We left home at 7 am and made our traditional vacation breakfast stops: Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks. Rain started shortly after. We tried to keep our driving to 2 hour legs, so we could get out and stretch.
The drive would have been a more beautiful one if it were not for the clouds and fog. We deviated from our original plan, and saw more of Vermont.
Each trip we take, we seem to have certain music that becomes our theme. When we then hear that music years later, the memories come flooding back.
This trip, we have 2 albums with us: The Cars Greatest Hits and Franki Vallie's Ultimate Collection. We've already listened to them in their entirety, and I'm wishing we had brought more variety. The kids have done pretty well as far as keeping themselves occupied with books, iPad games and Eva's original game of Travel Bingo.
If only we could spot the elusive moose....or a limo! As you can see, there were multiple sightings of FOG!!
Vermont Welcome Center
Picnic lunch in Bennington, VT
Bennington, VT Rest Center
Downtown Bennington, VT
Bennington, VT
In Vermont, we passed by the largest display of tractors I've ever seen!
Farm country
Vermont could be summed up in just a few words: Subaru's, Farmer's Markets and dairy farms. It reminded me of Wisconsin...but with mountains. At one point, Dave pulled over so we could switch driving, and I was hit by the nostalgic dairy farm smell.
Through the Green Mountains, radio reception was spotty. Luckily us adult passengers managed to find a station that had reception long enough to hear both Car Talk and Radio Lab. It was perfect timing, late in the day when we were getting tired of driving.
We entered New York at 1:15, and instantly the terrain changed to rolling slopes and valleys. I felt like I was driving on a roller coaster track. We saw 'horse and buggy' caution signs, which made me a little nervous because I couldn't even see over the next hill.
Lo and behold, as I approached a turn, Dave spotted a horse and carriage coming toward us. A few minutes later, we passed a second one. "A horse cage!" Liam exclaimed. Amanda corrected him that it was a carriage.
Our first view of Lake Champlain
Today's nature sightings included 3 turkeys, 1 porcupine (dead), 2 skunks (dead) and 1 deer that nearly ran right in front of us. The kids also enjoyed seeing cows, horses and goats along the way - something they never see back home.
The only moose we've seen has been this statue. Eva may need to revise her game.
We arrived at our cottage at 3:45, and are very happy with everything. We are about 5 miles outside of Plattsburgh, with our own little beach on Lake Champlain.
The kids love that they can all share a room. There are bunk beds - a twin over a full bed - and they've already worked out a rotating schedule so they can take turns sleeping in the top bunk.
Our cozy 2 bedroom "cottage"
The view from our cottage: Lake Champlain
Lighthouse
As soon as the van was unloaded, Dave and the kids wasted no time going down to the water. The kids are so happy and the water is just the right depth for everyone to be comfortable.
Beach fun
Done swimming and ready to explore Plattsburgh
We found a gem for dinner, Arnie's Italian restaurant. It was quite possibly the best spaghetti I have ever eaten. The kids even asked if we could return the next day.
I don't think we will have a shortage of things to do here!
2 comments:
Sounds like this could become an annual vacation. You could do a lot worse!
So much different than daily life, in pristine surroundings. Good choice.
Very true. I like it here even more than NH. I do wish our bedrooms were air conditioned or at the very least, had ceiling fans. The humidity is pretty bad, but luckily there is a lake breeze. Hopefully the approaching thunderstorms will break the humidity.
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