05/02/2007 to 05/20/2007
We did not make it to New England on our first try, so we decided this was the time for a second attempt. We also figured since we were "in the hood" we would just drop over the border into Canada to see a bit of New Brunswick.
Our route took us through Kentucky, Vermont, over into New Hampshire, through Maine, up into New Brunswick's interior, south along the coast and The Bay of Fundy, through a lot of little towns and villages, then along the coast of Maine and down to Maryland.
First, the weather was really awful all over New England and Canada. Rain, wind, cold and then more rain and cold. Torrential downpours were not uncommon. We went from Plan A to Plan B, C, D & E.
Second, did you know that the New Brunswick Province closes until Victoria's Day? Well we didn't. Not much is open including information centers, restaurants, attractions and hotels. Still we managed to have a great time and see some wonderful things.
While in Maryland we went to the Manassas National Battlefield Park. Just can't pass up an opportunity to visit one more park.
As usual we took a ton of pictures, put almost 8,000 miles on the truck, and enjoyed ourselves immensely. We must be nuts.
- Mammoth Cave - Kentucky
- New Hampshire
- Kancamagas Highway
- Maine
- New Brunswick - Covered Bridges
- New Brunswick - Fundy National Park
- New Brunswick - Village of Alma
- New Brunswick - Cape Enrage
- New Brunswick - Hopewell Rocks
- Fundy National Park - Dickson Falls
- Manassas National Park - Virginia
We just can't resist a cave, and we realized if we altered our route just a bit we could squeeze in at least one cave tour. Mammoth Cave is an amazing place. Naturally we plan to come back.
We chose The Historic Tour since it fit our timetable.
As usual the ranger gave the speech "don't go if you can't crawl, tolerate heights or small places".
And as usual one person who should have listened did not.
We spent about 20 minutes in Fat Man's Misery waiting for a woman to be helped through by the ranger. Then she almost had a heart attack climbing the tower to get out!
But that aside it was a lot of fun.
The historic entrance to Mammoth Cave
Pipistrel Bat. There aren't many bats in the cave, but he was a cutie
The first decent into the cave
During the War of 1812 they mined saltpeter for gunpowder
The miners hollowed out logs to use as pipes to pump water into the mine and calcium nitrate back out
Early in it's tour history black slaves would write tourists names on the ceilings for them. Amazing since slaves were illiterate
One of the narrow passages
Winding through Fat Man's Misery
Yup, I'm waiting while the ranger helps the person who shouldn't have come through the passage
Great Relief Hall opens up right after Fat Man's Misery. There are even toilets
A shot of the tower you have to climb to get out.
Leaving the cave
New Hampshire is a great place to tour.
Some of the attractions we wanted to do were not open yet because it was early in the season, but we did get a start on our covered bridges and waterfalls.
Swiftwater Covered Bridge
Yup, it's the Swiftwater River. I'd say it's aptly named
On the road up to Mt. Washington we passed these great cascades - Flume & Silver
Flume Cascade
Silver Cascade.
If you watch election news you're familiar with Dixville Notch
All the while I thought the candidates and reporters were roughing it in a little Mom & Pop Motel. Huh!
The Kancamagas Scenic Highway, or The Kanc, is 34 miles of scenic beauty running between Lincoln and Conway, New Hampshire.
We stayed in Lincoln at The White Mountaineer in a little 2 room cabin. If you ever go to Lincoln eat at The Common Man. The food is very good and the atmosphere is nice and inviting.
Kancamagas Highway
Sabbaday Fall
Lots of moss covered trees around the falls
It would be interesting to see how this looks in late summer
The Albany Covered Bridge
The sign says it was built in 1858 and renovated in 1970
This little cutie was in the woods on one of our hikes
We liked this because you can really see what he's eating
Rocky Gorge is another site on the Kancamagas Highway
You can not swim in this area and I think you can see why
Rocky Gorge is a pretty park area. If the weather is nice you can picnic
Our drive through Maine was just that, a drive.
We saw a lot of pretty areas and Moose. Yes, . So you get to see our moose shots. Three different moose that moose we saw along the highway.
Other than some really beautiful scenery and the moose, we did not get too much done in Maine, except the Katahdin Iron Works, or rather, what's left of them.
But enjoy the little bit we did get. Did I mention we saw MOOSE?
Just over the border from New Hampshire we saw this really neat dam
The Aziscohos Dam
Our first moose was a young one just hanging along the side of the road
He's pulling out tufts of winter coat
His closeup
Moose 2 was also along the roadside, just hanging out
You can see the beginnings of antlers on this one
Moose 3 is a good example of why you see the Brake For Moose signs
Classic moose shot
So what are you going to do if you see a moose in the road? DUH!
Raye's Mustard Store in Eastport, Maine has been making mustard in this store since 1900
Mt. Katahdin.
