Have a fantastic weekend and remember to laugh, smile, be charitable, and kind to others.
An earlier prompt this week asked, “What’s your favorite month?” To which my response, for various reasons, is September. I cited it as a great time to visit the shore, due to pricing, weather, water temps, and venues, most of which are still open.
However, this prompt would be an excellent follow-up if I had my choice. My wife and I have seldom told family, friends, or anyone else who asks our response to this exact question. It goes as follows – “If you happen to have the time to take a week in the mountains as the leaves are turning in and around historical places of interest or other venues where they have good food, wineries, and mountain lakes to kick back, you will have yourselves one heck of a vacation. We call it the fish trips, as either you go up the coastal areas and come back to the mountains or vice versa.
That being said, we would highly recommend Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park in Maine. The Finger Lakes, going or coming back from Niagara Falls, are tied in with other northern destinations such as the Catskills, or Adirondack Mountains, the Warwick/New Paltz area on the Hudson north of West Point, NY, or Stockbridge, Berkshires, Sturbridge, Lexington and Concord, Boston, Mass., Newport, Rhode Island ( Be sure to do the Breakers Tour), and Stowe, Vermont. The White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Old Bridge, and the previously mentioned Acadian National Park, and be sure to stop at Camden, Maine, for a treat. The way back, you have Kennebunkport, Maine, Old Orchard, Portsmouth, Groton, the Hampden wineries, and White Plains, NY.
Other trips from Font Royal at the tip of the Shenandoah Valley down to Charleston, South Carolina. Stops at the Laray Caverns, Lexington or Beford, Virginia, Asheville (Biltmore Estate is a must-see), the wineries in and around Charlottesville and Lexington, Virginia, and so much more. Coming back to the coast, you have Wilmington, North Carolina; Myrtle Beach, Virginia Beach, and Ocean City, Maryland —well, you get the idea. The drives in the mountain areas from point to point are worth it; plan about 2.5 to 4 hours of driving a day, tops.
We highly recommend researching and staying at B&Bs in the areas you are traveling in advance. Many are more reasonable than hotels, with full breakfast and accommodations included, and the owners know the lay of the land—what is worth seeing and what you can skip. They will also make reservations at local eateries with the best recommendations. Well, don’t take our word, plan your own Fall leaf peeping land tour of your own and have FUN!!
Looking for some perfect Holiday stories for the whole family? – A Glimpse from Christmas Past was published back in 2013. Also, just released in September, A Chance Encounter with a Most Unusual Acquaintance
Both are available at your favorite online bookstores in Book, E*Read, and the first in audio. Click the link below to listen for FREE. Feel free to copy and share it this holiday season with your family and friends. Enjoy!
A Glimpse from Christmas Past Audiobook by D. C. Donahue
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