Author: Bill

Bill Rumpel served America as an Air Traffic Controller, a Commander of forces, and as an advisor to our country's senior leadership in peacetime and combat in the US Air Force for nearly, forty years of his adult life. Raised on a Wisconsin dairy farm and living most of his early years working hard or enjoying the outdoors, he has devoted his retirement years to telling stories based on true events with an intriguing mix of fiction and adventure. His books are published in 14 countries and in 9 different languages.

SERENGETI

As I mentioned in the intro, we crossed into Tanzania to get to the Serengeti and changed guides. Our guide in the Serengeti went by the name Wazeri and was equally as interesting as our first guide. He even had WiFi available in his truck as well as cold water, snacks, and fly swatters (Tsi Tsi Flies). So, here we are in the Serengeti. Quite different as there far fewer animals and the park rangers had been burning off thousands of acres of grass so the new grass could grow better. Here we go (Hope you are not getting bored with pictures of animals yet!) Of interest along the way …. When we first arrived in Tanzania we drove along a big lake and past several villages … then we got to the Serengeti Park. As we were leaving The Serengeti going to the Ngorongoro Crater we past two interesting points. One was a Hill where they had some information about the Serengeti and the other was a Museum where, in the 70’s, Archeologists discovered some very early human tracks. All interesting and all described.

The Serengeti was beautiful but the lack of game due to the migration, the burning, and flies was distracting. The place we stayed was very nice and we enjoyed it immensely. We left happy knowing we had seem both where the migration was and was not. Interesting aspects of this vast region.

VICTORIA FALLS

WIKIPEDIA: While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, Victoria Falls is classified as the largest, based on its combined width of 1,708 metres (5,604 ft) and height of 108 metres (354 ft), resulting in the world’s largest sheet of falling water. Victoria Falls is roughly twice the height of North America’s Niagara Falls and well over twice the width of its Horseshoe Falls. In height and width Victoria Falls is rivalled only by Argentina and Brazil’s Iguazu Falls.

This was the next stop and our first “Non-Safari” part of the trip since we left Nairobi. We flew into Zambia and were driven to The Royal Livingstone Hotel which sits right on the edge of the Zambezi River and the top of Victoria Falls. We got there during a relatively dry part of the season so the Falls were not at the fullest. This was good because when they are you can barely see the falls for all the spray and mist it produces and you need to wear rain gear to go anywhere near it. As it was there was all the water, mist, thunder, and majesty you needed to see just how big Victoria Falls is. One of the evenings we were there we were treated to a ride on the Zambezi on the AFRICAN QUEEN, a local replica of a Paddle boat. It was a pleasant evening with abundant wildlife along the shores and a mild breeze to compliment the sunset. We had met two people earlier on our tour, J.D. and Julie, both from Santa Fe, so we shared the evening with them. They were doing essentially the same tour we were with Kensington so we had the pleasure of meeting up with them frequently at different stops … both very nice people to spend time with. Wildlife roamed freely around the hotel so it was not unusual to bump into a Zebra or an Ostrich while walking to your room. One of the features of the hotel was that during the low flow season you could walk out to nearly the center of the Falls, at the top, where you could swim in the ultimate infinity pool right on the edge of the drop (see Pictures). We found the Zambia side of the Falls to be difficult to tour so we told our guide we wanted to see the other side in Zimbabwe. He was hesitant as this would require a border crossing and he would have relinquish his job to a guide from Zimbabwe. We persevered and did the border crossing and picked up a new guide. The Zimbabwe side is definitely more impressive.

Pretty spectacular!! Timing is quite important visiting these places so make sure you know what you want to see and go there at the right time to see it. A long way to travel to be disappointed. From the falls we proceeded farther into Zambia along the river and ended up in a wonderful lodge near the Chobe National Reserve.

THE CHOBE

Coming down the Zambezi we ended up in a lodge on the edge of the Chobe National Park, close to the Namibian Border. That skinny sliver above the Chobe is part of Namibia, it is separated by the the jagged line which is the Zambezi River.

The Lodge is owned by an older English Couple and managed by a Gentleman and his wife who have lived in Africa for much of their life. The owner was there and this lodge had a tradition that everyone had their meals in one great room in one sitting. It certainly promoted fellowship and we met a number of interesting people. There were two couples there from the Midwest (Ohio or Indiana) and a couple or two from Europe. This was the only place where we did not have a private tour. To reduce the number of vehicles driving around the Chobe does not permit small groups . Consequently, there were 8 to 10 of us in the vehicle most of the time. The seats were tiered so everyone always had a good view. We enjoyed our group … they were all about our age and were easy to get along with. By This time we were getting a little animaled out so the tour had to be especially interesting to keep our attention. It was! We Flew to a city not to far from our lodge, drove a ways, then took a boat, then a short drive and we were there. Let’s check out the Chobe:

We finished up in The Chobe, said “good bye” to all our new friends and departed for our trip to South Africa and Cape Town. We did every kind of transport but trains on this trip and Kensington set it all up. We were always met, escorted, expedited, and had very nice transportation and accommodations. Everyone we met that was affiliated with Kensington was professional, polite, and extremely competent. No hassles, no arguments, just delivery. It made the trip so much more stress free and enjoyable.

