Saturday August 21, 2010

On Wednesday morning we resumed our trip south by jumping on the Blue Ridge Parkway and spending and hour or so on a 20 mile stretch of the beautiful newly mowed road. It was nice and cool and green and we were able to see a fawn and some geese and lots of mature trees. We left the Parkway and went to the Rockbridge Winery, did some tasting and purchased some wine. We had been to this winery this past spring and wanted to go back and buy some Cabernet Franc. The 2006 year was very good!!!!!! We stopped for lunch in Troutville, VA and had some down home fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, pinto beans, cornbread and cherry cobbler.












We arrived in Kingsport, TN on Wednesday evening. Thursday was Mark's 56th birthday and we all went to the renowned Regas restaurant in Knoxville for a late lunch of a nice filet of beef and all the trimmings. On Friday we met our cousin Mary Shephard for lunch in historic Jonesboro (the oldest town in Tennessee) and talked about our family and tried to catch up on the last 40 or so years. Mary is our first cousin, the daughter of our Dad's older sister who lives near where we all grew up. We had a great time and vowed to keep in touch. Mary brought some pictures and I regaled (bored) everyone with pictures from my computer!!!










After lunch Mark agreed to drive us to the old Speedwell Cemetery where all of the old Huffine's were buried prior to 1950. I had been there with Dad once but Mark had not been aware of the location of the cemetery. Our great grandparents and their parents are buried in this quaint little cemetery halfway up a knoll overlooking the valley. We told Mary of the location and hope that she is able to go there soon. Afterward, we drove to Mountain Home, TN, the location of the Veteran's Administration near Johnson City, TN where Dad worked for almost 30 years and where he and Mom are buried in the National Cemetery. Their plot is near the large pine tree which is close to the American flag which Dad could see from his office when he worked there. We also visited the grave of Ernest Huffine, Dad's younger brother, who is also buried at the National Cemetery.

We had a nice visit with Mark and Tammy during the two days we were there. We got up early on Saturday morning and drove the 900 miles home without incident. By 8:00 PM we were safely home and done with another nearly three week trip that added another 4000 plus miles to our trusty Toyota. We had a great time and enjoyed every minute of our time with our family, friends and even by ourselves!!!!

Tuesday August 17, 2010

We dropped Logan off at jumpstart school on our way out of town this morning and headed for the tollway. We passed by Harrisburg, the capital of PA, turned south through a bit of Maryland, West Virginia and into Virginia. After a lunch at Chik-fil-a we drove into the countryside in search of one of Virginia's 162 wineries. While driving we actually drove down a three mile stretch of one lane gravel road.

We found one of the oldest wineries in the state, Shenandoah Winery and enjoyed a complete tasting of whites and reds. We bought one of their signature reds and a white for Marilyn and stayed on the country roads. We found an old covered bridge used to cross the north fork of the Shenandoah River.We continued our drive to Harrisonburg, VA down US Highway 11 and spotted many old buildings such as barns, wayside gas stations and mansions. It was great to see the mountains in the background down the Shenandoah Valley as we drove into town. We brought rain with us as the area has been very dry this summer. A quick downpour cooled the temperature down from the 90's to a comfortable 70's. We ate and called it a night. Tomorrow we drive to Tennessee and spend a couple of day's with Gary's brother Mark.

Monday August 16, 2010

Saturday was our last full day in Mass. and we all hung out at the beach and at Richard and DiDi's. The temperature was in the low 70's and almost cold at the beach. After hotdogs and hamburgers we played putt-putt with Greg and the boys and called it a day.

Sunday we pulled out of the driveway at 9:00 AM and headed south toward Philadelphia. Gwen is 1 year old today and is stuck in her car seat for most of the day. The highlight of the 400 mile ride back to Philly was driving on the Tappan Zee bridge which crosses the Hudson River upstream of New York City. At this point the river is very wide and wonderfully scenic.

We stayed over on Monday to babysit a bit and catch up on laundry. Logan, Owen and Grandpa finished up with the birdhouses that we put together last week. Logan's is now blue and Owen's green, their favorite colors. Dad will get the honors of putting them up in the back yard after some thought about where to hang them.

