Perfect day in Scarborough, ME
Here are some additional pics from our recent trip to Maine. Includes trip to Belfast, ME, some photos from our summer picnic prep, dinner at Portland’s Back Bay Grill (their #1 restaurant), a visit to an Armenian picnic and, finally, a quick trip to a beach in Scarborough.
Vinalhaven, Maine
It’s great to be back in Maine again and this year we decided to continue our island tour. This year we decided to head up to Vinalhaven which is a 75 minute ferry ride off the coast of Rockland. The experience was phenomenal and included an overnight stay in a wonderful AirBNB home owned by Anne and her family from MA. We were able to fit in a short hike, pre-dinner wine and cheese at the house followed by a great meal at a local restaurant called Salt.
I know I always say that I will let the photos do the talking but this time it was really tough to take a bad photo….so I will definitely let them do the talking this time around. I hope you enjoy!
On the road in upstate New York
If you have read any of the recent posts on this blog, you will notice that we are really big fans of the band, The National. So, when I learned that they would be playing two small shows in Hudson, NY to promote their new album, I quickly mobilized the troops–my nephews and sister–and bought tickets and started planning the quick weekend trip.
We decided on an itinerary that included stops at Trogues Brewery in Hershey, PA and back to Ommegang Brewery in Cooperstown, NY with a one night stay over in Windham, NY on the way back.
The plan went like clockwork as I departed KY on Friday morning and arrived in Pittsburgh in the late afternoon. We all woke up early on Saturday and the adventure began. Thankfully, the long drive was more than worthwhile as Basilica Hudson–the venue for the concert–was much smaller and intimate than I imagined and the show turned out to be beyond my expectations.
The breweries and great food were a bonus.
I was back in KY the following Monday afternoon. Not sure if it is possible to do more in a weekend but I’m sure I will try sometime soon.
I won’t go into much more detail–as usual, I’ll let the photos do the talking…
Lastly, I have to include an Ohio rant and a plea to The Donald. Don, Ohio’s roads are screaming for help. Please send a boatload of infrastructure dollars their way–please! I have seen worse roads but they are in the middle of a desert in Turkmenistan. Ohio deserves better. So, please Don, make Ohio’s Roads Great Again–I will guarantee that your poll numbers will improve if you start opening up that infrastructure wallet. If you can’t manage to do this, then consider building a wall around Ohio so I will be forced to drive around it.
Billboard on Interstate 71 between Columbus and Cincinnati. Yes, Hell is Real–it’s driving on the awful roads of Ohio.
At Deer Lakes Park
A couple of days ago, I did a short 20 mile out and back bike ride that I used to do with a good friend of mine when we were in high school…was that really 38 years ago? Back then Dave F. and I started in the Allentown section of Pittsburgh and rode Rt. 28 to Shaler and then rode up Saxonburg Boulevard to Deer Lakes Park. That was a bit of a suicide mission back then as the 10 mile ride along heavily traveled Rt. 28 was unnerving…I wouldn’t even consider trying it today.
Instead of the full trip from Allentown, I strapped my bike to the Thule rack and drove the car to Shaler Plaza…the beginning of Saxonburg Boulevard. The weather was perfect and the ride brought back some really good memories…and really bad ones too…the hills!
Despite the challenges the hills presented (I am probably +40 pounds since high school), I didn’t push the bike once. Actually, it was a very manageable ride…nothing like the 65 mile killer I experienced in Oregon last summer.
Stopped at the halfway point and had breakfast at the Deer Creek Diner where the food is excellent and the portions could feed a family of four.
A really great short trip and I certainly didn’t miss the stress of riding on Rt. 28–inches away from cars going 60-70 mph. Funny how getting older makes you much more risk averse…or smarter…or both.
Some pics:
The National announced a last-minute concert in their hometown of Cincinnati earlier this week to support the Get Out the Vote campaign. This was only a 90 minute drive up the road from me and a proverbial “hop, skip and a jump” compared to the 15 hour road trip we took to western Massachusetts to see them in June. The short trip combined with mid-70 degree near record-high temps for early November made for a great night. The best part was arriving a couple of hours early to see the sound check…me and about 10 other folks got to see and hear a few songs. Here are a few videos from the afternoon and evening. The first video, the song Pink Rabbits, is from the sound check. I apologize for the overly loud sound of the other videos; I guess I was too close to the stage.
