Part 5…out west

I’m not sure if i ever said the real reason we went out WEST…. well it was to visit with our Grand Daughter. Colorado is  great distance form New York air travel is about 1,670 miles. a pretty good distance, so we tried to make the best of our time.

she’ll be three next month. so while she was in day care. we did some traveling around .

this is Breckenridge,Colorado. which sits at 9600 ft. and the summit of the ski resort is upwards of 13,ooo which is upwards of 2 miles above sea level., and yes i did feel like i was sea sick. it didnt matter how much water i drank. i felt so bad i didnt ever have a cocktail.

it was so pretty and so many things to do there.

its only been a ski resort since 1961. they have kept a lot of the charm,by keeping alot of the historic buildings. before all of the skiers took hold, of course it was a place for prospectors

many trails off the main roads, and places to just unwind.

and then when you think your feeling better .because of the altitude , you try a Little shopping  but soon realize you ned to find some shade and rest again 🙂 remember this was after all in July and the temps reached over 100 degrees:)

well, that about does it for me.  if you came along for my little journey, thank you:)

Out West….Part 4

Well our time in San Francisco was short-lived, as we intended , it was time to get to the train station.

We arrived a few hours early and were lucky enough to get on an earlier train.

We were surprised, we didn’t have to show our passports, or even our tickets, b4 we boarded. No proof of who we were at all.

So…  we all got comfy and then some one came to look at tickets, but never Asked for any other proof. Anyway…..

There were times the trains were so close I had to get away from the window, just one of my phobias :).

So the trip was really on.

some very interesting turns

a small town we went through.

yep… this close

it was a while b4 we actually got out of California.

One of our very first stops was a town my husbands’ cousin lives in

Davis California.

We were only there about 5 min. .. And off we went. Going at a pretty decent speed.

coal.coal and more coal

. And it was some time before the train stopped again.

a view from the viewing car.

a view from our seats.

this is the sight-seeing car, we did meet many nice people.

well that will do it for today.   up next is all the mnts. and a River. and a few more towns,

Out West …Part 3

in Part 2, i explained how we stayed at this Bed and Breakfast all i can say is, next time ill do al of my own planning.  we used our auto club for all of this, ony because i was nervous about screwing something up.ive never been out west, and we were taking more modes of transportation than i was accustomed to taking care of.. planes, trains, auto:) and that was just to get to our final destination…. to see our beautiful Grand Daughter…cross country 🙂

so anyway, this was on the 3rd floor. and it was an extra room off of our bedroom, I was thankful for it, because i don’t sleep well, so it was my little hide away in the middle of the nite, and id play words with friends:)

 

a very elegant building , everything you would expect in Francisco. and of course it was on a hill. the history is deep. with this building, and it was one of the original  Historic painted Ladies..  

the best part of this was meeting some of the people we ate breakfast with this is an Author, of self-help books,from Texas . she came to help get her Grand Daughter situated in the big City . and then there was wine and cheese offered every evening.

the kitchen. and as you can clearly see, theres a micro wave and a te kettle.but no where coud i find tea bags. oh well 😦        I fell in love with al of the stained glass.

 

as grand as it looks , I could not even get a cuppa when i wanted, there was only some one there in the morning to serve the breakfast (which was a cold breakfast) and then again at 6 pm to put our the wine and cheese. and… that was it!!!  and, this place was not centrally located, i could not just run out the door, and get a coffee or tea. but it was for 2 nites, and i survived 🙂 if anyone looks this place up, a lot of the reviews are fantastic.. I’m not exactly sure why. im not a snob, when it comes to staying at places. but i can tell you if i ever make it back to San Francisco again, ill do all of my own booking.

if you stopped by thanks in advance.

 

 

My Trip Out West…..Part 2

This was the first time i’d ever been to San Francisco , we left our home with beautiful hot July weather to cold damp low 60’s, even though we were told it would be cold , and i tried to pack appropriately  , I froze  , since our time was limited we spent the day at Fisherman’s wharf. lots to do, tons of restaurants to choose from, old buildings repurposed,and plenty of tours to pick from.and just a great walk,all around the Bay.

even things for the little people  to do.

the City By The Bay.

since we were short on time, and Uber’d around the 36 hours we were there.  we decided to spend it at the Wharf. this is a shot i was able to get on our way back to our B&B.

looking forward to sharing  photos of this place next time.

if you stopped by thank you. have a wonderful day.

