Back on the trail

I parked my car at a lot a few miles further along the trail and walked about 2-1/2 miles, which is 5 miles round trip.  My legs are hurting, and I can't understand why they should  since I walk a lot to begin with.  

The sun was extremely bright today which makes the shady spots that much darker - not great for picture taking.  Also, I discovered that the distance from one end of the trail at Hopewell Junction to the other end at the Walkway over the Hudson (Poughkeepsie) is only 13 miles.  The person who told me the mileage thought it was 26 miles one way, but that would be round trip.  I wish I had started walking it sooner and could have done the entire trail, but as I only have 1 week left with other plans for some of those days I might not be able to walk to the other end.  It is slow when you have to walk for a distance and then double back.

(I tried to add a couple of photos but for some reason they look cockeyed and slanted on the page.  I can't figure out why that would be, but I think Google/Blogger doesn't like me at all.)

Most days since I've been here I haven't seen the deer, but they were out this morning.  Several were grazing in the back yard while one juvenile was running around in circles and leaping in what seemed like joy!  I also saw some on the road when driving out to the trail.  I will miss them and maybe I should start walking on the American River Parkway when I get back to Sacramento.  There are lots of deer there (as well as signs that mountain lions are in the vicinity).

The leaves are just barely starting to turn, and I should see a little more color during the coming week.  Some trees have leaves that turned to yellow, but I want to see the beautiful reds of the east before I go.

Weekend trip

We boarded Amtrak at the New Rochelle station in NY and headed for the Baltimore airport stop (BWI).  From there we picked up a rental car and drove to our hotel nearby.  Ara joined us on the train at the Philadelphia stop;  Katy & Stephanie took a bus from NY, and Steve picked them up at their stop.  We finally all joined up.  Mike and his family had one room, and I shared with the 3 girls.  It was fun, and certainly a lot of giggling went on.

The train trip was great.  The longest stop, although in actuality a fairly short one, is Penn Station in NYC.  I always loved that station and caught my train there many times.

Waiting at New Rochelle.  I would have had to stand on the edge of the platform to get a head-on picture of the sign.

 On Saturday morning we headed for Annandale, VA in two rental cars.  Mike had thought about having us take the train to DC and then the metro to VA., but on Saturday the traffic was fine and I was glad to enjoy the view.

I had a wonderful time visiting with family that I haven't seen in years.  This is Stephanie and me with my Aunt Lenora.

We sat and brought ourselves up to date with what's been happening, while eating and drinking from a delicious spread Lenora provided.  I'm so grateful to have had this opportunity to visit my aunt who has meant so much to me throughout my life.  She served as a mentor in much of my growing up and into my working life.

Here are most of the group.  I believe Sandy took the photo, so of course she's not in it.

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After we left my aunt's house we drove into Washington, DC so the boys could see the White House and the Lincoln Memorial.  We split up into two groups, and son Steve, Katy, Ara and I didn't really want to do a lot of walking so I snapped a couple of photos and then we headed off to a sidewalk cafe for refreshments.

The other group managed to see the World War II Memorial, the Korean Memorial, and the Vietnam Memorial.  I've seen the Vietnam Mem. many times but never the WW II.  Maybe the next time in DC I'll manage to see it.

We also managed to drive past the condo where I lived in Northern VA.  The condo bldg. looks pretty much the same although the area has grown so much that I could hardly recognize it.  We had dinner at a favorite restaurant in Falls Church, VA - called Ireland's Four Provinces, or the 4 P's as we've always referred to it.  Everyone was happy and content with their selection, and I sure enjoyed my pint of Guinness, although the Guinness is much better in Ireland than when it's imported.  (I think they  have to pasteurize it in order to import it into the U.S.)

Just before catching our train back to NY we ate at a seafood restaurant recommended by my cousin, and I had the best crabcakes I've ever eaten in my life!  You have to get them in Maryland to get the best.

The weekend sped by and we all had to eventually say good-bye to each other.  Steve caught a flight back to Sacramento, Katy and Stephanie returned to NYC, Ara got off the train in Philadelphia, and we finally made it back to Dutchess Co.  I slept well last night.

I would like to have taken more photos, but many of them didn't turn out so well.  I took quite a few through the window of the train, but couldn't use any of them after all.