NGORONGORO CRATER

From the Serengeti, while still in Tanzania, we drove down to the Ngorongoro Crater.

FROM THE WEBSITE OF “On The Go Tours”:

Standing proudly in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area of Tanzania is the Ngorongoro Crater. This highly visited African attraction is the world’s largest inactive, unbroken and unfilled volcanic caldera. What else is there to know about this natural wonder?

1. The Ngorongoro Crater was formed when a large volcano erupted and collapsed on itself. This explosion created a caldera approximately two and a half million years ago.

2. When it was a volcano it’s thought to have been a similar size to Mount Kilimanjaro, one of the world’s highest mountains. Estimates of the volcano’s original height vary between 4,500 to 5,800 metres. The crater itself is about 610 metres deep and 260 kilometres squared.

3. Approximately 40,000 people live in the conservation area. They share the land with an incredible amount of wildlife. There are around 30,000 animals ranging from leopard, cheetah, elephant and hyena to warthog, buffalo and impala. It’s also one of the best places to see the endangered black rhino and black-maned male lions.

4. You won’t find any giraffes in the crater. It’s thought they can’t enter as the sides are too steep for them to walk down. However you’ll still be able to find them around the crater.

5. The Ngorongoro Crater along with two others in the region (Olmoti and Empakai) were enlisted as an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. It’s also one of the Sevens Natural Wonders of Africa.

6. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is one of the most important prehistoric sites in the world. The fossils discovered there are said to be the earliest known evidence of the human species.

7. Tourism is essential for economic growth however visitor numbers are being monitored to avoid damaging the environment. Around 450,000 people travel to the Ngorongoro a year and all are required to obtain a permit to enter the crater and gorge.

8. The region has welcomed numerous famous people including Prince William, Bill Clinton, the Queen of Denmark, and Bill and Nancy Rumpel. Visitors to Ngorongoro account for approximately 60% of the 770,000 who travel to Tanzania each year.

9. The Oscar-winning movie Out of Africa was filmed partly in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. One of the scenes you can spot the crater is when Denys takes off from the Olkurruk airstrip and flies over the Masai Mara and Ngorongoro.

10. The Ngorongoro Crater is also referred to as ‘the Garden of Eden’ due to its dazzling beauty and being a paradise for animals.

Wasn’t that interesting?? We found the crater to be fascinating. We arrived late in the day and spent the night in a lodge provided by a Coffee Plantation. Wazeri, our guide, was telling us during the day about how poorly guides are treated at these lodges so we invited him to join us for dinner. He said he seldom dines with his customers but would accept our invitation because he was especially impressed with the place we were staying. So after checking in and unpacking a bit (we were staying for two night) we wandered out to take a look at the place and see if there were any watering holes around for thirsty tourists. We found a nice terrace and enjoyed a cool beer before dinner while watching the sun set. At dinner, with Wazeri, we found we were the only guests at the lodge and we invited the entire staff to join us for a glass of wine after dinner. Several bottles were soon emptied during stories of past guests, visiting animals, questions about America, questions about our families and you name it. It was a wonderful evening that we will not soon forget.

The next day Wazeri scooped us up and off we went to visit the Ngorongoro Crater. We spent all day wandering up and down the hills, saw so many interesting aspects of all the different animals that live there. They don’t leave and migrate as others do … this seems to be THE place for them. So here we go again with a bunch of animal pictures:

Truly a Paradise. So this ended our wild Game Safari for now. Nancy and I and two other people, J.R. and Julie who you will meet in Zambia, were the only passengers on the plane. It was small but made it over Kilimanjaro. We said a sad “Good Bye” to Wazeri whom we had spent many days with driving all over Tanzania with. On to Zambia and Victoria Falls.

MAISAI MARA

The next day we were picked up by our Safari Guide in Nairobi, we left town and drove out to the Maisai Mara. As I mentioned earlier, the Maisai Mara is a huge grassland that is home to millions of animals. Many of them come and go with the rains as they drift between the Maisai Mara in Kenya and the Serengeti in Tanzania. They follow the rains because the rains make the grass grow and they have food to eat. Not all of them eat grass; the Gnus or Wildebeasts, the Zebras, the elephants, and the Cape Buffalo all eat the grass but the Lions, Leopards, Cheetahs eat the afore mentioned grass eaters … everyone moves in what is called the Great Migration. Here is a map showing the movement.

We were fortunate as the migration was just arriving in the North. It is amazing to see them all moving … millions of Wildebeasts and Zebras moving in lines, groups, and herds. I felt like I was seeing what the great Bison herds in America’s West must of looked like before we killed them all. Anyhow, our guide drove most of the day to get us to our first camp. Interesting drive with the city, road, and landscape going from modern, to rugged, to natural. Here’s the trip:

Along the way we crossed a ridge and there was this huge valley that stretched out in front of us. Our guide said it was the Great Rift which extends from Africa all the way up into Turkey.

FROM WIKIPEDIA: The Great Rift Valley is a series of contiguous geographic trenches, approximately 6,000 kilometres (3,700 mi) in total length, that runs from the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in southeastern Africa.^[1] While the name continues in some usages, it is rarely used in geology as it is considered an imprecise merging of separate though related rift and fault systems. Today, the term is most often used to refer to the valley of the East African Rift, the divergent plate boundary which extends from the Afar Triple Junction southward across eastern Africa, and is in the process of splitting the African Plate into two new separate plates. Geologists generally refer to these incipient plates as the Nubian Plate and the Somali Plate.

Here’s what it looks like:

The road got worse, we started seeing “African Animals” and we finally arrived at our camp. A cabin that was part wall and part tent surrounded by roaming wild game, and, because it was located on top of a small mountain, hosted tremendous views.

We stayed there several days and made trips out into the Maisai Mara looking for game and whatever. Our Guide was excellent and taught us a great deal. His goal was to show us “The Big Five” (Lions, Leopards, Elephants, Rhinoceros, and Cape Buffalo). These five are what all the big game hunters want … we just took pictures and by the second day we had seen all five, plus millions more. In the camp you were not allowed to walk alone at night. Wild animals roamed freely and you could easily bump into an elephant or a Lion. If you needed to go to another location you called the main office and they sent a Maisai Warrior to escort you. The Masai are the last of the original Warrior tribes in this region and are famous for their bravery.

A Couple comments about the Migration, The Crossings, the Croc’s and the trip. I described the migration earlier. It is frequently featured on TV explorer shows. The crossings are interesting as the animals (Wildebeasts and Zebras) will cross a river and go right back across a couple ours later. They know the Crocs are there cuz you can see them watching for them. It’s kind of like a “Double Dog Dare Ya’ game … and the losers really lose bad. The croc’s are huge, getting up to between 15 and 20 feet long. They grab one of the animals and drag them under and hold them there till they drown. Then they pile them up out of the current to be consumed later. They just keep grabbing one animal at a time and going back for more. The trip was vastly interesting. As the migration was in Kenya we saw the most animals there. As I mentioned, our guide was wonderful and had all kinds of stories and experiences he shared with us. We booked this tour as a tour for two. Just Nancy and I and the guide … no pesky questions by people who weren’t listening, no wait for a rude group member who can’t tell time, no chatter. It was great and the only way to go.

NAIROBI

Our flight to Africa landed in Nairobi, Capitol of Kenya, where we stayed at the Crown Plaza in an upscale part of town. We were picked up by a Kensington Driver, taken to our hotel, checked in, were briefed about our next 12 hours and started towards our room. It was late, we were tired, but there was this bar along the way so we decided to try the local brew. The bar was closing but the friendly bar agreed we could have a beer, so we enjoyed our first beer in Africa. The next morning we got up, had breakfast and were met by a Kensington Planner who briefed us on our upcoming activities for the day, which included the Elephant Orphanage and the Giraffe Shelter, and the next day when we would be picked, up by our Safari Guide and taken to the Maisai Mara.

Soon we were off to see the Elephant Orphanage. This orphanage takes in baby elephants who lost their Mother one way or another (Hunters, accidents, predators) or, quite often, fell into holes or wells and were not able to get out or be pulled out by their mother. They are brought to the orphanage and taken care of until they are about two years old. Then they are taken to an elephant Reserve where they have the opportunity to join an elephant family. They are cute little buggers and the people who care for them are very conscientious. The Elephant Orphanage:

We were so impressed with the work the people did there we adopted one of the elephants for our two Granddaughters. When you adopt you get a picture of your orphan, its history, and monthly updates regarding its life in the orphanage and eventually its transition to the wild. One of the best benefits to adopting was that you got to come back in the evening for bedtime activities … so we did. We returned later in the day for bedtime.

So, between the morning feeding and the evening bedtime with the elephants we went to visit the Giraffes. This is more of a shelter and zoo than an orphanage and most of the animals had been there for some time.

And … no trip would be worth while if there was not some SHOPPING included!

We ended our day at an interesting restaurant named “The Carnivore”. You have a seat, they bring your sides, then every couple minutes a guy comes by with a large chunk of some kind of meat and slices off some for you if you want. Every kind, inside and outside, you can imagine. You can say yes, more, or no thank you and they just keep coming by until you raise a little flag at your table, they know you are finished, and you get desert. Quite interesting and quite good … but not pictures.

Interesting City and many interesting things to see. As with so many of the developing countries you have such a diverse contrast between the modern and the natural or original. Progress is slow and in many places painful. We saw people carrying water to their homes from miles away. Our Guide said the schools that were most successful were the boarding schools because people would not send their children each day and the trek would be too far … so boarding there had the students present every day and undistracted.

SOUTH AFRICA & CAPE TOWN

We flew from Zambia to Cape Town Via Johannesburg. We were picked up and taken to where we were staying for our duration in Cape Town. It was a Bed & Breakfast kind of place in a residential setting. We thought we would have preferred to stay down town in a big hotel but the B&B turned out to be very pleasant, quiet, and handy so it worked out fine. Our Guide was a Gentleman who grew up in South Africa. His parents lived in one of the Settlement Districts that you will see later. He has married and moved into more modern settings. Well versed, pleasant, good sense of humor, and always willing to make our experience perfect. We had been scheduled for some kind of tour in town followed by visiting a local family to see how they live. I do not like doing that so we changed to doing a day of touring several of the prominent Wineries in the area instead. South Africa boasts some of the best wine in the world and visiting the wineries would be much better than an afternoon in someone’s home. Plus it would enable us to see some of the inland country. Our Guide made it happen and it was perfect. So we had one day visiting the Southern Tip of South Africa and The Cape of Good Hope, a day visiting wineries, and a day touring Cape Town.

