Fall in Glen Echo, VA

These photos were taken at my sister's house on the Browntown Road in an area known as Glen Echo.

The flame bush came from Mt. Vernon where her father-in-law worked;



this view of Shenandoah National Park and the Skyline Drive is from the pasture at the top of their property,


This huge tree is in their front yard.

These photos don't do justice to what we were seeing every day for over a week driving into town and back. One drive we didn't get to go on this year was through the George Washington National Forest from Waterlick on US 55 south to Luray through the Fort Valley area. In many areas along this road, the road forms a tunnel through the trees then comes out into a valley with the mountains as a backdrop on both sides.

Nearly Rained Out in Gatlinburg

The weather may have been wet, but we had a good time with Patricia, Bob, BJ, and David at the Westgate Great Smoky Mountain resort last week. The rooms were wonderful with fireplaces, hot tubs, balconies, kitchens(ugh!), and a fantastic view of the national park. We mostly spent the week being couch potatoes in front of the fireplace watching the big screen tvs or sitting on a balcony looking at the mountains.


We took a tour with a company owned by former NASCAR photographers, Rich (40 years) and his wife, Jane, (8 years) which was part history of the area and Dolly Parton's school, house, and church, as well as a scenic drive where they helped us with camera settings to get great photos.
The resort offers several shows during the week which we enjoyed. The craft make-and-takes were scheduled for an outside picnic area and got rained out except for the card making which Patricia and I did.


When we planned this trip, we had decided we would go the the morning aerobics in the indoor heated swimming pool except Patricia didn't find her suit until Wednesday evening. We all three did get a massage in the spa which was a wonderful experience.
We returned to David's and BJ's in Clinton, SC, to get our RV on Sunday. Monday we left to head up to Front Royal and Luray to visit family for a couple weeks before returning home.

The Last Couple of Days in Niagara

After driving to the Fallsview Parking lot south of everything in Niagara, we parked the RV, got out and walked about a block to the bus stop where a PeopleMover bus was parked and waited and waited (about 20 minutes) for the driver to come back. We then found out the bus was not coming to this parking lot for regular runs until June 1! We drove back north and found a pay-to-park lot behind the Skylon Tower where we could pay to park for 24 hours (they charged us for two slots). This lot was not very large but placed us near the Table Rock Visitors' Center and Journey Behind the Falls as well as numerous restaurants.
After hiking down the hill which was about a 12 degree slope, we walked along the viewing area and got really great views of the falls in both countries. Unfortunately, about this time I realized I had left the camera in the RV. Not wanting to climb that mountain twice in one day, I looked for postcards about the Journey Behind the Falls but couldn't find any.
The Journey was truly behind the falls. We went down to the lower level, going straight ahead to a balcony that looked down on a patio reached by stairs,then we walked down a long tunnel which had two other tunnels off to the left that brought us within three to six feet of the water. The roar was very loud, the water looked like it was swirling up, and the tunnels are crumbling so we couldn't get as close as others had done in years past.

The next day I rode up in the 'yellow bug' elevator to the top of the Skylon Tower to see the whole area for about 80 miles in all directions.
We left the next morning to again drive down the Niagara Parkway. The odd thing about this very pleasant drive is that on the east side are numerous little wayside picnic/parking areas with great views of the river while on the west side are numbered service roads with five or six houses ranging from modest to mansion set back from the roads and open lawns between the service roads and the parkway. We left Canada by way of the Peace Bridge. Re-entering the US this time did not involve an onboard Ag inspection by a customs/ag agent. I guess that's only in Washington state.

The Niagara Parkway in Canada

After crossing over into Canada this morning by way of the Queenston Bridge (under construction and a big MESS), we turned south along the Niagara Parkway. Our first stop was to closely examine the huge Floral Clock. The bedding plants are changed twice a year and is different every time. It also chimes on the quarter hour.

Further down the road was the Whirlpool Aero car over the reversing whirlpool in the Niagara River that we had seen previously from the American side. This was an adventure I really wanted to try despite the vertigo caused by an inter ear problem. When we asked about the trip across to the other side in the aero car, we were told only 30 people at a time are allowed in the car and that the trip is about 20 minutes with everyone standing the whole time; those in the center section stay in that part for the trip back, the people on the right trade with the people on the left so every one has a good view of the whirlpool. For me it was a white-knuckle ride but very enjoyable. The guide told us how the whirlpool was kept clean because of the diversion of the falls upstream at night allowed the dead debris to travel away from the whirlpool and further downstream. He also explained when we reached the opposite side that the silver car we saw in the tunnel was an escape car in case the cable(s) broke or we had an other emergency.


We drove almost to the southern end of the Parkway (about 50 miles) just to get oriented and to see where we could park.

Four-Mile State Park

This is a truly relaxing park to be in for any length of time. All the sites are grassy and level. I read the sign that stated on a clear day you can see the Toronto Skyline and with all the buildings identified. All I could see was grey sky and water for miles and miles!

Some More Exploring of the Park

After another night at Four-Mile State Park, we returned to the Niagara Falls area and took another turn around the entire Park on the Scenic Trolley. This time we got off at Three Sisters Islands to explore. These are really three very large rock piles with some vegetation and some very large trees. They were named for the daughters of a friend of the owner.
We returned to the Scenic Trolley and got off at Prospect Point where we could get a close up look at the American Falls from the north side.

