Off to Massachusetts

 [Friday 11 July] 

After checking out of our hotel we were back on Route 4 heading into Rutland. But before we had gone 15 minutes we pulled off in Mendon to have breakfast at our old haunt Sugar & Spice. Located right at the junction of Route 4 and Meadow Lake Drive, the restaurant was a short drive from our old house in Chittenden.

Susan had a waffle with blueberries, a scrambled egg and side of bacon and I had a stack of pancakes with sausage. We thought the food rather mediocre, and Susie remarked she thought the waffle had an artificial off taste. But things, times, people and apparently food change.

I ate the bottom quarter of this stack thank you very much

It was a quick drive around Rutland, skirting the town via the backroads to the hospital and then beyond, eventually making our way to Route 7 south of town. Our destination, indeed our goal for coming to Vermont in the first place, was to pay our respects to Lena D. and so we did.

Her monument is high up in St. Patrick's cemetery in a spot that overlooks the valley below and the hills to the west, to the sunset.

After her family, the monument clearly illustrates the four things most important to Lena: her church (with which she involved herself deeply on many levels), quilting and doll making, the Boston Red Sox and her life as a caring, loving health care professional.

looking west

One of the wonderful things about strolling through a cemetery is that you never know who you might find. Like the Timbers family:

We left the cemetery a little before a graveside service was about to begin and made our way out of town on Route 140 to 103 in East Wallingford. From there we cruised along through Ludlow and pulled in to one of our frequent stops in years gone by, the antique shops at the Stone House in Chester. It's always fun to browse and the fact they have bathrooms is a plus.

Back on the road as we neared I-91, we had to make a stop at the Vermont Country Store in Rockingham. A Vermont staple, the store has sold everything from soup to nuts over the years and it's always fun to browse yet another "general  merchandise" establishment.

 

But we still had miles to go today so we were soon back on the road. We hopped on I-91 south and got off at Ingleside in Massachusetts to check out another old stop of ours: the Barnes and Noble Store.  As you can tell by now, this trip has been one of what I will call relaxed driving, taking time and not hurrying along. Travel can often be stressful when one has a set destination and wants to get there NOW. That wasn't our approach on this trip to New England and certainly not today.

From I-91 we switched to the Mass Pike (I-90) briefly before getting off on to I-291 and soon right onto Route 20 east.

We remained on Route 20 all the way to I-395, then south to Webster, switching to Route 16 which took us to Douglas and Dick and Dorothy's home.

Route 20, fluctuating between 2- and 4-lane, was naturally slow going with the occasional stoplight. And the route was a bit depressing as we passed many abandoned buildings, businesses that had come and gone, their spaces sitting unused, untended and apparently unwanted.

As we were driving along Susan thought out loud, wondering if the Brimfield Flea Market was underway - sure enough! We crawled our way through, the road going directly between the maze of tents selling all manner of junk and stuff, past stands selling lemonade and Italian sausages and what not to eat. 

But we weren't held up too long and soon found ourselves zipping along through Sturbridge (lots of past stops at Yankee Spirits there) ending up at D & D's a little after 4:00 pm.

After settling in, the four of us sat outside on their patio listening to the bubbling of their fountain and enjoying the peace and quiet of this place they have called home for nearly 30 years.

That evening we were treated to a delicious home-cooked meal: flank steak on the grill, roasted potatoes, and a scrumptious salad made with lettuce from their garden. A lovely ending to a wonderful day spent recapturing the past.

that's a home-cooked meal!

Tomorrow it's off to lunch at Matunuck Oyster Bar in RI and then on to Glastonbury, CT with some exploring of eastern CT in the bargain.

Maine to Vermont

  [Thursday 10 July]

We were in no particular hurry today since all we're doing is driving to Vermont. We enjoyed a leisurely morning sipping coffee and packing for the next leg of our trip: taking the scenic route 2 across northern New England.

