It was a pretty low-key week of school and work, but we did make some time for a mid-week trek through the Adirondack mountains:
As Carrie repeatedly noted last week, the bugs were bad. But the view at the top made it worth it:
On Friday, we drove into Vermont in what we would be the start of a wonderful sugar-charged weekend (more on that in a sec).
Our campground Friday night was just an overflow lot of a local RV dealership. It had been raining all day, so it was quite a sloppy mess:
But just down the road was Bragg Farm Sugarhouse, which sounded promising. He we are sampling some pure Vermont maple syrup. We left with a jug of our own as well as several other maple-y treats.
Amy found a local 10k race on Saturday morning in Montpelier:
…as well as the Montpelier farmer’s market. (The girls and I were back at the RV sleeping in.)
The big event Saturday, however, was a fieldtrip to the Ben & Jerry’s factory in Waterbury, VT:
The tour was good:
…but the taste test at the end was great. They gave us a free sample of a new flavor they’re working on called “Milk & Cookies.” If you ever see that in the grocery store, we tasted it first!
If you wonder why Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is so delicious, just look at which ingredient warrants the largest vat. Mystery solved:
We also visited the “Flavor Graveyard,” the final resting place of retired Ben & Jerry’s flavors that got killed off:
That afternoon, we moved onward, this time crossing into New Hampshire for the evening:
We camped in the quiet, peaceful little campground of Moose Brook State Park:
Even had a campfire (a rare occasion for us):
This morning we took a hike on one of the park’s “unmaintained” trails. It was beautiful.
It was not without some challenges, however. Amy had a misstep and stepped into some muck:
…and a bridge had been washed out by the river.
Undeterred, we found a large fallen tree a little ways up-river that we used to get across:
We traveled most of the afternoon and are now deep into Maine. I though this would be our northern-most point of the trip, but I see now when I look at a map that we were actually more north when we were in Washington.
We’re now nestled into our camp spot for the week in Trenton, Maine. Even though it’s a school night, we’re going to watch a movie tonight.
…and enjoy another sugar rush: