O Little Town of Bethlehem, how do I love you so

 The goal of today's field trip was to get us north of the rain and it was a success! At 8AM we grabbed coffees and bagel sandwiches at our favorite Farmhouse Roasters in Salem and sailed up 93N.  Our first destination was the Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch State Park.  We made a reservation on the NH State Parks website.  It's super helpful, because you can see the hourly time slots and how many people are on the trail at that time.  Since the foliage hasn't really started yet, there was plenty of availability.  The trail is about 2 miles round trip, and either paved or smooth trail, so no roots to watch out for.  There is a little elevation and stairs to climb, but the pace is leisurely due to your friends on the trail, it's a nice morning walk in the woods.  After our walk we spent some time in the Visitor Center which has some exhibits on the history of the Flume Gorge, and we learned about Concord Coach, very cool!

Next stop: Rek-lis Brewing Company in Bethlehem, which came highly recommended by a fellow trails and ales fan.  We pulled off on our way there to see the Basin, a free stop in the FSP, and noted that there were many trailheads there, good to know for another time.

Rek-lis is on the main street of quirky Bethlehem, well worth the scenic drive.  It has indoor and outdoor seating, has great music (if you're of a certain age), and is dog friendly.  We were both happy with our beer choices and the food.  We meandered up the street after our lunch and found a couple of cool spots.  The Yonder Mountain Nursery was closed, but the garden was open  - I think that just meant we couldn't buy plants that day, but it was worth walking through.

The Lonesome Woods shop was definitely the find of the day!  It was an antique/vintage gift shop with the feel of your grandpa's garage.  The owner/curator was welcoming, chatty, and knowledgeable about the community in Bethlehem and beyond.  Of course when visiting locally owned businesses of this sort, I had to buy a few items including a book with vintage ski photos, a handmade candle (which he was burning in the shop so I had to buy), and some fig jam for my next charcuterie board, or whoever I decide to gift that to.  

Happy Trails!

A taste of summer in the winter

 With timeshare points to burn and a direct flight from Manchester to Orlando, a quick trip to Florida during my February vacation was inevitable.  Our 11:00 Sunday morning flight enabled us to arrive at Hilton Grand Vacations Tuscany Village just in time for afternoon Happy Hour at the pool bar.  Once we got a few supplies for our room, we made a beeline over to Disney Springs, which was about a 10 minute drive from our location. 

We ate at Enzo's Hideaway Tunnel Bar - Disney's version of a speakeasy.  They had a nice little menu of craft cocktails, and the food was delicious.  In Disney fashion, the portions aren't overly large for the price, but who wants leftovers on vacation anyway?

Day 2 - Monday is for Manatees!  We got an early start and drove out to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville (which is near Cape Canaveral) for a Manatee/Dolphin tour with Florida-Adventurer.  Even the ride into the site was rewarding - we saw most of the different birds on this sign.  

We were the only ones booked for the 10 AM tour, and our tour guide Zach got us going right away. Right around the corner from the launch sight we entered a canal where a dolphin was hunting for his breakfast.  

After watching him for a bit, we entered a cove where about 20 manatees were just hanging out, doing their thing.  Some were even looking for a little tummy rub!  When we finally tore ourselves away from playing with our new pals, we also saw a raccoon at the water's edge, and a pelican scooping up the dolphin's leftovers - they will actually follow right above them to benefit from the hunters.  

We continued our coastal journey down to the Cocoa Beach Pier for lunch at the Rikki Tiki Tavern.  We were lucky enough to grab a seat at the water's edge.  Clear water and beautiful land and sea temps made for a perfect beach day, although parking at the pier was a little pricey.  The next time we go to visit our manatees, we'll stick closer to Titusville and Cape Canaveral.

Day 3 - Tuesday in Winter Park  This trip was beginning to look like a taste of the retired life.  We drove about a half hour north to Winter Park for their famous scenic boat ride, and we definitely brought the average age down by about 20 years. But, this pontoon boat ride wound through tropical canals and into their 5 different lakes.  

Lifestyles of the rich and famous provided most of the scenery, but the history of Rollins University and their many watersports made it very interesting- had I known at the time, I definitely would have considered it.  Fact: because there are so many water sports on the lakes, they actually relocate any alligators that move in. They keep the tree frogs though.

My lunch buddy

We drove over to Disney's Wilderness Lodge Resort for dinner that evening, Our original plan was to do a lap around to all of the Magic Kingdom resorts, but we had a (lucky) little change in plans.  After our meaty skillet dinners, we headed directly out to the boat launch to go over to the Contemporary Resort to watch the nightly fireworks.  Out timing was going to be a little close, so we sat in the front of the boat - we lucked out because the fireworks began as soon as we started moving.  

We were able to see the whole fireworks display, pulling up to the MK entrance just in time for the finale. We decided to just stay on the boat for the return ride instead of getting into the melee of people streaming out of the park. We were then rewarded with passing by the Electrical Water Pageant, a true Disney original. It was well worth the price of a tasty dinner for free Disney parking, another boat ride, and the night's entertainment!

Day 4 - More free Disney fun! We had a full day of walking and riding with a few surprises along the way. I did a bit of research to see where we would be able to walk from resort to resort. We would be parking at Disney Springs as it has free parking and was close to our resort. From there, we walked over to Saratoga Springs, which is a huge property, and it abuts a golf course. 

We wound our way through, and were able to pop over to the Treehouses, where my family stayed once back in the 70s! We then found a path to take take us over to the Old Key West resort. We entered toward the back of the resort; a nice couple waiting at the bus stop directed us to the pool area, as it is easy to get confused in the timeshare complexes. It was time for a little break, and this key lime/vanilla swirly hit the spot. And so did the free margarita (thanks to a friendly bartender named Jeff and a misbehaving cash register).

