August 24, 2019 - Day 30 - Home Sweet Home

We were very fortunate to run into a rest area that was very quiet. We had a really good night's sleep and were well rested in the morning.  We were on the road by 7:30 am, stopped at a local diner for breakfast in Rehoboth and were home by 1 pm.

Kasey loving the  ride

August 23, 2019 - Day 29 -Woodstock, Bethel New York

August 23, 2019   Woodstock, Bethel, New York

We left Letchworth around 10:30 am. So happy we were able to spend some time there. Our next stop on the way home is Woodstock in Bethel, New York. Last weekend was the 50th Anniversary celebration. We were hoping it wouldn't be too crowded when we arrived.

The drive to Woodstock was on winding back roads that were sometimes nerve racking to negotiate. My expert driver, Ron, did a great job. We arrived there around 3 pm and to our surprise there were very few people there.

We did not attend Woodstock  in 1969 and have not kept up with what has been happening in that area so were surprised to learn that  the Woodstock Music Festival Site is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The museum is housed in the Bethel Woods Center of the Arts. It is an amazingly beautiful building and something we weren't expecting.

                               The remainder of the grounds are absolutely beautiful as well.

We walked through the field to the actual monument. There were multiple people laying on the monument but we did get an opportunity get a couple of pictures once people stopped laying on the monument. LOL

 In the museum we watched a  short video on what had happened during that weekend. Quite interesting and amazing to think there were over 400,000 young people there. No major law enforcement issues!

Very interesting place to see for sure. Good experience after the fact lol.

After leaving Woodstock our quest was to find a rest area to spend the night. There were no CG"s in this area so we were hoping to find a  decent rest area.

August 21 & 22, 2019 - Day - 27 & 28 - Letchworth State Park , Castile, NY

August 21, & 22,  2019 - Day - 27 & 28 -  Letchworth State Park , Castile NY

We were able to get a site for just two nights at my favorite campground in upstate new York. It is just beautiful there and brings me great peace. The stonework in the park was done by the CCC in the 1930's when there was no welfare. My Dad worked in the CC's and was required to send all but a small stipend home to his parents to help them financially. Anyone who was capable worked - no free ride.

 

One of the many buildings built by the CCC's

One of several beautiful waterfalls

Glenn Iris Inn

Grand Canyon of the East

Always have to climb stairs!

We love Letchworth with all of its beauty waterfalls and wild flowers. This place is one of  our "Happy Places."

The campground itself is just a standard CG. No frills but deep in the woods and very cozy. Sadly our two days went by quickly but we were happy to have been able to stop and enjoy the park. Interestingly Letchworth State Park was voted the best state park in the country.

August 18 & 19 , 2019 - Days - 25 & 26 - Woodside Lake Park, Streetsboro, Ohio, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, Ohio e, Columbus, Ohio

August 18 & 19 , 2019 -  Days  -25 & 26- Woodside Lake Park, Streetsboro, Ohio, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, Ohio

August 18, 2019 -  Woodside Lake Park was an older park but fairly nice. We had a site overlooking the lake. The road to get to the park was another story. It was a roller coaster ride to pit it mildly. 

After settling in and taking a nap we decided to go into Streetsboro and have dinner. The roller coaster roads were quite the experience to say the least. We ate at Bob Evans and enjoyed a great meal. 

Back at the CG we relaxed watched some TV, took Kasey for a walk and enjoyed a restful evening. 

August 19, 2019 - We arrived at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame around 10:30 am. There was a huge crowd already there and it had only opened at 10 am. 

It was an interesting place to see but different then we expected. Lots of displays of guitars, clothing that artists wore at concerts and lots and lots of   memorabilia. There were a couple of interesting videos that were presented. We especially liked the Dick Clark review.  We were there for about three hours then walked along the port area. 

It was a beautiful day and a great day for a walk. We left Cleveland around 4:30 pm. The traffic was getting heavy at that point but still tolerable especially for such a big city. 

Ron wanted to check out Cuyahgo Valley National Park, nearby so we stopped at the Cuyahoga ranger station to inquire about the train ride through the park. We hoped to be able to take that ride but because it was the end of the season the train was only running on weekends. We were schedule to leave the next day so that idea was  crushed. 

                                                  Canal in Cuyahoga National Park

After a short visit and disappointment at not being able to take the train ride we headed back to the CG. That evening we went back into Streetsboro and had dinner at the Brown Derby. Good food and excellent service.  Didn't do much cooking this trip .lol

August 16 & 17 , 2019 - Days 23 & 24- Elkhart Campground, Elkhart, Indiana

August 16 & 17 , 2019  - Days 23 & 24 -  Elkhart Campground, Elkhart, Indiana

Not  much doing on these two days. We were unable to get a campground anywhere near the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame so secured a CG out in the country in Indiana. It was not too busy there so were able to get a site for two nights and on a weekend.!

Huge Tractor towing a fifth wheel! Overkill!

