Just a couple of pictures of the Niagara area

The picture of Andrea in front of some
beautiful flowers near the Falls. The whole area down by the falls is landscaped just beautifully.

The other picture was taken from behind the RV. We over looked the lake. The moon was so big that it begged for a kodak moment.

We are now in Kingston and will have updates from here later.

Miles of Smiles. Happy trails.

North of Niagara Falls, Niagara Lake region

We managed to find an area to hike in Queenston (north of Niagara Falls). Of course Angel enjoyed it very much. She really
needed to get out and stretch those
legs of hers. I think she was

going a little stir crazy. We are still amazed by the beauty of the Niagara area. We sure hope that when we move on to the next campground that we are as lucky as we were to find Windmill Point. We had no idea that it sat next to a bike path that goes on for ever. This morning we went for a two hour ride that was fantastic.

We leave first thing tomorrow for Kingston, Ontario which is about 280 miles. That is about half way to Montreal. We are there for 6 days before we move on to Montreal. We will be in a KOA located on the south side of Montreal and will spend 7 days there. Both of the campgrounds are located near the St. Lawrence River so we will get to enjoy what the river and the 1,000 Islands have to offer.

I am not sure that we will have WIFI available at the next campground. So if there is a lag in the Blog entries I will try to catch up once we have service.

Miles of smiles.......... Happy trails.

Niagara Falls

All we can say is WOW!!!!! The Falls are everything that you have
ever
heard

and more. We are on the Canadian side of the Falls. We have really enjoyed our stay here. We even managed to go to a casino located in the area. Not too bad money wise. Only lost 4 dollars at the slots. The casino is brand new and really beautiful. It was a pretty hot day (88 degrees) so the air conditioning was really appreciated. Of course a nice cold beer was also great.

By the way. Andrea and I gave each other hair cuts the other day. We didn't do too bad a job for each other. Who knows, maybe we have second careers ahead of us.

On Monday we took a bike ride on a beautiful bike path that takes you along Lake Erie. I will have some pictures a little later in the next blog.

Happy trails.

OK, as promised, here is part 2 of the visit to the farm. They really have a very unique set up. There manufactured home is an 80 foot long by 14 foot wide that sits in the barn. The barn is walled on 3 sides and is open on the side that you

see here. It is really a one of a kind set up. We just loved it. We stopped for lunch in downtown Montrose, PA.

We left the farm yesterday and arrived near Niagra Falls on the Canada side so we will have updates on our trip to the Falls later today or tomorrow.

Happy trails.

Visiting Aunt Del and Uncle Gene in Hallstead, PA (the farm)

I have not as yet mastered the combination of pictures and text so forgive the poor layout. These are just a few pictures, more in the next entry. Since it takes so long to upload pictures I decided to make the visit a two part blog instead of all in one. It seems that when I try to add more then 3 pictures it takes forever to upload.

Angel has rated the farm 5 paws. She would have rated it higher but 5 is the max. She just loved be able to run free as we explored the 133 acres that belong to my aunt and uncle. Angel really enjoyed chasing the birds. Angel even came face to face with a little chipmunk that my uncle named Petey. It was a scream to watch an incident with Angel and the chipmunk. Angel was sitting on Uncle Genes lap when the chipmunk came down and sat right next to them. At first Angel was unaware of Petey's presence. As Angel was just looking around she spotted him. Angel went direct to crazy and chased Petey into the field. It was hilarious.

We had such a good time spending time with Aunt Del and Uncle Gene. I have such fond memories of my younger days when I was growing up. I spent many a weekend and summers with them and my cousins. They had a way of making everything fun. Even chores around the house.

There was only one problem with the visit at the farm and that is no communication because they are located in a valley. In order to use the phone we had to drive up the road about a mile to a church parking lot overlooking a cemetery. Talk about a "dead zone".

More to come. Happy trails.

Hi from the farm in Hallstead, PA

We arrived at Aunt Del and Uncle Genes farm yesterday afternoon. You could definitely call where they live "rural". We ended up asking Uncle Gene to meet us at the post office in Hallstead because we just could not find the street we needed to go on as it was not on the GPS. We love how they set up their house "inside one of the barns". I will post some pictures on the next posting. There is no cell phone service so we will not be able to speak with anyone unless we are down off the mountain.

I am able to put this posting up this morning because I took Uncle Gene to an eye doctor in Scranton. Uncle Gene is getting his eyes checked and I am sitting in a cafe having coffee and eggs. It is funny how we become so dependent on our ability to communicate.

