Our trip to the Canadian Rockies began with a flight into Calgary.   With the desire to fly out of San Jose instead of San Francisco, James picked out a flight that connected at Phoenix on US Airways with an early afternoon departure that seemed to have a reasonable overall travel time.  But once we got to Phoenix, Jessica start calculating travel time and asked why we didn’t fly direct from San Francisco, which would only have a three hours flight time to Calgary.   Aside from the higher price for the direct flight – almost double – James wanted to keep the return trip home from airport short.  But his argument wasn’t too persuasive to Jessica.

We arrived at Calgary around 9PM local time, about 9 hours from when we left our house.  At immigration checkpoint, the agent surprisingly asked us a lot of questions – specifically asking us if we would be doing any business or meetings while we are there after we said we were there for pleasure (tourism) and then asking to see our reservation and itinerary.  Not really certain what the concern was, but he eventually let us pass.

One good aspect of the Calgary airport is that the rental car center is located right onsite, we just need to work across the street from the terminal to pick up our car.  We made sure that we figured out all the controls, including the GPS, before we drove away.   But one thing we didn’t catch until we started driving down the ramp from the rental place was there was a small “chip” on the center of the windshield with a circle around it that wasn’t mentioned in the paper work.  Initially, James thought that there would be a gatekeeper before leaving the lot as in most US airport lots, and he could point this out to the person.  However, there was no gatekeeper, so we called Hertz to report the issue to ensure it was noted on our rental record.

To avoid driving a long distance at night in an unfamiliar place, we stayed in Calgary that night.   By the time we got settled in our room at about 10:30PM local time.   With a full meal during the middle of the afternoon at the Phoenix airport, neither one of us was hungry; we both just ate an apple and some snacks we brought with us before getting to sleep.

The next morning, we were on the road by 9AM heading toward Banff.   We stopped at a Starbucks along the road out of Calgary for some latte and a small bite.   As this was a Sunday, the road was still relatively quiet when we headed out of the city.   We headed westward toward Banff on the Trans Canada Parkway (Route 1), the main highway connecting Canada east to west.   The scenery that unfolded before us as we drove west shows the vast expanse of open field through the horizon as far as the eye can see.   As we get closer to Banff National Park, the majestic mountains of the Rockies came into view.  As we later found out, these mountain ranges forms the Continental Divide, where water from these mountains would flow toward the Atlantic on the east side and toward the Pacific on the west.

Our first stop in Banff was to a restaurant recommended by a friend who had visited the area recently, Juniper Hotel Bistro.  The hotel restaurant sits just off the other side of Route 1 exit for Banff.   However, our GPS weren’t able to picked up address, so we ended up going into downtown Banff first and had to inquire of the hotel location at the Visitor Centre.  The detour gave us an opportunity to drive around there to get some familiarity as we had planned to stop by the town on our return trip back to Calgary.

The Juniper Hotel Bistro hits on a small hill that overlooks toward Banff.   Our timing turned out opportunistic because the Bistro was going through some renovation so was not open for dinner and was only open for breakfast/brunch for a few days a week during that period, and this turns out to be the only day during our visit it would be open.   Jessica ordered the Huevos Rancheros and James ordered the special Waffles.  Both were made so well that we decided to order a third entrée to taste, the Salmon Benny, even though we knew we probably wouldn’t be able to finish it.   The ingredients and the way of making those dishes gave it a special favor.   For the waffle, embedded bacons added a touch of favor and crunch.  The Huevos Rancheros used confit duck leg to go along with refried beans, orange gastrique and egg to give it a special favor.  And the hash of the Salmon Benny was absolutely delicious.  Plus the staff was very nice and indicated that the kitchen can provide variations of menu items as well.   Needless to say, both us were stuffed by the time we were done.

After brunch we headed off to Lake Louise, where we would staying for the next three nights.  We drove by ‘downtown’ Lake Louise, which is literally the size of a small strip mall by Route 1, but the drive into the lake area, particular when our hotel Fairmont (also known as Chateau Lake Louise) came into view against the mountain backdrop was breathtaking.   We had booked a room with a mountain view at the Fairmont, but Jessica decided to change to a lake view room at check-in.   Thus, from our hotel window, we had a view of Lake Louise that may be as well-known as any shot of the area.

