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It always seems that when we get home I never make a last post and leave you 

hanging somewhere along the way.

Not so this time.

We left Lake George and pointed the bus southward.

Our destination for the day was Kiptopeke State Park on the shore

of Chesapeake Bay.

It was a 10hr drive which was rewarded upon our arrival by an almost

empty campground and a nice sea breeze blowing.

The sites were 50amp and water.

A short walk from the campground is the bay with a fishing pier and swim beach.

The Park is just a few miles north of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel which

we will cross tomorrow morning.  You can see the bridge in the distance.

The full moon rose over the beach while we strolled about.

They have these cement breakwaters.   

I think they are old ships that were filled

with cement and sunk there.

The next morning we headed across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel.

It is 23 miles long and cost $31 for the bus and toad.

4hrs later we were home and time for work.

First on the list was musical vehicles.

I needed to move the boat to the other side of the driveway so that I could put

the bus where I had the boat parked.

The boat was going here next to the stairs.

When the music stopped...  

All the toys and vehicles were in their proper spots.

The Doodles became reacquainted with their grazing grounds.

A few days after we arrived our sailboat buds Hayden & Radeen came thru

town on their way back home from the Bahamas.

Their visit is a twice a year ritual.

Since we live on the Intracoastal Waterway, they pass by as they head north

and south with the rest of the waterborne snowbirds.

Their sailboat is the same make and size as ours was, so it fits in

our slip out back just perfectly.

They are the waterborne equivalent of Kate and I.

While we spend months in the land yacht touring about, they are doing the same on

their sailboat - abeit on a liquid basis.

Here is a link to their blog.

Our mission is to introduce them to, and then spend some time RV'ing with them in the future.

 So while they visited this time we held our first class: 

"RV 101...   Introduction to Happy Hour."

We had a happy hour in the Party Bus.

Accompanied by the Doodles of course.

Gracie give Hayden some "Doodle Love"

Then Happy hour on the back porch.

Notice Gracie in Haydens Lap.

Last night Hayden & Radeen treated us to a wonderful dinner downtown

and then we returned to the house for some final DoodleLove

The Gang

Our visits together are always too short but they are on a mission to get home so this

morning our friends were gone from our slip before I even woke up.

Meanwhile, we still have plenty to do.

We've emptied out the contents of two RV's from the bus and now have to sort

thru everything, get consolidated and discard the extra stuff, and then

repack the bus for our next adventure...  wherever that might be.

The lawn has been mowed, batteries charged and vehicles/boats started and serviced.

Meanwhile Maxine and Ron are headed this way and we will see

them at the house in a couple of weeks.

In the last 14 months we have traveled over 45,000 miles.

We've been to Alaska and Europe and places in between.

Hopefully we are just getting started.

See you down the road.

Lake George

On Thursday we took a 6 hour drive east across New York

 on the NY Thruway ($49.00 Toll)

which brought us to Lake George, NY.

Lake George is my old stomping grounds.

   

Kate and I lived near here for many years, we owned a cabin

on the lake for several years, my job is located in the area, 

and as a kid I used to spend endless summers here.

On Friday I donned a suit and went into the office.

Its been quite a while and it was good to have some face to face time 

with the boss and my staff.

On the way back to the Motorhome I picked Ron up in Saratoga Springs

and we headed up to Bolton Landing about a third of the way up the lake

to hook up with my friend Matt who has a house above the lake.

Soon we were out on the Lake on Matts Boat.

Our first stop was the Victorian Era Sagamore Hotel.

Built in 1883 the Sagamore catered to the rich and famous of the time.

Called "The Queen of American Lakes" it is hard to describe the beauty of the lake.

32 miles long, Crystal Clear, and 280' deep.

Surrounded by tall mountains, much of its shoreline is undeveloped and

protected as "forever wild" land.

Dotted with hundreds of islands...  most are State owned, and many 

have campsites on them, accessible only by boat.

Here we are in Paradise Bay.   A group of close islands with campsites on them.

The camping islands range from small single site islands to larger islands

with dozens of campsites.

Three Brothers Island.

A group of three privately owned islands spanned by a covered bridge with

boat docks below the bridge.

Lake George figured prominently in the Battles between the French in Canada

and the British in America for control of the continent.

The Lake was right in the middle of the route from Lake Champlain in the North

and the Hudson River to the South.

During the French and Indian war the British placed cannons in the narrow sections of

the lake where the water was shallow.   They built up rock cairns and placed the cannons

on these cairns.

The  Cannon Batteries were referred to as "floating batteries" since they appeared to sit

right on the surface of the water.

Below you can see a rock cairn (just left of center).

The island in the background is named Floating Battery Island due to the

large number of floating batteries that surrounded it.

Later - Lake George figured prominently in our battle for independence.

If you have seen the movie "The Last of the Mohicans", this movie was all

about the Lake George Area, and Fort William Henry is located in

what is now Lake George Village.

We are staying at the Lake George RV Park.

The Party Bus is too big for the state parks at the Lake.

The RV Park is nice and wooded.

Full hookups, 50 Amp, and Cable TV at all sites.

Today - Saturday - we took a day trip north to Ticonderoga NY to visit

Fort Ticonderoga.

Along the way we stopped at a lookout above Lake George for this shot.

Fort Ticonderoga was built by the French in 1753 to control the overland route from

Lake Champlain to Lake George.   It was situated at the southern end of Lake Champlain.

This was the southernmost post of the Canadian French forces just as

Fort William Henry (just 40 miles or so south at the south end of Lake George) 

was the northernmost post of the British at the time.

Just a few of the people who have passed thru this gate"

George Washington, Benjamin Franklin,  Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen.

The list is much much longer.

The fort changed hands between the French and British, and later the

British and Americans, several times.

This is inside the forts walls.

Looking out at the ramparts.

Note the old glass.

Standing on the upper inner ramparts.

Looking down to the business end of a 16 pounder.

Note the cannons on the lower ramparts as well.

Another view inside the fort looking down from the ramparts onto the parade ground.

Old Glory flies proudly over the fort.

The staff all wear period clothing that is made in the original manner on site

(including the footwear)  you can not only see it all being made, but there are also

cannon and other weapon demonstrations.

Below we saw a musket demonstration.

Fire!

Tomorrow is our last day at the Lake.

Then Ron and Maxine head to Maine and we head south for home.

But first we have a barbecue to attend.

More good food....  Oh the Humanity!