One Fine Day

 

This past Mothers day  ,we took a hike at One Of NY States #1 parks. Lovingly called The Grand Canyon Of the East.  Letchworth State Park. Only 1/2 an hour from our house

A Niagara Falls and Grand Canyon  affair all rolled into one

we were so lucky to come as early as we did,

Glen iris Inn

this fine restaurant is home to many weddings and even just a lovely meal. we didn’t have a reservation , so there was not a chance in hell of eating there.

I knew we’d never get into the restaurant, so we found a nice spot to have a little lunch.

 

even if the park was packed, there are so many spots to choose from.

after a bite to eat, it was time to finish our hike

and… of course no hike is complete ..with out walking a million or so stairs

yep.. that’s the man, making sure I don’t tumble..or get lost:)

and no trip anywhere is complete. Until you use the facilities 🙂

this is one of the best parks around and to have it so close to home, I’m not sure why we don’t go more often. but they also have camping here and ill save that for another time, we did walk around and look at all the types of cabins they had , I don’t camp!!!!!

if you stopped by , thanks so much, and if your ever find yourself around this are, make sure you take at least a ride through.  this state park has so much to offer with its changing landscapes, and constant beauty.

 

 

 

 

Manatee State Park

  I had such an awesome time on my journey through Florida. like i said earlier.. im starting some where in the middle of my trip. somewhere in this link is a web cam and any one can see how many Manatees come to this location  each day. the day we went there were over 200. and im told that was a low number.  but for me it was over whelming, in all my years of going to Fl. ive never been able to see these creatures..EVER!
https://www.floridastateparks.org/sites/all/themes/adaptivetheme/at_core/scripts/html5.js?ojxf68

at first i thought it was a joke, and this was all i was going to see…..

we weren’t fortunate enough to be able to swim with them .

the water is so crystal clear, and with the reflection from the sun..it was hard to get decent photos… but heres a young one coming up for air.

all those shadows…..yep the mother load of Manatees

there were some workers trying to get them to swim more so we could see them better, and they take very good care of these obsolete creatures.

its such a beautiful park, so well maintained, and it only costs $3.00 a car to get in.

it was here LittleOh lost some body parts and her camera. she thought this was a Gecko’ trying to get her.

plenty of places to sit , wash your feet.. if you need to 🙂  but you know i love my benches:)

gift shops and cafeterias along with  vending machines

rest rooms were impeccably clean

the whole area was just breathtaking

plenty to look at here.. but take a closer look.. theres’ mamma manatee and her baby. i was so thrilled. only wish i could have gotten a better shot of them. the sun was so bright.

so it ws tiem to g=o visit my friends’ Daughter and G’kids.  and after  that..

what else….. food and drink.. when Im in Fl. i like to eat as much fish as i can. so i had grouper fingers. and… fish dip.     my friend doesn’t  like seafood at all, she had …a pork chop.

cheers.

so yeah we drank and ate some where in Lake Mary. at a place called Duffy’s

all i can say is.. watered down  vodka!!!

so we moved on the the next bar, after all we didnt have to drive our hotel was just a few feet from this concourse

another Irish bar, and this was when i knew i had been drinking watered down vodka…at the other place.   but any way, this was the outfit the females wore. they were cute.. 

.

heres litttleOh all put back together again. ,

well that will do it for today, if you stopped.. and i hope you did:)  i hope you liked what you saw.. and please have a great rest of the week…oh yeah and week end..since today is Thursday:)

gorgeous…or is it…gorges…… lets take a hike

Gorges…Walk in the Park Ithaca is Gorges, New York’s Finger Lakes, and beyond

so ..now that you have walked up all those stairs…turn around and take a look

by the time you finish walking through this particular park (the trails are man made) the rest has been formed by glaciers. this particular area sits  between 2 finger lakes. you will have walked up 60 flights of stairs. YES.. I said 60!!! so put your sneaks on and lets go

ok, lets keep walking, and make sure you have everything covered.. or your going to get wet. also..see way on top that thing that is coming across, that’s a bridge.. I don’t do heights, but ill be getting closer…..eventually 🙂

one of the many bridges, out of many steps to get to the top. I can almost hear that water running.

I’m always tell the Mr. to get out of my way..He doesn’t like to be all over in my photos:) oh well he didn’t move, and I like this shot.

so we got to walk on flat surface  ill gain my strength back here:) my knees were really stating to burn.

you can see a few of the levels, these were taken the end of Oct.  that’s why you see all the leaves

a side shot, the natural sounds were so relaxing

watch where your walking.. all that run off will kill a camera. and ..there are snakes, not bad ones..but I DO NOT like  them at all, I don’t care what size they are. 

