Chelsea's Homecoming

The only way I can tie this in with being on the road is that I maintain Chelsea’s car, a 98 purple Neon nicknamed the Barney Mobile, keeping it on the road. Regular oil changes, wiper blades, muffler, and recently a brake job. I’ve tried to teach her some basic maintenance like checking the oil on the dip stick, she said where’s the dip stick, I said I’m looking at it ( looking straight at her). Anyway I said leave the maintenance to me.

Yes, it's ready for winter! And summer, this was taken last year when she turned 16.

This posting isn’t about maintaining a car but to write about our other granddaughter Chelsea. Being our first granddaughter she has always been special to us. We have built a lot of memories with her on the road in years past with vacations to Virginia Beach, Myrtle Beach, Hershey PA, Disney World and others. I wrote enough about Lindsey and she is also special, she has the biggest heart and is very near and dear to us. Getting back to Chels, she stopped in Saturday before a night on the town for homecoming. Of course we had to have a Kodak moment. So here are a few pictures. We sure felt out of place, dress wise. I felt like I should go out and rent a tux! She has turned into a beautiful, attractive young woman.

Now for the not so good pics......

She is a senior at Bedford High and is also taking college courses to get a jump on her college education. She is doing very well in maintaining her grades. She said she can’t believe she is a senior already. We said “how do you think we feel”! Time has gone by so fast. She also works at a local restaurant to pay for her car and spending money, and of course, saving some. She doesn’t have a career picked out yet but leaning toward the medical field, like X-ray tech. My personal pick would be a model! I think most of you would agree after seeing the following pictures.

We are truly proud of her, love her a lot and wish the best of everything especially when she crosses that big bridge at graduation next spring. Best of luck and God Bless Chels….

Dick and Rick on Lake Michigan

FISH ON!

As most of you know I like to fish. Missing the traditional 2nd week in August salmon trip to Ludington Michigan this year, I decided to book a morning charter. Something I’ve wanted to do for the last few years. I’ve been following a boat named CATCHIN for many years and the Captain, Myron Gilbert is the best. You don’t want to follow directly behind him because there won’t be any fish left. I stay off to one side when I’m up there fishing with my boat, wondering what bait did he catch that last fish on when he nets another fish and I’m not catching any. He charters for walleye out of our local marina where I have my boat til mid July then takes his boat to Ludington for salmon. Son Rick, Walt my neighbor and a friend of Rick’s Robbie and I headed up to Ludington on Wed. afternoon. After a restless night’s sleep (lots of anticipation) we were awakened at 4 am by the alarm. (I have no use for alarms anymore except for fishing). After getting our coffee mugs filled we headed down to the dock where Myron was setting his poles out. There was a little lighting in the southern sky but all looked well in the north. We headed out about 5:15, cleared the Ludington pier heads and north we went for a half hour run up to Point Sable. With the wind from the north, a very light drizzle, waves about 2 to 3 feet, we went about a mile beyond the point then tuned south to set lines with the wind. The CATCHIN is a 36 foot Sea Ray with a 10 foot wide beam capable of running 14 fishing poles (8 is my max). Myron set the auto pilot then it was to the back of the boat to set lines and give us a few instructions. He has no first mate and does everything himself. He is all over the back of the boat and you don’t want to get in his way. He had the first line set and told Rick to set the second one out. Rick asked him if he ever had caught a fish before the line was all the way out and he said yes all the time. About that time, WHAM Rick had the first fish on and it was total mayhem after that. I started setting lines and another fish hit, Robbie (a rookie at salmon fishing) was up next and it was a non-stop Chinese Fire Drill for 2 ½ hours. We had our first fish before 6:00 and it was still dark. It’s very difficult to net a fish in the dark. Walt was up next and he lost 2 fish before landing one (living up to his reputation, we call him stone hands). A lot of the times we had 2 fish on at once. We had 5 or 6 fish before day break. This was one of those trips you always dream of. Everything was fast and furious, non-stop action. Myron was from one side of the boat to the other trying to keep everything in an orderly fashion but it was a lost cause. There were a few lulls in the action, enough time to repair some tackle and repair a downrigger line. I don’t want to brag but I caught the biggest one at 20 pounds (it looks like a 23 pounder though). At times I had to just hold the pole with both hands and hold on. The fish came out of the water 2 or 3 times doing cartwheels. At the back of the boat it saw the net and came totally out of the water again before being netted. At this time the cooler was so full we had to sit on it to keep the lid down. We ended up with a limit in about 2 ½ hours on a 6 hour charter. So it was a nice boat ride back to the dock with a lot to talk about and an experience not to be forgotten. My crew has a lot of new information on how to catch more fish next year. Cabela’s, here I come! Anyway, we headed home to put some fresh salmon fillets on the grill. I may just have to book another charter next year.
Hope you enjoyed this adventure, take care and God Bless, Dick………