Cape Town is, of course, steeped in history from the early Dutch settlers to the end of Apartheid. South Africa is divided many ways and Cape Town is one of the Divisions with the old ways holding. Politics are pulling the old city every which way and only time will tell how it ends up. I’m just glad we got to see it when we did.

AFRICA – AUGUST 2015

This was a trip of a lifetime. Nancy and I had talked of going to Africa on a Safari like trip for years … now we went. As I discussed earlier, we are not into big tours or big cities so we wanted to do this, more or less on our own, but with help. We booked our trip through Kensington Tours (you can find them on the internet) with the help of a couple of their travel experts.

Rather than load all the pictures and narrative into one post I am going to split this trip up into several portions. I think that will allow them to load easier and faster and be easier to read. There will be pictures and more narrative in each of the subsections. It is difficult to comprehend how big Africa really is so I present this map, in which everything is to the same scale, as an aid to help understand.

Africa on Scale … Big as The U.S., China, India, and Most of Europe all Put Together!!

Our trip took us from our home in Florida to Nairobi, Kenya via France. From Nairobi we traveled by a Safari Vehicle out into the Maisai Mara which can best be described as a huge grassland area somewhat like our Great Plains in the Western U.S.

From the Maisai Mara in Kenya we crossed into Tanzania which hosts the Serengeti (which more people are familiar with). After saying Good-Bye to our Guide from Kenya, we processed through the border and entered Tanzania we met our Serengeti Guide. Each country licenses its own guides and to keep their people employed, they do not allow guides from other countries to work in theirs. Consequently, even with the same company, we switched guides. This was not bad thing and both guides were excellent. They did offer different ideas, opinions, beliefs, and stories so we enjoyed them all.

From Tanzania we flew, over Mount Kilimanjaro, to Zimbabwe where checked into the Royal Livingstone Hotel by Victoria Falls. We spent two days in Zimbabwe and Zambia touring the Zambezi River and Victoria Falls and traveled down river to Botswana and spent several days touring the Chobe National Reserve. While there we also crossed briefly into Namibia.

The Maisai Mara, The Serengeti, and The Chobe all were incredibly populated with animals. No cages, no bars, no barriers, they were just there, right in front of you … living, hunting, playing, killing, sleeping … it was incredible. From Botswana we flew to Cape Town, South Africa to end our Safari trip to Africa. We spent several days in Cape town and then flew out to Johannesburg and connected to a direct flight to Atlanta and home.

So now you have the outline of our trip. Please select Nairobi, The Maisai Mara, The Serengeti, Victoria Falls, Chobe National Reserve, and Cape Town posts to get the details and see the pictures. Thanks.

Cappadocia Turkey – May 2009

Note from Wikipedia: Cappadocia, a semi-arid region in central Turkey, is known for its distinctive “fairy chimneys,” tall, cone-shaped rock formations clustered in Monks Valley, Göreme and elsewhere. The “chimneys” are a result of a geologic process that began millions of years ago, when volcanic eruptions rained ash across what would eventually become Turkey. Other notables sites include Bronze Age homes carved into valley walls by troglodytes (cave dwellers) and later used as refuges by early Christians.

This is a trip we took while we were still living in Germany. Nancy wanted to see Cappadocia … I, not so much. However, being as persistent as she is, Nancy soon convinced me to go. We booked a flight on Turkish Air from Frankfurt to Ankara with a change of flights in Istanbul. I will tell you right now, it turned out to one of our favorite trips and yes, I too enjoyed it.

When we got to Ankara we rented a car and drove South to Cappadocia. We arrived late in the day so it was dark when we got to our destination, Gorme, a little town in Cappadocia. Our “Hotel” was a collection of rooms the had been hewn out of rock so we were staying inside of a big boulder. Here are some pictures of the trip down and our room.

When we checked in, our host told us he had a few openings for tomorrow’s Hot Air Balloon Excursion so we signed up for it. They picked us up at O’Dark:30 the next morning and our adventure started. Here are some pictures of our Hot Air Balloon ride (first ever for either of us … anywhere!)

The Balloon flight lasted for about two hours and was absolutely incredible. From watching and listening to the hot air engines filling the balloons in the early dawn light to landing right onto a truck bed for the basket, everything was thrilling. Everyone was busy when we first arrived for the flight but they provided tea, coffee, and biscuits while we watched them prepare everything We chose to be in a smaller basket … about 6 people so we would not be crowded. Some baskets held up to 20 people. The pilot was very talented as he took us up. He not only had to make sure we were going where we were supposed to go but make sure we didn’t bump into any other balloons … and there were many of them! He took us way up above all the other balloons so you could see them all below. Then we went down, actually into canyons where you could look up to the rim. Over villages, cities, fields, cemeteries, roads … you name it. And of course, over the Fairy Chimneys. (More on them later). Anyhow, it was a fantastic flight and when we were all safely on the ground, our captain brought out a wooden chest containing champagne glasses and a bottle of champagne … so we all tasted the Captain and our memorable flight.

