Travels with haRVy

7/23 Got a late start due to getting everything packed after a busy week. Al also had to get the rack completely set-up to carry 2 bikes, 2 kayaks, and the spare tire, which we had not done before. His engineering worked well and all seems to be securely installed. It must be quite a site to motorists who come up behind us.

The drive through Boston felt less intimidating than it does in a car and traffic wasn’t too bad except for a slowdown north of the city for which we saw no reason. Our destination was Mike and Sheila’s vacation home in Gilford, NH. We got there just in time for dinner after which we went in to Weir’s Beach for an outside rock concert. The local band was really good. Back home to bed early for a good night’s sleep under a starry sky.

7/24 After a leisurely breakfast with Sheila and the girls, while Mike was at an auction (of course), we headed off to Maine. We had lunch at Songo Lock near Lake Winnipesaki where we watched the action as boats of every size went up and down through the lock and swing bridge. After a couple more hours on the road we arrived at Lake St. George State Park,  rather unremarkable campground, but our site is right on the lake and the view was lovely as we enjoyed our home cooked dinner as the sun went down.

Think we brought enough toys?

7/25 Up early for a walk around the campground for exercise and to take some photos, French toast for breakfast, a bit of relaxation and a quick pump out and water fill up. On the road again by 10 o’clock, which is quite early for this crew! We drove some beautiful areas on less busy highways. Stopped in Ellsworth to fill our propane tank and at a cute little local shop for coffee, but also decided to pick up lobster rolls for lunch later. Then we were off to genuine “Down East Maine” on the Schoodic Peninsula. We enjoyed a lovely picnic site on the bay before heading to scenic Schoodic Point and on to Winter Harbor.

We followed a road side handmade sign advertising raspberries to a bountiful farm where besides the berries we purchased “Sweet Valentine” red romaine lettuce and “bright lights” Swiss chard both of which they picked  as we waited! You can’t get fresher than that!

Then it was off to our campsite at Lamoine State Park. What a difference a day makes! This place is everything the last campground was not…WAY off the highway so it is extremely quiet, the sites are large and private, and ours is right on Frenchman Bay with an unobstructed view! We are both so glad we’ve got 3 nights to enjoy this incredible location! It’s supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow and we don’t even care.

7/26 It rained lightly most all night, but stopped at daybreak. We awoke to the heavenly fragrance of beach roses as we watched the sky and birds through the plexiglass skylight over our pillows. After breakfast I took a walk thinking it might be my last chance to get exercise today as more rain was forecast. It was still dry when I got back so we got the bikes out and headed down the road. We returned a couple hours later with a cucumber and some super sweet orange cherry tomatoes from a local honor system farm stand. There’s not much around here except incredible scenery. We did not see one store, cafe, or any sort of retail business.

Loop Trail around Campground

Horse Getting His Mail Delivered

Local Fixer Upper – just one block from beach!

Back at the campground we fixed a salad for lunch that included the local veggies we recently purchased and spent the afternoon working on our screen door project. If it works as designed, I will post a photo of the final results.

We’re back home now, but I wanted to add a few more photos and comments about our mini-vaca.

Our friends Candie and Rae, who live in another area on Cape Cod,  came out to see us at our camp site. They brought their bikes so we did some more riding on the beautiful trails. After working up a good sweat we took to the warm, clear waters of nearby Cliff Pond. I cooked them dinner in haRVy’s wonderful little galley.

Even though it was a very short trip, in both time and distance, it truly felt like we had gotten away from it all. We parked once and used our bikes and feet for transportation for three days. A very pleasant respite indeed.

Last night was our second at Nickerson State Park and what a pleasant surprise this place is. We have been to the Cape often, but only drove through this park once. We had no idea how nice a place it would be to camp.

The only reason we came is because my friend Lois said she, her husband and another couple were coming out here. It seemed like a nice easy way to try out haRVy again, so we booked a site near them for the same time period. We’ve ridden on beautiful bike trails through the woods and swam on a wonderfully warm and clean pond twice already. It’s nice to know we can “get away from it all” so close to home!

We like it here so much we decided to just kick back and enjoy the park rather than going out to other parts of the Cape. It is so relaxing here we are just soaking it up. Even though it is a sizable campground, most of the patrons are courteous of others so it’s pretty quiet even though there are lots of kids and dogs.

haRVy is parked safely in our home driveway at last. Our delivery mission was completed at 4:45 this afternoon.


Last night we stayed with friends in Connecticut. Time spent socializing and dining out was more fun than posting to this blog, so my entry was postponed until now. Our friends prepared lattes and a nice breakfast for us this morning and I availed myself of their abundance of hot water by using their shower.

We are now driving our final leg into our 12th state in 8 days – Little Rhody. We plan to provision at Trader Joe’s and then head home with some mixed feelings. The week has been interesting and enjoyable for the most part, but driving many miles practically every day is tiring. Thankfully we’ve both been sleeping well in our comfortable bunk and preparing satisfying meals in our efficient galley.

Driving haRVy has proven to be less taxing and more comfortable than anticipated. A lot of that has to do with the design of the front seats. I had been worried about that aspect, but both the driver and passenger areas offer many adjustments to alleviate fatigue. The driver’s seat even has pump-up lumbar support. If I put my feet up on the dashboard I can stretch my legs out straight like on a BarcaLounger and it doesn’t even impede on the driver’s visibility. We both appreciate that the seats are supportive yet not too hard and that they are cloth covered rather than vinyl or leather, both of which can be cold or hot and sticky.

Photos from yesterday’s trip up the Jersey Shore:

Returning to Asbury Park 42 Years Later

Asbury Park Casino Remnants

Asbury Park Carousel Building Window Detail

Carousel Building



Sandy Hook Beach – NYC in Distance

Today we took a circuitous route from Maryland to the Jersey Shore avoiding the Interstate madness as much as possible. We wound around country and small town roads, which we find much more enjoyable even though it can be time consuming. Advantages include better scenery and more interesting dining choices. Both yesterday (red beans and rice plus bbq pork) and today (shrimp salad) we found sweet little locally owned lunch spots. The food tastes better and we feel better supporting local folk than mega-corporations.

This has been our worst weather day with intermittent showers developing into steady rain in the late afternoon and into the evening.

We had hoped to find a marina that we could boondock in this evening, but that didn’t work out. Luckily I have a friend who owns a beach house at the shore. I gave her a call to see if we could discreetly park in the driveway overnight and she said OK. We were glad she did because we were very tired of driving by then.

Nobody is here because the season hasn’t yet begun (and it’s raining) so it feels a bit like a ghost town, but we’re happy to have a quiet, safe harbor for the night.

Breakfast in Bed

Cold Morning Walk on the Beach

A Little Creative Photography – Glass Butterfly?