidal flats at low tide:<br />
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The banks of the flats are about 10 feet below the level of the grass. Now, here comes the tidal surge, right on time:<br />
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Yeah, OK, I was expecting a wall of water about 10 feet high. But, when you consider this came from the Bay 20 miles away, it's pretty neat. What happens over the next two hours is the tidal flats fill up to the level of the grass, then they lower for the next 10-plus hours down to being completely empty again. BTW...did you know that tides all over the world are 12 hours and 50 minutes apart? I didn't either.<br />
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Having experienced all that Moncton had to offer, I headed south along Hwy 114 to Hillsborough, about 15 miles south. Hillsborough was the home of William Henry Steeves, one of the Fathers of Confederation (their equivalent of our Founding Fathers) when Canada gained independence from England in 1867. Steeves' house has been restored to the period of 1867 and was quite interesting. What's also interesting is how different the Canadians view that period of time compared to how we do. <u>They</u> thought we were going to invade them. Well, apparently, we did, with a little army striking across from Vermont. Who'd a thunk it? Anyway, here is Mr. Steeves' house:<br />
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I thought the church across the street was interesting, too:<br />
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Next stop was the Nee Brunswick Rail Museum, about 2 blocks down the street. This was interesting also, but didn't really have much that was unique. Here's a shot of the rolling stock they had on display:<br />
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Next time you cram yourself into a seat on an airplane, think about this Pullman day car from the early 1900's:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LHbJTqPn6Q4/UAtNt5rkmOI/AAAAAAAAA8s/yxQbEA0IOQg/s1600/NBRM26.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LHbJTqPn6Q4/UAtNt5rkmOI/AAAAAAAAA8s/yxQbEA0IOQg/s640/NBRM26.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Lots of legroom!<br />
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After sampling all Hillsborough had to offer, I headed further south to Hopewell Rocks, right on the coast. This is the area where you've probably seen pictures of people walking among rock formations that are 40 feet underwater at high tide. Well, unfortunately, I was there about 2 hours after high tide, so I didn't get to walk on the beach. But the scenery was striking nevertheless:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-npy4X0TZZEw/UAtOnnu9EJI/AAAAAAAAA80/4i0mIoRICms/s1600/Hopewell+Rocks38+Kayakers.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-npy4X0TZZEw/UAtOnnu9EJI/AAAAAAAAA80/4i0mIoRICms/s640/Hopewell+Rocks38+Kayakers.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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People are kayaking in the area where, six hours ago, you could have walked the beach. Here are a couple other views:<br />
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This was one beautiful area. I left Hopewell Rocks and headed further south to the Cape Enrage Lighthouse. This was really remote, but well worth the drive. The lighthouse dates from 1840 and has had to be moved back from the edge of the bluffs three times due to erosion of the coastline. Here are a few scenes from Cape Enrage:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ozQXhn0XVo0/UAtQen84lfI/AAAAAAAAA9M/TcCJhPcPtbw/s1600/Cape+Enrage51.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ozQXhn0XVo0/UAtQen84lfI/AAAAAAAAA9M/TcCJhPcPtbw/s640/Cape+Enrage51.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see, the scenery has been absolutely breathtaking up here. By the way, the land you see in the background is Nova Scotia.<br />
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Tomorrow, it's across the Confederation Bridge to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Should be lots of interesting things to see there, too.<br />
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Miles today: 141<br />
Total: 2,323Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-58418639977089450912012-07-20T13:45:00.000-07:002012-07-20T13:45:12.862-07:00July 20, 2012<u>Another</u> really nice day today. Temperatures were in the low 70's inland and probably the low 60's on the coast. Blue skies with just a few clouds.<br />
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I left Pennfield this morning and rode down to Black Harbour looking for the Bliss Island Lighthouse. Well, the lighthouse must have gotten washed away in a storm, because it sure wasn't in Black Harbour like Google said. It was a nice ride, though, and the town of Black Harbour looked to be pretty prosperous. Below is a picture of the ferry dock, and you can see how much higher the high tide mark is:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EVGQN01QYyc/UAm67SzyrVI/AAAAAAAAA6s/6nCZc9d5aD0/s1600/Black's+Harbor1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EVGQN01QYyc/UAm67SzyrVI/AAAAAAAAA6s/6nCZc9d5aD0/s640/Black's+Harbor1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I would put it at about 12 feet or so.<br />
