Up to Maine

Leaving Langhorne on July 4 was a big step - it was the start of the "real" trip. Not just staying with people we know, but a trial of driving campsite to campsite to live. We traveled through central Pennsylvania to stay two nights at Sugar Hill State Forest in the Finger Lakes of New York, a region which was exceptionally scenic. Hills border the lakes directly, providing great views over the lakes. There was a lot of patterned farmland, but my favorite part was the extent of the wineries in the region. Grapes and wine are huge around the lakes, and the scale of the vineyards dwarfed everything I'd seen in Virginia.

Central PA on the way to Sugar Hill

Sugar Hill State Forest was a good find - a free campsite with water spigots, plumbed bathrooms, lots of grassy space, and shade trees is hard to come by. A fire tower at the center of the campsite was open to visitors, and climbing to the top offered great views of Keuka and Seneca Lakes as well as the farmland all around. 

We spent most of a day hiking along the Outlet Trail, which parallels the creek that connects smaller Keuka Lake to Seneca Lake. The trail followed defunct railways and roads through old mills that used to operate using the creek's power.

The main falls along the Outlet Trail

One building in an abandoned mill town

Leaving the lakes, we drove through the Adirondacks with a stop in Moose River Plains State Forest. The area was nice, but since this was the Saturday of July 4 weekend, the roads were very crowded. This state forest, however, was not - it covers some 55,000 acres, and we drove 7 miles (on a trying dirt and rock road) into the forest to camp. There are no spectacular views or facilities there, but on the peace and quiet scale, it's a perfect 10.

As we crossed into Vermont the next day, the mountains turned to rolling hills with lots of hay fields and dairy farms. When we stopped south of Burlington for a much-needed meal out and internet work session, we stumbled upon the Magic Hat Brewery right off US 7. Like most things in Vermont, the brewery was weird - but in a psychedelic, feel-good way that made our last-minute decision to stop in and do the tasting and tour worth it.

My favorite sign from the (odd) decor of the Magic Hat Brewery

Our trip through Vermont included an almost obligatory stop at the Ben and Jerry's factory; the tour and tastings there were decidedly less adult-themed and targeted more toward children. We did get to sample an unreleased test flavor (Salted Caramel Brownie) and learned that employees go home with 3 pints (!) of free ice cream every day.

Jenna, in front of a strange Ben and Jerry's vehicle

By this point, we were learning lessons about camping as well: flat ground makes most things easier. The van should be filled up with fuel before hitting E, especially on hills (though this was fortunately only a close call.) Some tent poles are slightly longer than the others, and when assembled correctly, the tent is pretty sturdy, contrary to our first tests. We got better every night!

Our first "rain test" came on camping night #3 in the Adirondacks. Our second rain test came ...the next night. The tent itself proved surprisingly water-resistant, but packing a soaked tent into a full car (twice) is not something we did particularly well. When you add in a cooler mishap that had already leaked water into the back of the van, it was getting pretty wet, unorganized, and unpleasant:

The mess.

Luckily, we were almost to Maine, where we stayed at a cabin with Jenna's family friends and could unload and dry out. We learned some valuable lessons for the next wet encounter! Overall, camping is really positive - I have enjoyed the time to sit down, write, relax, cook dinner, and just be. Besides our rain episodes, everything has worked great.

The journey is particularly well framed by meals - in 24 hours, we went from an organic, gourmet burger and beer dinner in Brooklyn, NY:

to a campside dinner of untoasted white bread, an apple, and tomato-Italian sausage soup!