Portsmouth, New Hampshire

1. Lottie doing her stress routine.
2. Sobaka with his cone/ so tired


September 15 & 16, Monday & Tuesday: A little rain on Sunday night but lots of wind. Windy all day on Monday so just hung around the campground got caught up on the blog while Larry was able to watch some football. Ended up staying awake (semi) to watch Sunday Night Football. Not good because it does not come on until 9pm & over around 12pm. Good game though. And oh that's right we're retired we do not have to jump up on Tuesday.


In the afternoon we took a ride down the coast. Again just explored the little towns in the coves. We ended up in New Hampshire in the city of Portsmouth. It has an old section called Strawberry Banke. We had to wait for the drawbridge because a huge freighter was going through. Strawberry Banke is a village that depicts the town during its busy shipping era. We did not plan it well because it was too late to venture into the village.


Tuesday: We are heading to Sturbridge, Massachusetts. AAA says there is a Living History Village of 1830 New England. We haven't done this on our trip yet. We took I95 south through New Hampshire paying $12.00 in tolls before we turned onto I495. Then onto a red road Hwy20, not such a good move too many surprise downhill with stoplights at the bottom. Not Larry's favorite. The map said it was scenic but apparently not our scenic. Sturbridge is in the middle southern part of the state. Our campground is nothing to write home about. Guess they all can't be great, however, they still are charging a high price. It is $48.00 a night. We need to get out of New England it is messing up our budget.


Tomorrow off to the"village".


Good Night!

Getting caught up on the blog

September 13 & 14, Saturday & Sunday: Took off today for Wells, it is just below Kennebunkport. We stayed here over Labor Day week-end. This time we are staying in town. I like this campground better than the last. More trees. After setting up, we took a two mile plus walk down to the waterfront. Our walk took us pass a large marsh land. Not hot but we did forget water for the dogs and us. When we reached the waterfront, Larry went in to get some water for the dogs. When he tried to give Lottie a drink she took a sip and no more. Very unusual for her. Mystery solved......... he had bought Sprite instead of water. Then when he went back and bought water, she wasn't too sure she wanted to trust him again. We all had a good rest and drinks then headed home. The walk was a little longer than we thought but nice. Should have know by the name of the road.....Mile Rd.
Everyone was ready to relax when we return to the rig. I fixed a vegetable soup while we watched the news about Hurricane Ike. We are not moving until Tuesday.

Sunday: Woke up to rain. Doing nothing until we get caught up on the blog. Walk the dogs, Worked on the blog. Watched football.
Good Night!

Oh Yeah! I am up to date!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rockport and Camden, Maine

1. Very impressive bridge
2. The Oreo cows with calves
3. You can see the old bridge behind the new bridge
4. Waterfall in Camden below our cafe




September 11, Thursday: On the road again...........not many miles as we are just heading down the coast about 130 miles. We drove over a very interesting bridge. (see picture) Slow moving but nice ride. Good thing we did not have too far to go. Time wise it was longer than need be. Larry kind of got us in trouble. He saw a good place to eat on the bay missed the parking lot so took the next street. Do you have the picture? Remember with the rig and car we are 62 ft long. After turning down this street, we found out it was a dead end into a parking lot for the ferry which goes to the island in the bay. Now I would like to point out one of the reasons Larry wanted this rig was because he flipped a U-turn when he test drove it. He thought he had enough room but not quite! Not bad...he only missed it by a few inches because of a street sign. Now he has the car at an angle so cannot disconnect; can't back up. Conference time. Looking at the sign which is keeping him from making the turn, I think I can hold it out of the way. Not quite! Suddenly, there are three men there to hold the sign out of the way so he could make the turn. Love these Mainers! The first gentleman even asked these two ladies if they would move their car so Larry could pull into the parking lot. Nice people! After all that we had a nice lunch on the deck facing the bay. I had fish & chips and Larry had a chicken sandwich. Even with Larry's little mishap, we arrived at our campground early enough to enjoy our site. Small campground but nice grounds with lots of trees and walking room for the dogs. One of the first campgrounds with a few West Coast people. Arizona, 2 from Washington, California(besides us)not too many of us traveling.


My biggest regret of the day>>>>>>>I didn't get a picture of Larry flipping that U. Another good RV story.


Good Night!





