Our Wander Years

Two nights in Luray VA

Posted on August 12, 2025 by Sparky

We spent the weekend in Luray VA at a VRBO farm. But we were non-paying guests, there at the invitation of the owners, Jett’s son Devin and his wife Mary. Also there were their son, Zachary, their good friend and neighbor, Angie, and Devin’s twin brother Joshua and his wife Cristina. Two other couples joined us for a cookout on Sunday. And 5 dogs.

Let me get the bad news out of the way: Zachary, who is 14, beat me at chess. I beat him easily in the first match but he wanted a second. I thought I had him on the ropes, but made several bonehead errors and lost. I guess it had to happen sometime and now it has happened.

Now the farm. It is 4 bedrooms (including one with a Harry Potter “cupboard under the stairs” bed), 3 baths and a pool on 6.5 acres with a stream running along the eastern edge. The kitchen is awesome and there are many places to socialize. A very nice weekend vacation spot.

The company was as good as the accommodations. The food was terrific too. Becky had to get used to being around a bunch of other dogs, but she managed. I think she enjoyed the weekend.

Before we left Monday morning we visited the Luray Caverns. I had first become aware of this attraction many years ago and considered it a minor “bucket list” item. Since we had a place to keep Becky – at the farm with the other dogs – we seized the opportunity.

It isn’t cheap – $36 ($34 for over 65), but I think it is worth it. The cavern is just spectacular. A few of the several dozen photos that I took:

The last room on the tour is called “The Cathedral” and contains a pipe organ that produces music by striking stalactites with wooden mallets. The chamber was originally called “The Ballroom” because dances were held there – complete with a big band orchestra. Dancing in a cavern!

When we returned to the farm we learned that Becky had gotten out and had tried to run after us, presumably because she thought we were abandoning her. Fortunately Zachary was able to get her back before she got far on her trek to Florida.

Categories: Family, Friends, TS_11, VA | Leave a comment

TS_11 Hop 2: Front Royal VA to Luray VA

Posted on August 11, 2025 by Sparky

44 miles via US 340, Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park, US 211, VA 674, VA 658 and VA 611. Auto miles: 120. Cumulative route miles: 549. Cumulative auto miles: 625. The extra auto miles were due to a late-night trip to a casino in West Virginia. We both lost money. Should have stayed home.

This was a short hop – easily the shortest hop of the TS_11, unless plans change drastically. It was a beautiful day and we spent nearly 2 hours traversing the 44 miles.

Skyline Drive was very nice, as always. It affords some nice elevated vistas of the Shenandoah Valley.

Our one night in Front Royal was at the Baymont by Wyndham near Shenandoah National Park. This was a perfectly adequate hotel for the 5 hours of sleep that we got, after the casino. The room was large and clean, the shower was very nice, the minifridge held all of our refrigerated items and the free breakfast was very good. The coffee, however, was terrible. 6 out of 10.

Categories: Hotels, Routes, TS_11, VA | Leave a comment

TS_11 Hop 1: New Salem MA to Front Royal VA

Posted on August 10, 2025 by Sparky

505 miles via US 202, I-291 (north of Springfield MA), I-91, I-84, I-81 and US 340. We stopped for fuel in Belchertown MA and took a bio break and picnic lunch in PA where Marlene took over the driving for the last 200 miles. Auto miles: 505. Cumulative route miles: 505. Cumulative auto miles: 505.

This was a LONG day on the road using mostly interstate routes that had lots of trucks, lots of construction and many slowdowns. The estimated time of 8 hours stretched to over 9 hours. Then, because that wasn’t enough, Marlene insisted on visiting a casino nearly an hour away. That resulted in a total of about 11 hours spent in the car on this day. But those miles will be counted in Hop 2.

