Hi Friends.
This last week was pretty amazing. We started off in Erie, Pennsylvania, which was our first big jump from West Virginia. The only reason we ended up here was due to the weather, which happened to be the theme of this week. Our original plan was to start the week off in Pittsburgh. However, it was going to be quite toasty at night. Off we went, further north to find more favorable conditions.
We didn’t know much about what was in Erie, besides being right on the lake. So, we went to Presque Isle State Park. Our work day was done right from the beach. It was pretty secluded, but we still got enough service to work. It was fun balancing work, playing with Pepper Jack, and just relaxing. After spending some time by the water, we decided to head to Niagara Falls a few hours away.
Niagara Falls is absolutely beautiful. While Travis and I have both individually been to the Canadian side, this time we stayed on the New York side. It honestly was breath taking, but a very different view. We got there after 5 (which means free parking & less crowds). While you couldn’t see the main waterfall, you still got a great view of the smaller ones.
The New York side had a lot of green space and it was easy to park and walk around. While exploring, we found a woman’s purse lying alone on a park bench. We didn’t see anybody around, so we took it with us and tried to find someone who matched the license in the wallet. Originally, we struck out with trying to find her or contact her via social media/phone number, but when we were on our way to bring it to some police officers that were making their rounds, we spotted her and her partner talking to them and searching the area. Needless to say, they were thrilled that it was returned to them with everything intact. It felt like we were in the right place at the right time.
Before making our way a little bit further east, we decided to backtrack to Buffalo. I don’t know much about what’s there, but the reason we backtracked was for Buffalo Wings. It’s one of Travis’s favorite foods, so we thought it would be fun to try it at the place that invented them. We drove over to Anchor Bar and bought some wings for lunch. You could customize it by getting all drumsticks, all flats, different sauces, extra crispy etc. but we decided to do it stock how it was invented. Plus, it worked out well since I like drumsticks while Travis prefers flats. We tried them and it was honestly the best wings either of us have ever had. Crispy, juicy, and perfectly sauced. If you’re ever in the area, HIGHLY recommend trying them. I’m not even a huge chicken wing person, but I would absolutely order these again.
Our next stop was to a winery that was less than a mile from Lake Ontario. We stayed there overnight, as they were one of our harvest hosts. After we did a wine tasting and spent some time talking to the owners about travel, we settled in for the night. This was the first night we really noticed just how late it stays bright outside being that far north in the summer. We played with Pepper Jack for a while, before I video chatted with a friend and Travis spent some more time with PepperJack & reading in his book.
The next day, we headed to Letchworth State Park. This was on our list of places to go from before we left for the trip. Looking it up, we saw that camping is reasonable in the park. We booked two nights there. Luckily the weather was going to be decent for both days. The first night we simply got there, set up camp, cooked dinner and relaxed. The next day, after work was over – we did a little ramble through the park and saw some of the highlights. It was absolutely gorgeous and can only imagine how beautiful it would be in the autumn. We both would have loved to spend more days there, but the weather was about to get a whole lot rainier in the coming days.
Our choice for the night was a dairy farm, which was a lot of fun. We not only purchased some of the best ice cream & cheese that we’ve ever had, we got to make a fun date night out of it. Television and movie watching isn’t something we really do on the road, but we enjoy doing it for rainy nights in. We put on “Spirited Away” and had a fun date night.
Our original plan was to hit Ithaca and then to Oneonta for the full weekend. The weather had different plans for us. It was supposed to downpour and rain for several days in a row. Since our batteries need sunlight and it’s nice to actually be out and about instead of cooped up in a small van all day, we decided to chase the sun – or at least drier weather. We did do a little walk through Ithaca before being led way back north again to Watertown, NY. It was one of the only sunny areas for a few days. Thanks to a good recommendation from one of Travis’s friends (thanks Jess!), we decided to stop by Wellesley State Park. It was absolutely gorgeous and so lush. We went on a few trails and hiked around before heading out.
When at a family party a few months ago, it was mentioned to check out state parks and how beautiful they are. I honestly never really thought about them much before and really only thought about National Parks. However, since starting this trip, we spend a lot of time in state parks. It’s been a lot of fun hiking and exploring areas we probably wouldn’t of hit otherwise.
I didn’t realize just how much we packed in this week! It’s been a fun one, that’s for sure.
Let’s Discuss! Comment Below:
Do you ever utilize state parks? If so, what’s your favorite one?
Is your town or state known for any particular food?
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