Now for the Fairy Chimneys. As explained earlier, they were formed by geological action over millions years. Some are very tall, other quite small … some big around, some skinny … all very interesting. They reminded us of the Pinnacles in Australia (See our Trip through the Kimberleys) but they are formed in a different manner. We had lunch and then drove out to where the thickest part of the Chimneys were. We parked and walked out through them. Quite amazing. Here are some pictures we took of them.

We explored the area where the chimneys were and came across a family living way out in the country. A man, his wife, and two children were farming a small area and they offered us refreshment and food and to rest a spell. We had a very interesting conversation with them and moved on. Here’s a couple pictures of their home.

Cave dwellers. There are two kinds of caves in the Cappadocia region. Caves that are carved into the sides of hills and large rocks and those that go down below the surrounding surface. Here is a website if you want to check out some of the history.

https://www.goturkey.com/en/blog/would-you-like-to-live-in-a-cave-the-life-of-medieval-cappadocia

We explored both. First; the above ground caves … reminded us of the cliff dwellings of Mesa Verde but were much more advanced. People lived in these dwellings for centuries and as late as the 1960’s and their use was eventually outlawed by the Turkish government. The Dwellings:

The other caves were the underground type. We did not tour them extensively as you were required to be on a tour to get into them. Officials feared people would get lost if not escorted. We did however tag onto one tour and followed them through. There are miles and miles of these underground caves. Entire cities would use them to hide from the invading Huns, Romans, Hittites, or whomever was trying to kill them at the time. They had water, food, fodder, everything required to live underground for months. They were normally not occupied like the cliff ones were but rather used as a hide out. Every living thing in the village would go in. I didn’t get many pictures of these caves … it was dark and I couldn’t alert the guide we were tagging along. Nancy did manage to find some shopping however once we got back to the surface.

Also on Nancy’s agenda was a couple of old churches that had very old fresco’s in them … so we took a look.

No trip is complete without some evening entertainment. We booked dinner with a Whirling Dervish show. For those of you who don’t know what a Whirling Dervish is … Whirling dervishes perform a dance called the sema. It is a religious dance performed to express emotion and achieve the wisdom and love of God. It originated in Turkey, in the Islamic sect of Sufism, which was founded by Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi. (Wikipedi) … so now that you know that … here’s what they look like:

It was a full evening of entertainment with dinner, Whirling Dervishes, dancing girls, and some musicians. A fun time. Interesting note: An experienced Whirling Dervish dancer can spin for up to two hours at 30 to 40 revolutions per minute … without getting dizzy!

Our trip ended with a drive back to Ankara. We took a scenic route that included mountains, a red lake, an old mosque, some shops, and a Turkish Stop sign.

It was a great trip and we had a great time. We have been to Turkey several times and always have an enjoyable time. The people are friendly and welcoming, the culture and history are both rich, and the country is beautiful to see. We have never encountered problems in Turkey and would recommend it to anyone interested in enjoying our planet.

The Bay of Fundy and The Appalachian Trail – October 2019

Welcome to our first trip in the U.S. that will be on my Blog. Next Tuesday, 1 October, we will leave our home in Florida and drive North along the East coast via I95 to the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick, Canada. We plan to spend a couple days there watching the tides and exploring, then returning South following the Appalachian Train from Maine to Georgia. The Bay of Fundy claims the largest tide changes in the world from submersing islands to exposing miles of seabed between high tide and low tide. The Appalachian Trail is normally the “Big Smoke” of hikers (and certainly well deserved) but we will be driving along it versus hiking it. We will be making the trip in our Winnabago Intent, seeking interesting places to see and camp along the way. We hope you come along and enjoy the trip. I expect the trip will be about 4000 miles and take 2 to 3 weeks depending how long we dawdle at pleasant places. No specific schedule. See you Tuesday!

1 October 2019, Tuesday …. Happy October and all that stuff. We got an early start this morning … didn’t know I could rig the Jeep in the dark but when the Sun came up … there it was, right behind us. Did 560 miles today. Not on purpose but with the early start and everything going well we just pressed on for a while. Made it to “South of The Border”, a little truck stop that has an immense Mexican theme. Quite cute actually … located right on the Southern side of the South Carolina/North Carolina border it was a great place to stop. Checked in to our campsite at Pedro’s RV Park, fixed a few glitches with the RV, Nancy made dinner, and we are relaxing tonight looking forward to a good night’s rest. Nothing particularly exciting or picturesque so far so no pictures. Lots of truck traffic and many cars, quite unlike the roads of Oz. Tomorrow we will get a normal start and hope to get to the North side of Washington D.C. before we stop … about 400 miles or so. The RV is working out well, having all the conveniences of home along with you is nice! More tomorrow. … Total Travel – 560 miles.

2 October 2019, Wednesday – I felt so bad about not leaving any pictures yesterday that I took a few of the South of the Boarder truck stop we stayed at last night and put them in. Kinda underwhelming … but the Truck Stops tend to be that way. Had a big day today. Drove through Richmond, Virginia and Washington DC … and you know what? … someone put the word out that we would be driving around our nation’s capital and 400 bajillion people decided to join us and drive along. Wow … and some of them even waved as I pressed along at 60 MPH while they tried to get on down the road!!! Anyhow, tonight we are staying right between Washington DC and Baltimore, MD. We traveled 390 miles today … which was enough. Even though the temps are still in the 90’s we are starting to see signs of Fall … mostly turning leaves but also farmers harvesting cotton and other crops and hunters going out. Nancy found a RV park that was kind enough to find a place for us. Nice place … even have a little Cafe where we had an Ice Cream cone for desert! Tomorrow we pass through Baltimore, New York City, and perhaps Boston. Looking forward to seeing all my motor friends. …. Total Travel – 950.