We were on the road a little before 10:00 am. To make a long story short we pulled into our hotel in Killington, VT about 4:30 pm - not a bad drive at all.

Our plan was to eschew the interstate and drive Route 2 across Maine and New Hampshire and so we did. The drive was really pretty stress-free. I set the adaptive cruise control at 56 mph and off we went. We encountered very little traffic for much of the first several hours, and occasionally no traffic at all. The road surface was quite new and the New England scenery bucolic as we cruised along through Skowhegan, Farmington and Rumford, Maine. We stopped at at the Rumford Falls information center to enjoy the view of the falls as well as take advantage of the facilities. 

Rumford Falls Info Center

memorial to Ed Muskie born in Rumford

back in the days when public service meant something

dedicated to the founders of the Order of the Sons of Italy in America, founded in Rumford in 1915

lovely view of the falls

two guys trying their hand at fishing

who knew that Paul Bunyan and his blue ox settled in Rumford?

We zipped right along, crossing into New Hampshire a little after noon and took the opportunity to stop and grab a bite of lunch in Gorham. Although the weather for much of the trip had been simply overcast by the time we hit the mountains in the Granite State it was rainy and the temps had dropped to the low 60s. We pulled into the parking lot at the White Mountain Cafe and Bookstore where we ordered a couple of toasted paninis for lunch. The air conditioner was going full blast but the sandwiches were scrumptious.

Back on the road we enjoyed the drive passing through occasional rain showers. Soon we crossed into Vermont where, just short of St. Johnsbury, we got off of Route 2 onto I-93 which took us to I-91 south. After about 60 miles we switched over to I-89 and got off at Route 4 heading to Woodstock, a road well-traveled by us during our Vermont years. 

Traffic moved slowly through Woodstock, an experience that hasn't changed in 20 years. It wasn't long before we came to our exit for Killington Mountain and soon found our hotel for the night, the Killington Mountain Lodge.

After checking in and settling in we had a glass of wine and played a game of 8-ball on the bar pool table. Not being on our game, so to speak, it seemed we might be playing for hours. Eventually I won.

We finished our wine and headed out to get some dinner. Right down the road was a place called Yama Ramen where we sat outdoors and enjoyed the quiet evening in the mountains. We split an order of chicken rolls and a bowl of Tonkatsu ramen - washed down with a glass of Sapporro beer. Delicious!

Back to the hotel we tucked in for the night.

Tomorrow it's off to say hi to Lena and then drive to Douglas, MA and Dick and Dorothy's home.

Stay tuned!

The Maine Part

  [Wednesday 9 July]

Today was our Big Day of Reliving the Past in Maine. In 2007, just after we returned from France, Susie took her first pastry chef job at a small cafe in winter Harbor. Located on the side of Frenchman's Bay from the vastly more recognizable Bar Harbor, Winter Harbor was a quiet backwater of summer tourism. But it made a perfect location for us as we eased back into living in the US and trying to figure out what to do with the rest of our lives.

The cafe, J. M. Gerrish's Provisions, was owned by Maine conservationist Roxanne Quimby. She also owned the nearby restaurant Mama's Boy which had an apartment on the top floor. That's where we stayed for the summer. (The restaurant was no long operating.)

Anyway, you can find out more about that summer of 2007 beginning right here.

So, after a wonderful night's sleep we enjoyed a leisurely morning of coffee and toasted bagels in our room. Joyce and Avery picked us up at 10:00 am and off we went on our day's adventure in Maine.

The first stop was at Reny's in Ellsworth. Located about midway between Bangor and Bar Harbor, we had fond memories of many a trip to Ellsworth in 2007 for staples etc. And a quick stop at Reny's, a store that specializes in what one used to call "general merchandise" was a necessity for us since we had to pick up a couple of small items we forgot to pack. From Ellsworth we turned off the main tourist thoroughfare that would eventually lead to Bar Harbor and headed east with Winter Harbor our next destination.

the (only) Main street in Winter Harbor - Gerrish's is at left rear in the photo

We had hoped to check out the interior of  Gerrish's and possibly pick up some sandwiches for picnicking out at Schoodic, but they were closed on Wednesdays. No matter - we grabbed some food from the Downeaster located just across the street.