We have another side trip planned tentatively for this coming Thurdsday.  If so, I should be able to get some great photos!   (If I remember to turn my camera on and point it at something.)

(NOTE:  I have no idea why the font keeps changing in this post.  I think Blogger is a piece of crap, although it's probably the easiest of all the crappy programs to use for blogging.)

Rails to trails

I walked today, about 3 miles which took me an hour.  That's about what Ara and I did earlier in the week.   I had intended to walk yesterday and then visit the depot which is only open Wed., Sat. and Sun., but I had driven halfway to the trailhead before realizing I was wearing Birkenstocks, so I just skipped it.

It was a beautiful day and there were quite a few folks out walking as well as biking.  Even so, I had stretches of trail all to myself and it is a very peaceful walk.  I've been told it goes all the way to the Hudson River at Poughkeepsie, and I'm not sure but would imagine that is 40 or 50 miles of trail, round trip.

I took several pictures:  (click to enlarge)

The pond winds around and I couldn't see either end of it.  The stuff floating in the water is lily pads.  I thought the box on the pole might be a birdhouse but I got close enough to read the sign, and these are bat boxes, a sustainable way to keep the insect population down.

More pictures of the woods on either side of the trail as well as the pond.  

Back at the depot.

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I remember as a child riding the train to my grandparents' farm in Kentucky and every little station we pulled through had those old wagons ready to pile on the luggage and freight for that stop.  They were usually pulled by one person and sometimes the luggage seemed to be stacked sky-high.

That's all I've done for today, and no doubt all I'm going to do except to pack for our weekend trip down to the Washington, DC area.  We will visit my aunt who lives in Northern Virginia, one of my mother's sisters, who just turned 86 a week ago.  I have always been close to her but in the last few years just couldn't do the drive into the metro DC area.  My son arranged for us to take the train from NY, and we will be joined first by two nieces (Katy and Stephanie) at Penn Station, then Ara at Philadelphia, and on to Baltimore near the airport.  My son Steve is in for a conference near the Baltimore airport (BWI) and we will be joining up with him tomorrow evening.  We'll stay at a hotel in that area and will all take the train into DC and Northern VA on Saturday.   It should be a noisy and loving gathering, and I'm so excited about it.  My oldest son, Mike, has arranged the entire thing as well as my own trip to NY and back.  He is one of the most generous and thoughtful people I know!

Enjoying family

I just took Ara to the train station, but the goodbye wasn't so difficult since I'll be seeing her this coming weekend.

Justin's family birthday party was this past Sunday, and Ara and Katy (my sister's oldest daughter) came for the day.  Katy went back to NY on Sunday  evening and Ara stayed until today.  We mostly sat around and talked, but yesterday walked a bit on the rails-to-trails walkway.  This coming weekend Stephanie will be visiting Katy for a week or so, and we are all going to get together for a fun weekend.

We had a few days of sunshine and woke up to rain this morning.  It stopped by the time I drove Ara to the station though, and I was glad to not have to drive in the rain.  This is such a beautiful area, in sunshine and in rain!

Not much else is happening today, but tomorrow I'm going back to walk on the trail.  Maybe I can remember to take some photos.

Pandemonium!

Before the pandemonium I will describe my climb up the hill with my 8 yr old grandson yesterday just before dark.

Here is the back yard, and we climbed up from the side and walked over to where we were behind the shed.  I wondered if I could make it and I did, with not too much trouble.

My grandson at one of their property markers:

He is such a great kid.  I kept telling him he should just go ahead of me but he stayed with me and kept a good eye out for my welfare, without being obvious about it.

It was a really strenuous climb up, and treacherous coming down - many rocks of all sizes, tree limbs, uneven terrain, thorny plants, etc., but I made it!

Today is the younger grandson's birthday.  But early today was the community parade and social event  at the park, and the boys were "marching" in the parade with their soccer teams.  My son Mike was going to walk with the younger boy's team, and Joshua said, but who will walk with me (his mom had another appointment and couldn't be there)?  Of course I piped up and said "I will walk with you".  I wasn't sure he would want me to but I was committed, and we all went to the staging area this morning.  That's where the pandemonium comes in.  

It was a good study in gender differences.  The girls stood in small groups and faced each other, eye to eye, and carried on conversations.  The boys shoved, pushed, and play fought each other the entire time!  I thought it was so funny and just the way it is in our lives no matter how old we get.  There is a definite difference in how we interact with those of our own gender.

