JAYSON'S
2004 SPRING VACATION
Connecticut,
Massachusetts, Vermont, New York, New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island, and
Minnesota
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The
nine day trip involved air travel as well as driving, bicycling and sailing.
The first day was spent flying from Portland, Oregon to Minneapolis,
Minnesota (a stopover destination) to the Bradley International Airport
in Windsor Locks, Connecticut (located between Hartford, Connecticut and
Springfield, Massachusetts). After I got my rental car, I spent over
an hour trying to find my motel that was actually 1/4 mile from the airport.
Unlike the western states where house numbers are based on the coordinate
system, New England's house numbers begin where the street actually begins
(and it can be anywhere in town!). Finding your way around New England
can be confusing if you do not plan ahead and study those maps carefully.
The other thing I noticed in New England is that there are Dunkin Donuts
everywhere. Some are located inside convenience stores and others are
freestanding locations with a drive-thru window. The
next day, I headed north into Western Massachusetts stopping in Springfield
where I visited the Basketball Hall of Fame. From there, I entered Vermont
driving through Brattleboro, Bennington and Rutland crossing over into Eastern
New York through Whitehall, Ticonderoga and Crown Point and returning back
to Vermont. After spending the night in Middlebury, Vermont, I continued
my through the Green Mountain State covering Vergennes, Burlington, Montpelier
and Barre. I
entered New Hampshire visiting Lebanon, Concord, Littleton, Berlin and Gorham.
I would have loved to see the Old Man of the Mountains (it was sad to
see it collapse), but the visibility was near zero going through Franconia
Notch State Park (where the Old Man is located) due to the rainy, drizzly
weather. I also went into Maine traveling through Rumford, Farmington,
Norridgewock, Skowhegan, Bangor, Augusta and Portland (including Downtown
and the Museum of Art). After brushing the coastline in Southeastern
New Hampshire, I entered the eastern half of Massachusetts. In
the Bay State, I visited Danvers, Salem (including Downtown and the Witch
Museum), Lynn, Revere, Boston (Downtown, The Old State House, Boston Common,
the Boston Public Garden, Faneuil Hall and the Quincy Marketplace), Foxboro
(home of the NFL's New England Patriots pro football team), Plymouth (and
Plymouth Rock), Barnstable, Hyannis and Cape Cod. I
took a passenger ferry to Nantucket where I spent the day. I rented
a bicycle for a ride around the island (try riding a bike for the first time
in 20 years - my bum was sore). The drive concluded with a visit to
Rhode Island stopping in Middletown, Newport (historic Downtown and the Breakers
Mansion - the summer home of the Vanderbilt family) and Providence before
returning to Connecticut visiting Mystic, New London, Salem and Hartford.
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Boston, Massachusetts (Downtown)
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