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PIPEWRENCHGRIP

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  1. PIPEWRENCHGRIP
    After leaving Quebec City, we continued our trip south to see friends south of Montreal. Since we were close to the U.S. border, we crossed over to fuel up and for our friends Tom and Louise Butler to pick up their mail. We then crossed by into Canada Via a small blacktop road with a small border crossing. Only one border official was there; he checked us out and we went on our way.
    After we got into Canada, we promply took a wrong turn. With Louise checking the maps, we were able to reach our destination with no problem. The roads were paved but quite narrow, and we crossed one small bridge with a load limit that was marginal at best. Our friends Ray and Francine live at an RV park most to the summer, so that's where we stayed for a few days. While there, the Butlers, Francine and I got in six sets of tennis. The women also got in plenty of cards playing Shanghi.
    From there we drove about an hour to the Ontario boarder, where we met other friends. All of these Canadian friends we met in South Texas over the past several years. Pierre and Daine were gracious hosts with food, wine and tours of the Montreal and the surrounding areas.
    We then traveled southwest along Lake Ontario and lake Erie to Leamington, Ontario. If you read Tom's blog, he gives a good discription of the area and the trip through Windsor and Detroit.
    After we parted with the Butlers, we went to Shipshewana to see the Amish Settlements and visit their shops, etc. While there, we saw a nice museum full of Hudson Cars from their beginnings to the time they quit production. They have probably 50 or more cars mostly restored and some in orginginal condition.
    Next, we went the countryside to see the oldest opperational grist mill. The mill is powered by a water turbine below the building. Plenty of water was flowing -- in fact, the lower level was flooded, so we were not allowed down there.
    Our next stop on our way home was at the Amana villages in Iowa. We parked the coach at a nice little campground next to a motel about 10 miles west of little Amana called Sudbury Court and RV park ... good people and reasonble rates. We spent a day and a half there.
    Laura is a quilter, so we made sure to stop at the fabric and quilt stors. We also stopped at the brewery and one of the winerys and bought a little of both. We visited many of the shops and had dinner at a German restaurant that played Czech Polka music. That caught my ear, as I grew up in a Czech community. We then walked over to the Woolen Mill to watch the looms in action.
    That evening we made a trip by car to Marion, Iowa, next to Cedar Rapids, for a quick vist with my Nephew's family.
    The next morning we left for home, and arrived there on Tuesday evening. We've been home in Yankton now for a couple of weeks. Our time has been spent cleaning up and undloading the RV, washing, waxing, and taking care of our house and lawn. Believe it or not, we also got in a few rounds of golf.
    Our next trek will be to south Texas for the winter.
    It was a great trip!
  2. PIPEWRENCHGRIP
    Our travels so far have taken us from our home in South Dakota through the Northeast, into New Brunswick's Grand Manan Island, back northwest to the St. Lawrence Seaway and down to Quebec City.
    En route, we stopped to visit friends in Michigan, and they joined our trip in their fifth-wheel for about a week. We also joined Tom and Louise Butler in Ohio; they had just left the FMCA convention in Bowling Green.
    With the Butlers and our fifth-wheel friends, we visited the Warther Carving Museum in Dover, Ohio. This is a fantastic and interesting place, a must stop for anyone traveling through the area.
    We then traved together to Bliss, N.Y., where we were able to park two motorhomes and a fifth-wheel for a few days on an acerage owned by our ornithology (bird experts) friends. There, we had the privlege to observe and even help banding humming birds. This was a real thrill, especially for Laura, as she is quite a bird lover. We also made a trip by car to Niagra Falls, our second visit there, but the first was 30 some years ago.
    Our fifth-wheel friends headed for home from there. The Butlers and us traveled in tandem through the Finger Lakes area and to the Corning Museum of Glass.
    Laura and I had never been to New York City, so I made a suggestion to do so and off we went. Tom and Louise had been there before, but they were happy to go again.
    We camped out at Florida, N.Y., and took a tour out of the campground to see the sights. This was a quick one-day tour but very worthwhile. We saw Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, Ground Zero of the Twin Towers, and construction of the New Freedom tower. We then toured downtown , saw the UN building, Times Square , Fifth Avenue, the Theatre District and other stuff, too.
    We headed northeast, visited friends in New Hampshire, and continued to Acadia Park and Bar Harbor Maine. After that it was into Canada and Grand Manan Island.
    We boarded a ferry to reach Grand Manan, the largest island in the Bay of Fundy. With two 40-foot motorhomes with toad vehicles behind and a coupled of trucks alongside, this was close quarters. So much so that we had a hard time squeezing out the door to enjoy the 1-1/2 hour ride to the island.
    On Grand Manan Island, we went on a whale watching tour with Whales and Sales Tour company. This was a great trip. After touring the island, we again boarded the ferry and headed out toward Quebec.
    We are now near Quebec City. We walked the Old Part of the city today ... what an interesting place! Tomorrow we're off to the Montreal area and will spend a few days there before heading slowly toward home.
    We have really been enjoying this trip. The scenery has been fantastic and the places we've visited so far have been interesting. Our traveling companions have been very helpful, as they have been full-timers for a number of years. As Yakoff would say, "WHAT A COUNTRY!"
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