Sorry about the peewee but that one belongs to the Captain

Back Home

This is the end of our fascinating, fantastic trip, as you can see we did not let the grass grow under us traveling 4,800 miles in 3 weeks and did not even scratch the surface. A "special thanks" to Lonna for her 2 pages of "MUST SEE" information saving us a ton of time going through all the other info we obtained. The Nova Scotia Doers and Dreamers booklet is a must. Sometimes it was overwhelming. And yes Larry and Emma there are Motels and a ton of B&B's all over. Till next time Love and God Bless....Dick, Brigitte and Lindsey........

This is Sunday and we got back home yesterday afternoon. Got everything back in one piece, (thank you Lord) and all of your prayers. Funny thing though on the last leg when we slowed we could smell something strong but could not figure out. Well, when I went to move the truck today it wouldn't start and the battery light stayed on. Checked it out and one of the 2 batteries blew up. It spit acid all over. Now I know what that smell was. I guess 6 years on a battery is enough.

Getting back to the last few days I did write about Mahoney Bay and Lunenberg. We also stopped in Saint John and saw the reversing falls and did a 2 hour bus tour of the town. Of course we checked out the water front and found a farmers market in the middle of town. Here are a few pictures.

Note the water flowing from right to left on the Saint John River. This was high tide at 10:22 in the morning. The other is more dramatic at low tide when the water drops 28 feet. Eighty miles down stream it drops 50 feet but we did not have time to go down there. Note the jet boat in the rapids. Looks like fun to me. He spun that boat around on it's nose. What a pleasure it was to have Lindsey along. She had the best time and I'm sure learned a lot, especially how big the country is. She spent a lot of time listening to music on her MP3 player and watching movies on her portable DVD player while on the road. Every night she would torment us with her love before turning in for the night. But all good things must come to an end until the next time. Hope you all enjoyed the blog and I do plan on keeping it open for awhile.

Maximum Fun day near Halifax

This is Friday the 15th and I have updated some of what we have done as we have a little time on our way home. We are currently about 6 hours from home and I will finish up with our tour around the Halifax and Saint John area later.

Peggy's Cove

Sunday we were on the road to Halifax arriving early afternoon, did I mention it rained. When we got here it quit. We had a very nice secluded site with trees around so we kicked back enjoyed a campfire, Lindsey went swimming and we made s’mores.
Monday the 11th was a truly maximum fun filled day. We started out by visiting Peggy’s Cove. Just before getting there we stopped at the memorial for Swiss Air Flight 111 along side of the road where 229 passenger and crew went down about 5 miles out on 9/2/1998. Peggy’s Cove was one of my favorite places to see as I like little fishing villages and water. We took a lot of pictures also had a local take a picture of us with the lighthouse in the background and had postcards made. We left there and continued on the coastal route to Mahoney Bay, a quaint little village with 5 churches that stand out just before you arrive. Walked around the shops a bit and took more pictures the continued on. The next stop was Lunenburg. A picture perfect little seaport village with tall ships and yachts and every thing else that goes along with them. The town is built on a steep rocky hillside about 8 blocks long and 8 blocks wide. We enjoyed walking around and taking pictures watching people, shopping and just enjoying the sunny day. We topped off the day in down town Halifax on the waterfront with a fabulous seafood dinner. We walked it off on the waterfront wharf where there was a lot going on including entertainment, music,
food vendors, gift shops and some weird people. You know the ones with the different colored hair, leather, tattoos, tons of makeup and all. Anyway a good time was had by all.
Today we left Halifax and are now in Saint John NB. Did I mention it rained all day. So we parked it and called it a day. Tomorrow we plan on seeing the reversing falls. More on that tomorrow.