After putting our things away, we decided to walk around the resort and take our free canoe ride on the lake.  We first strolled around the lake for a good hour and both of us took a bundle of pictures of the lake and surrounding mountains.  Then we took our canoe ride.  The lake itself is good size but small enough that we could have row around the lake inside of an hour.   The excitement during the canoe ride was Jessica and James battling on who is steering and the direction we were going.  But we were able to take some nice pictures from the middle of the lake, of the mountains and the hotel.  We even decided to purchase the official picture in the canoe to commemorate our canoe trip that all attractions seems to offer nowadays.

 

 

 

 

 

After the canoe ride, we decided to head to nearby Moraine Lake, which was located at the end of a side road along the road to Lake Louise.    Similar to Lake Louise, it is a picturesque alpine lake.  It was late in the afternoon by the time we arrived there, but we were still able to get some nice shots of the lake and its surrounding.   On our way back to the hotel, we stopped by the downtown area to get some supplies at the grocery store.

As neither one of us were very hungry as a result of our big brunch, we decided just to go to the lounge at the hotel, which offer some small bites during the evening.  They actually offer some nice appetizers, like mini-tacos, meatballs, deli meats, vegetables/salads, etc., along with various desserts, fruits and drinks.   It was enough to get filled up.    Afterwards, we just returned to our room to relax and to get ready for our next day’s venture to the ice field.

 

We again got up early the next morning for our all day excursion to the Columbia Icefield, which is inside of Jasper National Park.  James decided to have a small breakfast to avoid potential problems on the long bus ride.  We met up with the bus around 9AM at the hotel, which had originated from Banff and was making a stopover at Lake Louise for the passengers coming from Banff.  The bus took Route 1 westward for about 2 miles and then northward on Icefield Parkway (Route 93).    We make a number of stops along the way to see some of the scenic sites, such as Bow Lake, Waterfowl Lake, etc.    Of the stops, the vista point off North Saskatchewan River was most memorable due to its wide-angle view of the lake and valley.

 

Around noon, we stopped at the Icefield Visitor Center to have our lunch.  It was a typical buffet affair, nothing too memorable, but we did get a chance to exchange trip information with others in our group.   After lunch, we rode a specialized bus with wheels the size of a CAT tractor to take us onto the icefield.   Our bus driver is a retired bank executive from Japan, who had spend time in the area during his working days in North America and decided to spend the summers here to enjoy the fresh clean air after his retirement.   It was a short ride, but the most memorable part was going down a 45-degree embankment that felt like a straight drop.

 

 

 

 

 

We spend about 30 minutes on the ice.   There were 4 other buses there when we first arrived.   Most people hang around one area near the buses; with a few of us venture away a few steps further, climbing a small ledge onto a section a couple of feet higher that run over the horizon.  While the ice was mostly solid, there were spots where the ice was slippery and a bit slushy.  Not sure if one could falls through the ice, but didn’t really want to try to find out.   Our driver had told us that they don’t advise people hiking on the ice field alone, and we saw a group of people training on another part of the ice while driving to our spot on how to pull people if they fall into the ice.

The area we were on was only part of the Columbia Icefield, but the enormous size of the ice field that we can see was breathtaking enough.  The unfortunate part could be that with each passing season, the size of the ice field is shrinking.    After the ice field tour, we headed over to the Glacier Skywalk further up the road.   This attraction is a flexi-glass walkway cantilever over the canyon.  It does provide a nice view standing over walkway looking down into the canyon, but not as exciting as walking on the icefield.

It was close to 3PM by the time we started our trip back to the hotel.  We drove pretty much straight back, stopping only once for a quick bathroom break.  It was just past 5PM when we got back to the hotel.   We were exhausted and decided to just eat at the lounge again.   Afterward, we went down to the shops at the hotel and looked around outside the hotel along the lake, doing a bit star gazing against the pitch black background of the lake and mountains.