Friday August 13, 2010

Friday the 13th was not unlucky as we had a great day beginning at the Parker River National Wildlife Preserve at Plum Island. We went to the visitor center and watched some wildlife for a while before we headed north up the New Hampshire coastline. After going through Salsbury, MA we were suddenly on a very beautiful stretch of coastline in NH.

We went through Seabrook, Hampton, Great Boars Head, North Beach, Plaice Cove, Little Boars Head, Rye Beach, Wallis Sands and Portsmouth. We saw rugged shoreline as one would expect on the New England coast as well as beaches lined with people and umbrellas. There were wonderful old and new homes overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. We stopped for a great lunch at a great local landmark called Ray's in the village of Rye. We had great clam chowder as well as excellent clam strips.

We got to Portsmouth and immediately wished we had more time to spend there as the scenery was breathtaking. Our view of the Navy Yard was neat and the old town was picturesque as we slowly picked our way through. We had taken US Highway 1A up along the coast and now were were taking US Highway 1 back down through the villages and boroughs. We stopped at a butcher shop called the Meat House. Their offerings were great and we bought some steak, wine and bread to cook for the group back in Amesbury. We stopped earlier in the day at a colonial buring ground that was started in 1639. We saw gravestones of soldiers that served with George Washington in the Revolutionay War. These old burying grounds are everywhere and very interesting to see. History is around every corner and not enough time to see it all!!!

Thursday August 12, 2010

Today we took the train through the countryside and such stops as Ipswich, Rowley, Beverly, and several others to the North Station in Boston. After an hour on the train, we hopped off and jumped on the subway and two stops later we found ourselves in downtown Boston. We walked around a bit to familiarize ourselves and quickly found a true Boston Irish Pub and had lunch.

After a great lunch of fish and chips and hamburgers, we walked to the New England Aquarium and spent time watching the penguin exhibit and all of the other well done exhibits of saltwater and freshwater fish as well as great exhibits of other sea life including sea dragons, sea anemones, starfish, jellyfish and sea urchins.

After the aquarium visit we boarded the City View Trolley for a hourlong tour of the historic area of downtown Boston. Although time did not allow us to stop and get off the trolley and walk around, we got a great flavor of the city from the tour guide and saw lots of historical spots in a very short time. From the Boston Gardens to other attractions such as the State House, Boston Commons, USS Constitution, Kings Chapel and Burying Grounds, Halocaust Memorial, the Boston skyline and many, many more beautiful sights. The tour was fun and the great weather of 75 degrees, partly sunny and nice breeze was a very nice touch.

After the trolley tour we reversed our earlier directions and used the subway to go back to the train station and caught the 5:10 PM back to Newburyport and a great dinner at the Aguave' Mexican restaurant just across the street from the Essex Inn where we are staying while in New England.

Wednesday August 11, 2010

Monday we ate Maine Lobster for lunch and then some of the group hung out at the beach while Gary cooked ribs for the gang. Richard took the RV to the beach so Greg and the boys could sleep close to the water. The weather was still hot and muggy so we stayted close to the AC most of the day.

Tuesday was still pretty warm but we headed north through New Hampshire and into Freeport, ME to LL Bean. Kelly and Greg found back to school bookpacks, lunch boxes, etc. for the boys and we found a little Italian sandwich place for lunch. Afterward we drove down US Highway 1 near the ocean and viewed many beautiful homes and scenic countryside. We headed back and had a great dinner at a place called Flatbread's in downtown Amesbury, MA. Very thin pizza with little sauce but out of this world!!!
Today we were very busy with a one-hour tour of the Merrimac River and the the beautiful marshland surrounding it. The tour guide was a biology teacher and covered many facts about the history and biology of the river and surrounding area. We saw lots of birds including a mature bald eagle. After lunch in downtown Newburyport, we headed to the beach. Today's temperature was in the mid 70's and many, many people were out at the beach enjoying the mild temperature. The boys played in the cold water and the sand and Gwen enjoyed both as well. After beach time we changed and headed to dinner at Michael's, a very nice seafood restaurant on the bank of the Merrimac on the Newburyport side near the drawbridge. The food was great and the service was terrific! Richard's daughter Allison (also a professional photographer) took great care of us and even took a few photos for us.

Marilyn and I headed for the ice cream shop and then to the room. Tomorrow we are planning on taking the train to Boston. Should be a big day!!

