To Boston . . . via Lyme?

Heretofore I have excluded from this travelog the few "unpleasantries" of our adventure, but now I'm sharing!! 

So, I wrote in the last post that at Valley Forge Harold was feeling puny, but what I haven't mentioned in the blog?   . . . ticks!  It seems that from the park at D.C. north, these little buggers are a common problem.  First in our family to get them was poor Trixie!  I won't go into detail, but she did end up at a vet a few weeks ago for "treatment" and a vaccination against Lyme disease!

Yours truly had a couple of ticks, also, and Harold a few as well.  Well, his headache, chills, fever and general malaise at Valley Forge persisted. After a fitful night in Old Saybrook (Camp Walmart), he needed a doctor.  The nearest walk-in clinic we could find was about 15 miles away in (of all places?) a town called Old Lyme!!  

Treatment for Lyme disease?  Antibiotics!

He's feeling better already!!

An afternoon of napping (med clinic parking lot) . . then on the road again . . . .

One thing we noticed in Connecticut - all these interesting rock outcroppings along the wayside . . .

A good-enough picture (considering we were zipping past at 60mph)!

Yes, after our delay in Old Lyme, Connecticut, any thoughts we had about traveling off the beaten path today were quashed!  We had some miles to cover before nightfall to reach Wompatuck State Park just south of Boston, so it was the Interstate for us on this leg of our epic adventure.

Connecticut - scenery reminiscent of home.

And then, before we knew it . . .

"Welcome to Rhode Island"

Along I-95 in this tiny state, too, roadside scenery brought the Pacific Northwest to mind . . 

Very green - like home!!

And then we came to the coast and could see why Rhode Island is called "The Ocean State."  Views from the Interstate coming in to Providence . . .

Crossing the tidal Providence River into . . .

. . .  East Providence, R.I. 

And now, so pleased to find our route taking us off the Interstate again! Enjoyed the old-timey feeling and many historic buildings in this picturesque little spot.

"Welcome to East Providence, Rhode Island"

And before we knew it . . .

 "Welcome to Massachusetts" 

  (I didn't see the actual sign in time to snap the pic!)  

Entered Massachusetts at the unimposing, uninspiring town of Seekonk. We learned that it was established in 1812, but other than that, from our perspective - it's mostly forgettable!

Passing deeper into the state, though, we became very aware of the historical nature of the region.  Along this stretch, the scenery became very "New Englandy" as we moved on through Rehoboth (est. 1643), Dighton (est. 1672) and Taunton (officially incorporated in 1639!).

Awed by many wonderful very old churches and houses, and enchanted by a growing concentration of lovely old Cape Cod style homes, we are eager to explore this "Cradle of Liberty" as Massachusetts in known.

Coming into the Boston metropolis, our first taste of traffic here!  We watched as one crazy lane-changing driver actually clipped the back end of another vehicle, bashing a tail light - and they both kept on going!! They have a special name for these people here, and if you ask me what it is I'll tell you, but I cannot print it here!!

We're taking Exit 7 - Wompatuck is on the way to Cape Cod!

We made it, miraculously, to Wompatuck State Park on Thursday 26 May and now it's Saturday.  We're going to spend a few days doing "nothin' much" while Harold recuperates.  We did take a short scoot around the park yesterday, which is rapidly filling with Memorial Day campers.

We'll start our "Boston adventure" after Cathy Harvey gets here.

Yes!  When we learned that Boston was on her Bucket List, we asked her to come spend a few days with us.  She's coming on Wednesday!  THIS is going to be FUN!! 

Philly, Valley Forge & Movin' North . . .

Now, where were we?  Oh, yes, after our great scootin' time in Lancaster County, we were ready for - - - Philadelphia!!

Crossing the Schuylkill River, coming into the city!

We only had a few hours to spend here as we'd left Trixie "home" in the RV, parked at Valley Forge.  We drove the truck into the city center and headed straight for Independence Hall!!

A dramatic and entertaining National Park Service tour guide showed us around - stately old building, gorgeous woodwork - all restored to the original colors of the early days.  He called this the true birthplace of our nation because it's where  the Declaration of Independence was signed . . .

. . . and here's the room where the signing actually took place!

Just to the right of my head there?
The very chair used by George Washington!

Independence Hall

 And - what trip to Philly would be complete without stopping in to see  . . .

. . .  of course - The Liberty Bell!

We walked around the central part of the city there - narrow cobblestone streets, row houses and magnificent old buildings, much like in D.C., but many unfortunately now just sitting apparently unused.  Guess the city doesn't have the money the feds do for preserving history!

Delicious dinner at this historic place -
waiters & waitresses in "period" costume!

One of many little gardens in the city.

And Harold - peering into the cemetery

 for a look at Ben Franklin's final resting place!

Next day, Valley Forge!  We'd heard there was lots to see there and great bike paths!!  Unfortunately, after a quick but educational visit to the Visitor Center, Harold started feeling "poorly".

Leaving him in the RV to sleep off his bug, I pedaled off solo . . . . .

George Washington Memorial Chapel

Isaac Potts' House - Washington's Headquarters

during the 1977-1978 encampment of the Continental Army

Washington used this room for his office there.