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After puttering around the dock for a while, I headed back up to Route 1 and went east toward St. John. St. John is a city of about 70,000 on the banks of the St. John River, where it meets the Bay of Fundy. I went to see the New Brunswick Museum, which had an interesting collection of the art, history, and nature of the area. Beginning in the 18th Century, timbering and shipbuilding became important industries in the area. A typical display in the museum was the one below, showing a shipwright pegging planks into place:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZDuMnhsuu-Y/UAm_XtjR8wI/AAAAAAAAA7E/M91aTjMuXns/s1600/NBM19.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZDuMnhsuu-Y/UAm_XtjR8wI/AAAAAAAAA7E/M91aTjMuXns/s640/NBM19.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I did manage to catch this little rowboat outside headed down the river toward the Bay:<br />
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You can see that St. John has quite a large harbor area, and in fact, there were two freighters standing just offshore.<br />
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I left St. John and headed down Rte. 111 and 825 toward the shoreline and went through the little villages of Garnett, Black River, Shanklin, and Bain's Corner on the way to St. Martins and the Bay of Fundy Trail. Along the way, I caught glimpses of the bay like the one below:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BdijMvjDxQw/UAnBL8Z8Z8I/AAAAAAAAA7U/ayKPNGwZMsY/s1600/Bay+Of+Fundy5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BdijMvjDxQw/UAnBL8Z8Z8I/AAAAAAAAA7U/ayKPNGwZMsY/s640/Bay+Of+Fundy5.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The Bay of Fundy Trail runs about 10 miles along the bluffs overlooking the Bay east of St. Martin. Many of the views are spectacular and there were turnoffs every mile or so to take in the scenery. You can get an idea of how gorgeous the scenery was from the pics below:<br />
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Anyway, really impressive.<br />
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I'm in Moncton, NB for the night and have about 10 things to see in the immediate area tomorrow. I'll be spending tomorrow night here also and leaving Sunday morning for Prince Edward Island.<br />
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Miles today: 241<br />
Total: 2,182<br />Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-53980927890019725202012-07-19T17:43:00.001-07:002012-07-19T17:43:39.299-07:00July 19, 2012Another very nice day. The high today was only about 71 or so, and I actually had to put on my sweatshirt and lined gloves for the first time. Skies were clear, but it got real windy starting about noon and didn't die down until around 7:00 this evening.<br />
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I went to the Cole Land Transportation Museum in Bangor today. Turns out it was about 1/2 mile from where I was staying. The museum is named after the Cole family, who owned and operated a trucking company in the northeast from about 1915 to 1992 or so. The museum was packed full of an odd assortment of vehicles of every description, but it was interesting. Outside the museum is the Maine Vietnam Veterans Memorial:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-82m5v2rXDWs/UAijFBSojgI/AAAAAAAAA48/R4-TrGRBw70/s1600/Cole3+Maine+Vietnam+Memorial.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-82m5v2rXDWs/UAijFBSojgI/AAAAAAAAA48/R4-TrGRBw70/s640/Cole3+Maine+Vietnam+Memorial.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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While inside there was an eclectic collection of every kind of stuff imaginable. Here are a few of the more interesting items:<br />
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Above is a Ford Model T equipped with a kit that converts it to a snowmobile.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H-6FyUKUBBw/UAij2V5VE4I/AAAAAAAAA5M/D1s-AMXTCXw/s1600/Cole24.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H-6FyUKUBBw/UAij2V5VE4I/AAAAAAAAA5M/D1s-AMXTCXw/s640/Cole24.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Above is a camping trailer from 1925. Reminds me of a couple Pat and I rented many moons ago.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOs6RFsx6kc/UAikJYVfCLI/AAAAAAAAA5U/KAu58h0s0f4/s1600/Cole28.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZOs6RFsx6kc/UAikJYVfCLI/AAAAAAAAA5U/KAu58h0s0f4/s640/Cole28.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a genuine, original Conestoga wagon. Can you imagine pulling that thing 3,000 miles across the continent to get "out west"?<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IFMdH6Wsc5w/UAikhST3DDI/AAAAAAAAA5c/CO_VG-9zbgg/s1600/Cole7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IFMdH6Wsc5w/UAikhST3DDI/AAAAAAAAA5c/CO_VG-9zbgg/s640/Cole7.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
And Earl, if you're reading this, it's a 1915 steam-powered pumper truck used by the Bangor Fire Department. Real pretty red color!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DH7kjEaANPA/UAilGAiATQI/AAAAAAAAA5o/A_izRRsxVgY/s1600/Cole34.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DH7kjEaANPA/UAilGAiATQI/AAAAAAAAA5o/A_izRRsxVgY/s640/Cole34.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And, finally, here is one of the original trucks operated by Cole Express in 1915.<br />
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I left Bangor and headed south on US1A to the Penobscot Narrows and Fort Knox (not Kentucky). Several years ago the state replaced the old suspension bridge spanning the Narrows with a new cable-stayed span that has an observation area 400 feet up in one of the towers.<br />
