30² ft Adventure 004

I left Cherry Hill Campground on a cloudy cool morning, grateful that the day before had been nice for my trip to Niagara Falls. I started on some local routes but one look at the gas prices (up $0.20 from the day before) and the lack of services along the roads less traveled, I decided to abandon my ideas of traveling these roads. I programed Google Maps to take me west to my next campground in the Cleveland area. The weather worsened over the next hour and it rained for the next four. I arrived at Willow Lake Park campground at about 2 PM in the pouring rain. The lady at registration asked, " Where's your RV? That's the kind of site you signed up for." I said, "This is my RV, I am truck camping." "Well we just opened a week ago and all the sites are wet," she said gruffly as she handed me my mirror tag for the site. "Oh and good luck in that RV," she snickered as I was headed out the door.

When I got to my site, which was delineated by and electric box in the middle of a big wet field, I had to use 4x4 just to back in. Still raining, I pitched my privacy tent and discouraged by the weather I climbed into my truck (wishing it really was an RV). Dinner was tuna out of a pouch.

 

A muddy Site

 

The next morning was clear, windy and cold with temps in the 40's. Went to the bath house (100 yards from the truck) to take a shower. Cold showers were free, hot cost $0.50 for 5 minutes. Went back to the truck for quarters. Got the business of a shower done and standing there dripping wet, I realized I had forgotten my towel. So I had to use the tshirt from the day before. Not making a very good start here.

 

Off to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. A wonderful place all though not really what I had expected. Learned a lot about a few of my favorite bands and the genesis of rock. Six floors of exhibits and I think I spent close to three hours there.

 

Michael Jackson

Robbie Robertson Guitar ca. 1965

Spectacular Architecture

A sketch by yours truly

 

Spent another very cold night in the campground. The following day I headed to the Cuyahoga National Park. Did a beautiful 5 mile hike into a place called the Brandywine Falls. It was an interesting walk along the tow path of the old Ohio canal and lock system. Then up to the falls through a beautiful forest. Some parts of the trail were quite muddy because of recent rains. A train tour of the park was only running half the distance because winter storms had washed out part of the tracks. So I didn't get a chance to take that.

 

Brandywine Falls

Brandywine Falls

Lock 32

 

A final cold and blustery night at the campground. Broke camp on a beautifully clear day with no wind. Time to head further West to the Indiana Dunes National Park!

30² ft Adventure 003

I departed from Crazy Acres Campground on 5/4, and headed north and west to Cherry Hill Campground in Darien Center, NY. I traveled along State Routes 23 and 80 making my way north and west to US Route 20. Then followed that, all the way west to the Campground. The route was quite scenic in spite of all the rain. I made one stop to see Seneca Lake in Geneva, NY. This area would have been beautiful to explore more but torrential rains and fog made that impossible. Dodging a few rain drops I was only able to grab a single pictures.

 

Seneca Lake from a welcome center

At Cherry Hill I had reserved a site for two nights. I pulled into the campground to find that I was expected, but when she saw what I was planning on staying in she felt bad for me. She said “You requested and RV site. So you don’t have a bathroom?” I said that there was nowhere on there reservation website to indicate that I was dirt bagging my way across the country. She told me that the reason she asked was that the bathhouse and showers were all under renovation. They were working on the floors and recent storms had prevented them from putting them back together. I said no problem I was prepared with a "luggable lu” (5 gallon bucket with plastic seat and plastic bags) and a privacy tent and I would make do. “Well,” she said, “We’ll see if we can’t get at least one up and running by tomorrow evening. Then she informed me that the site I had requested was totally flooded out, and giving me a map told me to drive around picked the driest I could find and text her the new site number. I had the choice of any with the exception of one. There would be another rig coming later that night. So in the drizzle I drove around until I found one and backed in. I took the opportunity in a lull in the weather and got my privacy tent up and the lu all set as quickly as I could. I then sat in the cab of the truck until the rain abated cooked a little dinner and turned in for the night.