Gerrish's

Downeaster

From the center of the village it was a short 10-minute drive to Frazer Point for our picnic. Located just before the entrance to the national park, it's a wonderful location with great views of Winter Harbor and Cadillac Mountain. It's also the place several of us spent our last dinner together in 2007:

Frazer Point was hopping today! It appeared there was a large family reunion going on nearby, and it was a gorgeous day to be outside in Maine!

For lunch I had the breakfast BLT on English muffin, Susie had a breakfast sandwich and Joyce and Avery each had toasted bagels.

it may not look like it but this was DELICIOUS

parking was at a premium -- we got the last available space

After lunch we cruised through the park entrance (Joyce had a senior park pass) and drove to Schoodic Point at the very tip. Part of Acadia National Park, for my money this is as good as it's big sister across the bay. There's hiking here, incredible water, fantastic rocks, and the waves, WOW! It's a wonderful place to lose yourself for at least a few moments and enjoy the stunning beauty around you.

Cadillac Mountain and Acadia Park in the distance

Susie

sisters

the waves can be fickle

From the Point we drove along the eastern side of the park overlooking the Gulf of Maine and parked at the Blueberry Hill Trail pullover. 

note the sign -- the rocks along the shore here were so cool!

Susie's memorial cairn for her mom

Susie and Joyce playing with rocks (but not removing them!)

On our way out of town we passed the old Mama's Boy restaurant. It was not being used in 2007 when we worked in Winter Harbor and we lived in the manager's apartment on the top floor.

the old Mama's Boy where we lived in 2007 - today the Treehouse restaurant

Below is the view across the cove from the restaurant. If you're interested, you can check out the same views from back in 2007 along with interior shots of the empty restaurant and our apartment right here.

We had a lovely drive home. Joyce opted to take a short cut around the traffic snarls in Ellsworth, which was a good idea. They dropped us off at our hotel for a little down time before dinner.

J and A returned for us at 5:30 and off we went into downtown Bangor for supper at the Lazy Hound.

Interesting couple at work (no signage for this unique piece)

The service was spot on, the beer - a Lone Pine from Portland I believe -- cold and tasty. And the food was superb! Susie had a Caesar salad with chicken, Joyce a chicken wrap and Avery and I each had smashburgers; he had the classic and mine came with cheddar cheese and diced pickles. The fries and onion rings were well received.

will ya look at the size of that wrap!

From downtown we headed back in the direction of our hotel, stopping briefly at Stephen King's (old) house. He no longer lives in Bangor we're told, having moved to Florida.some time ago. But the house is apparently is slated to be used by a literary club for writers' retreats.

 

note the bats on the top of the gate sides

a wooden sculpture of many of the characters King created over the years

Next door to our hotel is the Fielder's Choice Homemade Ice Cream Stand and Mini Golf, our final adventure for the day. The course was gorgeously landscaped and the four of us had plenty of time to consider our golfing strategies as we moved from challenge to challenge. Susie won with a final score of 58, Joyce second with 65, while Avery and I brought up the tail end with 69 and 68 respectively.

After golf we tucked into some delicious ice cream, having generous "single" scoops. Deelish! 

lots of families out when we arrived

a gorgeous sunset to cap a truly wonderful day

lining up for ice cream and only ice cream - cash only

We said our goodbyes in the parking lot. We enjoyed a very brief but fun filled time with the Caldwells in Maine. And we'll be seeing them in Michigan next week!

We waved as they pulled out and walked the couple hundred meters to our hotel.

Tomorrow it's Route 2 to Vermont!