It was actually a long, hot ride but I enjoyed every minute of it - even after I'd drank all my water and my camera battery went dead!!!  No more pictures of this place!

So the next day - today - another "four state day"!!  Woke up in Pennsylvania, destination . . . somewhere in Connecticut on our way to Boston!

Leaving Pennsylvania behind as we crossed the Delaware . . .

And on the other side . . .

"Welcome to New Jersey"

Rode the New Jersey Turnpike from one end of the state to the other.  Along the way we saw a huge oil refinery and the Newark skyline off to our left and then, on our right?  Staten Island with the Manhattan skyline behind! 

And we could see the Empire State Building! 

Looking across the Hudson River to Manhattan 

The traffic?  Not too bad, really, but pretty weird!!  Below you can see, we are moving up the Interstate 95 and on both sides of us, multiple lanes of high speed traffic moving past us in the opposite direction!!

And finally, here we go, crossing the Hudson on the George Washington Bridge into New York City!

This is a fake sign that I got off the internet.

There WAS NO "Welcome to New York" sign!

What does that mean?   IDK

When we got in to the actual City, OMG, the traffic picked up and, I swear, all the lanes got narrower!  But my old honey just rolled on through like it's something he does every day!  Just look at that smile . . .

And just as we were about to exit New York
the scenery suddenly changed!

Welcome to Connecticut!

Zipping along on I-95 in Connecticut - lots of beautiful scenes like the two here.

We came to rest tonight in picturesque Old Saybrook on the Connecticut coast - Camp Walmart!  This was one long day on Turnpikes and Interstates and we're ready to slow it down a bit.  Not exactly certain of the route we'll follow, but tomorrow night should find us at Wompatuck State Park, just a little south of Boston.  

Philadelphia, PA? Yes . . . but first . . . . The Amish Farmland!

Philly cheese steak, anyone?   Well, not quite yet!  That WAS the plan, but . . . 

We left Martinak and took to the "blue highways" in the direction of Greensboro (north!), off the beaten path.  

We were barely out of town when we stopped for a parting glimpse of the Choptank River. 

I got out of the RV to take a picture and as I stepped onto the bridge, a great blue heron lifted from his hiding place along the bank and passed right in front of me.  I kind of think of that as the Choptank bidding us farewell.  And then I looked down and there were two big turtles, just drifting along in the water - what a wonderful river - I'll never forget it!

All along our Saturday drive . . . beautiful lush green farmland . . .

Continuing on the county "highway" through some wide spots in the road - Goldsboro, Henderson, and tiny Marydel with its lovely old church (c.1871). . .

and we rolled through tiny Templeville -


And then - saying "so long" to Maryland after almost six weeks . . . 

"Welcome to Delaware"

Two miles in, we pulled over in Hartley for lunch and threw open the windows – a most agreeable day!  As we ate, we saw two young Amish women in their long, dusty rose dresses, white aprons and covered heads – rolling along the road on their “scooters”.

Hearing a clip-clop clip-clop, we looked out to see a horse and buggy . . . an Amish man and woman going down the road.

and more lush fields . . .

Moving on through the little berg of Kenton, stopped to take this pic . . . 

The Bailey House c.1779!

Just another Delaware country scene . . .

And then - crossing the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal on this pretty bridge!

(Click on this picture to enlarge - it's a really cool bridge!)

And - coming into . . . .

. . . Wilmington!

Well, we weren't in Delaware very long - about an hour!

And then . . .

"Welcome to Pennsylvania"

OK - so we were thinking Philadelphia, but got sidetracked and ended up west of there at Brandywine Creek, Downingtown! 

And here we are at a lovely, rustic RV camp - and we're parked right here by Brandywine Creek.

And here's a big rock with a little scene painted on it!  Different!!  But nice!!

Finding ourselves in these gorgeous, very scootable, surroundings, we decided to postpone Philadelphia . . . 

on the backroads, lots of very interesting old stuff!!!!

 And then we discovered that we are in Lancaster County - Amish country!!

The further we rode, the more Amish we saw!  Is it because it's Sunday?  At times it seemed there were more horse-drawn buggies than cars!!  And the horses are beautiful!!

We got a wave and a smile from these youngsters!

. . . a serene scene . . .

Not surprised to see the Harley zooming by the buggy!!

This young Amish woman was rollerblading up the hill!

And - another farm . . . . .

 It was a grey day - but that didn't stop us from exploring . . .

Kiwi & Blondi in front of the Herr Grist Mill, Est. 1738!
Ronks, Pennsylvania

And the old covered bridge near the mill . . .

Another family at a busy rural intersection -
 heading home from Sunday meeting?

Amish youth - volleyball along the roadway . . 

We figure we saw about a hundred buggies on the road today - maybe more!!  A most interesting scooter ride, indeed!

Here's Harold at just one of the many, many picturesque scenes we came across today.  Sixty scootin' miles of country roads - WoW!!  FUN!!  It was grey and a bit cool, but our luck held out and it didn't start raining until we got back to camp!

The plan for tomorrow is to get back on track.  We're going to try to squeeze in Valley Forge AND the Liberty Bell - and hopefully that Philly Cheese Steak, too - and then get on the road to . . . . Boston????