We will be doing some hiking on the farm later today. Andrea is chomping at the bit to do some real exercise. Believe it or not, so am I.

Cousin Lori and her husband Dale came over last night to say hi. It has been a few years since we last saw Lori and this is the first time we met Dale. It was nice to see them.

More later. Happy trails.

The Murphy's with the Murphy's of PENN.

Here we are at Chris and Cheryl's for a family photo op before saying good bye. We have been here in the Gettysburg area for the past week and a half so we

could spend some time with Chris, Cheryl and the kids. Gettysburg is about an hour from their house, but the ride is really enjoyable. We just love the scenery in this part of the country. We will miss them, but it is time to move on to the next leg of the journey.

The weather had been good up until this past Saturday evening. We have had rain ever since. We had planned on doing several hikes, but instead find the only excersise is surfing with the remote. We sure hope the rain ends tonight. The good news is that the temperature is in the low 60's. Sweater weather. The weather forcast calls for the temperatures to climb to the upper 90's by the weekend. Very strange.

We leave Gettysburg tomorrow morning and head up to Hallstead, PA. We will be spending a few days with my Aunt Del and Uncle Gene on their farm. We look forward to seeing them.

That's it for now. Happy trails.

Horseback riding with Elisabeth

To celebrate Elisabeths 11th Birthday I took her horse back riding. One of the main reasons we selected Artillery Ridge as our destination for camping was the fact that they had horseback riding.

We really like the Gettysburg area of PA as it is really beautiful. We took a scenic self guided drive tour through the countryside and we just loved it. There are so many apple and peach orchards in the area.

Yesterday we planned on hiking, but for the first time on our trip it rained so hiking was just not going to work for us. We spotted a sign for a winery and decided to check it out. There we were at 10 o'clock in the morning trying different wines. Well, we ended up buying a case of mixed whites and reds. Oh well, isn't that what you are supposed to do?

We drove over to Chris and Cheryl's for the afternoon and a BBQ for dinner. We are going back today to all go into Lancaster area to visit the Amish country. This should be a fun day with the kids.

That is it for now. Happy trails.

Having fun at Artillery Ridge Camp Ground, PA

We all had such a good time at the pool. The kids also enjoyed the play ground.

Elisabeth spent the night with us because today we are taking her horseback riding. The horse back ride is our birthday gift for her 11th birthday.

We are going over to Chris and Cherly's this afternoon. Andrea is really excited about one aspect of going. Cheryl told Andrea to bring the laundry and do it there. Wow. There is one aspect of traveling that is somewhat of a pain, doing laundry in coin operated machines. Some campgrounds only have a few machines so timing is critical. Some times we just load up the car and drive around a town seeking out a laundrymat. Of course we don't mind that so much because we get to explore the town and the area. We consider this a side benefit.

More later. Happy trails.

The Murphy Gang in PA

We arrived in Gettysburg, PA at noon
on Saturday. We are staying at a campground called Artillery Ridge. Let me introduce the gang. Left to right are Andrea, Cheryl, Christopher, Eryn, Emma and Elisabeth. Since Emma and Elisabeth change positions in the other picture, Emma is wearing the orange tee shirt.

It was so great being able to have them over for dinner at our "house". We really had a great time. Dinner consisted of hot dogs, hamburgers and corn on the cob. I don't think I ever had corn on the cob that was this good. We found a local farm stand that had some really fresh fruits and veggies. The corn was so good we ate it without using butter. I BBQ'd it in the husk and then did a Peel and eat. We also had fresh squash and the sweetest onion. Great stuff.

Chris and the gang are coming back today to use the pool, and the play area. Lots to do here. More later. Happy trails.

Natural Bridge, Virginia

We are so impressed with the natural beauty that has always been out there, but we have never spent the time to seek it out. We are so fortunate to have the time and
ability to be on this adventure. The pictures pale by comparison to what our eyes have seen.

Today we took a ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway to seek out a couple of hiking trails. We found two that were really good. The picture of Andrea and Angel was on a short trail that had the most spectacular view. Note the wall that Andrea is sitting on. The reason I mention it is that Angel gave us quite a scare. She jumped up onto to the wall thinking it was just another step. Beyond the wall is a drop of about 100 feet to a ledge where it drops again. To say we freaked is putting it mildly. She is really into the hiking thing and obviously fears nothing.