3 October 2019, Thursday: WOW!!! Who ah Thought? Baltimore was okay except for going into town in the morning … once through the tunnel, everything went well … for a while. While I was sleeping someone stuck Philadelphia, PA on I95 and we had to go through that … THEN New York City!! I will never, ever figure out why anyone in their right mind would live in NYC!!!! Rotten roads, decaying bridges, uncontrolled traffic, horrific tolls ($84.00 to cross the George Washington Bridge) … endless lines of trucks. DC was a breeze. Anyhow, made it through NYC and now we are settled in on a cozy little country farm campground half way between NYC and Boston … OH!!! Did I mention it rained all day? Not hard … just a irritating little drizzle that made you use the wiper once every 2 minutes, but never really stops. We made 319 miles today and I feel like we drove from coast to coast … but enough whining. No accidents, Motorhome worked great, looks like Fall up here and tonight … it’s 51 degrees and we are using the furnace instead of the Air Conditioning … that’s nice … I’ll probably sleep under a blanket tonight. Due to the rain, mist, fog, and traffic there are no pictures … maybe tomorrow. Hope to make it either to Augusta, Maine or take the Day off and rest … Haven’t decided yet … will decide in the morning. See you tomorrow. … Total Travel 1269 Miles.

4 October 2019, Friday …. Yet another frustrating day on I95. Got to Boston after going through Providence R.I. … nice city, nice area … too much traffic … and on to Boston. Boston wasn’t bad … I expected heavy traffic but it moved along and wasn’t too bad. My expectation was, after Boston, I would be in the sticks with no traffic, no trucks, no tolls … BOY, was I ever wrong. I95 was a sleepy highway when we lived in Maine 38 years ago … now it is six lanes wide and loaded with traffic. This is my last complaint about traffic … I have come to accept the fact that as long as we are on I95 we will have traffic … so be it. We made it to just east of Portland, just 274 miles from this mornings’s start. Staying in a goochy Farm Stay kinda place where they have “Organic Cows” … whatever that is. They also have chickens, pigs, goats, and other farm animals that you can interact with … and I suppose they are organic as well. We resisted the animal interaction and went into town to see some of the Fall activities. Had a nice dinner and came back to the camper and hit the sack. The leaves are really starting to turn here and it is beautiful. Here are some some high speed shots from the cab. … Total Travel – 1543 miles. Tomorrow we get to Canada!!

5 October 2019, Saturday – Welcome to New Brunswick, Canada. Quite the beautiful place with all the trees changing, neat New England style houses, two language signs (English and French) and much cooler weather. We left I95 in Bangor Maine and caught Hwy 9 Eastward to Canada. We spent a lot of time at the border where we were inspected, searched, questioned, and scowled at. Eventually they decided we were not terrorists after all and let us through. Then Canadian Highway 1 to Sussex where Nancy found a RV spot for us in a KOA that was closing for the season 319 miles from Freeport, Maine where we started from this morning. Most everything connected to tourism is closed up here … the few remaining businesses will be open until the Canadian Thanksgiving Day (October 18th) … then everything closes till May. We are about 30 Miles from a town named Alma, and 30 miles from a Town called St Martin’s. Both are on the Bay of Fundy about 30 miles apart and both claim great places to witness the big tides. All of the campgrounds along the Bay were closed so we are Northwest of the two towns but not too far away. So the RV is parked for the next few days. The Jeep is loose and ready to take us sightseeing. Stand by for pictures and stories of incredible tides and beautiful sea side villages. … Tomorrow. Our Plan is to catch the high tide tomorrow at St Martins (around 1 PM), then tour the local area for 6 hours and 13 minutes until the Low tide (a little after 7 PM and about 30 seconds before it gets dark!) to see the difference. Then Monday, Scoot down to Alma at O Dark Thirty in the morning to catch the 7 AM high tide and hang out till the 2 PM low tide. In Alma we are going to three different places; Alma itself (a little fishing village, The Fundy Canadian National Park, and Hopewell Rocks Park. Let’s see how this plan holds up!!

Nancy and I went into town (Sussex) to find some dinner and have a look around. Neat (as in tidy) town with old buildings and a few new ones. Everything is well cared for but you see more old people than young people. Not much to do here other than take care of tourists and maybe cut some wood so the young go to the cities to seek work … some come back, most don’t. Anyhow, we had a good dinner, met some nice people and went to bed early. Total traveled – 1870 miles. Here are a few more pictures .. These are from Canada … can you tell the difference between Canadian Trees and U.S. trees? … No? … Neither can I.