Niagara Gorge

The second day of this trip we stopped on our way to the Falls at the Whirlpool Scenic overlook. This is a great place to get a close up view of where the Niagara River takes a sharp right on its way north to Lake Onterio. We also got our first look at the Whirlpool Aero Car ride on the Canadian side.

As we were walking along the path high above the river, a medium size diamond patterned snake slithered across our path. We ate lunch and then continued on south to the Niagara Gorge Discovery Center parking lot where we caught the Scenic Trolley and took another look around the park. Along the way the driver informed us that it has been estimated that the Falls will disappear in about four hundred years at the current rate of deteriation. Early in the 1900's, someone figured out how to divert the falls for the power plants thereby greatly slowing down the tearing down of the falls.
We returned to the Scenic Trolley and got off at the Visitors' Center. From here we could walk to the Observation Tower and the Maid of the Mist trip to get a really close up view of the Horseshoe Falls, too.
After a good view from the Tower, we boarded the elevator for the trip down to the base to get on the Maid of the Mist. As our boat cruised to the base of the American Falls, then to the basin of the huge Horseshoe Falls, we could feel the rough water and stronger winds created by the falling water thundering down to crash onto the rocks. In order to get out of the pull of this action, the captain had to power up and swing rapidly away from it. It was extremely loud as we got closer and closer. We also got wetter and wetter - it felt like we were in a tropical storm!
We couldn’t hear each other talk, nor could anyone with glasses on see anything even under the canopy which protected us from most of the hard spray.

We could really see the destruction of the Falls from the boat.

Niagara Falls - Getting There

After leaving Virginia following US 522, we traveled northwest through Pennsylvania on I-70 and picked up US 219 going north until arriving in Salamanca, just over the state line in New York, getting a campsite in Allegany State Park.
US 219 through Pennsylvania is worse than the Alaska Highway! It’s full of potholes and lumpy concrete made worse by the fact that every mile or so is a village of several house and one or two commercial buildings. Oddly, each sign said below the village name: Building and Sewer Permits Required. (How come???) Then expecting much better road conditions, we happily got on I-86 while still following US 219 in New York, and were bitterly disappointed to discover it was no better!
Arriving in Buffalo and following the Niagara Section New York State Thruway across Grand Island, a toll road, we missed the connection to the Robert Moses Parkway which borders the Niagara River and all points of the Niagara Falls State Park complex. After finding it, we paid the parking fee (we were charged for two spaces!) and walked over to Terrapin Point past the closed Top of the Fall Restaurant which we found out later wouldn’t be open for the season until Thursday. The Point offers fantastic views of the Canadian Horseshoe Falls.

We then boarded the Park’s scenic trolley for a trip around the whole park and getting off near the Cave of the Winds entrance. We were given ponchos and sandals again (we should have saved the first set and reused them!).
The sandals are given to the poor though Angel Shoes. After going down in the elevator with eight of our newest and dearest friends - everybody had taken showers that morning - and traversing a tunnel, we stepped out onto the pathway to the windiest, wettest stairs leading to the Bridal Veil Falls. The experience was wonderful We felt like were being blown off the stairs and landings the closer we got to the top of the falls. Our lower legs and feet were soaked.

Afterwards we traveled north to the Four Mile State Park for the night. This was a park with great views of Lake Ontario, good breezes, and nice level, grassy, large spaces for RVs and tents. The next morning as we were leaving, we discovered that our campsite fee entitled us to free parking for the day at the Falls!

This park is the summer home for hundreds (maybe thousands) of Canadian geese as they are raising their young here before getting them ready to fly south in the fall. We had to watch where we put our feet!

Headed for Niagara Falls

The first night on the road was spent at Colleton State Park in South Carolina. This is a really nice park and easy to get to off I-95. The next morning because we awoke really early (4 a.m.!!!), we decided to go ahead and leave. We were told that if we needed to leave before the gate was unlocked that the combination was ####, to pull down sharpley on the lock and it would pop open. After 20-some very frustrating minutes of both of us trying to work the combination (upsidedown) and in the dark with a flashlight and magnifying glass, Frank went over to the Ranger's Residence and woke him up only to find out that after working the combination you were to squeese the top and bottom together. Worked like a charm!!!
The second night was spent at Claytor Lake State Park in Virginia off I-81, exit 101. Again, a very, very nice park with many level RV sites with water and electric. The next afternoon we arrived in Front Royal to spend several days with my sister,Janice. The following day we went down to Grottoes so I could meet her newest grandson, Alex. We then went to Mt. Crawford to the Green Valley Book Fair where I bought very little compared to previous visits as most of it seemed to be the same-old, same-old. After that we went to the Dayton Farmers' Market to get our supply of miniture marshmallows. Of course, we went to Michael's craft store to buy some supplies for our crafts. It's frustrating when we have great coupons but everything we want is already on sale!
On Friday Janice and I ran over to Winchester to Michael's and JoAnn's to hopefully use up our coupons. Again, everything we wanted was already on sale, so I gave my coupon which was expiring on Saturday to the woman in line behind me.
When we returned to Front Royal, we stopped by McDonald's to pick up a lunch for the birthday girl, Emma, to have lunch with her at school. Upon arriving at the school, we found out we were an hour too early. As her mother is a teacher at the school, she went to her classroom and got her released to have lunch with us outside at one of the picnic tables.
Frank and I left for Luray to spend a couple days with his sister,Kay before leaving for Niagara Falls on Monday.