Sunday August 8, 2010

On Thursday morning we left New Stanton reasonably early and headed toward Greg and Kelly's. We stayed on the toll road and left it in Morgantown for the last leg of the trip and then found a great deli in Elverson for lunch and had a great Philly Steak Sandwich. We soon arrived at the kids house and were sure surprised at how much Gwen had grown and at how well she was walking. She will be a year old this coming week. We spent time with the grandkids the remainder of Thursday and all day Friday.













On Saturday we all (including Kelly's mother Pat) loaded up in two vehicles and headed for northeastern Mass. The trip is just short of 400 miles but took most of the day as the traffic getting around NYC and Boston slowed things down. The trip was great and we arrived at Kelly's aunt DeeDee and uncle Richard's in Amesbury, MA. We were treated to a great dinner of lobster salad, fried clam strips and clam chowder. Greg and the boys stayed in Richard's huge RV while the girls stayed with DeeDee. Marilyn and I headed to the next little town of Newburyport, MA and checked into the Essex Inn, a quaint little inn near the downtown and close to the waterfront where the Merrimac River flows into the Atlantic.

On Sunday Richard took all of us boys to Kingston, NH for a great car show. There were 320 entries of everything from muscle cars, to Model A's, to old pick-ups to street rods and everything in between. The big treat for Gary was riding over with Richard in his 1964 Malibu that he just restored after owning for 42 years.

After the car show Marilyn and I ate in a little diner in downtown Newburyport and then did some sightseeing around town before heading back for a great salmon dinner that Greg cooked for everyone. The boys got to spend some time on the beach where we hope to get to soon.

Wednesday August 4, 2010

We got on the toll road this morning by 9:00 AM and headed eastward under hazy skies and warm temperatures. Our goal was to get to downtown Cleveland, Ohio and go to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. After getting by Toledo we found a scenic route along the south shore of Lake Erie on US Highway 6. We passed mansion after mansion that backed up against Lake Erie. Many had been there some time but there were many new ones also. We saw several for sale but think they might just be a bit out of our league.

We found a park along Highway 6 that led us through several villages and by marinas and other sights. The area was guarded by very personable policemen, one being on horseback that was kind enough to let me photograph him. From there we took some nice shots of the lake, beach and wildlife.

We moved on to downtown Cleveland and found the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame right next to the Cleveland Browns football stadium near the Coast Guard marina and across from the beautiful Cleveland skyline. The Hall of Fame was very busy but packed with memorabilia of almost everyone you could imagine that was involved with rock and roll and some you might not have thought of. There were many guitars on display and lots of clothing worn by rock stars. Elvis's Lincoln was on display as was many other of his possessions. It was a delightful time and we could have stayed longer and waited for some of the shows.

We left Cleveland and went south east toward Pittsburgh which we skirted and stopped at our motel in New Stanton, PA. We found a nice steakhouse, had some great cheeseburger chowder and called it a night. Our plan tomorrow is to arrive and Greg and Kelly's house by mid-afternoon.

Tuesday August 3, 2010

We are taking three days to travel to Greg's so made our first stop in South Bend, IN and toured the Notre Dame campus in the afternoon. After a fairly easy day; we got thru the south side of Chicago pretty well, we stopped at a new Fairfield Inn just across the street from Notre Dame University. We spent some time in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart and marveled at the beautiful art work on the ceilings and the indescribable stained glass. The football stadium was awesome with statutes of Knute Rockne, Ara Parsigian, and Lou Holtz anchoring it in place.

The mural with the reflecting pool across from the stadium was a very inviting place to sit and reflect upon the beauty of the campus and the importance of education. With the university being almost 170 years old, many of the trees were very large and scenic. We had a nice walk around campus and could sense the history and academic and sports achievements around us.

After the tour we went downtown to a very nice Italian restaurant and ate some great pasta. Having some daylight remaining, we drove through the Saint Mary's College campus and saw the convent where the future nuns live, learn, and work. It was 8:00 PM with lots of daylight left, but no one was outside, it was very quiet and peaceful.

Tomorrow we are driving through Cleveland and Pittsburgh with some planned stops along the way. You can check back to see where we stop tomorrow!!!!