Lighthouse | The Beauty Around Us

A Day in Erie

We spent the day Saturday, July 30, in Erie with my brother Jim, our sister-in-law Judy, and their dogs Piper and Ru. Jim and Judy arrived in Erie on Friday and spent two nights there. We met around 10:45 am near Sara’s Restaurant, along the road to Presque Isle State Park. We drove around Presque Isle, making a few photo stops.

Our first stop was at the Perry Monument. I didn’t take any pictures during our walk at Perry Monument.

Our second stop was at the North Pier Lighthouse and then the houseboats on our way back out to the main park road.

We walked first to the beach side of North Pier Lighthouse.

We then walked the North Pier to the lighthouse.

This houseboat, with a lighthouse, on Horseshoe Pond is my favorite.
According to this article, there are 24 houseboats on Horseshoe Pond.

Our third stop was at the Presque Isle Lighthouse.

We browsed the various artists’ wares for sale, but didn’t buy anything.

There is a fence surrounding the lighthouse property. The beach is behind me. There was a gate to the beach; however, it was locked. We tried to walk on the beach to where the gate is located. The beach is badly eroded.

Judy walking on a trail on a sand dune at Presque Isle Lighthouse beach. Some of the sand let go, and Judy slid down the dune. She had some difficulty getting back up, as the sand kept giving way. I didn’t go any farther on the trail, than where I am standing taking the picture!

While Judy, Jim and Bob attempted to make their way to the beach side of the lighthouse, I photographed the beach itself. By the way they didn’t make it to the lighthouse.

I believe if we had driven past the lighthouse a short way that we may have been able to walk back to the lighthouse.

From the lighthouse we drove to Smugglers Wharf, near Dobbins Landing, where we ate a late lunch / early dinner.

Smugglers Wharf Restaurant
Photo obtained from Library of Congress

It was the first time that any of us had eaten at this restaurant. We were not able to get patio seating. We were seated inside the restaurant with a view of Presque Isle Bay. We requested a table with a view, so that Jim and Judy could keep an eye on their dogs, who stayed in the car with all windows down. With the exception of Jim, we ordered seafood. Jim ordered chicken. Our food was good. The service was OK. Our waiter didn’t ask if we wanted anything other than water to drink or if we wanted any dessert. He saved us money because we didn’t order any drinks or dessert!

After lunch/dinner we walked around Dobbins Landing.

We enjoyed seeing an old pirate ship. The pirate was squirting water at those passing by. He didn’t squirt water at us.

The pirate on the old ship attacked the Skallywags Pirate Ship. There was ship-to-ship water cannon battles. It was a bonus that we were able to see the show unfold at Dobbins Landing.

Scallywags and Old Pirate Ship near Dobbins Landing

We parted ways at Dobbins Landing. We are very glad that we were able to meet up with Jim and Judy and spend the day with them. I can count on one hand the number of times we have spent the day together in Erie.

Chincoteague VA Vacation (3rd post)

As we had done each morning, while on vacation in Virginia, we got up around 6:00 am on Easter Sunday, April 17th.

We didn’t see the sun actually rise today,
as it was hidden behind clouds.

The temperature was around 50 degrees at sunrise. The sun did break through the clouds later in the morning and gave us sunny skies. It was a chilly day, though, with a high temperature of 58 degrees. The weather in Chincoteague was better than back in our hometown of Warren PA. At sunrise the temperature in Warren was 31 degrees, with some snow on the ground!

Bob prepared Easter breakfast.
We enjoyed a breakfast of corned beef hash, eggs, toast and orange juice.

Late morning we drove to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and parked in the Wildlife Loop parking lot. We rode our bicycles from the parking lot, alongside Beach Road to the seashore.

We rode our bicycles to Assateague Beach.

Back on Beach Road, near Toms Cove Visitor Center, a few birds held our attention for a while.

The Snowy Egret was alone, until …

A second Snowy Egret arrived on the scene.

The first Snowy Egret chased the second Snowy Egret away.

We returned to the parking lot via Black Duck Trail and the Wildlife Loop (with a detour to Swan Cove). The wind was fierce at times. We rode flat ground but, even in first gear, I felt as though I were pedaling up a hill. We rode 7.85 miles, and that was a wrap for riding our bicycles this vacation. The next day was chilly, windy and rainy.

Bob captured video with our GoPro7 camera, during our three bicycle rides. He prepared a video recap from our bicycling adventures.

We bicycled a total of 17.89 miles, while on vacation.

Our lunch was ice cream at the Island Creamery. We visit the Island Creamery each time we vacation in Chincoteague. Bob had two scoops of Java Jolt in a cup. I had two scoops of ice cream in a cup too — one scoop of Cadbuy Crème Egg and one scoop of peanut butter cup.