On Sunday we were able to get a campground in close proximity to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame so got back on the road for the next leg of our journey.

August 15, 2019 - Day 22 - Travel Day - Geneseo Campground -- Geneseo, Illinois

August 15, 2019  - Travel Day - Geneseo Campground -- Geneseo, Illinois

We stopped over to see Jean before we left that morning. She was feeling sore from her fall but doing  better after a sleeping for a few hours last night. Ron felt like driving and we were sticking to  main roads instead of back country roads manged to drive 281 miles today despite all the construction.

 Once settled in we took a walk along the Hennepin Canal. The woman that checked us in told us that the locks on this canal were the locks duplicated by the engineers that built the  Panama canal.

"The Hennepin was the first American canal built of concrete without stone cut facings. Although the Hennepin enjoyed only limited success as a waterway, engineering innovations used in its construction were a bonus to the construction industry. The canal was used as a training ground for engineers who later worked on the Panama Canal.^[2] Both the Hennepin and Panama Canals used concrete lock chambers and both used a feeder canal from a man made lake to water the canals because both needed water to flow uphill.
There are 33 locks on the canal. All are now visible, but the first one, on the Illinois River, had been under water from the 1930s until recent times. Lock #1 is only accessible on foot during the winter months; thick vegetation, the lack of a maintained towpath, and nearby private property prevent access during the summer. " Learn at the link below:

Hennepin Canal Parkway State Park - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Hennepin_Canal_Parkway_State_Park

It was a beautiful evening and a very relaxing walk. Back at the CG  we prepared for our continued journey home.

August 13 & 14 2019 , days 20 & 21 - Winnebego Factory Tour -- Forest City, Iowa

August 13 & 14  2019 , days 20 & 21  Winnebago Factory Tour -- Forest City, Iowa

August 13, 2019  -- We arrived at the Winnebago Visitor Center  around 11:30 am with the tour scheduled for 1 pm.

We were directed to the RV parking area across the street and give a pass for a free two-night stay. The lot across the street is used for rallies and there are only about 14 sites available to visitors. We were early so we did secure a site. 

After lunch we drove over to the tour bus and hopped aboard. The tour lasted about two and one-half hours and was very informative. Unfortunately picture taking was not allowed. 

"Winnebago Industries was born in 1958, when a group of local businesses, worried about Iowa’s depressed farm economy, persuaded Modernistic Industries of California to build a travel-trailer factory in Forest City. Local businessmen soon bought the factory and, in 1960, named it Winnebago Industries, after the county in which it was located. Since 1966, when the company started making motor homes, the name Winnebago has become synonymous with “motor home.”"

Winnebago Industries - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Winnebago_Industriesr

Later that evening we went to a local restaurant called Shooterz. The food and service were great. 

We drove around town for a short time then went back to the MH for the night. The  area around us was very picturesque and there was lots of room to walk Kasey.

It was a very good day and by 10 pm we were ready for bed. 

July 14, 2019  One more day  in  Forest City, Iowa

We woke that morning to overcast skies, a chill in the air and rain expected later that morning. We opted to take a ride over to Lichtsinn RV the largest Winnebago dealer in the country. No surprise there since they are one mile from the Winnebago factory. We were looking at class C motor homes   to get a feel for size and roominess. We have an idea that we may want to downsize from our class A but have not been sure that would be a good move for us. We had a lovely sales person who took her time with us even though we specifically told her we were "just looking."

After wasting her time we were ready to leave. She recommended a good diner one town over that had amazing burgers. We went to lunch at Mitchell's in Leyland, Iowa and she was correct. The burgers were the best we had ever had. 

When we got back we took Kasey for a walk and found the remnants of a small amusement park.

Then we walked over a bridge crossing a rive adjacent to the golf course. 

The skies had cleared and it was beautiful outside for the remainder of the day. 

Back at the RV we sat outside and had a nice conversation with our neighbors to the right. When they went to dinner the lady to the left drove in. She was alone driving a 40 foot  MH , towing a full size car on a dolly. YIKES! I heard Ron talking to  her and telling her that her MH was really nice. I popped over and told her it was "beautiful." 

Then I noticed her left leg was covered in blood as was her right hand. I asked if she had fallen and yes she did. She thought she broke her little finger. I went into immediate "nurse mode" had her sit down while I got stuff to clean her scrapes and abrasions. Jean had fallen in the gravel so she had a lot of dirt and small pebbles in her leg. As I was cleaning her leg she told me she was on blood thinners (hence all the blood) , she had three strokes, a lung removed due to cancer and she is on oxygen at night. All this, and she is driving around the country by herself. Once she was cleaned up and bandaged. Her little finger didn't appear to be broken so I  braced it and she seemed to feel better.  She planned on going to bed early so I told her just to bang on our door ids she needed anything. 

Quite an exciting end to an otherwise quiet day. 

The MH on the left is Jean's - makes ours look like a baby