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The view from the bridge was spectacular. Below is a view of the Penobscot River downriver from the bridge and heading out toward the ocean:<br />
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Adjacent to the bridge is Fort Knox itself, which was built from about 1825 to 1865 to protect access inland along the Penobscot River. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wNq8Qg0dQaY/UAinKsKTZMI/AAAAAAAAA6A/eMhRa1ywug0/s1600/Battery+A+51.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wNq8Qg0dQaY/UAinKsKTZMI/AAAAAAAAA6A/eMhRa1ywug0/s640/Battery+A+51.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Above is one of the gun batteries with the Bridges in the background.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOae934os4c/UAinstQwdZI/AAAAAAAAA6I/XYDfwrz4Ws0/s1600/Fort+58.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOae934os4c/UAinstQwdZI/AAAAAAAAA6I/XYDfwrz4Ws0/s640/Fort+58.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is the interior of the fort itself. It's not really all that big.<br />
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And, finally, this is a view of the village of Bucksport, ME, across the river from the fort:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UkCkU3apCOE/UAiogAnc9QI/AAAAAAAAA6Q/Uf-Pm52HYDA/s1600/Bucksport,+ME+from+Fort+53.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UkCkU3apCOE/UAiogAnc9QI/AAAAAAAAA6Q/Uf-Pm52HYDA/s640/Bucksport,+ME+from+Fort+53.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Bucksport is on the eastern end of the new bridge, and it's really picturesque.<br />
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I left For Knox and headed north on US1 to Calais, Maine and the Canadian border. Along the way, I came across this:<br />
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I crossed the 45th parallel of latitude, which is "almost" halfway between the equator and the north pole. <br />
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I'm in Pennfield, New Brunswick for the night and will be travelling to Moncton, NB along the southern coast of New Brunswick tomorrow.<br />
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Miles today: 202<br />
Total: 1,941Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-5335565346365006752012-07-18T18:39:00.000-07:002012-07-18T18:39:21.026-07:00July 18, 2012Another really nice day, and it's cooled off to the mid-80's. What a relief. <br />
I left Portland this morning and headed up US1 to Bath, home of the Bath Iron Works (where they've built Navy ships for over 100 years) and the Maine Maritime Museum. I couldn't tour the Iron Works, but the Maritime Museum was very interesting. It's located on the site of the former Percy & Small Shipyard, which was active until just after WWI, building all kinds of wooden sailing vessels. In addition to the usual displays of scale models of ships and ship paraphernalia, most of the shipyard has been preserved, including the "Mould Loft" where they produced the templates used to shape the ship, the power house, the shop where they made their own paint, part of the rope and cable building, and a boat workshop.<br />
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This is a pretty good diorama of the original shipyard, with two ships being built:<br />
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Most of these buildings are still present and preserved. This is the Mould Loft, where men would lay out, to scale, the design of the ship and from that, produce templates that were used to check the accuracy of the ship as it was being built. You can see the outline of the hull drawn on the floor:<br />
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Here you can see some of the machinery in the carpentry shop which were used to shape the wooden pieces for the ships:<br />
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This was interesting. This is a section of hull salvaged from one of the ships, and you can see the size of the ribs, the outside planking, and the inside planking:<br />
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During the summers, the museum sponsors a course in boat building for local middle- and high-school kids. They actually hand-build a row boat and then take it out for a test drive. This is one of the boats under construction in the boat shop:<br />
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And, then, finally, the piece De resistance:<br />
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A genuine ship-in-a-bottle!<br />
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I left Bath and headed up US1 to Owl's Head and the Owl's Head Transportation Museum. This was another very well-done museum and very interesting. The museum has exhibits of motorcycles, cars, and airplanes. Some of the most interesting are these:<br />
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They had a real interesting collection of British MG sports cars from the 1920's up to the immediate post-war period. All immaculately preserved.<br />
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This is a reproduction of a Bleriot XI, which was the first plane to cross the English Channel in 1909. The plane here was built for a 1958 movie and does fly.<br />
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I had never seen one of these. It's a reproduction of a Royal Aircraft Factory FE8, built early in WWI. It is a "pusher", with the propeller in the rear, because no one had yet figured out how to fire through a spinning propeller in the front.<br />