The memorial

Peggy's Cove Lighthouse which is acually the US Post Office

Finally a picture of the three of us.

The shore line of Peggy's Cove

Puffin Trip

Today is Saturday and it was another busy day for us. Rained again last night and the ground is more then soggy now. A 5th wheel just came in and made about an 8 in deep rut along side of our trailer. We will be moving on again tomorrow, providing I can stay on solid land, to Halifax a little over 200 miles. GG did laundry this morning then after that we went on the boat trip. It was out of English Town north of Baddeck as Baddeck is on an inland lake. Lindsey said this is one of her favorite places. We went on Donelda’s Puffin Boat Tours to Bird Island. We saw lots of Bald Eagles, I would say over 20, hundreds of Puffins, Black Guillemots, Gulls, Great Black Backed Gulls, Cormorants, a lot of those, Great Blue Herons, Northern Gannets, Idler ducks and seals. The seals were in the water and would poke there heads up once in awhile along side of the boat only a couple were up on the rocks. We did not see any whales but they said occasional they do on the north side of the island. It was too rough to go on that side and the boat is rather small, 40 passengers at most. Half way around the Cabot Trail there is a village called Pleasant Cove that has whale watch tours. If you don’t see any you get your money back. But the trip we took was a 1st class trip well put together by a local couple. She gave us a lot of information about the area and the birds we saw on the way out and on the way back, a lot of information about lobster trapping. They are also lobster trappers. Starting at 4 in the morning and also running 3 puffin trips. Lobsters have to be 1 pound and it takes 5 years to grow that big, they also molt once a year and the season ended on July 15th. Lobsters can be kept for a year in pounds, individual shoe box size wire cages, where they are kept in hibernation form. Cool water is run over them along with cool air. So there you have it a short lesson on lobsters. She said there is no cod fishing here and that when the cod fishing is bad, lobster fishing is good also the reverse is true and it runs in cycles. Night is falling now and campfires are going, dogs being walked, and it’s not raining. Lindsey and GG are playing games so I guess I’ll call it a night for now.

There was a pair of eagles after fish.

There are some puffins up there somewhere

Loads of birds of all kinds

There are a few seals out there

Cabot Trail

This is just a sample of the pictures we took on the Cabot Trail

A challenge for the driver..............

Fantastic View from the Cabot Trail

Lindsey is getting lazy.

Picture Postcard

In Nova Scotia

Taken from the Alexander Graham Bell Museum

Yesterday we left PEI early and boarded the ferry to Nova Scotia. An experience for all of us as they squeezed us in with 17 semi’s. They put the cars on the lower deck. We caught the 8:00 ferry and it took us about an hour to crossover. We then headed for Baddeck arriving at noon at a very nice campground called the Baddeck Cabot Trail Campground. Had to laugh when we got here as it rained pretty hard just before we got here and the guy that signed us up said the site we were assigned to may be a bit on the soggy side because we just got a “splash” of rain an hour ago. I think it was more then a splash. It stopped raining for most of the afternoon and we went into town to see the sites. The waterfront was busy with sail boat races and shops busy with visitors. It’s a picture perfect little village. One of the races was for little kids in dinghies with sails. There must have been about 30 on the water. Later we visited the Alexander Graham Bell Museum and spent about 2 hours there. We learned a lot about him. Lindsey was impressed and I think it was a great learning experience for her. He was quite an inventor and teacher, especially for the deaf as his wife was deaf. After that we ate overlooking the waterfront to top off the day. The halibut steak was excellent, excellent. So was Lindsey’s seafood alfredo and GG had scallops in some kind of sauce ringed with mashed potatoes. It was a great day.