After “lunch” we returned to Airbnb “Tranquil Shores” and relaxed.

Around 4:00 pm we prepared Easter dinner – grilled ham steak, macaroni and cheese, mixed vegetables and, for dessert, cheesecake.

Early evening we returned to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. We drove around the Wildlife Loop twice and drove to the seashore. We returned to “Tranquil Shores” via downtown Chincoteague. We stopped briefly at Chincoteague Veteran’s Memorial Park. This is a lovely waterfront park, located on Eastside Road. The Park has tennis courts, basketball courts, playground equipment, fishing/crabbing pier, ball field, boat ramp, skate park, pavilion and restrooms.

Back at “Tranquil Shores” we watched an episode of “Vera”, before going to bed.

Easter Vacation 2021 Day 3

Today, April 3rd, is the third day of our Easter vacation.

We had visitors today. Our friends, Denise and Nic, drove up from Virginia Beach this morning. They arrived around 10:00 am and left for home around 4:30 pm. The four of us had fun together sightseeing on Assateague Island at the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and at the seashore. We went sightseeing in Chincoteague as well.

We walked the Lighthouse Trail at the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. The Lighthouse Trail is a 0.25 mile loop that takes you through the woods to the historic Assateague Lighthouse.

Denise and Nic at the Assateague Lighthouse.
The lighthouse is 142 feet tall.

We walked the Woodland Trail as well. The Woodland Trail is a 1.6 mile loop that takes you through a beautiful pine forest.

We stopped at the overlook where Chincoteague ponies can sometimes be seen.

My recollection is that we saw one pony way off in the distance, too far away for a decent picture especially with a mobile phone camera.

From the Woodland Trail we drove to the Assateague Island National Seashore.

The four of us at the Assateague Island National Seashore

We visited two parks in Chincoteague–the Robert N Reed Waterfront Park and the Veterans Memorial Park.

The four of us at the Robert N Reed Waterfront Park

These four Adirondack chairs are 10 feet tall and weigh more than 500 pounds. The chairs arrived in Chincoteague in the summer of 2014 and promote the state’s “Virginia is for Lovers” tourism slogan. They had been located at Virginia’s Kiptopeke State Park since May 2012.

Denise and Nic at Robert N Reed Waterfront Park with *Misty of Chincoteague* in the background

Bob and I at Robert N Reed Waterfront Park with Misty of Chincoteague in the background

Veterans Memorial Park Cross; Assateague Lighthouse in the background

From Veterans Memorial Park we returned to our AirBnb, Tranquil Shores. We enjoyed a BBQ lunch –cheeseburgers. potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, chips and salsa and, for dessert, cheesecake.

We ate lunch on our screened-in porch.

After lunch we returned to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and drove the wildlife loop. The 3.25 mile loop trail is open to walkers and bikers all day. Vehicles are permitted to drive the loop from 3:00 pm till dusk.

We spotted an eagle nest, but we didn’t see the eagle.

Two Turtles hanging out on a tuft of grass

We drove back down Beach Rd and saw ponies, lots of ponies, in the marsh. We saw several egrets, too, both along Beach Rd and as we were driving the Wildlife Loop.

We saw the most ponies in one place during Denise and Nic’s visit.

One of several Great Egrets that we saw at the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge

We had a great visit with Denise and Nic. We are so glad they were able to make the drive up for the day.

Meanwhile, back at home …

A Sunday Drive

We went for a drive this past Sunday. We drove to Point Gratiot Park in Dunkirk, NY. From our home in Warren, PA it is an approximate 75-minute drive to the park. Upon arriving, we parked in the unpaved parking lot near the beach area. We went for a walk from the parking lot to the Dunkirk Light and back.

We walked a total of 1.33 miles round trip, making several stops along the way.

This is the beach. I read that the beach is an excellent place to find beach glass. Before the beach is open for swimming I believe that the sand dunes will be raked onto the beach. Those sand dunes, at present, are covered in some snow, leftover from winter storms. We did not walk on the beach. Instead we walked along the tree line, on a cliff above the beach.

In front of and below the benches is the beach.

We passed by steps leading down to the beach (photo by Bob).

The cliff was steep in places, especially as we got closer to the lighthouse.

The lighthouse is closed for the season. It reopens on May 1st.

From Dunkirk we drove to Barcelona Harbor in Westfield, NY where I photographed bufflehead and merganser ducks and the moon.

Thanksgiving Week Vacation Day 7

Today (November 27th) is day 7 of our Thanksgiving week vacation.