The next day, after a full and hearty breakfast at the lounge, we headed to the adjacent Yoho National Park, just to wander around the area and visit a few spots that were recommended by friends and that looked interesting to us.    We first went to the Yoho Visitor Center at the Village of Field to pick up some guides.  And we also end up picking up a small stuff moose there.  Starting with our first trip to Australia together, we now seem to pick up a stuff animal from every trip and place we visit.

The first area we visited was Emerald Lake.  On the way there, there is a lookout point with an impressive natural rock formation called the Natural Bridge that spans the Kicking Horse River.  We were the only people there when we arrived and were able to get some great pictures.  We were even able to walk right up to the rocks and look right over the fall.

 

 

 

 

 

Emerald Lake itself was another pristine alpine lake, enclosed by mountains.  There was also a hotel by the lake.  And there is a trail around the lake that one can take.  We walked about a quarter of the way around before heading back, after the paved ground gave away to some muddy trails.

The one area that was most interesting to us was Takakkaw Falls, one of the highest water falls in Canada.  It was one site that required driving deep into the mountain, and we still have to walk maybe half a mile to get a up close view.  But the view was worth it.   Being late in the season, there weren’t too many people around when we were there.  This is kind of area that brings to mind what the early explorer may have seen when they first visited this area.  And let’s all hope that we can keep this area as pure as it was then well into the future.

 

We start to head back to the hotel around 1:30PM to ensure we return by our reservation for afternoon tea at the hotel lounge at 2:30PM.   It was a classic afternoon tea spread, with a selection of tea choices.  The mini sandwiches were delicious, and the scones and pastries were also very good.  All this with a view of the lake in the foreground.   We were able to savor the food and tea while going what we have seen in the morning and checking over the pictures.

 

We went back to our room and rest a bit.  Jessica fell asleep.   James decided to take a walk outside around 4:30PM.   When James got to the area where some of the trails along the lake began, he decided to try to head to the famed Fairmont Lookout above the lake.  The signs says it was only 1.8km, so figured it would be a fairly short hike.   The first few hundred meters were easy enough, then the trail starts to trend more steeply uphill.  It starts to get laboring a bit, but the more worrying point was that after the 1km marker, there seem to be no more signs.  James kept hiking upward.  When the trail started to break out of the trees into the open, he thought the destination should be close.   There was a view of the chateau and surround area, but it was at a different angle than the standard view from the Lookout, and no view of the lake.  Anyways, after walking another 5 minutes, with sun going down, James decide to head back, didn’t want to end up spending the night up there.  Despite the hike, James wasn’t particular hungry; and Jessica was still full from the afternoon tea.   We decided to eat dinner at the lounge one more time.

The next day was our getaway day from Lake Louise.  We planned to spend the morning looking at sites along the way to Banff, have lunch in Banff and then looked around the town a bit before heading back to Calgary.

We visited a sanctuary area not too far from Banff off Trans Canada Parkway; it is an area build around Vermilion Lake, with a few marsh area where ducks and other water birds can be found in the area. The Vermilion Lake Road, which can be accessed just off the Banff exit from the Trans Canada Parkway,  run adjacent to this parkland along the Parkway, with a few parking spots where one can stop and walk around the area.   We spend about half an hour there walking around a few spots before heading into town.

Jessica selected a Chinese restaurant, Silver Dragon, in Banff for lunch, which is located on the south side of the Bow River.   The menus are definitely a more ‘Canadianized’ version of Chinese food, but the waiter offered a couple of menu options that he thought would be more for our taste.  He was also able to slow down Jessica from significantly over-ordering for the two of us, but we still end up with quite a bit of leftover, which the waiter insisted we take it with us to avoid waste.

After lunch, we walked around the downtown area to pick up some souvenirs.   Banff downtown is essentially a tourist shopping mall, but dressed up in a good way.  We picked up some basic stuff, like more small stuff animals.   Jessica also looked at some local fossilized stones that is unique to the area as well.