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Above are a few of the vintage automobiles they have on display. Some are for sale, so bring a fat checkbook!<br />
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I left the Transportation Museum and headed out to Owl's Head Lighthouse at the mouth of Penobscot Bay. The lighthouse dates from 1825 and is still in operation:<br />
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From the lighthouse there were some beautiful views of Penobscot Bay:<br />
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Anyway, really interesting day today. I'm in Bangor for the night and have a couple things to see here tomorrow before heading east and into New Brunswick.<br />
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Miles today: 209<br />
Total: 1,739Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-1013898602946674302012-07-17T17:59:00.000-07:002013-02-27T08:13:16.635-08:00July 17, 2012Really had a nice day today. I left North Attleboro this morning and headed up I-475 to Lexington and Concord. What interesting places!<br />
If you don't remember your American History all that well, in April, 1775 General Gage set out from Boston toward Lexington and Concord to seize arms and supplies that the rebellious colonists had stashed in and around Concord. This was the famous "midnight ride" of Paul Revere, although he actually was captured by the British before he made it to Lexington. His riding partner, William Dawes, actually made it to Lexington and he was the one who warned the malitiamen that the British were coming. On Lexington Green, the British and Americans faced off and a short battle ensued, leaving eight colonists dead. The British then marched to Concord where, at Concord Bridge, just north of the town, they were confronted by armed and angry militiamen. "The shot heard 'round the world" was fired and in the ensuing battle, four British soldiers were killed. The British panicked and withdrew all the way back to Boston. Along the way, a number of skirmishes occurred that resulted in something like 67 British killed and 45 Americans killed. Well, anyway, it's all here.<br />
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If you look at the picture above, the bridge itself is not original, it's a reproduction of what the original bridge looked like. The monument on the left was erected in 1836 and the Minuteman statue on the right was erected in 1875, the 100th anniversary of the conflict. I thought this was interesting also:<br />
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This is the actual grave site where the British soldiers who were killed were buried. It lies beside the 1836 monument.<br />
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I left Concord and headed the 7 miles or so to Lexington Green, where the first clash occurred. Of course, there is a monument to the event, erected in 1799, and I thought the inscription on the monument was interesting:<br />
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I think you can read it. If not, double click on it, go up to "View" on the task bar, and increase the magnification. I'm thinking this probably isn't how British textbooks relate the story, though.<br />
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Seven of the eight Americans who were killed on that day in Lexington are buried under the monument. <br />
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At the other end of the Green is the famous Minuteman statue:<br />
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And across is the tavern where the militiamen gathered before they confronted the British:<br />
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Maybe the battle might have gone a little better if they had found another place to meet?<br />
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I didn't really realize it, but near Concord is Walden Pond and the homes of Louisa May Alcott and Nathaniel Hawthorne. This is the home of Alcott that is described in her book, "Little Women.":<br />
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And Nathaniel Hawthorne's house right next door:<br />
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Nathaniel needs to do a little work on the old home place, I'm afraid.<br />
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After absorbing all the history I could for the day, I headed up around Boston to Gloucester, site of the movie "The Perfect Storm." The scenery is absolutely beautiful and this is one interesting little town. It's still an active fishing port, and is home to Gorton's Seafoods, maker of jillions of fish sticks. Here are a couple shots of the harbor area:<br />
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I visited the Maritime Heritage Center and that was really interesting, displaying a lot of info about the history of commercial fishing here. Gloucester was settled in 1634, so it's been here a long time. This was an interesting display showing how a fishing trawler using a Seine net catches fish:<br />
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And here's the guy on the front of the Gorton's fish sticks boxes himself:<br />
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And, finally, this is a monument to the wives of the fishermen who lost their lives over the years. It's down on the seawall in the harbor area and at her feet are the names of vessels and crew members who have been lost:<br />
