Niagara Falls and Freshwater Oceans

First, let me say right off the bat, that Niagara Falls is one of the biggest tourist traps I've ever encountered... from the Information Center that smells like rancid grease to ripping off every nickel from each tourist at every turn, this is tackiness at its best (or worst depending on your definition of tacky). However, the Falls themselves and the surrounding grounds are spectacular. I won't belabor the point; the included pictures speak for themselves.

What was more impressive than the Falls though were Lake Erie and Ontario... I first got a glimpse of Lake Erie from the highway into Erie, PA. There were huge container ships in the distance steaming westward. Moving into Buffalo, there were significant waves lapping up against the docks due to the lake winds. Oh, speaking of lake winds - check out the picture of Buffalo's attempt at renewable energy. A wind farm with five or six turbines sitting right on the shore line! This was so incongruous to the downtown Buffalo skyline, I burst out laughing and had to pull over to take this picture (click on the picture to see it in a larger image).

Unfortunately, the rest of Buffalo was much sadder. Factory after factory along the waterfront was shuttered down including the Ford and GM powertrain plants. If there is a recovery underway, it sure hasn't made it to Buffalo's industrial sector. In fact, throughout my tour so far, it's very obvious that the Upper Midwest is still suffering deeply from the recession. Empty storefronts, closed car dealerships and many, many homes for sale with foreclosure signs on the door. Given that this region of the country has traditionally been dependent on the industrial sector for jobs and a thriving local economy; it's hard to conceive that there will be a return to good times in the near future.

Kentucky Horses and Ohio Amish Country

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Spent several hours at the Kentucky Horse Farm Museum and the stables. The museum is sponsored by the Smithsonian and boy, does it show! Even though this museum is dedicated to the horse - it really shows how dependent civilization was on the horse to literally and figuratively move forward. I particularly liked learning how Americans came to drive on the right hand side - won’t ruin the surprise for anyone planning on visiting the museum but let’s just say that Conastoga wagons played a large role in establishing how we drive today! The museum also had an incredible display of carriages, horse drawn sleighs and all sorts of farm tools… quite fascinating! Of course, there were horses of all kinds as well. My favorites are the working draft horses - Clydesdales, Perchons etc. These equines are enormous but very gentle and laid back. Another breed there was the Palomino. It's a favorite of mine as my grandfather Dixon had one when I was a child by the name of Rob Roy. Granddaddy used to take me for rides on Rob Roy out on his ranch in Waller, Texas. Ever since then I have always admired horses despite not being a particularly experienced rider. Reluctantly, the dog and I had to leave to further our trip north into Ohio.

Ohio is another well-kept secret! Although I only saw a small sliver of the state, it is a gracefully beautiful and bucolic region. The campground I stayed at was near Butler, Ohio which is the beginning of Amish Country. Narrow winding roads ease their way through picture perfect farm landscape scenes: white picket fences, old farm houses, red barns, haystacks in the meadow, white and black faced sheep perched on the side of a hill grazing, and trees just beginning to turn colors. This will be a place I will return to in order to sample more of the countryside (and hopefully some good Amish cooking!)

Blue Kentucky Girl

Tuesday September 29, 2009

Headed out early with the capital of Kentucky as my destination. The drive over was through heavy forests and rolling hills with many state parks along the way. Pulled into Frankfort mid-afternoon (lost an hour due to the time zone change). Frankfort has a wonderful history center and museum along with a charming downtown historical district. Spent a couple of hours there then headed out on the old Franklin Pike Road. This 17 mile rural road winds through some of the largest horse farms in the area. I have never seen so many perfectly manicured pastures with the requisite thoroughbred horses grazing and the excessively large mansion and barns in the middle of these pastures. There must have been no less than 20 John Deere tractors out mowing various fields. Since I was in Kentucky Derby country, it was only proper to stay at the Kentucky Horse Farm State Park Campgrounds. Wow! This campground gets a 10+ on the awesome scale! Can you sing a verse of “My Old Kentucky Home???”

All aboard for Paducah!

Monday September 28, 2009

Left West Memphis mid morning with a beautiful sunny day ahead of me. Headed up towards Missouri and western Kentucky. It had been an uneventful drive until I hit the bridge that crosses the Mississippi River where the Ohio River converges into the Mississippi. OMG! The crossing was a very high narrow bridge and the wind was blowing about 30 miles per hour. I know that the truckers coming towards me could see the whites of my eyes as I crept along hoping not to a) flip over into the river b)scrape my RV mirrors against the bridge structure or c) collide head-on with an 18 wheeler! Breathed a sigh of relief when I hit solid land only to be stunned again when I had to cross an even BIGGER bridge over the Ohio River! Same issues as the first bridge… One bizarre note about the second bridge: there was a guy on a bicycle riding on the opposite side - I couldn’t believe it! Neither could the truckers who were coming towards him… didn’t look back to see if he made it.

Finally arrived in Paducah, Kentucky otherwise known as the Quilt City USA. As any bonafide quilter would do, I made the pilgrimage to Paducah’s Quilt Store of Kentucky and the National Quilt Museum. Spent some bucks on more fabric for my stash and marveled at some of the most beautiful quilts I have ever seen… managed to tour a bit around downtown Paducah and learned that Lewis and Clark used the city as their jumping off point for their adventures. Great little downtown area full of charm and history. I plan to return soon to follow up on the historical aspect of this lovely city. Bedded down in a small little RV camp near the Kentucky Dam.