Around mid-afternoon, we started our way back to Calgary.  The drive back was mostly swift and uneventful until we reached the city.  Then it was typical mid-week rush hour traffic.  But we were able to reach our hotel, Holiday Inn Express Airport, before dusk.   One reason for the hotel selection is the early morning flight (7:45AM) we had the next day, and the hotel has a 24 hour shuttle service to the airport.  After we checked in, we drove to the airport to return our rental.  Even though we were just on the edge of the airport, and instruction from the hotel, we still got lost a bit.   On our ride back to the hotel on the Hotel Shuttle, we asked the hotel driver when we should leave in the morning for our flight.  His advised to get the airport by 5:00AM because it takes time to get through security there and told us the time his wife barely made her flight despite getting there 2 hours early.  Anyway, given it’s about a 10 minutes ride to the airport, we decided to leave the hotel at 5:00AM.

Only after we checked in the next day and pass through the security did we find out why it took so long to get to the terminal.  At the Calgary airport, you actually clear US immigration at the airport before you board the plane, and that was the line which took us about 45 minutes to get through.   By the time we got to the terminal, we had about 20 minutes to spare, just enough time to get something from Starbucks before we boarded.

Despite our frequent trips to the Boston area in the past, we never had a chance to enjoy and experience the fall foliage of New England. Finally this past October, Jessica and I decide to take a one-week trip there to see the foliage in the area. Our itinerary was to drive from Boston through New Hampshire into Canada and then back through Vermont to see the fall colors and visit some of the sites along the route. We generally had good luck with the weather during our trip and despite the rather hectic pace of our itinerary, we were still able to make some last minute detours and discovered some interesting gems.

It rained the night we arrived in Boston, which delayed our arrival by almost two hours. By the time we picked up our rental car, it was well past midnight. We had selected a hotel in Portsmouth, New Hampshire for our first night, to make our departure in the morning easier. But when we tried to enter the hotel address on the GPS, it didn’t recognize it. We called the hotel, and the receptionist told us the hotel and street is reasonable new and gave us another address to use on the GPS which would take us close to the hotel.

The one good thing of driving after midnight in the rain on an unfamiliar road is that there were few cars on it. Another good thing is that traveling west to east, our bodily clock was only at 9PM, so we weren’t too tired.   It was almost 1:30AM when we arrived at our Portsmouth hotel. And of course, the first set of “keys” given to us didn’t work and we had to go back to the reception to get another set. By the time we settled and got ready for bed, it was past 2:30AM. Only that, and this is the bad part of traveling east, between our body clock and getting amped up on the drive, we weren’t that sleepy. We had to force ourselves to sleep.

The next morning, we somehow got up before 9AM and were on our way not much past 9:30AM.   Our destination point for the day was Lake Tilton, New Hampshire, a jumping off point into the White Mountains. But we decided to swing into southern Maine along the coast first to get a look of the Maine coast before cutting back inland into New Hampshire.   Just as we reached into Maine on Route 1, we saw a Premium outlet plaza. Of course, we had to pay a visit.   And with the lower state sales tax in Maine, it seemed to make sense to buy things there.   That was before we realized that New Hampshire has no state sales tax and would have been even a better choice. Anyways, we each picked up a few items before continuing onward on Route 1.

We made a stop at the Hartley Mason Reserve in York, which has a perch above the York Harbor beach that gave Jessica her first great view of the Atlantic Ocean. We then proceed northward and reached Kennebunkport around noon. As we drove into the town, we saw a long line of people outside a place called the Clam Shack, which we decided to check out as a possible lunch choice after parking the car.   As we waited in line, we heard various people saying so and so recommend them to check this place out for their lobster roll, their fried clams, etc. Therefore, we decided to try their lobster roll, fried clams and clam chowder. Those turned out to be great choices. The lobster roll was filled with succulent lobster meat and the fried clams were one of the best we have tasted. And eating on the picnic bench adds to the atmosphere. After finishing our meal, we walked around the town.   While there were lots of boutique shops in the area, we were most captivated by the local houses, churches and other buildings. They showcased a quintessential small town New England architecture. We walked around for about an hour before hitting the road to Lake Tilton.

