Friday, August 14, 2026
2026 Road Trip - Day 2
Friday, Aug. 14, 2026 - Back in the Heartland of America! With all the stuff I wanted to do, I didn't leave the hotel until 9:30 AM, and checked into the Super 8 in Perrysburg, OH at 7:45 PM:
oh, and did I mention 37 Post Offices in Pennsylvania and Ohio.The first beauty today is French Creek in northwest Pennsylvania:
I was happy to be driving non-Interstates for most of the day, but I was on I-79 South for an hour, and on I-80 West for a couple of hours:
Around 2 PM I stopped a a Roadside Store and got some peaches:
I saw some fun art in Greenville, PA and Fostoria, OH:
The sun is going down at the end of the day:
After 407 miles, I checked into the Super 8 in Perrysburg, OH:
It was fun having a parking space RIGHT OUTSIDE MY ROOM:
Thank you God for this wonderful Adventure Day!
Music for today:
in this morning's hotel room - Jim Hall & Pat Metheny - Jim Hall & Pat Metheny, 1999 album, last heard never. Wonderful jazz guitarists!
On The Road: David & David - Boomtown, 1986 debut (and only) album, last heard 8/29/2025:
The Rolling Stones - Between the Buttons, 1967 album, last heard never. Actually, it is not very good, so delete:
Al Stewart - Between the Wars, 1995 album, last heard 2/25/2023 - I like this album. Wonderful story-telling:
Bruce Cockburn - Big Circumstance, 1989 album, last heard 2/25/2023 - I like this album. Great musicianship:
John Cougar Mellencamp - Big Daddy, 1989 album, last heard 9/05/2025. Very good heartland-rock:
lyrics "Theo and Weird Henry"
Theo's out there living it up, doing a little earth shaking, somewhere
Henry sent a postcard from a better place
But I can see 'em both sitting there laughing and breathing
I can still see that smile on weird Henry's face
The Rascals - Time Peace, 1968 greatest hits album, last heard 8/23/2019. CLASSIC album:
The Pretenders - Learning To Crawl, 1984 3rd album, last heard 9/27/2021. Both studio-and-live version of "My City Was Gone" (Chrissie Hynde is from Ohio):
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Déjà Vu, 1970 album, last heard (in a blog) 5/13/2024 - for the song "Ohio". Oh, it isn't on this album:
Joni Mitchell - Ladies Of The Canyon, 1970 3rd album, last heard 7/09/2019. Sounds great out on the road:
Jethro Tull - This Was, 1968 debut album, last heard 9/08/2025. CLASSIC album:
The Doors - The Doors, 1967 debut album, last heard 8/24/2025. From "the End": Ride the highway west
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Hiking the 4,000 footers in New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine/New York:
hyperlink: dixonheadingnorth
http://dixonheadingnorth.blogspot.com/
Thursday, August 13, 2026
2026 Road Trip - Day 1
Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026 - A GOOD FULL DAY, and I'm glad to be back Out On The Road. I left Home at 5:50 AM, and checked into the La Quinta Inn in Erie, PA at 8:30 PM:
oh, and did I mention 19 Post Offices in New York and Pennsylvania.
At The Breakfast, I'm helping Ernie "manage the nametags" - these are just some of the ones THAT AREN'T ON THE BOARD. Time for a little thinning:
I was able to stop at REI in Albany to get a replacement for my water filter:
An hour west I stopped at The Arkell Museum in Canajoharie, NY. I guess Art Museums aren't very popular on Thursdays:
Their main galleries were closed for renovaation, and I have seen what else was on display, but it was nice to get out and stretch my legs. My 2 favorites today are:
Winslow Homer - Watching the Breakers - A High Sea, 1896 oil:
Winslow Homer - On the Beach, ca. 1869 oil:
Driving the next 3-and-1/2 hours on I-90 was a bit harrowing. The weather was beautiful (not much direct-sunlight, high clouds, 80's), but the constant go-go-go at 70/75 mph takes its toll on me. I had a MUCH more pleasant experience after getting southwest of Buffalo, and grabbing Post Offices down State (& US) highways. It turns out that I was on US 20, which runs from Boston to Oregon:
It was fun getting 19 Post Offices from Buffalo to Erie:
After 601 miles, I checked into the La Quinta Inn in Erie, PA:
Thank you God for this wonderful Adventure Day! Good to get back out on The Road.