Big Salt Marsh along the Bay of Fundy
Country Roads
Farms Along the Way

6 October 2019, Sunday – This morning we slept in a little only to discover it got so cold last night that our water froze up … Ick! Fortunately it was just the brass pressure valve that was froze so a cup of hot water fixed that. We had a couple cups of coffee and headed back into town to attend church at 11. Right after church we beat feet for St Martins to catch the 1 PM low tide. When we got there the tide was indeed low. Here are some pictures from Low tide:

Looking Out to the Gulf
A Stream coming in Under a Covered Bridge
Boats at Low Tide … No Wheels?
Road through the Covered Bridge
My Travel Pal and the Boats
A Tourist Light house behind the Bridge
Eroded Caves
A Larger Beach … Note the Big Caves way in the back
Looking out to Sea from the Larger Beach
Sea Weed on the exposed Ocean Bed
Restaurants by the shore
A Stream that Runs across the Beach .. Caves in Back
The Caves
The Cream, The beach, The Restaurants
Looking Back out to Sea
The Caves
The Stream
One of the caves
Us

So we walked around the beaches and took these pictures. Then we decided to drive out to see a special scenic road that was created by a nonprofit organization to promote the area. It was about 15 miles long and ran along the high cliffs of the Bay of Fundy. There were frequent turn offs where you could walk a short distance and view the bay in interesting points. Here are some pictures we too from our drive:

We got back a little after four and had about three hours to wait for high tide so we decided to have an early dinner as it would be late by the time we saw the 7 PM High Tide and drove the 30 miles back to Sussex. Remember the restaurant in the earlier photos? That’s were we went. We got a seat right by a window looking out over the bay and we could watch the tide come in while we ate. Here are some interesting facts we found on the menu; some mussels we had for an appetizer along with Coconut crusted shrimp, and a picture of … the caves at a high tide!

After dinner we went out and took our High Tide shots, then drove back to the camper and turned in. We have an early start tomorrow as the High Tide in Alma is a little after 7 AM and is 45 – 50 minutes away … if you are familiar with the road! Here are the Hight Tide in St Martins pictures:

7 October 2019, Monday – Up at 5:30, (yes its still dark then in Canada) and off we go to Alma. Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day with light breezes and cool temperatures. It was wonderful. Today, besides being dark, is rainy and cool with gusting winds. Puts a whole new slant on looking at tides! Anyhow, we drove to Alma and got there in time to buy a cup of coffee and go out and look at some of the local tides which were indeed high. Here they are:

These were all from in town … the river, the sea side and the boats. We had gone to The National Park but the place we were looking for was not available so we didn’t’t see anything there. After taking these pictures we drove North on the Bay to a place called Hopewell Rocks. It too is a private effort but is very nicely done. We got there just a few minutes after High Tide so the water was still up. Here are some pictures:

The Flower Pots
Again ..
And Again …
Eroded Cliffs
The Bay
The Steps I had to walk down and climb up for these Pictures! (101)

Some Pictures of Posters
You Can Kayak at High Tide
Tide Info
Creative Bench Art
The Cove
The Bay is Angry
Diamond Pointe
Danials Flats
The Weather Got worser and worser!

The main points along this trail about spread out over nearly a mile with walkways or steps down to them. Some just have viewing platforms. There was one more area called the Bird Beach That we just walked down to but did not spend any time at. During the Summer months Thousands of birds flock to this beach at every low tide. Living in the mud are small shrimp like creatures called Krill or Mud Strip that the birds love … and live on. Now, in October, the birds are all headed South with the rest of the “Snow Birds” from Canada waiting to return in the Spring. We walked the trail four times (two each way) watching the tide go out. They also have an interesting Interactive Center where you can learn all sorts of things about the formation of the Bay … and the rest of the Earth.

Around 12:30, about an hour before the Low Tide we made one last trip down the path taking final photos. Here they are:

A Graphic showing both the low and high tides (Note Wall of Water)
Gardener’s Art
The Flower Pots at low Tide
Danial’s Flats … Note where the river flows

Then back to Alma to check our local boats:

From there we went back to Sussex, Nancy made a great dinner, we both were tired so we turned in early. Big day tomorrow. We go back to Maine and visit the Acadia National Park (If U.S. Immigration lets us in). Canada was fun, interesting and cold. The Fall leaves and environment are beautiful and the people friendly and accommodating. Highly recommend visiting The Bay of Fundy.

8 October 2019, Tuesday – “It rained all night the day we left Susana don’t you cry.” And it did but it let up long enough to break camp and get on the road … then as we eased our way back to the U.S.A. the weather got nicer and the Sun even came out for a while. The U.S. border agents were far kinder than the Canadians … the agent walked through our camper, asked Nancy where she got her celery, and wished us a good journey and a “Welcome Home”. The trip was uneventful and much of the road we drove was the same one we used coming up. Gaining an hour we arrived in Bar Harbor, Maine just after Noon. We set up camp. did some adjustments to our camper and contents, then drove off to explore the area. Bar Harbor hosts Acadia National Park, one of the 10 most visited National Parks in the U.S. We we shocked to see so many people here. A Local BrewMaster explained they are all here to see the leaves turn color and in two weeks the place would look like an abandoned nuclear test site. The foliage is indeed beautiful, as is this entire area. We drove all the way around the two Islands that Acadia is located on and the scenery, buildings, sounds, and landscape are amazing. Tomorrow we will spend the day in Acadia exploring all it has to offer. If today is any clue regarding what tomorrow will be like, I can’t wait. Drove today 224 miles … Total driven so far 2094 miles. Here are some pictures taken today around Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park:

The Long and Lonesome Road
Fall Skies Over the Sound
Peaceful?
Another B&B
The B&B’s Swimming Pool
An old B&B by the Sea
A Grand Maple in Color
A Hidden Retreat
Low Tide
The Rocky Coast of Maine
A Look Out to Sea
The Rocky Coast … They Have Signs Asking You Not to Take Any Rocks!
Old Brewery in Maine …
For Dr Chang .. “I Had the Blueberry Soda!”
What Else Would You Call a Local Brew Up Here?
Our Campsite at Sunset

9 October 2019, Wednesday – Acadia National Park. After a good nights sleep we had a leisurely start with some coffee and discussion regarding our path once we leave here tomorrow … more on that later. We drove into Bar Harbor and entered Acadia National Park. First place to go was the Visiters center to get a pass because Bill forgot our Interagency Life Pass at home. So we got a pass … if your over 62 you can get an annual pass that is good at all the National Park for a year for only $20 … and that’s as many people as you have in the car and as many times as you want to enter … a VERY good deal. We spent about four hours in the park. There is a road that goes around the interior of the park and hits all the highlights. There are countless trails you can hike and they are all well marked. we are RV’ers not hikers so we drove the Jeep all through the park. Here are the pictures we took. The park was extremely busy because everyone comes here for the Fall Colors and they were not disappointed. All the pull-offs were filled and the parking areas were jammed … but we made it and saw all we wanted to see. As I mentioned yesterday … astounding scenery, Fall colors, and landscape. I will make comments in the photo captions:

The Islands off of Bar Harbor … Note the cruise ship in the background
Looking towards the middle of the park and Cadillac Mountain
The Cruise Ship … It produced a number of buses of tourists
One of Many Shots of the Foliage
Tourists Everywhere
Red Berries
Sandy Beach from above
Sandy Beach from on the beach … note the flannel swimwear … it was 52 degrees
A Bubble Rock … Lava Bubbled Up and hardened
Flowers and a Butterfly
A Modest Cabin on the Shore
Big Drop … Any Divers?
Jordon Pond … and Nancy
Jordon Pond from the Jordon Pond House
The Packed Parking Lot at The Jordon Pond House
Jordon Pond from Above
More Foliage
This entire area was harvested for its Lumber … they even built a railroad to haul it out!
Views from the Top of Cadillac Mountain
The Green is Lichen which grows and does not wear off
And That was Acadia National Park!

Tonight we are going our for dinner … Nancy wants Lobster and I want some Good Chowder. Then tomorrow we leave the coast and head inland to Newry, Maine where the Appalachian Train starts … or ends … depending which way you are traveling. We hope to get get some way past Newry along the trail but not sure how far we will get. I will let you know how it went tomorrow evening. Thanks for enjoying Acadia National Park with us. Here’s some pictures of our Lobsters … we both had lobster stew … it was yummy!!

10 October 2019 – Thursday – Got up to mid 40’s weather this morning, a mostly clear sky and a good day for a drive. We left BarHarbor and Acadia National Park and head West to the other side of the state and The Appalachian Trail. We continued on into New Hampshire and covered a pretty good part of that state. Here’s the route we took: (The Red Line) The Blue Blotch in the second picture is where we are tonight.

We had a wonderful day, saw a lot of beautiful countryside. Found the beginning of the Appalachian Trail and crossed it several times on the road (Didn’t hit any hikers!) We have ran into a problem though. Because the Foliage is at it’s peak and this weekend is a three day weekend (Columbus Day), every campground is packed and we are unable to find any camp sights until next Monday. Consequently we have decided to deviate somewhat and go farther West, spend tomorrow night in a Hotel (Whoopee) and head South till we get out of the leafy stuff. I will update you on our route as we figure it out. I do have some shots from today that I want to share with you:

Trees, Mountains, Rocks, Old Homes, Antiques
Its What they Have!
A Lovely Home … Looks Like Many Others

13 October 2019 – Sunday – Sorry about the skipped days but we have been driving West and South to find somewhere that is not so crowded. I think all of Boston and Half of New York came out to see the leaves turn … well worth the effort but, WOW, what a crowd. Tonight we are just East of Knoxville, Tennessee and on our way home. The Appalachian Trail can not be appreciated from a road. If you want to see it and experience it, you have to hike it. Nancy and I hiked parts of it in the Shenandoah Valley when we lived in Washington D.C. … we even camped along it and it is an interesting trail that treats the hearty soul to some spectacular sights. Seeing the Appalachians, the White Mountains, The Blue Ridge Mountains from a car is good, but not as good as hiking through them. The Falls leaves have lost most of their color this far south, they just turn brown and fall off the tree. Some turn yellow but nothing like the vibrant colors up North. I took some interesting pictures throughWest Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, and Tennessee on the way down … cab shots so please forgive the quality. We will stay South of Atlanta tomorrow night and hope to be home Tuesday night. I will close out my blog tonight as I don’t think there will be that much of interest along the interstate highway. Thanks for riding along … Tonight we are at 3398 miles and we have another 700 or so to go … so the trip will be about 4000 miles. An interesting trip.

The Smokey Mountains
Tennessee Wit
Kudzoo Blanketing the Knols
The Blue Ridge Mountains
The Other Side of the Swan Bridge I40

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