The drive along the smaller back roads provided us a great view of the fall colors along the road. There was a blend of different colors among the trees, the contrasts which made the view particularly brilliantly colorful. We stopped at a few spots for pictures, and the drive of the approximate 70 miles between Kennebunkport and Lake Tilton took us almost 3 hours.

After checking into our hotel and dropping off our stuff, we went out and drove around area.   There are several lakes in the area, and Winnisquam Lake being the largest in the immediate area. The late afternoon sun made it difficult to take pictures from some spots, but we were able to get a few in before dusk while driving around the lakes. We then returned back to the hotel for a rest and for Jessica to send out pictures we had taken that day on Wechat.

For dinner, we went to a diner recommended by the hotel manager, Tilton Diner. It served your basic Americana comfort food.   Jessica tried a local grilled white fish while James had the meatloaf with mash potatoes. Jessica also ordered a side salad that was as large as some meal size salad. We were quite stuffed by the time we finished.

Early the next morning, we started our way toward the White Mountains. James had saw a ‘beach’ on the map by Lake Winnpeasukee in Guilford he thought would provide a good view of the big lake. However, after arriving to the lake area, we found that most of the ‘beach front’ areas were private properties, not really seeing any public area we can walk around.   After driving around for a while, we started to leave the area when we saw a commercial pier area and decided to take a look. The pier has ferry boats for sightseeing tours, but by October, the tours and excursions seems to be wounding down; the snack shop was closed and only a few of the shops and restaurants along the street seemed to be open for business.   One benefit of coming late in the season is there were few people, and we can get unobstructed pictures of the area easily.

To head to the White Mountains, James selected a town (North Conway) that seems to be on the edge of the mountains. The GPS put us on Route 25 and 16. Among the sites we saw along the route was a pasture with cows. Jessica got off the car to take some pictures. However, when the cows started to move toward her, she got back into the car in a hurry and we drove off in quickly.

After we arrived at North Conway, there weren’t any obvious signs of how to get into the park area (technically White Mountain is a National Forest, but will still the term park to describe it). Jessica decided to call the park office and inquire on where we can drive to get into the park. The park ranger on the phone asked us where we were heading that night and suggested two routes through the park that would take us toward our destination, Littleton, New Hampshire.   Before heading out, we stopped at a Starbucks for a quick bite. By the time we hit the road, it was almost 3 o’clock.

As we turned into Route 112 (one of the suggested road) toward the park, we saw a park office just off the road. We went in and were able to get some map and suggestions on the points of interest along the road. There were a number of points of interests and view spots along Route 112 (The Kancamagus Highway) through the park. The rangers helped us in figuring out the places we should target before dusk sets in, which we selected 4 to 5.   The ones we liked the best were probably the Albany Covered Bridge and the Rocky Gorge Scenic Area, the latter has a wide viewing area with a few falls and rapids.

By the time we exited White Mountains and started northward on I-93, the sun was just beginning to set. The drive was uneventful until we got close to Littleton. The GPS had  initially directed us to the second Littleton exit, but the end point didn’t seem right. While lost, we saw a Co-op store and decided to grab some fruits and snacks. Then after resetting the GPS again, it had us heading back south toward the first Littleton exit. This time, we saw the hotel after getting off the freeway.

It was dark when we arrived at the hotel. Not wanting to venture too far, we decided to just walk down to the Applebee restaurant by the hotel. It was Friday night, and we had to wait about 20 minutes for a table. After ordering, things seem to start ok, with the waitress delivering our drinks and appetizer fairly quickly. Then after finishing our appetizer, it seemed a long time had passed, and our entrée still hasn’t arrived.   After about 45 minutes or so after the appetizer, we finally got our waitress’s attention. When she checked on our order, apparently the entree order somehow didn’t get into the system to the kitchen. The manager came out and apologized and indicated our meal that night would be on the house.   We have to commend the restaurant for accepting the responsibility of the wayward order.