September 12, Friday: Got a local map of the area, loaded the dogs and headed out to explore another great area on the Maine Coast. On a side road we saw a very small dog in the middle of the street. Now I would like to point out to a few people( mainly my sister-in-law, Sharon and my friend, Pat) that I made it all the way to Maine before I found a lost dog. Larry didn't even question about stopping. He did groan a little. Of course, no one was home but there was a truck with a phone number written on the side door. Called and was able to talk to the owner of the dog. She asked if we could put the dog on the front porch and she would head right home. Larry was very glad it worked out so well. Back to our touring the area. Went by the famous Galloway cows. Actually, the locals call them the Oreo Cows. You know, they do look like Oreo cookies. We went by a beach where you can walk dogs but found out it is only during 8am to 10am. It was 10:30am too late. Lots of old house that have been restored.


We found a parking place in Camden which was not easy since there is an art show this week-end. Very busy harbor here. We took the dogs on a long walk along the marina and a few streets. The dogs got tired so took them back to the car while we went to lunch. Figured they would be all right since it is starting to get cloudy and windy. We found a little grill that has been family owned since 1942. We sat outside on the deck over looking a water fall. We both ordered a hamburger. I Know I know....but oh my gosh... was it ever good! Just after we ate it started raining. Went back to the rig. It rained most of the night not hard but steady. It is suppose to get down to 45 degrees. Fall is in the air. Larry tell me again what the temperature is in California?


Good Night!

Into Acadia National Park

1. A small harbor on the Southwestern side

2. On top of Cadillac Mtn.

3. Bar Harbor from Cadillac Mtn.

4. Bar Harbor on our way down the mountain





September 9 & 10, Tuesday & Wednesday: After we got everything settled this morning, we decided to take a ride around the southwestern side of the island. The island is divided into two driving loops. So loaded the dogs in the car. Sobaka seems to be doing all right. We don't want to walk him too much but a ride in the car should be all right. Nice day but the clouds are coming in. We are suppose to have some more heavy rains sometime tonight. Again saw some very impressive houses and buildings. Pretty coastline and lots of trees. Arrived home just as it started to rain. Or should I say Pour! Fixed something for dinner then just had a quiet evening.









Wednesday: Woke to a gorgeous morning after a lot of rain again. Loaded the dogs to drive and walk around Acadia National Park. Now we have seen some beautiful sites but they seem to just get better. The wind was blowing which kept the temperature down but the views on top of Cadillac Mountain crystal clear. This is the tallest mountain on the Atlantic Coast. I cannot express how wonderful the views were on top but hope some of the pictures give you an idea. We were able to take the dogs on several little walks. It really is nice to be able to take them especially since we really can't leave Sobaka even with the cone on his head. We drove back in to Bar Harbor for lunch. Unfortunately, we picked a restaurant that wouldn't allow the dogs. Don't think they minded staying in the car since they were long overdue for their naps. Larry chose the special which was 3 sliders. One each of lobster, crab, and salmon with french fries. I had a Salmon/ Caesar Wrap. Very Good! On the way home we stopped at the local brewery to do some beer tasting. Well, Larry tasted! Bought a couple of different kinds.




Arrived home to feed dogs and start getting ready to head out tomorrow. We are going back down the coast to Camden. We passed it on our way heading North. It looked like a very cute place to walk around and explore.

Good Night!

Lunch in Bar Harbor

1. Lottie and I waiting for Larry to take his picture. Cute sign!

2. A small harbor before Bar Harbor

3. A street in Bar Harbor

4. Now this looks like New England housing!





September 8, Monday: Dropped Sobaka off for his surgery. I am sure he is thinking this trip is not as fun as it could be. He should be done by 4:30pm so off to wonder the streets of Bar Harbor. Host said it is very dog friendly so Lottie is going to spend the day with us. Parked the car and found a walk which rounds the town. About 1/2 mile or so along the water edge pass a beautiful old hotel. The harbor is very busy with sight seeing boats, whale watching, (thank you, but I'll do that in Hawaii it is warmer)and you can even go out with them to get check the lobster traps. The path ended up at the upper part of town which meant we were able to wonder slowly back towards the wharf for lunch. Lottie did amazingly well. As you know, she is very people friendly but not so dog tolerate. I guess after four months walking by dogs she is really getting better. That and we did not have Sobaka. She does not seem so on guard without him to protect. Did a little window shopping but not much else. Chose a restaurant that Lottie could go to. She even had her own treats and own water bowl. I am sure she is having a better day than Sobaka. Larry had a lobster dinner which included 1/4 lb. of lobster, garlic mashed potatoes, corn bread, and a large ear of fresh corn on the cob. Me? glad you asked... Corn and lobster chowder and baked beans on the side. Life is Good!