Music for today - I want to start with a couple of Triple-Albums:
Yes - Yessongs, 1973 live triple-album, last heard 9/09/2023. SO COOL!!!
Then, in New York State, let's go back to 1969: various - Woodstock One, 1970 live triple-album, last heard 25/01/2025:
Then into some of my favorites: Bruce Springsteen - Darkness on the Edge of Town, 1978 album, last heard 5/13/2024:
lyrics "Racing in the Street":
Now some guys they just give up living
And start dying little by little, piece by piece
Some guys come home from work and wash up
And go racin' in the street
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Damn the Torpedoes, 1979 album, last heard 8/01/2018 - GREAT Energy:
Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited, 1965 album, last heard 9/07/2025. WOW - "Like a Rolling Stone", "Ballad of a Thin Man", "Tombstone Blues", "Highway 61 Revisited", "Desolation Row":
lyrics "Ballad of a Thin Man"
Ah, you've been with the professors
And they've all liked your looks
With great lawyers, you have discussed lepers and crooks
You've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books
You're very well read, it's well known
But something is happening here
And ya don't know what it is
Do you, Mister Jones?
lyrics "Desolation Row"
Across the street they've nailed the curtains, they're getting ready for the feast
The Phantom of the Opera in a perfect image of a priest
They are spoon feeding Casanova to get him to feel more assured
Then they'll kill him with self-confidence after poisoning him with words
And the Phantom's shouting to skinny girls, "Get outta here if you don't know"
Casanova is just being punished for going to Desolation Row"
The Rolling Stones - Hot Rocks, 1971 greatest hits double-album, last heard 9/07/2025. CLASSIC album:
Hot Tuna - Hot Tuna -1st album (expanded), 1970 live album, last heard 9/03/2025. Very nice listening on non-Interstate roads:
Simon & Garfunkel - Bookends, 1968 album, last heard (in a blog) 6/26/2024 - of course, a classic:
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Hiking the 4,000 footers in New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine/New York:
hyperlink: dixonheadingnorth
http://dixonheadingnorth.blogspot.com/
At The Breakfast, I'm helping Ernie "manage the nametags" - these are just some of the ones THAT AREN'T ON THE BOARD. Time for a little thinning:
I was able to stop at REI in Albany to get a replacement for my water filter:
An hour west I stopped at The Arkell Museum in Canajoharie, NY. I guess Art Museums aren't very popular on Thursdays:
Their main galleries were closed for renovaation, and I have seen what else was on display, but it was nice to get out and stretch my legs. My 2 favorites today are:
Winslow Homer - Watching the Breakers - A High Sea, 1896 oil:
Winslow Homer - On the Beach, ca. 1869 oil:
Driving the next 3-and-1/2 hours on I-90 was a bit harrowing. The weather was beautiful (not much direct-sunlight, high clouds, 80's), but the constant go-go-go at 70/75 mph takes its toll on me. I had a MUCH more pleasant experience after getting southwest of Buffalo, and grabbing Post Offices down State (& US) highways. It turns out that I was on US 20, which runs from Boston to Oregon:
It was fun getting 19 Post Offices from Buffalo to Erie:
After 601 miles, I checked into the La Quinta Inn in Erie, PA:
Thank you God for this wonderful Adventure Day! Good to get back out on The Road.
Music for today - I want to start with a couple of Triple-Albums:
Yes - Yessongs, 1973 live triple-album, last heard 9/09/2023. SO COOL!!!