The next day, we began our drive to Montreal. We took the most direct route via I-93 and I-91 toward the Canadian border. The border check was quick and simple, and we continued northward on the same road, which is now Autoroute 55. We decided to check out Parc du Mont-Oxford, a national park to the east of Montreal and just a short detour.

It started to drizzle when we arrived in the park. However, Jessica still wants to go to kayaking on the lake near the park entrance when she found out one can be rented. So we got a kayak, and she paddled around for about 20 minutes on the lake by herself, in the drizzle and all.   After cleaning up, as we were leaving the area, a park ranger was setting up a display of beaver pelts and wolf fur, giving us a chance to feel the difference between the two skins, showing us that the beaver fur was water proof and the wolf wasn’t. The ranger gave a brief but interesting talk about the animals in the park. After the talk, we headed inside the park, toward another lake and trail that was suggested.

We can imagine this area during the summer season would be full of people, but only a few people were in the area walking around when we were there. The suggested trail was a short 3K loop, which took us through the trees to another lake before looping back.   We ran into a few deer during our walk.

After leaving the park, we started heading toward Montreal westward on Autoroute 10. It started to pour once we got on the freeway. James had thought of getting something to eat along the way, but didn’t see any place to eat off the freeway, not even a Tim Horton. When we got close to the city, the rain lessened a bit, but the traffic backed up to a stop and go. The main bridge to the city was closed and traffic was routed to alternate roads. We were following signs on the road and the GPS kept resetting. It took over an hour from the time we were less than 10 miles away from the city before we arrived at our hotel (Hilton) near the center of town.

We had thought of walking around the area to look for a restaurant for dinner. However, with the rain coming down hard again, we decided to just eat at the hotel restaurant.   It turned out to be a pretty good choice.   Jessica’s New York steak and James’ seafood risotto, along with the soup and salad, were all done very well, and the portion was just about right.

 

 

The next morning, after a full breakfast at the hotel (our first and only full breakfast on the trip), we headed to Parc Mount Royal atop the city to see the view and the trees. First stop was the promenade area that offers a picturesque view of the city and the St. Lawrence River. The promenade was a wide plaza that offers a wide angle view of the city and the river for miles.   After spending some time there, we start walking around the park. Jessica wanted to find a bright red maple leaf.   There were plenty of maple leafs, on the ground and on the trees, and quite a number of red ones. However, none was at the quality she wants to keep as a souvenir.   We walked around for about an hour before heading out to our next destination.

A stop on our way back to the US, we cross the river to take a look at Parc de Sainte Catherine. The park is a bit of an islet off the St. Lawrence that offers an area for recreation; including a beach that opens during the summer. We drove around the park area and walked around some of the area that was still open to enjoy the scenery before staring our drive back to Vermont.

We put in Burlington as the destination on the GPS and just let it guide us. The GPS took us south on Autoroute 15 and to the border crossing at New York. We drove down I-87 to around Plattsburgh, before taking a route through a small town that took us across Lake Champlain into Vermont on Route 2. Somewhere along Route 2 around South Hero, there was a causeway that offers a view of the lake and shores on both sides of the lake. We stopped briefly to take a few pictures before continuing on our way. Our destination for the day was White River Junction, which is near the border of New Hampshire and a few miles south of Hanover, home of Dartmouth College.

There was no particular reason to stay in White River Junction other than it was in Vermont and close to various other options we can take the following day.   By the time we arrived, the sun was just about to set.   Before checking into our hotel, we drove around the town to find if there is somewhere we can go for dinner. However, there wasn’t much available. The few restaurants in town all seemed to be closed on Sunday.   At the hotel, they did offer some options in nearby towns we can try.   One option was to go to Hanover, and the other option is to West Lebanon, which is just one exit to the east on I-89 in New Hampshire.   We settled on an Italian restaurant called Lui Lui in West Lebanon. This was a typical Italian family restaurant. Jessica chose the lobster ravioli while James selected a mushroom linguini dish, with calamari as the appetizer along with one side salad to share. The portions of all dishes were large. Neither one of us were able to finish everything. Well stuffed, we head back to the hotel and crashed.