Today was another great day. Most of the day was sunny and we took to the road for a day trip around the Cabot Trail and the Highlands. It took us about 6 hours after stopping to take pictures here and there and stopping for a picnic lunch we packed. What fascinating scenery and a challenge for the driver. Sometimes we were high above the water and other times next to the water. We went through many little villages. Sorry to say Robert, (he said there was fishing in Cheticamp) there is no deep sea fishing available according to the visitor center personal. She said there may be a local fisherman that may take us. There may still be a moratorium on the cod fishing here, I forgot to ask. Anyway we plan on a boat trip tomorrow out of Baddeck tomorrow. The boat will take us on a tour to look for whales, seals and puffins! Lindsey wrote that. People are out and about in the campground here and it’s just getting dark. People walking there dogs and there are 2 motor homes appearing to be traveling together, side by side across from us with a campfire going. It’s nice to see for a change from the last week of rain. Lindsey and GG are playing a game. Yesterday was the first day they did not play a game since we have been on the road. Tomorrow is another day so till later,
Take care and love from all of us………
Dick………………

At the harbor in Baddeck, boat races were going on.

On PEI

I am writing this on Thursday morning. After a long day of driving yesterday we crossed the bridge to PEI and drove through a lot of farm land. Can’t believe the potato or (budata as Lonna would say) fields we saw along the way. There is a lot of red dirt they even dye tee shirts for the tourist with it. We are here in a campground called Marco Polo Land. A large campground with over 600 sites and all seem to be occupied. We are impressed with the clean well kept up large sites. Shortly after setting up we went to St. Ann’s church for their famous lobster dinners and it was more then I expected. Lindsey said it was the best meal she ever had, not having to have eaten a lobster before. The meal included seafood chowder, mussels, salad, rolls, and choice of budata, veggies, lobster and dessert. Today we slept in for the first time since we started this trip and was a welcome change. We are off exploring and setting up a date for fishing and going to see the play Ann of Green Gables. Noticed lots of shops along the way so I would imagine we will do some shopping. So for now we are off. We took a trip to Charlottetown, about 25 miles away, and made reservations for Ann of Green Gables for Saturday night. We spent some time walking around town in Charlottetown and the waterfront. Lots of shops to checkout. Wondered back to Cavendish and went to the Cavendish Boardwalk. Lots of shops to checkout. Lots of looking, not much buying. I have not been able to get connected to Wi Fi. Went to the office and they said it was down and were working on it but did not know when they would get it up and running. Lindsey and GG (Grandma Gitta) are playing a game and I think I’ll call it quits for now. Tomorrow is another day.

This is Saturday noon and it’s raining. They need it for the budatas. Found our Verizon modem works well here so here we go. Yesterday we went to Lucy Maud Montgomery’s home, author of Ann of Green Gables. We found it very interesting, also Avonlea the village of Ann of Green Gables. We spent most of the day there. We could not get Lindsey away from the animals, especially the horses. She spent at least 15 minutes talking and petting it. This morning we went fishing but the fish weren’t biting. Got lost on the way to the boat and almost did not make the boat. PEI is very difficult to navigate if you have never been here. My gps is very limited so have to rely on old fashion maps. But I do have a map program and my printer along so we manage. Lindsey did manage to catch some bait, a 12” herring. We caught about a dozen for cod bait but they would not co-operate. Neither would the mackerel. There were about 20 on the boat and no one caught a keeper. I managed 2 sculpin which are ugly. Lindsey did see a seal and some other people saw a whale. Sorry no fish pictures this trip. We made it bad to the campground before the rain. Right now it’s pouring out and everyone is taking a nap. It sounds good to me.