We had planned to visit Port Orleans after this, but there was no walking path to that resort, and the boat from Old Key West was only one way. We decided to save PO for the next time, and we took the bus over to Hollywood Studios for the next leg of our tour.

At Hollywood Studios, you can take the Skyliner to the Caribbean Beach Resort, the new Riviera Resort, or over to the Pop Century and Art of Animation Resorts.  

We got off at the CB resort and meandered through the resort over to the Riviera Resort.  From a distance, it was not overly impressive, honestly it seems a bit plain with the lack of much landscaping around the perimeter.  However, once we walked into their courtyard we were impressed.  It had a European feel to it, with two lovely pools and several lawn games in the meticulous front lawn.  

We headed directly to Bar Riva (recommended by the Old Key West bartender) for lunch, and were able to sit at the bar in two very comfy cushioned seats. The service was excellent, food was pretty good, a healthier menu than most. We decided this was surely a resort for Disney adults. And then, as we were heading back to the Skyliner to visit Pop Century, look who we bumped into!

We did our lap around Pop Century, trying to find all of the different decades, and our energy for walking was beginning to wane. We decided to take the bus to Animal Kingdom Lodge for a little giraffe break. And a little Samosa snack at Sanaa never hurt anyone.

Our final bus ride of the day was to return to Disney Springs - the bus can be painful, but it does provide some interesting people watching to add to our later conversations. Since it was around dinner time, we took our last lap around DS to see if anything struck our fancy. We ended up at the Dockside bar at the Boathouse at sunset. The last sun of the day was still warm, and the wine was cold. It was a perfect day. Total miles walked: 5.89 Total time: 8 hours

Acadia National Park: Maine Trails and Cocktails

How many different national park visits could we squeeze into a year? After purchasing a National Park Pass in July of 2021 to tour Zion and Bryce Canyon, we felt compelled to see how many parks we could actually fit in before the July 2022 expiration date.  Acadia National Park was a must do since it is the only national park in New England, and we made it to #5 by June 2022! (Joshua Tree and Everglades were #3 and #4).  

We decided sneaking in our trip before the summer season geared up would be a good idea, and that decision paid off.  We went on an early June weekend, the weather was beautiful, the room rate was reasonable and the crowds were light.

We left right after school on a Friday afternoon and arrived at the Bar Harbor Villager Motel about 4.5 hours later.  We were thrilled to discover that it was right in the middle of the downtown area, with all of the shops and restaurants surrounding it.  It didn't take long to check in, throw our stuff in the room, and head out for a cocktail and snack.

Since it was approaching 9PM, we went to the first place we stumbled upon, Blaze, and were welcomed by the bartender (who was a bit of a Justin Timberlake doppelgänger).  Since we spied lots of herbs and bitters behind the bar, we asked him to customize our cocktails to our liking, and he was happy to oblige. There were a lot of excellent choices on the food menu, but since we had already grabbed a quick burger on the road, it was oysters for Jeff and bacon wrapped scallops for me.  Both of us were happy with our choices, and we headed back to the hotel because 9:30 is closing time in preseason Bar Harbor.  And we had to get up early to head into the park!

The motel provided free breakfast starting at 7AM.  We were the first ones there and were treated to breakfast sandwiches, muffins, fruit and coffee.  They have a breakfast server, so be sure to bring a couple of dollars to leave a tip.  

The entrance to the park off Park Loop Road was close by and we were in the Sand Beach parking lot right around 8 AM.  This is a popular starting point for the Ocean Path trail (4 miles round trip), so get there early if you want to find a spot.  By the time we returned at 10 the lot was full and it was like Christmas at the mall if you were looking for a parking spot. 

From this parking area, you can head on down to Sand Beach and set up a spot or look for the Ocean Path Trail - the entrance to the trail was located behind the bathrooms and water filling station, so it took us a while to stumble upon it.  We were off and headed for the first point of interest, Thunder Hole. Since we were there relatively early, there were not too many people/dogs there yet, and we had an unobstructed view of a group getting soaked by a big wave.  They didn't seem to mind.

We continued on to Otter Cliff and Otter Point (no otter sightings) along the ocean side trail, and pondered how visitors from the southwest must react to the beauty of the ocean, cliffs and forest - much different than the desert landscape that they are used to (yet we find so cool and beautiful). The trail does not have much elevation, and I would consider it an easy hike, but yes, wear your hiking shoes and not your flipflops.

Our next stop on the Acadia Tour was Jordan Pond House.  We arrived around 11 and found parking in the overflow lot. People were lined up to get in to the only restaurant in the park, probably for the famous popovers, so we grabbed our picnic lunch from the car and found a lovely spot on the upper deck that overlooked the diners on the lawn.  Excellent spot for relaxing, people watching, and grabbing a treat from the to go counter.

Our reservation time at Cadillac Mountain was approaching - you currently need to make a reservation to drive to the top.  We were at the entrance about 20 minutes early, but were allowed through.  Once you get to the top, you can stay as long as you want.  It is an amazing view, next time we need to go at sunrise or sunset!

Saturday evening and Sunday morning gave us time to explore Bar Harbor a bit more.  There are plenty of places to eat, drink and shop, and I do believe ice cream is a requirement! Don't miss the Bar Harbor Shore Path, another coastal trail from the harbor to the town center.  And sunset at the harbor reminded me a little of Key West.

Enjoying a spot of "tea" at Project Social Kitchen and Bar.  Sit outside in their garden and order drinks through the window, or sit at the bar inside. Taylor was our friendly and crafty bartender.  Excellent tapas as well!

Testa's Bar and Grill was a lovely spot for breakfast, and dogs are allowed inside!

I'm not sure what this was, but it looks like a fun place to go on our next visit!  It was on a side street off of Main Street.