The next morning, we decided to go to the Green Mountains. The drive took us through some interesting farmland and towns. On the GPS, we selected ‘Green Mountain National Forrest, and it took us……right to the park office in a town nearby the park. The bright side of this stop is that we got some suggestions and a park map.   Given we only plan to spend half a day there we settled on some nearby options near the edge of the northern park. (There is actually two separate parts of the Green Mountain National Forest, a northern and southern portion. We were in between the two parks.) The people in the office also recommended a restaurant, called The Mountain Top Inn, near Chittenden Reservoir in the park that we could try.

The drive to the park took us through many small roads. We followed the GPS, but the spot it indicated where the inn was looked to be a private house. We got out of the car to check, but no one seemed to be around. We drove back down the road to another big building, but that also wasn’t the restaurant. We finally decided to just drive forward. After about another mile or so, we finally saw the restaurant. The main building of Mountain Top Inn is a lodge like structure. The restaurant is located at the back of the main building, with a terrace facing the reservoir and mountains and a large grass lawn just pass beyond the terrace. There were several open tables available on the terrace, and we chose one right in the middle. Before we got a chance to order, Jessica was already busy taking pictures and videos of the area.   The menu was basic, but the food was done much better than we expected. We ordered soup, salad, wings, cheese fries and a patty melt.   It was hard to tell whether we enjoyed the meal as much as due to the quality of the food or just the setting. But we came away feeling very glad we came.

After the meal, we looked for a way to drive down to the reservoir area. Selecting something on the GPS trying to get somewhere close, it led us to an area through a narrow one lane unpaved road, where we saw a sign of a trail entrance. We parked the car outside of the entrance and walked to see if we can find anything of interest. The trail was lined with trees on both sides. On one side, we could see some water, but not able to really get through the thick bushes. The trail was quiet and we seemed to be only ones on it. After about a mile, we ended up in a small lot in front of a compound with a gate that seemed to be closed. Could be a campsite. On one edge of the lot, there is an opening leading down to the reservoir. Jessica climbed down the rocks to get a closer look as well as to take some pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

Returning from our trail walk, we started our way toward our destination for the evening, Manchester, New Hampshire. We were going back the same route we had taken from White River Junction to Green Mountains. But as we got near White River Junction, we saw an area off the road where there were lots of people gathered and taking pictures that we didn’t recall seeing on our way out. We doubled back to one of the lots and to take a look. The place is called Quechee Gorge, which has a natural river gorge cuts through this part of the landscape.   There was a plaza that had the typical shops and snack booths. Probably not the best place to get maple syrup, but we picked up a small bottle, along with some snacks. Figuring this was the last chance to get Vermont Maple Syrup in Vermont.

The rest of our drive was uneventful. We did make a detour to Nashua, which had the closest Apple Store in the area. Jessica had cracked the screen of her iPad during the trip. We thought getting a new one in New Hampshire would saves us some money. We have heard a new model may be coming out soon, but figured the price would be similar. And needed a replacement quickly as well. (Epilogue, as in turned out, Apple priced its 128G iPad Air 2 $100 less than the original iPad Air, so we end up not saving anything.)

The next day, before heading back to Boston for our flight home, we visited a friend who lived in Boxboro, just north of Boston. Driving around Boxboro, what intrigued us was that the roads in this ‘suburb’ were very different than the ones in the Bay Area. Here there is much more of a country road feel than a city road, with houses set back a hundred plus feet from the road and driveways that are really lanes you can drive on and not just a one car length concrete slab. The scene is closer what James remembers in the outlying areas of Huntsville, Alabama where he once had lived.

After a lunch at our friend’s house, we head to the airport for our trip home.   All in all, this New England Fall Foliage trip turned out as well as it can be expected. We may have a stretched itinerary, but it gave us a chance to see many different places and things that we may not been able to catch on a shorter route.