Sunrise at Tranquil Shores, our airbnb rental

Late this morning we drove to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge on Assateague Island, VA. We followed the Beach Access Road to Toms Cove, where we turned around.

Our first stop, while on the Beach Access Road, was at the Lighthouse Trail.

The Lighthouse Trail takes you through the woods to the historic Assateague Lighthouse.

Assateague Lighthouse

Our second stop was at a marsh area, where we frequently see wild ponies. We had not seen any ponies here since our arrival on Sunday, November 22. We saw some wild ponies there today.

The wild ponies finally made an appearance in the marsh seen from the Beach Access Road.

Our third stop was near Toms Cove.

Assateague Lighthouse, as viewed from Toms Cove area

You will recall from yesterday’s blog post that the reason we chose to spend Thanksgiving week in Chincoteague was to participate in the Waterfowl Week Special Drive. As I wrote in yesterday’s blog post, there is a 7.5 mile service road off the Wildlife Loop that is open to the public only during the Thanksgiving Day weekend. The service road opens at noon and closes at 4:00 pm. We drove the service road yesterday and again today.

We were parked alongside Wildlife Loop by 11:40 am, lined up to drive on the Service Road.

The line waiting for access to the Waterfowl Week Special Drive

The cars began to inch forward at noon. Yesterday it took us 1 1/2 hours to make the 15-mile round trip. Today it took about 1 1/4 hours. Yesterday was overcast; today was sunny. We saw far less horses and waterfowl today than we did yesterday. Bob didn’t have a memory card in the GoPro yesterday. The GoPro was armed today. This video shows very little wildlife, but it does show the terrain along Special Drive.

I took a couple photographs of the few wild ponies that we saw during our drive.

Two wild ponies

Three wild ponies

We ate lunch at Tranquil Shores. We had leftovers–sweet and sour chicken with rice, cottage cheese, potato salad and applesauce.

I wanted to see the lit Christmas tree at the Robert N Reed Waterfront Park in downtown Chincoteague. We drove there at dusk.

the Christmas Tree and me

Christmas decorations at Robert N Reed Downtown Waterfront Park

Sunset at Robert N Reed Downtown Waterfront Park

Aren’t the Christmas tree and the park, itself, pretty?

By the time we left the park, it was time to eat. We chose to eat inside the Chincoteague Diner & Restaurant, located on Maddox Boulevard next to the Best Western hotel. We had a choice to eat outside on their screened porch or inside the restaurant. It was a bit chilly to eat outside; the restaurant was not full of people; the tables were socially distanced; we smelled Clorox as soon as we opened the door; and the wait staff wore face masks. All of those factors went into our decision to eat inside the restaurant. This was the only restaurant at which we ate indoors, while on vacation. Bob ordered a Chef Salad. I ordered a toasted ham and cheese sandwich with French fries. The service was good, and our dinners were tasty.

From the restaurant we drove to Island Creamery, where the best homemade ice cream is served. We ordered our ice cream inside and carried it out to the car to eat. Yum!

We returned to Tranquil Shores, after our ice cream stop.

It is our last night here. We have had such a relaxing vacation. I wish we didn’t have to go home, but at the same time I am ready to go home.

Maine Vacation: Winding Down

We ate breakfast at McDonald’s once again, after a break for a couple of days. My meal of choice this past week has been a bacon, egg and cheese bagel, hash browns and orange juice. Bob ordered two sausage burritos, hash browns and coffee.

This morning we visited the Maine State Aquarium, located in West Boothbay Harbor. After paying the $7.00 each admission fee, we walked past the gift shop into the aquarium. The first thing we noticed were two large touch tanks. At center stage was a tank that held sharks and skates. We petted a shark! Its skin felt like sandpaper. Inside the second touch tank, the Tidepool Touch Tank, were lobsters, horseshoe crabs, hermit crabs, sea cucumbers and other invertebrates. You could touch AND pick up any of the invertebrates in this tank. Recessed tanks along the walls held a variety of species native to the Gulf of Maine.

We attended a talk on lobsters. The Aquarium features lobsters in all sizes and colors.

This lobster was in the Tidepool Touch Tank.

We learned why a lobster is banded. The bands prevent lobsters from eating each other!

We met Neptune.

This is Neptune, a 14-lb lobster. His age is estimated to be between 15-18 years old.

We learned that fishermen bring the aquarium odd-looking lobsters, e.g. lobsters with multiple claws or lobsters with no claws and a variety of colored lobsters.

