VERMONT TO BETHEL MAINE

Thursday, June 26 - We drove from Shelburne Camping in Shelburne, VT to Bethel Outdoor Adventure and Campground in Bethel, Maine. We drove I-89 through small towns like Montpelier, located in the heart of Vermont ski country. With a mere population of just over 8,000, Vermont's capital city is surprisingly metropolitan. It is firmly planted in the heart of central Vermont, offering spectacular views of Camel's Hump, the Worcester Range and a myriad of lesser-known hills that surround the small city. We drove through dark green treed forests on Route 2. The road turned from good to the worst ever with potholes and construction here and there. We also ran along the free-flowing Winooski River. From its headwaters in Coits Pond in Cabot, the Winooski River flows ninety miles to its mouth in Lake Champlain in Colchester. The river and tributaries from the head to Montpelier are mostly narrow and steep with heavily timbered valleys, providing habitat for a wide variety of plants and animals. Below Montpelier, the river has a relatively consistent gradient with fertile open land well suited for cultivation except for a few steep gorges. The River valley is also home to Vermont’s most urbanized areas. Our tire gauge in the RV alerted us that one tire was showing tire pressure out of balance. We had to stop and Ray took care of the problem by recalibrating. We passed by Molly’s Little Pond, actually a lake situated in Washington County and noted for its great fishing. Also, saw Loon’s Cove on Joe’s Pond (Lake) in Cabot, VT. Took pictures in Danville and historic St. Johnsburg. Nearing the New Hampshire State Line, we crossed Moose River, noted for its whitewater rafting. This stretch of Moose River is 18 miles long and American Whitewater classifies it as a class I-IV section. We drove through the historic town of St. Johnsburg and saw the Echo Ledge Farm Inn dating back to 1793 and now used as a Bed & Breakfast. With the flowers in full bloom and the temperatures getting warmer, summer is a great time to be traveling to Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. Many have likened this region's landscape to Ireland, the many hues of greens gracing the surrounding hills. The landscape is spectacular, the river and lakes sparkling, and the people very friendly and welcoming. We arrived at Bethel Outdoor Adventure and Campground in Bethel, Maine early enough to secure the one and only site with 50-amp service. The site is large enough to hold our truck and motorcycle and have no near neighbors. The park manager told us we could park where the other site next to us would be only two feet away. It was also being used as a foot-path for people going down to the lake to raft. The park is located on the Androscoggin’s River. It is very large expanse at this section and a fast flowing river. The park has a separate canoe service giving trips with guides Androscoggin’s River VIEW from our Park Bethel is a town in Oxford County, Maine. The population was 2,411 at the 2000 census. It includes the villages of West Bethel and South Bethel. The town is home to Gould Academy, a private preparatory school, and is near the Sunday River ski resort. Bethel has been known as a place of healing and respite since the days of Mollyockett, a Native American princess and healer who lived in the Bethel area among the earliest settlers in the 1770’s. Eventually the settlers came up from Boston and almost got wiped out by the harsh Maine winters. Luckily Mollyockett used her great wisdom and medicines to help the settlers survive and establish Bethel, and now they have an annual celebration every summer called Mollyockett Day in her honor, complete with parades, games, booths, fireworks, and the National Wife-Carrying Competition. It's bigger than the 4th of July. Creative people have been drawn to the Bethel area for more than two centuries. Beautiful Victorian hotel in downtown Bethel. Congregational Church 1847 Friday, June 27- We took off around 10:00 am to drive to Mt. Washington and use the Mt. Washington Auto Road to the summit at 6,288-foot elevation - the highest peak in the northeast. With the fee of $27, we received a package of information along with “This Car Climbed Mount Washington” bumper sticker. Also received an Audio Tour CD to guide us through the mountain roads and shares classic tales about the road's history, geography, legends and lore. We drove the 8 miles of two lane narrow road with no guardrails in low gear. The summit is a state park. Noted for EXTREME weather, on April 12, 1934 the highest surface wind ever recorded on the planet was clocked there at 231 miles per hour. The highest temperature recorded at the summit was 72 degrees and the lowest a frigid minus 47 degrees. This morning on the Internet their web cam at 7:30 am said it was 40 degree wind chill and the high was 50 degrees. When we were there around 11am it had warmed up to about 58 degrees, quite pleasant except the summit was shrouded in clouds. I think Ray was disappointed that we did not have to weather a strong 30 mph wind. We used their facilities and shopped for a magnet of New Hampshire to add to our collection. When we left the summit to return on the same bumpy road, the clouds had rolled away. However, half-way down the horrible road, it started to rain just slightly and was very brief as the clouds move very fast. They say the changes up there are very unpredictable. At 4,000 ft., we were faced with about a mile of a very narrow dirt road with 3,000 ft. drop along the side. It was very harrowing. At the summit, we found the Tip-Top House was closed. The views were inhibited by thick clouds at the summit. As we were leaving, we saw the train pulling into the summit to let passengers explore. The park gave us an “official” document certifying our ascent up Mt. Washington. Monday - We were home through the weekend due to inclement weather. Two days of overcast skies and then it rained very hard last night. Today, the sun finally showed itself, so we took a drive up to Grafton Notch State Park. The forest was thick with spruce trees and evergreens of every type. The park has a spectacular combination of scenery and geology, with landforms illustrating the power of glacial ice and running water in shaping Maine's landscape. Deeply eroded glacial valleys, high cliffs, narrow stream gorges, and potholes are among the striking features that can be seen within the park. These sites are easily accessible along Route 26, with parking and trails conveniently located for group field trips. Southeast of Grafton Notch, the Bear River has cut deep gorges and potholes into bedrock at Screw Auger Falls, Mother Walker Falls, and Moose Cave. Screw Auger Falls resulted from glacial stream incision. Ray went riding on the Gold Wing and took some awesome pictures of Pennacook Falls along Rt. 2 and Rt. 108 in Rumford. The falls plunge 108 feet over granite. The highest falls east of Niagra. Also called Rumford Falls, it is a chain of massive drops of the Androscoggin River. Although the waterfall drops a total of 176 feet, dams have split the once continuous cascading waters into several distinct sections. Rumford Falls is quite spectacular in strength and setting. The adjacent dam is slowly being concealed by the continuous growth of the trees in front of the structure. The artificial lake below offers popular fishing for three species of trout and landlocked salmon. The best view of this area is after snow melt, as the water flow often slowly reduces during the summer months. Today, 40,000 kilowatts of electric per hour are produced at both upper and lower dams. While Maine isn't generally known for great waterfalls, we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the falls. The Little Androscoggin River cuts its way through a narrow gorge at Snow Falls in West Paris. At this special rest stop, the state of Maine has constructed a fine picnic area complete with trails on both sides of the gorge, picnic tables, rest rooms, and plenty of parking. There are four distinctive cascade sets at Snow Falls. It is a thin plunge flowing into a dark pool just below the footbridge over the river. The gorge, with walls up to 30 feet in height, is surrounded by a fence. The water may be dark and slightly foamy, but the gorge is interesting, and the falls are right off the road. b:if cond='data:blog.pageType !="item"> >