OK, it's not our shot. When we were there it was pouring rain and freezing. But we would have taken the boot shot if the camera was waterproof
The remaining furnace
I'm in there for scale
The remaining kiln
The kiln and the furnace
This province has quite a few covered bridges and we only managed to see those we passed along the way.
As you drive along those little two lane roads you see "covered bridge" signs and naturally you make an immediate turn to follow the sign so you can take just one more neat little picture.
A bit of trivia - a bridge needed to be wide enough and high enough for a cart of hay to pass.
Sawmill Creek Bridge is in the area of Hopewell Rocks
Sawmill Creek Bridge
The sign on the right says "Walk your horse and save a fine"
Point Wolfe Covered Bridge
This is a recent bridge - 1992. Nice they still value these up here.
The MacFarlane Bridge over Wards Creek
The Hardscrabble Bridge on the Irish River in St. Martins
As you can see that famouse Fundy tide is out
I liked the little pedestrian walkway on Hardscrabble
A classic bridge and house shot
The bridge on Tynemouth Creek
Tynemouth Creek was at low tide here. Its so odd to see boats sitting in the mud
If the weather had been better we would have enjoyed some of the longer hikes, but since we are wimps when it comes to rain and temperatures in the 40s we opted for some of the easier venues. The area is so beautiful you just can't make a poor choice.
We stayed at the Highlands Inn & Chalet inside Fundy Park.
Our little cabin. It was quite nice, clean, and so quiet
This is Herring Cove. Yes there was a herring industry here once
The very high tides have created small caves in the rocks along the cliff
Point Wolfe Beach Sign
This is the site of the old sawmill at Wolfe Point
Looking out towards the bay from Wolfe Point
This is the beaver pond at Caribou Prairie
These were the most colorful birds we have seen, but they moved so fast it was hard to photograph them
I assume this is the female of thes species
As you drive along the coast you will come to the Village of Alma.
Not only is it the gateway to Fundy National Park, but it is very quaint and boasts the highest tides.
When the tide goes out, it really goes out. Fishing boats must wait at sea for it to turn before they can come back into the harbor.
A little map of the town is included
Boats at high tide
Tide going out
Tide is definitely out. These boats are sitting in the mud
High tide
Tide going out - you step down a bit to the boat
The only other time I've seen boats sitting in mud was after a hurricane threw them on shore
High Tide
Tide going out
This is just so odd
The beach at high tide
The beach at low tide
Moving down along the coast, and off the highway a bit, is Cape Enrage. It has a pretty amazing history, the latest of which is it's rescue and restoration by local high school students. Click on the link below to read the story.
There are 2 beaches - well not in the sense of sand and surf - but more of rocks and fossils.
There are adventure programs offered during the summer. We missed out
The lighthouse is still working and they warn you the horn may sound while you are out there
This is the old keeper's house. It has been restored by the students
Heading down to the "beach"
As you can see it is all rocks
The rocks have fallen from the cliffs you see here
It's really hard to capture the scale of these cliffs against the beach
These are the stairs you take to get down to the beach
Samauri Beach again
This is the second beach called Samauri Beach.
Heading south along the coast of New Brunswick you enter The Bay of Fundy area.
One of the first amazing sites you see are The Hopewell Rocks, also known as The Flowerpot Rocks. They are part of a park which was still closed for the season, so we could not get down to the base. When the tide is out you can walk through these huge formations and stroll along the beach.
We met some nice Canadians who took our picture
It's not hard to figure out where the "flower pot" came from
If the tide is out you can wander through those arches
Dickson Falls is a beautiful stroll along paths and wooden walkways. It takes you down to the stream and along the series of falls. Lots of little creatures along the way, as well as some lush green moss and ferns.
Dickson Falls Sign
The first falls you see - if you head right down the trail
From the bridge you see a set of smaller falls up the stream
As you go along up the stream those little falls become more apparent
Yes, I'm cold
Cute little red squirrel nibbling on something
The classic moss covered log shot
George is smiling - cold but smiling
These are the higher of the falls
From that bridge you get a good look at the top
The chipmonks are quite bold and people don't seem to upset them
Since we were spending time in Maryland before heading home we took a day and went to Manassas National Park in Virginia.
As I'm sure you all remember from your history classes Manassas, also called Bull Run, was the first major battle of the Civil War and it's the one were General Jackson got the nickname Stonewall.
The South named battles after towns or railroad junctions. The North named them after the closest river or stream.
So, it was the Battle of Bull Run or The Battle of Manassas, depending on which side you were on.
Depending on how you feel you can walk the various routes around the battlefield. This one is going passed the stone house
Every effort is made to place cannon in the area they occupied during the battle. You can see how close they are to the Henry House
The Henry House
The stone house. It was used as headquarters during the battle
Yup, that's Stonewall Jackson's statue
Bull Run stream
The stone bridge over Bull Run