 

can you hear the beauty?

remember that 2nd photo where I told you to look up? well this is the suspension bridge, maybe one day I can walk on it, but my fear of heights always gets me.

ok.. catch your breath.. here we go.. you either walk back or climb all those stairs, and wait for the  bus to take you back down. yep I climbed upward and onward:) of course with a few breaks in between, remember I told you earlier.. 60 stories high….

I did have all my notes at one time.. but my old pc crashed, and this is what I have left. heres a little info about this park.

Watkins Glen State Park is located outside the village of Watkins Glen, south of Seneca Lake in Schuyler County in New York‘s Finger Lakes region. The park’s lower part is near the village, while the upper part is open woodland. It was opened to the public in 1863 and was privately run as a tourist resort until 1906, when it was purchased by New York State.^[1][2] Initially known as Watkins Glen State Reservation, the park was first managed by the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society before being turned over to full state control in 1911.^[1] Since 1924, it has been managed by the Finger Lakes Region of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.^[3]

Jacob’s Ladder, near the upper entrance to the park, has 180 stone steps, part of the 832 total on the trails

The centerpiece of the 778-acre (3.15 km²)^[4] park is a 400-foot-deep (120 m) narrow gorge cut through rock by a stream – Glen Creek – that was left hanging when glaciers of the Ice age deepened the Seneca valley, increasing the tributary stream gradient to create rapids and waterfalls wherever there were layers of hard rock. The rocks of the area are sedimentary of Devonian age that are part of a dissected plateau that was uplifted with little faulting or distortion. They consist mostly of soft shales, with some layers of harder sandstone and limestone.

The park features three trails – open mid-May to early November – by which one can climb or descend the gorge. The Southern Rim and Indian Trails run along the wooded rim of the gorge, while the Gorge Trail is closest to the stream and runs over, under and along the park’s 19 waterfalls by way of stone bridges and more than 800 stone steps. The trails connect to the Finger Lakes Trail, an 800-mile (1,300 km) system of trails within New York state.^[3]

well I hope your not as sore as I was from that climb:)  and as we waited for the bus to pick a bunch of us up, an older couple sat next to us, they were on vacation. well no one thought you’d have to pay for the bus ride.. silly us after all its NYS..we have to pay for everything. including getting into the park. anyway.. they didn’t bring any money with them,   luckily my Mr.  had just enough to get all 4 of us on the bus.  the thought of those people walking all that way back.. even if it was all downward.. was too much for me, I cant even imagine how it would effect them. so they were very grateful. and promised to pay us back when we got to our cars.  it was $4.00 a piece. (what a racket) so we talked with them while we were on the bus, id say they were in their early 70’s perhaps. from Ohia:) Ohio, Pennsylvania    must be some town way south, because they had an accent .  anyway, we got off the bus, and He pulls out his wallet from the trunk , and starts shoving all this money at my Mr.   well we ended up having lunch on them:)  they insisted , we ended up with a 20 dollar bill.  for lending them 8 bucks. just goes to show you, if your nice it comes back to you.:)!!!

well thanks for stopping I hope you enjoyed yourself, and again I’m sorry I’ve been away, but now that I’m up and running with my new PC, ill be back to visiting everyone.

the Erie Canal at my back door..Part1

just a little History, before I begin my photo journey .  although I am use to living just steps away from a great lake, I cant complain at all , having the canal so close, its wonderful, we meet so many people in the summer months, who love to talk about their travels along the canal, where they been with the  with the boats (of all sizes). We live just minuets  from 2 towns on the Canal, we spend a great deal of  time between the 2.

The Erie Canal is a canal in New York that originally ran about 363 miles (584 km) from Albany, New York, on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, at Lake Erie. Built to create a navigable water route from New York City and the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, the canal helped New York eclipse Philadelphia as the largest city and port^[1][2] on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. The canal is now part of the New York State Canal System.

First proposed in 1807, its construction began in 1817. The canal contains 36 locks and a total elevation differential of about 565 feet (172 m). It opened on October 26, 1825.^[2]

on the Erie Canal, in Fairport,New York, on a friday Nite

a summer time vacation

family activities

well thats about it for now, next time we”ll take a walk to see what the canal was used for back in the day, and what they have changed into for modern times. thanks for stopping by. have a pleasant week