27 July 2010

The day always seems so full of promise in the early morning, and if you're lucky that feeling lasts for a while. This morning was one of those; we were heading for the only two National Park stamps in respectively, New Hampshire and Vermont. They're close to each other, although not related, and it was a wash, distance wise, as to which order to do them in.

Even though we picked Saint-Gaudens in New Hampshire, we came south in Vermont to get there, and crossed the Connecticut River on a scenic covered wooden bridge.



The park was one of the prettiest we've seen; Saint-Gaudens was a sculptor, and the grounds contained some of his works in a bucolic setting.



Then back across that bridge to the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller park. As we approached the purported site, it looked like it may be another one of those commercial areas; the parking lot didn't look anything like a National Park, and the building nearby was obviously commercial. But as we walked toward it, we saw a small sign directing us up a path to the NP, which was on the other side of the road we'd come in on. Sure enough, there was the familiar wooden sign for a NP, and the visitor center up the hill, manned by another helpful ranger who wasn't too disappointed with our brief stay, once we'd explained our quest.

 

Next up was the Saratoga National Historic Park, scene of a battle that was pivotal in the Revolutionary War. Standing next to the canon out on the green, it was easy to imagine what it might have been like more than 200 years ago--rolling green hills as far as the eyes could see.



The day was starting to warm up, and looking at the route we were chagrined to notice that we hadn't done half the day's mileage yet. We had lodging reservations, with a projected arrival time after 1830; we decided to forgo the last park of the day--a New York site on the Delaware Gap.

That meant lots of interstate, including some on a toll road, which we were trying to avoid, although this stretch only cost $3.65. Finally, Wilkes-Barre and the Red Roof Inn--no groceries or restaurants within walking distance, so a couple tortuous miles over to Wal*Mart for deli dinner / breakfast fixings.

States: New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania

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