Our granddaughters would have enjoyed spending time at the Maine State Aquarium. Not only would they have enjoyed the touch tanks, but they would have enjoyed the opportunity to do some sport fishing from the aquarium dock. Rods and reels are available free-of-charge, and staff provides necessary instruction. We watched some children fishing for a few minutes. We didn’t see anyone catch a fish. There were a couple lobster traps hanging from the dock, which were available to be pulled up. One trap contained a lobster, which was dropped back into the water. The trap that we pulled up had a crab in it. We just dropped the crab and trap back into the water.

Leaving the aquarium, we returned to Pioneer Motel at 12:30 pm.

Around 4:30 pm we drove into Boothbay Harbor, where we enjoyed the refreshing breeze and bought pizza (2 slices each) at Pier 1 Pizza.

Boothbay Harbor Footbridge

Boothbay Harbor Footbridge

Our Lady Queen of Peace Church

Boothbay Harbor Waterfront

Boothbay Harbor Waterfront (near where we bought pizza)

Boothbay Harbor Waterfront (near where we bought pizza).

Leaving Boothbay Harbor we drove to Southport Island to Newagen, where we saw The Cuckolds Lighthouse once again.

The Cuckolds Lighthouse

Bob and I on dock with The Cuckolds Lighthouse behind us

We took Route 27 north to River Road through Damariscotta to the Mobil Fuel Station, where we filled up. We will start home in the morning with a full tank. We returned to Pioneer Motel around 7:30 pm.

This blog post concludes Day 8 of our 10-day Maine vacation (June 28-July 7, 2019).

– TO BE CONTINUED –

Maine Vacation: A Relaxing Day

We didn’t eat breakfast out today, having purchased instant oatmeal in a cup and fruit last night for today’s breakfast.

Today was a relaxing day. We did very little sightseeing, visiting places less than 20 miles away from Pioneer Motel.

In the morning we drove to Ocean Point, located in the village of East Boothbay, where we went for walk alongside the ocean. The ocean view, which included Ram Island Lighthouse off in the distance, was phenomenal. As we were walking back to our car, we spotted two seals!

Ocean Point – one of many seasonal homes

Ocean Point – A variety of flowers lined both sides of Ocean Drive. The smell was divine.

Ocean Point – more seasonal homes

Ocean Point – In the distance is Ram Island Lighthouse. Beyond that lighthouse is another lighthouse. I will update this blog post, when I determine the identity of that lighthouse.

Ocean Point – One of two seals! The second seal is farther right, almost out of frame.

Ocean Point – Ram Island Lighthouse

Leaving Ocean Point we drove into Boothbay Harbor. This was our second visit. We browsed a few shops. In one shop we purchased kaleidoscopes, one for each granddaughter. In another shop we were surprised to find a maritime history museum of sorts. The Windjammer Emporium blends a maritime history component with nautically themed merchandise.

This is one of many historical displays found in the Windjammer Emporium. Shown here are models of two schooners: the Sherman Zwicker (left) and the Blue Nose.

Located along Atlantic Avenue in Boothbay Harbor is Fishermen’s Memorial.

Fishermen’s Memorial honors the proud independent Maine fishermen who lost their lives at sea.

While I photographed Fishermen’s Memorial, Bob enjoyed the harbor view.

A short distance farther along Atlantic Avenue is a giant statue of “The Old Lobster Fisherman”.

Old Lobster Fisherman Statue

This is a GIANT statue.

I am 5’6″ tall, and I reach only the Old Lobster Fisherman’s knees.

I don’t know how long the Old Lobster Fisherman has stood here. My first visit to Boothbay Harbor was in 1983; he was standing there then.

We got lunch at the Subway in Boothbay and drove to a nearby park to eat.

After lunch, we returned to Pioneer Motel, where we stayed for rest of the afternoon.

Around 6:00 pm we drove to Damariscotta Mills – home of one of Maine’s oldest and most productive alewife fisheries.

Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder

Be sure to click on the link above for Damariscotta Mills to learn all about alewives and the fish ladder.

We made a return trip to Boothbay Harbor, where we ate dinner at the Harborside Tavern. Bob ordered fish and chips; I ordered a harborside burger. For seating we sat at a corner table, where we had a splendid view of the Boothbay Harbor footbridge and the water on both sides.

Bob’s Fish and Chips at Harborside Tavern

My Harborside Burger at Harborside Tavern

And, yes, I did eat all of the burger. I didn’t eat all the bread, though! The burger was delicious! We had room for dessert, too. We stopped at Wannawaf, located below the restaurant, for a small serving of ice cream in a cup, before returning to Pioneer Motel.

This blog post concludes Day 6 of our 10-day Maine vacation (June 28-July 7, 2019).

– TO BE CONTINUED –