Monday, May 9

Civil War history in West Virginia. Harper's Ferry lower town remains much the same as it was and is all part of a National Park. It is very strategically located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers where 3 states, Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland come together.

John Brown's Fort.

General Store.

Couldn't resist taking a photo of the "Sheetz" gas station...they were everywhere.

Then it was on to Vermont. We arrived in time to visit the birthplace of Brigham Young.

This is a marker along the road in the middle of the small village of Whitingham.

Marker in front of the house or lot where Brigham was born.

The scenic view from Brigham's house.

A monument in town, placed by his family.

We were lucky to stop here for dinner on the way to our Hotel in Bennington. The food was excellent. Dad had Yankee Pot Roast and I had an amazing chicken pot pie...not in pie crust, but rather topped with a puff pastry.

Tuesday, May 10

We went on a little jaunt to see 3 covered bridges that Vermont is famous for...they are quite cool. This one is called the Silk Bridge. Can you tell it was a beautiful morning in Bennington?

Insides are interesting.

A different one...the Henry Bridge. Also saw the Paper Mill Bridge.

Bennington Battlefield Monument.

Famous first old church in Bennington...First Congregational. There were lots of churches of this faith in New England...that's the church I attended as a child.

Grave stone marking the burial plot of Robert Frost. You can't tell from this angle, but the dark splotches are actually pennies standing on end in the engraving.

Spring blossoms in Vermont.

Robert Frost lived and wrote poetry here.

Cow Moose. There were quite a few of these fiberglass moose painted in very creative ways all around town...like the buffalo in Davis County or salmon in Anchorage.

Here is an interior shot of the cheese factory we got to visit...cheese molds. We got a personalized tour since we were the only tourists there. The guide was full of fun facts and information. Crowley Family Cheese has won awards, mainly for Colby Cheese, particularly sage flavored. They still it all by hand. We brought home some wax-covered bricks of sage and muffalata (yeah!--the green olive spread we've enjoyed on Po' Boy sandwiches in New Orleans.)

This is the factory from the outside.

We ate a very tasty lunch here at the Bridgewater Corners Country Store (old-fashioned with old wooden floors.) We had home-made ham and cheese. Oh, I'd like another one right now.

Another covered bridge seen while driving along.

Old farm/barn. There were so many old buildings that added to the charm of the countryside.

We visited Sharon, Vermont.

They have a full-blown visitors center complete with a missionary couple to show you the grounds and tell you the stories.

The actual doorstep from the Smith home.

The monument.

The original hearthstone, inside the visitors center.

Next it was on to Waterbury and the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory!

Goofing off...there's Ben and Jerry.

Oh, yeah.

Flavor Graveyard. They had signs/headstones for many of their "retired" flavors of ice cream. Baron, we did ask about Wavy Gravy and were told it went away because the price of nuts rose too high to make a profit. The guide also said a few of the old flavors would probably be coming back this summer. We can hope.

We got to watch the intriguing process and sample the flavor being packaged that day...Americone Dream...vanilla with chocolate coated cone pieces and caramel swirls. Delish.
One of their secrets is to immediately freeze the cartons to -90 degrees.

Goodbye, cows.

Yes, we bought some pure Vermont maple syrup.

Beautiful farm.

Wednesday & Thursday, May 11 & 12

Wednesday was first of all New Hampshire. Unfortunately this was our one disappointment of the trip. We had planned on hiking in the Franconia Notch and down into the Flume Gorge to see waterfalls. The AAA book said it should be open, but due to the difficult winter, ice had taken out boardwalks, etc., and the park was still closed. This was the northernmost point of our travels and you can see by this photo there is no lush greenery here yet. Maybe we'll return another day?

Interesting totem pole.

One more photo in NH...Indian Head Rock.

We made it to Portland, Maine and got to tour the Longfellow House, or maybe more appropriately the Wadsworth House since it was given to Henry's parents by his mother's family. Henry grew up in this house (20 years) and his sister ended up living here her entire life. When she died in 1901 she willed it to the historical society and so all of the furnishings are originals...awesome. We had a great tour guide and learned a lot.

Another Wyland Whaling Wall...we've seen them on both coasts now.

Cape Elizabeth at Fort Williams Park next to Portland.

The "Head Light" at Cape Elizabeth...charming! You can tell by the flags that it was a bit windy.

Another angle on the lighthouse.

Quaint cobblestone streets in downtown "Old Port" Portland.

Dad and the dolphins.

View of the docks in Portland from inside The Lobster Company Restaurant.

Not too exciting or glamorous on the outside.

But the Lobster Roll was definitely exciting...a soft bun with a little greenery, the meat of one lobster and drawn butter...nothing else. YUM.

The next morning on the way out of Portland we stopped at a candy store to check out the 1700 lb. chocolate moose and 3 dark chocolate bears.

I think Lenny the moose is standing in white chocolate with a blue tinge. Of course we also bought a few fancy chocolates to nibble on while driving to Delaware.