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All in all, a very nice, interesting day today.<br />
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I'm in Portland, Maine for the night and will be heading up US1 in the morning on my way to Bangor.<br />
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Miles today: 275<br />
Total: 1,530Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-72739078344093976152012-07-16T19:38:00.002-07:002012-07-16T19:38:36.355-07:00July 16, 2012I left Rutland this morning and headed across southern Vermont and New Hampshire on US4 through the Green Mountains, past Killington ski resort. At first, I thought it was odd that the roads were so rough and there were a lot of bridges out and lot of detours. Then I remembered that New England had suffered extensive damage last summer from a hurricane that moved up the east coast. You could see lots of damaged terrain if you looked for it, and many areas where whole sides of hills had been washed down into the stream as a result of the rainfall and high water levels. <br />
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I headed on over southern New Hampshire to Wolfeboro and the Wright Museum (no relationship to Orville and Wilbur). This was more interesting than I thought it would be. The museum is a World War II museum, but has a strong focus on what was happening on the home front as the war was being waged overseas. That was an angle you don't see very often. They did have the usual collection of vehicles, weapons, and uniforms.<br />
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They even had a tank sticking out of the front wall of the building. But in addition to the usual items you see at these museums, they had information on ship-building at the Bath Iron Works, and information on key events that took place within the US, including the 1939 World's Fair:<br />
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And several displays of what life was like in the US during the years just prior to the war and during the war years. This was what you might have found in someone's kitchen before the war:<br />
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And I thought this poster art was appropriate:<br />
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Pat's mom was a "Rosie the Riveter" during the war, so here's a salute to her and thousands of other women like her!<br />
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After Wolfeboro, I headed on down to the Boston area to have dinner with an old friend from my GP days, Jim Ellison.<br />
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Tomorrow, it's back up north to Lexington and Concord, then on to Gloucester (The Perfect Storm), and up to the Portland, Maine area for the night.<br />
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Miles today: 306<br />
Total: 1,255.Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-68746762047792354982012-07-15T19:04:00.000-07:002012-07-15T19:04:14.819-07:00July 15, 2012I left New Milford this morning and headed up US202 to Westfield, MA and then on into Springfield. Finding the Springfield Arsenal wasn't easy due to a lack of road signs, but I eventually stumbled onto it. The arsenal was very interesting. It had been established in 1794 and the request of George Washington and was in operation manufacturing weapons until Robert McNamara shut it down in 1968. The complex was huge and had its own power generation (water, then steam, then electricity), its own foundry and forging operations, and its own assembly operations. Weapons from muzzle-loaded muskets to the M-14 rifle were produced there.<br />
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The grounds were beautiful, with a number of 19th-century buildings still in place. Most of them have been turned into a community college and the museum itself is housed in the former armory.<br />
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You can get some idea of the size of the facility from the picture below. These buildings were all manufacturing and assembly buildings:<br />
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The museum itself wasn't large, but it was very informative and held at least one example of every weapon manufactured there. In the middle of the museum was this display of hundreds of 19th-century muskets manufactured there:<br />
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Two of the most famous weapons manufactured there are the 1903 (aught-three) Springfield Rifle used in WWI:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yXxDGP_KcL4/UANyNoH5hAI/AAAAAAAAAzU/7tckOBjFjZQ/s1600/SA12+03+Springfield+Rifle.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yXxDGP_KcL4/UANyNoH5hAI/AAAAAAAAAzU/7tckOBjFjZQ/s640/SA12+03+Springfield+Rifle.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And the M-1 Gerand, in use from 1935 until the late 1950's:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kJttVYkQH3U/UANymMrvYGI/AAAAAAAAAzg/_dfspBXo-8k/s1600/SA14+M-1+Rifles.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kJttVYkQH3U/UANymMrvYGI/AAAAAAAAAzg/_dfspBXo-8k/s640/SA14+M-1+Rifles.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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In addition to the weapons on display, quite a bit of information was presented regarding how manufacturing methods evolved over the 174-year history of the arsenal. From being individually-made by a single craftsman, their methods became more and more automated and standardized over time. One of the early improvements was this machine (dating from 1845) that could produce a rifle stock by duplicating a pattern, a method still in use today:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yGwcfT787Yw/UANzl9Yhf5I/AAAAAAAAAzo/yfSThVXY9n4/s1600/SA16+Stock+Lathe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yGwcfT787Yw/UANzl9Yhf5I/AAAAAAAAAzo/yfSThVXY9n4/s640/SA16+Stock+Lathe.