Headed home Lottie and I are tired from all the walking and it is warm today. After we were home for a while, Larry went to pick up our little guy. He was so groggy his hind legs were not working too well. He was very hungry since he had not had breakfast. Quick dinner and he was down for the count. Quiet evening.





Good Night!

Bar Harbor, Maine

September 5, 6, & 7, Friday, Saturday, & Sunday: Woke this morning to low tide. People can walk from the campground out to the two islands in the bay. Incredible that the tide recedes that far. Well, today is ..back to the vet day...for Sobaka. His cyst will not heal no matter what we do. Able to get him in but not until 12:30pm so kinda of shoots our day. To make a long story short, the vet thought he could just to a local anesthetic and remove the cyst. Yep! too easy......... it was too deep into his hip. Can't do it to day but can do it on Monday. He did cauterize it so he would leave it alone. A few more people coming in for the week-end. Doesn't surprise us the weather has been so nice. Subject to change when Hurricane Hanna gets here. They are expecting 2-4 inches of rain when she arrives late Saturday night or Sunday morning. While sitting outside we heard a bell. Ok, I heard a ringing sound. It turned out to be a lady who bakes pies and sells them at the campground. Well, I may not be as fond of lobster as Larry but I do like blueberries. We bought a fresh wild blueberry pie still warm and a huge lemon cookie Larry could have with his morning coffee. Pie was $15.00 a little high but oh my gosh it was worth it! Had a piece for dinner.



Saturday: General housekeeping and laundry morning. Received a phone call from the Cole's in Northern Virginia late morning. They were getting pounded with rain and winds. Since it is headed our way they wanted to give us a heads up! We sat outside and enjoyed our view because it sounds like it would not be here later. It actually started raining about 7:30pm. By the time we went to bed it was raining pretty steady.
Forgot to mention, we met a nice couple who live just outside of Portland, Maine. They invited us to their site to have a glass of wine and toast their 40th wedding anniversary. We then invited them to come to our place for dessert, blueberry pie. Donna has been battling cancer for 18 years. Ed says it is getting harder each time it returns. We had a fun time sharing camping stories and they are going to spend their winter in Texas. Again we have to thank our lucky stars for what we have........................



Sunday: 8 inches of rain the camp host told Larry when he took the dogs for their morning walk. A few of the roads were washed out in the campground. Big ruts! They have a tractor which they share between campgrounds so when it is their turn they will grade the roads again. Our site is pretty soggy. Worked on the blog, read, and just lazed today. Unfortunately to wet to sit outside.

Tomorrow taking Sobaka to the vet at 8am then heading to BAAA Habaaaaa with Lottie.

Good Night!

Bar Harbor, Maine

1. Is this a great view! Worth the hassle.
2. Lottie keeping an eye on the seagulls
3. Tide is out
4. The whole view




September 4, Thursday: We are off to the farthest Northeast we are going to go, Bar Harbor and The Acadia National Park. Again we went on Hwy 1 through some great little towns. I guess just like California's Hwy 1 you cannot beat the scenic drive. Really not that hard to drive today. Larry was thinking about coming back this way to walk around some of the towns.


Our campground is across the narrows onto the island. Large campgrounds but again many open sites. Some sites are on the water which is where we want to be. Now this sounds easy, however, it was not. We wanted to park looking at the water but by driving the rig in front facing the water, the electrical hook-ups were on the wrong side. This made it too far to reach with our lines. Great sites for fifth-wheels! Larry was determined it was going to work. After the third time for me to go to the front office, I asked one of the gentlemen host to go help Larry. I did not want to have a ...Man/Woman moment. The camp host said no problem he had an extension chord he would lend us. Yeah! Oh yea, we arrived about 1pm finally parked the rig about 3pm. Good job guys, we are parked about 20ft from the water and no one is parked next to us.


After setting up and taking dogs for a good sniffing walk, we set the chairs in front of the rig to enjoy this spectacular view. I put together some snacks and went back to the relaxing-mode.


I am so relaxed nobody would recognize me.


Good Night!