 

Campsite at Cherry Hill Campground

Early the next morning

 

The following day I was up early and when the sun came up it was clear skies and glorious sunshine. I drove to Niagara Falls. I haven’t been there since I was in Hamburg, NY surveying for a client who was setting up a TND (Traditional Neighborhood Design) back in the late 80's. What a wonder this place is. There are really no words, although breathtaking comes the closest. It was sunny and in the sixties and I hiked all over the American side where as to be able view the falls from all angles. I visited the cave of the winds at the base of the falls. Quite amazing to view it from below. Many pictures were taken, and I did manage to kick out a couple of sketches as well. 

 

 

Back at the campground I got meet the only other folks staying there. They were a young couple in there 20’s. They had just rejuvenated and older model RV tow behind and were on the same adventure I was on. Almost the same itinerary as well. They were from the Belgrade area of Maine and had stayed on Peaks Island a couple of times and even gotten there dog who was with them from someone on the island. Way too small a world.

 

Off to the Cleveland area- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park!

 

30² ft Adventure 002

When I left Peaks Island on 4/29/2022 I headed to Vermont to visit family. When I visited sister dear after Christmas on my way home from Florida and told her that I was planning on leaving on this trip 5/1 she thought it a good idea to stay with them for the weekend before and leave on 5/1 from their house. So that is what I did. I am so glad too because it was a great way to kind of casually start a trip like this. It was a brilliant weekend of fun to be with family and I even got to see my brother-in-law coach a baseball game. The game was played under a beautiful blue VT sky with 40mph winds out of the north which made fielding the ball hard, but such is baseball in late April. After the game my two nephews wired an outlet into the camping area of the truck so that I could charge my 500W Jackery power station while I drove. So handy for times when I know I will be staying in a campground without shore power. The evenings were filled with wonderful meals, laughter and reminiscing, designed to take my mind off what a daunting trip I was undertaking. 

On the day of departure, sister dear took me out for a wonderful breakfast at a bakery in their town which we enjoyed in chairs on the sidewalk in some beautiful sun. Warm, this time, with no wind. After our walk home, I gave out a few last hugs and was on my way.

 

Sister Dear and I at breakfast 

From VT I drove west crossing the southern part of Lake Champlain into Crown Point, NY and wondered down State Rt 9N along the east side of Lake George. Through towns named Hague, Silver Bay, Bolton Landing, Glens Falls and Saratoga Springs. The latter looked like a town I would like to come back and visit. Then it was west through rolling farm county on Rts. 29 and 80 to Glimmerglass State Park at the head of Lake Otsego. I had finally returned to a place I hadn’t seen in more than 45 years. My dad grew up in Cooperstown, NY (at the foot of this lake) and as a family would come to visit my grandparents here. Such memories. I went into the park and stopped long enough to take a few pictures.

 

 

The final part of the day's drive took me on a circuitous route over hill and dale, as my father used to say, to and through Cooperstown to Crazy Acres Campground. Located in Davenport, NY it was a nice little place to call home for the first couple of nights on the road.

 

 

Over the next couple of days I would have to relearn everything I knew about camping. The weather was pretty bad. Rain at night and afternoons. I couldn't remember where I had packed anything, and in spite of my best efforts, nothing was handy when I needed it. I will just say it once, this is truly tiny living. I would have to learn how to do the "Cooperstown Shuffle" (what my dad called any dance he did with my mom) of camping. Before using any space I had to move stuff, in that space somewhere else. After doing this enough times and after many anxiety ridden moments thinking about how I was going to survive this trip, some order in the chaos presented itself.

While using this campsite as a home base, I traveled to find the site of the Stewart family farm in Stamford, NY. My 4x great grandfather was an original settler in this area. I used several old county maps, old photos my grandmother and grandfather had taken in 1958 and others I had take in 1972 on a visit with my grandmother. The farm itself burned down in the 60's. It was a 170 acre dairy farm which I confirmed by doing some deed research again for the first time since retiring. I even stole a small rock from the stone wall these settlers likely built. 

Farm house in late 1800's

What the site looks like now

I also visited Cooperstown, and found nothing as I had remembered it. I seems to be all about baseball and not much else. I did visit the Farmers Museum, and the Fenimore Museum of American Art. Both made the trip worth it. I ate at the only restaurant that looked familiar, The Cooperstown Diner- "The Littlest Diner with the Biggest Burger." Been there for 100 years but I passed on the burger and had a BLT.

Off to visit Niagara Falls.