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Anyway, the Arsenal was fascinating and really informative. Leaving there, I rode down the street about half a mile to the Springfield Museum, where they were having an Indian motorcycle show. Indian was the chief competitor of Harley-Davidson up until they went out of business in 1953, and they were produced in Springfield, MA. The show had some really neat, beautiful bikes:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IfVRdZujous/UAN0d3yOTXI/AAAAAAAAAzw/oMERUITAHTA/s1600/1907+Indian.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IfVRdZujous/UAN0d3yOTXI/AAAAAAAAAzw/oMERUITAHTA/s640/1907+Indian.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a 1907 single-cylinder model with about 3 horsepower. I asked the owner (smoking the cigar) if he bought it new.<br />
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Some others were simply beautiful:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RLA_G_TQCg4/UAN09f5Xw6I/AAAAAAAAAz4/YSWD8tKT7C8/s1600/1948+Indian+and+Sidecar.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RLA_G_TQCg4/UAN09f5Xw6I/AAAAAAAAAz4/YSWD8tKT7C8/s640/1948+Indian+and+Sidecar.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Remember, these are all owned and have been restored by private individuals. Just beautiful.<br />
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Anyway, after feasting my envious eyes on all this, I left Springfield and headed up SR9 and US7 to Rutland, VT for the night. I had been to Rutland a couple times with Pat's youngest brother, Brian, to go skiing, but that was about 20+ years ago. Tomorrow, it's across Vermont and New Hampshire and then down to North Attleboro, MA to have dinner with an old friend, Jim Ellison.<br />
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Miles today: 247<br />
Total: 949Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-61030004629866193142012-07-14T14:14:00.001-07:002012-07-14T14:14:56.883-07:00July 14, 2012I left Newburgh this morning and rode down US9W to West Point, about 20 miles south. The Visitor's Center for West Point (and the only place civilians can get onto the reservation) is in Highland Falls, NY, a pretty little town on the Hudson River. I took a one-hour bus tour of the campus, and it was really beautiful. <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uLptnN-M1jg/UAHfa-G1bTI/AAAAAAAAAyc/Lsk0KzjytO0/s1600/West+Point+Museum+Sherman+Tank.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uLptnN-M1jg/UAHfa-G1bTI/AAAAAAAAAyc/Lsk0KzjytO0/s640/West+Point+Museum+Sherman+Tank.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This was a WWII M-4 Sherman Tank guarding the entrance to the Museum and Visitor's Center.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CpSR7EbmHCM/UAHcPa3eoCI/AAAAAAAAAxg/eTrViwaRxEk/s1600/WPT-Superintendent's+House+and+oldest+building.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CpSR7EbmHCM/UAHcPa3eoCI/AAAAAAAAAxg/eTrViwaRxEk/s640/WPT-Superintendent's+House+and+oldest+building.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
Above is the superintendent's house, the oldest building on the campus.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MtV9JqZHC3k/UAHcfMOUrLI/AAAAAAAAAxo/k7bm4VwIhBo/s1600/WPT-Library+and+Barracks.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MtV9JqZHC3k/UAHcfMOUrLI/AAAAAAAAAxo/k7bm4VwIhBo/s640/WPT-Library+and+Barracks.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
The building to the left is the library, and to the right of that are a number of cadet's barracks.<br />
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The building in the foreground is a barracks, and in the background is one of the campus' 14 chapels.<br />
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At "Trophy Point" there is a memorial to West Point graduates who were lost during the Civil War, which was paid for by living graduates after the war:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DFJVC5A0jI8/UAHdScCdQyI/AAAAAAAAAx4/JV4VAFjIix8/s1600/WPT22+Civil+War+Memorial.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DFJVC5A0jI8/UAHdScCdQyI/AAAAAAAAAx4/JV4VAFjIix8/s640/WPT22+Civil+War+Memorial.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Also at Trophy Point, you can see a bend and narrowing of the Hudson River, which was why the original fort (commanded by Benedict Arnold) was placed where it was:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dTq7Kbdfc7g/UAHdx90uDrI/AAAAAAAAAyA/HhzbJpdzeL8/s1600/WPT25+Hudson+River+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dTq7Kbdfc7g/UAHdx90uDrI/AAAAAAAAAyA/HhzbJpdzeL8/s640/WPT25+Hudson+River+2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
After the tour of the grounds, I went to the Museum itself, which was also quite interesting with a number of displays and artifacts regarding the history of the Army and of West Point.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l3M4C16Jt2I/UAHeKDCEv5I/AAAAAAAAAyI/2CuWLKzd17I/s1600/WPM-+73+Medal+of+Honor+Awardees.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l3M4C16Jt2I/UAHeKDCEv5I/AAAAAAAAAyI/2CuWLKzd17I/s640/WPM-+73+Medal+of+Honor+Awardees.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