Here are some shots of the team as well as the parade.  This was the most unorganized event I've ever seen in my life, and I loved it!  No one worried about it - very few groups stayed in any kind of order, and everyone in the community was either in the parade or came out to watch.  There is nothing to compare with the village or town communities in the northeast - the sense of togetherness, pride, and fun.

 I think I have a couple of pictures out of order, but the parade ended in the community park where there were a lot of  local businesses who had booths, as well as a display of old military jeeps, World War II and Vietnam vintage.

This evening we went out for dinner to celebrate Justin's 6th birthday.  Tomorrow will be the family and close friend party - outside if the rain holds off - and then another party for school friends to follow in a week or two.  They love birthdays around here!

So my legs are tired and my feet hurt, and I've definitely eaten too much since I've been here.  I can barely find any pants that fit!  

Sandy's parents have been here this weekend as well, and it's always nice to be with them.

This morning Sandy, her mom and I went to the farm where she gets produce every two weeks, and picked our own vegetables and fruit.  Definitely a good start to the day, but I'm feeling my age tonight!

Wheels

I have wheels today, and drove a few miles to a nearby market to pick up some fruit and half & half for my coffee.  I didn't drive the van yesterday and last night told my son and d-i-l that I was nervous about driving it as it was larger than anything I've driven before.  They both stood there and laughed at me.  My son said, "It's not much bigger than your Highlander, and what about that Ford F-350 you used to drive pulling around that huge 5th wheel.  Oh, I forgot about that.  I did drive it, didn't I.  I also forgot about driving the kids around in a Chevy Suburban when they were little.  The Sienna has just about every safety feature on the market, although I could never find a lever to move the seat back.  I always drive with the seat far enough back that I can just reach the pedals.  A guy I knew who worked for the MD State Police once told me that most people in accidents get hurt when they are thrown into the steering wheel, and that I should move the seat back as far as I could.  I've done that ever since.

I was wondering if the deer would come down out of the woods and through the yard as they've always done, and we saw one on the hillside yesterday evening.  I didn't even try to take a photo as I was holding on to my younger grandson - he enjoys pounding on the sliding door and sending the deer running.  I finally gave up and the deer scampered off into the woods.  I'll get pictures sometime while I'm here, for sure.

The weather is beautiful:  overcast skies with a sprinkle now and then, and temperatures in the low 70's.  I'm loving it and glad I don't have to suffer the triple digits expected in Sacramento for the next several days.

 

Great, So Far

I thought I'd post a quick update to say that I arrived on time in NY yesterday afternoon.  Both the flights to Chicago and to White Plains were perfect - no time delays, good seating, and no problems with weather.  Also, I was thrilled to find I had been "Pre-screened", so I just put my carry on and purse on the conveyor belt through the xray, while I walked through the archway to the other side.  No groping, no shoes off, and no indignities, plus a much shorter line.  I asked my son how I happened to be so lucky, and he told me "I gave them your age"!  It turns out that seniors and young children can be exempted from the regular screening process, or for those who travel often, they can submit a request and undergo a background check to avoid the hassles of full screening.

Jeannie had helped me into the airport in Sacramento and took care of checking in for me, really no problem except that I've never had to do the self-service thing.  We had already printed out my boarding passes but you still have to do something with them inside the airport.  I'll let Mike take care of it when I leave for Sac in 3 weeks.  Personally, I think all the self-service is more of a hassle than walking up to the ticket agent at the desk and having them check the luggage and print out the boarding pass, but in that case I know I'm just an old dog who doesn't want to learn new tricks! 

I had a very difficult time sleeping the night before I left Sacramento and I find it impossible to sleep on a plane, so I have a day of rest planned today.  Sandy drove her Jeep to work so I could have the mini van available, but I'm a little hesitant as I've never driven a mini van before.  I'll get used to it but today I'll probably rest at home since I have the place all to myself.

Leaving Chicago the plane flew out over Lake Michigan and then there was a pretty good cloud cover most of the way to my destination.  When we flew low and under the clouds the final few minutes I was amazed at how green everything was, but most of all with all the water - lakes, rivers, reservoirs, etc., much different than the dry west.  I have really missed the lush features of this part of the country and feel like I'm "back home".  

The boys have grown so much and I'm so glad I'm here for a few weeks.