Then, in New York State, let's go back to 1969: various - Woodstock One, 1970 live triple-album, last heard 25/01/2025:
Then into some of my favorites: Bruce Springsteen - Darkness on the Edge of Town, 1978 album, last heard 5/13/2024:
lyrics "Racing in the Street":
Now some guys they just give up living
And start dying little by little, piece by piece
Some guys come home from work and wash up
And go racin' in the street
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Damn the Torpedoes, 1979 album, last heard 8/01/2018 - GREAT Energy:
Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited, 1965 album, last heard 9/07/2025. WOW - "Like a Rolling Stone", "Ballad of a Thin Man", "Tombstone Blues", "Highway 61 Revisited", "Desolation Row":
lyrics "Ballad of a Thin Man"
Ah, you've been with the professors
And they've all liked your looks
With great lawyers, you have discussed lepers and crooks
You've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books
You're very well read, it's well known
But something is happening here
And ya don't know what it is
Do you, Mister Jones?
lyrics "Desolation Row"
Across the street they've nailed the curtains, they're getting ready for the feast
The Phantom of the Opera in a perfect image of a priest
They are spoon feeding Casanova to get him to feel more assured
Then they'll kill him with self-confidence after poisoning him with words
And the Phantom's shouting to skinny girls, "Get outta here if you don't know"
Casanova is just being punished for going to Desolation Row"
The Rolling Stones - Hot Rocks, 1971 greatest hits double-album, last heard 9/07/2025. CLASSIC album:
Hot Tuna - Hot Tuna -1st album (expanded), 1970 live album, last heard 9/03/2025. Very nice listening on non-Interstate roads:
Simon & Garfunkel - Bookends, 1968 album, last heard (in a blog) 6/26/2024 - of course, a classic:
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Hiking the 4,000 footers in New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine/New York:
hyperlink: dixonheadingnorth
http://dixonheadingnorth.blogspot.com/
Monday, August 10, 2026
2026 Road Trip - Day 0
August 10, 2026 - It has been a WONDERFUL SUMMER here in Manchester-by-the-Sea, but it is time to "hit the road". I want to visit the Upper Penninsula, then Fish Creek, Wisconsin, and then a Northern Route to get down into Idaho for a 3-day-2-night overnight-camping in Idaho's White Cloud Mountains. Then north for a couple of dayhikes in Glacier National Park. Wendy will join me in Calgary, and we will visit Lake O'Hara and Maligne Lake. After a couple of days in Glacier National Park, Wendy flys home from Bozeman, Montana, and I'll make my way back Home through the Heartland of America:
The Art Museums are few-and-far-between - almost all of them no longer display "the art I like" (Bierstadt, Cole, Church). I'm glad I saw a lot of them when I did.
There is currently 65,000 miles on my white 2023 Crosstrek (decals courtsey of Wendy!)
I will be getting home Wednesday, September 16th. 35 days, Close to 11,000 miles (I wonder How Many Albums? How Many Post Offices?)
Should be fun - come along for the ride! Maybe I'll see you Out On The Road - as Paul Simon wrote:
Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike
They've all come to look for America
The Art Museums are few-and-far-between - almost all of them no longer display "the art I like" (Bierstadt, Cole, Church). I'm glad I saw a lot of them when I did.
There is currently 65,000 miles on my white 2023 Crosstrek (decals courtsey of Wendy!)
I will be getting home Wednesday, September 16th. 35 days, Close to 11,000 miles (I wonder How Many Albums? How Many Post Offices?)
Should be fun - come along for the ride! Maybe I'll see you Out On The Road - as Paul Simon wrote:
Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike
They've all come to look for America
Friday, May 29, 2026
Watkins Glen, and The Gorge Trail - May 28-29, 2026
Thursday/Friday, May 28/29, 2026 - At the beginning of April, Wendy became aware (Instagram?) of a trail with "19 waterfalls in a one-mile-stretch". It is The Gorge Trail at Watkins Glen State Park. I got it on our calendars to visit, and that is these 2 days (841 miles total):
I drove to Boston for my Thursday Men's Breakfast, and came home to make sandwiches - we left Manchester about 11:30. We checked into the Radisson Hotel Corning at 6:30
At a friend's recommendation we had a great dinner at Three Birds Restaurant:
Up and at 'em the next morning. After breakfast at the hotel, we were up at Watkins Glen State Park at 9:45. I have actually hiked this trail before, back on October 11, 2015, (and you can read that blog here), but I'm SO HAPPY Wendy gets to do it:
From the lower entrance (the "Main Entrance"), it is about 1.5 miles up The Gorge Trail to get to the "Upper Entrance". Not hard, but a lot of steps:
Although one waterfall was in a "closed area" at the beginning of the Trail, the rest was WONDERFUL:
"Rainbow Falls" is a lot of fun, with the waterfall going right over you:
Sometimes the best shots are looking behind you:
For the last 1/2 mile, the gorge opens up a little, and the river is calmer. The water is cool, but not too cold:
The last big push up The Steps, up to the Upper Entrance:
We took the "North Rim Trail" to get back down to the bottom:
We wound up hiking 3.31 miles in 1 hour 52 minutes:
I took a picture of the Watkins Glen Post Office:
We headed 20 miles south to Horseheads, NY and got lunch at Jersey Mike's. Up onto I-84 East, which got me home by 7:30 PM. WOW - Thank You God for this wonderful 2-day-adventure!
