LEAVING LAKE PLACID -- A NIGHT IN VERMONT

Monday, September 17

We took the Jeep and drove to the Whiteface Mountain Ski Area where the Olympic Alpine races took place, and then to the Olympic Sports Center where the bobsled tracks wind around down the mountain.  I wanted to get a better look at the ski-jumps, but while trying to find a way to get into the ski-jumping complex we ended up at John Brown's Farm Historic site.



These ski runs look like fun!



Bobsled tracks.  This would be fun to try.



Backside of the ski-jumps.  Don't need to try that.

John Brown was an abolitionist who helped runaway slaves get to Canada.  He ended up being hung by the Confederates after he was caught messing the the Rebels ammunition at Harper's Ferry.  His last wish was to be buried at his farm near lake Placid.  The historic farm included the house, barn, and grave site.  We then meandered through the mountains and valleys and through the charming towns and villages, while oohing and awing over the just beginning fall color changes.

Wednesday

Let me tell ya, when we are driving the RV down the road and we hear any strange noises or feel any type of vibrations, we both say "Now, What the hell is that?!?"  The RV has had a shimmy and shake and we think the wheels are out of balance since all the emergency tire changing on that first day didn't include tire balancing.  To ease our minds, and to help keep the tires from wearing out sooner rather than later, we decided to get them balanced before we left Lake Placid.

"Jerry, take a look at that valve extension ting."
(The big building in the background is the High School)

After hanging out with Jerry and the crew at the garage for a couple of hours, we finally got back on the road.  Upstate New York is a gorgeous area with the Adirondack Mountains, and many rivers with raging rapids and waterfalls, and beautiful mountain lakes.  The apple orchards near Lake Champlain stretch on for miles and the harvest is just beginning.  As we traveled parallel with the U.S./Quebec, Canada boarder, the traffic signs were in English and French.

We crossed a bridge over the north end of Lake Champlain into Vermont, and driving on winding narrow roads we made our way through this very rural area, where Moose Crossing warnings seem to be everywhere.  The maple leaves are turning a brilliant red and against the green pines on the mountains, it is going to be a beautiful sight when the peak of the color change happens in 2 or 3 weeks. The mountain valleys are dotted with dairy farms and the greenest-green pastures outside of Ireland.  We arrived at our campsite in-the-middle-of-no-where-Brownington, Vermont late afternoon.  We enjoyed a campfire, and after dark we were bedazzled by the gazillion stars in the clear sky. 

We even had a pool-side campsite!