This is Sunday noon and it’s another day of rain with rain predicted for the next 2 days. So I’ll update what we did. We drove back to Charlottetown and out to eat before the play. Then we wondered around town until the play started. Even went to Tim Horton’s Jimmy (inside joke). What a fantastic play Anne of Green Gables was, actually one of the best I’ve seen. Lindsey really enjoyed it. Her name is now Cordelia. She loves that name. Today we are laying back I even played games with Linds. We did go to the breakfast buffet here at the park and that’s about all the excitement for the day. We planned on driving the North Cape route today but we hope tomorrow will be a better day. We drove through the park, lots of standing water and feeling sorry for the tent people. Tuesday we will head out to Georgetown for 2 days of site seeing. There is just to much to see and not enough time. We just have to make choices. Lonna thanks again for all the info. Sometimes it can be overwhelming but we are getting along just fine. The Island is all you said it was.
Take care, all Dick, Brigitte and Lindsey……………..

Lindsey said it's the best meal she ever had.She never had Lobster before.

Ann never looked better..........

The view from the back of our trailer in Georgetown on the last day on PEI

On the ferry arriving in Nova Scotia

The last of PEI

Recapping the last few days it was rain and more rain. They came close to breaking a record of over 200 MM in some places. Don’t know how many inches but I do know it’s a lot. Understand some bridges are washed out in New Brunswick. Despite the rain we managed a road trip to the North Cape at the north end of the Island which we found very windy and perfect for the Experimental Wind Generating Farm. Toured the Museum and took pictures of the North Cape Light House. You can see PEI’s main industry is farming and fishing. Lots of farm land. I think Lindsey is tired of looking at farm land. On the way back to Cavendish we forced ourselves to another lobster dinner and St. Anne’s Church. The second was as good as the first. The next day we bummed around the shops in town again. Yesterday we left Cavendish and headed to Georgetown. Not a long drive, just a mere 62 miles but yes instead of taking just over an hour it took us almost 3. Yup, a wrong turn just after Charlottetown. We called several days earlier to make reservations at Brunelle River Provincial Park but they had no openings so we found a Good Sam Park called Seal Cove. We near the water and it is decent. We then head for Georgetown to check out the Kings Playhouse and found the last performance was last weekend. We then went down to the waterfront to check on fishing. It’s very limited as far as fishing, a 5 hour trip which included clamming on an island, a little fishing for mackerel and a show of how they catch crabs and lobster. Not appealing for us as it included wading in the water for clams in mid 50 degree weather. So we passed. Today, Wed. the 6th we did a day trip to the East Point Light House. It was a beautiful scenic drive along the water. It was a much better trip with some sun once in awhile. We stopped in Montague for lunch for a lobster sub at Subway. Tomorrow it’s ferry time to Nova Scotia and we will be staying near Baddeck for the Cabot Trail drive. So till next time,
Take care, Dick, Brigitte and Lindsey……….

This was at East Point

If I remember

Surviving the Falls

Well, we survived the Niagara Falls, no we did not go over but into the falls on the Maid of the Mist. Talk about a bad hair day and I left my cap in the truck in the parking lot so I had to buy another to add to my collection, also to cover my hair. Never a hair out of place. Get teased a lot about it. Course Lindsey had to take a picture of it. No I won't show it. Today was a day of driving as we left NF this morning drove about 400 miles to Monson Mass. We are set up for the night. Tomorrow we will continue on to Bangor MA and do a little shopping for necessities before crossing back into Canada. Going into Canada last Sat. we told Lindsey to be straight forward when answering questions at the boarder. So when they asked her who these people you are with, there came a little squeaky little voice saying "my grand parents" then the big question was are they taking you anywhere you don't want to go, again another squeaky voice said "no". You had to be there. Anyway it's getting late so here are a few pictures.

Horseshoe Falls with the Maid of the Mist.

On our way down to the Maid of the Mist

In front of the American Falls, note Bridal Vail falls on the right.

Ready for a shower

Just about to go into the falls and had to put the camera away.

Down by the rapids.

A super pose

And finally a blossoming flower in front of the floral clock........................

It's getting late and I'm having problems keeping the pictures in order and my eyes focused so till next time "That's All Folks"

Take care, Dick.................