Before I get to The Music, over these 2 days Wendy read a few hours from a book we are making our way through: Dennis Lehane - The Given Day, 2008. To quote AI: "The Given Day" is an epic 2008 historical novel by Dennis Lehane, set in Boston around World War I, exploring the lives of two families—one white (the Coughlins) and one black (the Laurence family)—amidst social and political turmoil, including the 1919 Boston Police Strike. :
Music for these days:
The Doors - The Soft Parade, 1969 4th album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 8/21/2019:
various - Whatever - The 90's Pop & Culture Box (7 cds), 2005 album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 7/21/2024 - I like The Energy!
Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness, 1995 double-album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 9/10/2025:
George Winston - Plains, 1999 album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 9/08/2023 - nice way to finish thei Road Trip:
Past entries of this blog are available on the website https://dixonheadingwest.blogspot.com/
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Hiking the 4,000 footers in New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine/New York:
hyperlink: dixonheadingnorth
http://dixonheadingnorth.blogspot.com/
I drove to Boston for my Thursday Men's Breakfast, and came home to make sandwiches - we left Manchester about 11:30. We checked into the Radisson Hotel Corning at 6:30
At a friend's recommendation we had a great dinner at Three Birds Restaurant:
Up and at 'em the next morning. After breakfast at the hotel, we were up at Watkins Glen State Park at 9:45. I have actually hiked this trail before, back on October 11, 2015, (and you can read that blog here), but I'm SO HAPPY Wendy gets to do it:
From the lower entrance (the "Main Entrance"), it is about 1.5 miles up The Gorge Trail to get to the "Upper Entrance". Not hard, but a lot of steps:
Although one waterfall was in a "closed area" at the beginning of the Trail, the rest was WONDERFUL:
"Rainbow Falls" is a lot of fun, with the waterfall going right over you:
Sometimes the best shots are looking behind you:
For the last 1/2 mile, the gorge opens up a little, and the river is calmer. The water is cool, but not too cold:
The last big push up The Steps, up to the Upper Entrance:
We took the "North Rim Trail" to get back down to the bottom:
We wound up hiking 3.31 miles in 1 hour 52 minutes:
I took a picture of the Watkins Glen Post Office:
We headed 20 miles south to Horseheads, NY and got lunch at Jersey Mike's. Up onto I-84 East, which got me home by 7:30 PM. WOW - Thank You God for this wonderful 2-day-adventure!
Before I get to The Music, over these 2 days Wendy read a few hours from a book we are making our way through: Dennis Lehane - The Given Day, 2008. To quote AI: "The Given Day" is an epic 2008 historical novel by Dennis Lehane, set in Boston around World War I, exploring the lives of two families—one white (the Coughlins) and one black (the Laurence family)—amidst social and political turmoil, including the 1919 Boston Police Strike. :
Music for these days:
The Doors - The Soft Parade, 1969 4th album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 8/21/2019:
various - Whatever - The 90's Pop & Culture Box (7 cds), 2005 album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 7/21/2024 - I like The Energy!
Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness, 1995 double-album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 9/10/2025:
George Winston - Plains, 1999 album, last heard (on a Road Trip) 9/08/2023 - nice way to finish thei Road Trip:
Past entries of this blog are available on the website https://dixonheadingwest.blogspot.com/
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Hiking the 4,000 footers in New Hampshire/Vermont/Maine/New York:
hyperlink: dixonheadingnorth
http://dixonheadingnorth.blogspot.com/
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