This was striking. There have been 73 West Point graduates awarded the Medal of Honor, including four from Vietnam. The last Medal was awarded in 1970.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2JjwOUH9Ww/UAHed55xz6I/AAAAAAAAAyU/Pk07IFljimc/s1600/WPM-Gun+that+fired+first+US+shot+in+WWI.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2JjwOUH9Ww/UAHed55xz6I/AAAAAAAAAyU/Pk07IFljimc/s640/WPM-Gun+that+fired+first+US+shot+in+WWI.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
This was the artillery piece that fired the first shot by American troops in WWI.<br />
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There was a lot to see and absorb at the museum. Well worth the trip.<br />
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I left West Point and rode to Danbury, CT for the Connecticut Military Museum. It was pretty interesting and had some interesting artifacts, including a number of armored vehicles in various stages of repair. <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U59cwa1_9MM/UAHf17GTkwI/AAAAAAAAAyk/atMJFZJMf8U/s1600/CMM48.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U59cwa1_9MM/UAHf17GTkwI/AAAAAAAAAyk/atMJFZJMf8U/s640/CMM48.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can see a number of them in this picture.<br />
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From there, it was over across town to the Danbury Railway Museum. This wasn't much to shout about, but they did have five interesting model train layouts, including this one with a Shay Engine:<br />
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Anyway, another beautiful day with lots of sunshine and plenty to see. Tomorrow's it's to Springfield, MA for the Springfield Arsenal and another museum and then up to Rutland, VT for the night.<br />
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Miles today: 114<br />
Total: 702<br />Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-40291295584374224522012-07-13T17:26:00.000-07:002012-07-13T17:29:14.590-07:00Friday, July 13, 2012Well, the good news is...nothing bad happened today. Weather was perfect and the attractions were worthwhile.<br />
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I left Norwich this morning and headed through Oneonta to Kingston, NY and the Hudson River Maritime Museum. The museum is located in Kingston at Rondout Landing on the Hudson River itself. Kingston was once a ship-building and shipping terminus and much of the immediate area consists of early-19th century buildings:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NR0K0fxYjJk/UAC2JCFx95I/AAAAAAAAAvw/XUzOB6O3XVA/s1600/Rondout+Landing+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NR0K0fxYjJk/UAC2JCFx95I/AAAAAAAAAvw/XUzOB6O3XVA/s640/Rondout+Landing+3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The museum itself was interesting, with a lot of information and artifacts dating over the last century and a half. There was a big excursion-boat business up until around 1960 and a number of boats made day trips from New York City up the Hudson to Kingston. Prior to the building of bridges across the Hudson in the early 20th century, there were a number of ferries working a number of locations up and down the river. This is a model of one of them:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GqoeP23DaQ0/UAC3NQEd6YI/AAAAAAAAAv8/3gCcedOI8nM/s1600/HRMM+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GqoeP23DaQ0/UAC3NQEd6YI/AAAAAAAAAv8/3gCcedOI8nM/s640/HRMM+4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Anyway, the museum was interesting and the surrounding area was very scenic. In the picture below you can see a tugboat way in the background and a sailboat coming into dock behind the museum. The land mass to the right is a small island; the river is probably a half-mile wide at this point:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wYP8LJAXUcU/UAC3rgfm9gI/AAAAAAAAAwE/CYhONjv5I2A/s1600/Hudson+River+Sailboat.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wYP8LJAXUcU/UAC3rgfm9gI/AAAAAAAAAwE/CYhONjv5I2A/s640/Hudson+River+Sailboat.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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After leaving Kingston, I headed across the river to Rhinebeck, NY and the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome. A project of a local aircraft-preservation society, the aerodrome is home to a large number of pre-1930 aircraft and is complete with restoration facilities. On weekends during the summer, they hold air shows featuring the old planes. Here a a couple shots I took today:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5tle3bcs3uQ/UAC4T77NSfI/AAAAAAAAAwM/32jMUtaJOCg/s1600/Old+Rhinebeck+Aerodrome.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5tle3bcs3uQ/UAC4T77NSfI/AAAAAAAAAwM/32jMUtaJOCg/s640/Old+Rhinebeck+Aerodrome.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
Above was inside one of the hangers.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S0SmY493hXQ/UAC4vVv9YfI/AAAAAAAAAwg/0BkqjdwG36I/s1600/ORAD17+Fokker+TRiplane.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S0SmY493hXQ/UAC4vVv9YfI/AAAAAAAAAwg/0BkqjdwG36I/s640/ORAD17+Fokker+TRiplane.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
This is a real Fokker Tri-Plane, the type flown by Von Richthofen the Red Baron.<br />