We stopped to pick up lunch at a lodge that is along the parkway, and then found an area to have a picnic lunch. The deer just wandered real close to where we had lunch. Incredible. This could not happen in Ft. Lauderdale or very many other places for that matter.

Tomorrow we head for Gettysburg, PA to spend some time with Christopher, Cheryl, and the kids Elisabeth, Emma and Eryn. The trip should take about 5-6 hours so we will be on the road fairly early. Not a problem for us since we are up early anyway.

That's it for now. Happy trails.

Chimney Rock, N.C.

The views from the top of Chimney Rock were just spectacular. Of course the hiking trail was a fun part of the adventure. Once again, Angel amazes us with here dexterity. She is really getting into this hiking thing.

The pictures do not do justice to the view that we experienced. We do recommend that everyone visit this mountain if you find yourselves in the Asheville area.

We have always believed that it was supposed to be so much cooler in the mountains. Well , there is a heat wave across the east coast that has put the temperatures in the mid to upper 90's for the past few days. We don't expect to get any relief as we head for Virginia tomorrow and then Pennsylvania on Sunday. The good news is that it should not last too much longer.

That is it for now. Happy trails.

Grandfather Mountain, N.C.

Today we decided to take a drive up to Grandfather Mountain, and then to hike up to the Swing Bridge that is 1 mile high. We did manage to half way across before Angel chickened out on us. So we turned around and came back. It was sure windy up there so the bridge had a tendency to "swing" a little more than Angel liked. We took a half mile hiking trail up to the top. We can not get over how well Angel manages going up and back down the trails. This trail although short by comparison to the others we have done was pretty difficult due to a very rough terrain. Lots of rocks and boulders. She did it with no problem. Most of the time she would take the lead to show us the best way to traverse the path.

We are back at the KOA campground and will relax a little as we would like to take a drive into Asheville later for dinner. That's it for now. Happy trails.

Murphy On The Move Tee shirt

When we were walking around downtown Murphy, NC we happened on this Tee shirt at the Welcome Center. We could not believe our eyes. It seems that there is a fund drive to save the trolley that is used for touring. Anyway, we thought it was so cool to buy a couple and wear them proudly. At the same time we were helping the cause.

The picture was taken in the RV in the kitchen area.

Today we are driving the Blue Ridge Parkway to Grandfather Mountain to do some hiking. And yes, we are taking Angel the hiking dog. We will of course take pictures and share them on the next update.

Happy trails.

Murphy, North Carolina

How many people can say they have a town named after them?
As you can see water levels are down in
this part of the country. We saw many house boats such as this one. High and dry.

Our frinds Roy and Susan came up on their Harley's on Thursday and stayed over night in the RV with us. There is plenty of room for over night guests in the RV. We would look into getting moror cycles if we were to consider buying something up in the mountains. The winding roads would be a blast on a motor cycle. Driving the RV and towing the car is a real challenge on these roads. Some of the twists and turns are down right scary.

We are here in Murphy, NC one more day before moving on to Asheville for 3 days. We are looking forward to seeing Asheville again as when we were there last September we did not have enough time to explore the area.

That's it for now. Happy trails.

Unicoi State Park in Georgia

I should have mentioned our day trip to Unicoi State Park on Aug. 1st.
The Ana Ruby Falls there was really beautiful. Of course we had to hike up to near the top to get the full appreciation. The hike trail is a paved path which sounds like it should be easy. Well going up a fairly steep incline is not easy even on a paved path. It was worth the hike though. Even Angel enjoyed it.

We wanted to see Unicoi as our new friends Marvin and Linda (Camp hosts at Red Top) had indicated that Unicoi was one of there favorite parks. I must say that I can see what they are talking about, it truly displays natures beauty.

Happy trails.

Up the lazy river, with a paddle

I must say that this type of boating is much more difficult then what we have been used to. Starting the engine and letting the propeller do the work is certainly easier. However, paddeling the canoe was fun as we cruised down the river on this sunny August day. These are our friends Roy and Susan that we met through Bill and Mary (thank you for introducing us). We have enjoyed the past few days here in Dahlonega, Georgia. It is a nice town that has a history based on the discovery of gold back in the 1800's.

It seemed a little odd to not hike today as that has been something we have been doing just about every day. We gave Angel the day off as we didn't think she would enjoy having to paddle. She did not seem to complain about the alone time.

Tomorrow we leave for Murphy, NC. We will update that in the near future. Happy trails.