We are traveling once again. I think I should do some explaining of what has happened since my last post. We have made a few trips out to Wisconsin to visit with Jason, we have had many many projects around the house, we have sold the beloved Doodle, so we are without an RV. All an all a very busy year, but also one that leaves the pages of this blog wanting. I have been busy painting and build things, Carol has been busy with her exercise and quilting/sewing. So all in all not too much exciting to write about. And as I am putting this first post on the blog, I still don't have much exciting to write about.
Packing is even more of a chore without an RV to fill
I am writing this roughly 400 miles from home, in a small hotel in Oak Bay, New Brunswick, just over the Canadian border. We are on our way to Newfoundland, just about as far north as you can go on the east coast. This journey began as an idea a few months ago. Since the idea started to solidify we began the planning stage which encompasses a lot of maps, YouTube viewing, web searches and reading of travel guides. Our plan is to spend roughly a month away from home and a minimum of hours on the road considering the number of days away. Several of our stops are multiple days up to a week. We will be traveling roughly 4000 miles. I have packed my art supplies and have high hopes of filling my sketchbooks. We hope to explore on the local level, trying to find a glimpse of life in Newfoundland. The predicted weather says rain for the next 14 days... I am a bit of an optimist so am ignoring that forecast. We have a few days here in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia before boarding the ferry in North Sydney for the six hour ferry ride to Newfoundland.
A rainy travel day
This morning went smoothly as we left the house at 5:40 am, stopped at the neighborhood coffee shop, fortified we headed north up Route 95. It was a misty rain and heavy fog that followed us up the coast. Our first stop was in Kittery, Maine at Kasha's Kitchen for breakfast. We have eaten here before and just can't pass up any Polish restaurant.
Highly Recommended!
After a great breakfast we continued to watch a ghostly landscape pass by. We crossed several great rivers, the Merrimack, the Piscataqua, the Penobscot, the Saco, the Androscoggin, and the Kennibec. We also crossed many lesser known rivers, and they all looked amazing in the drizzly fog. Then suddenly we found ourselves crossing the international border into Canada.
Suddenly in Canada. . .
This process took about one minute - we showed passports, said we were vacationing and that Harper had her papers and were on our way. Within minutes we passed a sign that said 'Welcome to St. Stephen, Canada's Chocolate Town!'. Well we had to stop. Carol found some goodies while Harper and I walked around - and Harper did what dogs are supposed to do.
The little traveler.
St. Stephen is a quaint little town right on the St. Croix River looking across to Calais Maine. Later we found the hotel, settled in and sat out front with refreshments and chatted. I did a little bit of sketching, nothing exciting, the OK Tire Company across the street..ha. We then found supper and are fully prepared to collapse and do some exploring tomorrow....
Home for the night
Harper spots a chicken at the hotel. . .
While I am sketching.