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Above is a replica of the first Wright Flyer that was flown on the 100th anniversary of flight in 2003.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yvIgmcTtLkU/UAC5uKEAOpI/AAAAAAAAAww/P_zjNQWT5MA/s1600/ORAD46.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yvIgmcTtLkU/UAC5uKEAOpI/AAAAAAAAAww/P_zjNQWT5MA/s640/ORAD46.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This was interesting. The airfield itself is not flat. I goes uphill on one end and then downhill pretty steeply on the other end. I think they take off downhill and land uphill. The plane above was facing the steep part of the uphill slope.<br />
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Anyway, very interesting and I think the air shows on weekends would be worth the trip themselves.<br />
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I left Rhinebeck, went back across the river, and down US9W to Newburgh, NY and the "Motorcyclepedia" motorcycle museum. This was really fabulous and even included one example from each year that Indian motorcycles were manufactured from 1901 to 1953. Those are really rare. The two bikes above are 4-cylinder Ace motorcycles from the late 1920's and were in better-than-new condition.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7YxHonA-Zro/UAC7cZelCOI/AAAAAAAAAxE/YZPavXE3PWg/s1600/MOTO59.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7YxHonA-Zro/UAC7cZelCOI/AAAAAAAAAxE/YZPavXE3PWg/s640/MOTO59.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
In the foreground above is a "Flying Merkel" with and early Harley and an early "Thor" in the background.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zyq7kOmq__c/UAC75zSczPI/AAAAAAAAAxM/kqzqicEaEJI/s1600/MOTO55+Ariel.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zyq7kOmq__c/UAC75zSczPI/AAAAAAAAAxM/kqzqicEaEJI/s640/MOTO55+Ariel.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And, finally, this is an "Ariel", a British bike from the 1930's with a sidecar attached. Interestingly, T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) was killed in 1935 when he wrecked his Ariel.<br />
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Had a great day today. Heading to West Point in the morning and then to Danbury, CT for a couple other museums.<br />
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Miles today: 187<br />
Total: 588Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6317878950205330833.post-70234068134401290122012-07-12T13:24:00.000-07:002012-07-12T13:24:02.866-07:00July 12, 2012Horseheads, NY to Cooperstown, NY to Norwich, NY<br />
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Left Horseheads around 7:20 this morning and headed up I-86 and I-88 to Cooperstown, NY and the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. You don't have to be a huge baseball fan to appreciate the Hall of Fame and Museum. They had collections of baseball history going back to before the Civil War. "Officially", baseball was "invented" by Abner Doubleday in 1839, but the Museum showed examples of similar games going back to the 13th Century. Very interesting and very well laid out.<br />
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This is the outside of the Museum from Main Street in Cooperstown:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OEee8BacLlc/T_8t3jzvrcI/AAAAAAAAAuU/BIlDrnUxlw0/s1600/BHOF+Main+Building.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OEee8BacLlc/T_8t3jzvrcI/AAAAAAAAAuU/BIlDrnUxlw0/s640/BHOF+Main+Building.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I had the same problem I had yesterday getting good pictures inside the museum, but here are a couple that came out pretty good:<br />
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This is the gallery where all the plaques from the inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame are displayed:<br />
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And if you look carefully, you can see the plaques awarded to Cy Young and Connie Mack below:<br />
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And here are two of my favorite ball players, Babe Ruth and Ted Williams:<br />
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Cooperstown itself was pretty cool, filled with souvenir shops for baseball memorabilia. I thought this one was interesting:<br />
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Cooperstown itself is on Otsego Lake, which was real pretty:<br />
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I left Cooperstown and headed to Norwich, NY for the Northeast Classic Car Museum. The museum collection is a private collection that belonged to a local businessman, George Staley. There are over 150 cars in the collection, ranging from 1900 to 1980 or so, and all are in running condition. A few of the better ones are below:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F-VWZFSQ_8M/T_8wuEeuUMI/AAAAAAAAAvI/dlprpsKwD2U/s1600/1936+Pierce+Arrow.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F-VWZFSQ_8M/T_8wuEeuUMI/AAAAAAAAAvI/dlprpsKwD2U/s640/1936+Pierce+Arrow.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
(1936 Pierce Arrow)<br />
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(1959 Lincoln Continental)<br />
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There were a lot more remarkable vehicles, but I had trouble with the lighting in the museum.<br />
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Tomorrow, it's on to Kingston, NY for the Hudson River Maritime Museum, Red Hook, NY for the Olde Rhinebeck Aerodrome, and Newburgh, NY for Motorcyclopedia.<br />
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Miles Today: 194<br />
Total: 401Roger Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04529452971331100449noreply@blogger.com