Categories: CT, MA, MD, NY, PA, Routes, TS_11, VA, WV | Leave a comment

Eleventh trip south (TS_11) preview

Posted on August 10, 2025 by Sparky

The trip back to FL from MA will be a fairly quick trip – about a week on the road. It is not completely planned and we have not booked the nights we plan to spend in a hotel, so there is some flex in the plan. But it will probably go something like this:

One night in a hotel in Front Royal VA. We have been invited to spend the weekend with Jett’s sons and their families at Devin’s VRBO farmhouse in Luray VA, but the current tenants don’t leave until noon on Saturday. So we will get close on Friday and travel a short distance Saturday, to get a full day with them. This will be a LONG hop – about 9 hours and over 500 miles.
Two nights at the farmhouse in Luray VA. I have seen photos and it looks wonderful. I am looking forward to seeing this property. And family, too. This will be a short hop, probably mostly on Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park.
Three nights with Marlene’s son and wife in Acworth GA. Another long hop.
Two nights in or near Pensacola FL. The purpose of this visit is to experience the legendary Flora-Bama beach bar.
Home. Another very long hop.

This plan has us traveling just over 2,000 miles in 5 (mostly very long) hops. The detour to Flora-Bama is a bit whimsical and might get cut.

Categories: Preparation/Planning, TS_11 | Leave a comment

Three nights in New Salem MA

Posted on August 10, 2025 by Sparky

We finished our brief MA vacation with three nights in New Salem MA, at the rustic cabin of Ray and Kim, Jett’s brother and sister-in-law. If you want quiet, have Kim and Ray invite you to their cabin.

The first night, though, was not so quiet. At 5:30am I was wakened by Becky roaming about the living room (where we were sleeping, on the futon). I got her back into bed, but as I was drifting off to sleep became aware of some sounds. At first I thought it was wind moving the curtains, but then decided it sounded more like a mouse. I got up and, using my phone as a light, walked around looking for a mouse.

Which is when a bat flew by my face.

I am not terrified of bats, like some people. But I don’t like them flying around me while I am trying to sleep. So I opened the door to the screened-in porch and spent about 15 minutes trying to herd the bat out the door. Which I finally did. And quickly closed the door.

The next morning Ray and I scoured the porch for the bat, without success. I thought that perhaps the bat had found a way out. But at dusk the next night the bat reappeared. Another 15 minutes were spent encouraging the bat to exit to the great outdoors, where it belonged. No more bats the rest of the stay.

I didn’t go anywhere the first day there, spending my time blogging and reading while Marlene and Kim went shopping. The second day we all journeyed an hour to Brattleboro VT – a town that I had been to but had never really explored. We had a very nice lunch at The Works Cafe and window-shopped a bit. We topped off the day with a pint at North Chair Brewing.

Each day we were treated to wonderful meals prepared by Kim who really should think of opening a restaurant.

We had a nice outdoor campfire the last night at the cabin.

Marlene earned our keep by sewing some curtains for the cabin.

Marlene (on the left) and mannequin in Brattleboro

Categories: Adventures, Family, MA, VT | Leave a comment

Two nights in Maine

Posted on August 9, 2025 by Sparky

We took a 2-night vacation from our Massachusetts vacation to travel to Maine. There were several reasons for this: (1) see if I could find my brother again, (2) visit Acadia National Park for the second time in my life and (3) show Marlene what coastal Maine looks like.

We successfully found my brother. Communication with him has been very difficult (i.e. impossible) for over 5 years. He doesn’t answer his phone, doesn’t respond to emails or text messages. And yet, as when I tracked him down 3 years ago, he seems to be in good spirits and not a hermit. He lives in a nice house (as a renter) and engages in many outdoor activities. As was the case 3 years ago, he was surprised to see me when I knocked on his door, but he was congenial and we had a nice hour together. I introduced him to Marlene and she liked him. I guess I should schedule another visit to Maine for 2028.

We also visited Acadia National Park. My impression, after my first visit 50 years ago, was that this park had some nice vistas and would be a nice place to do some hiking. But I didn’t do any hiking then and didn’t do any hiking this time, either. This was mostly a driving tour with stops in the interesting towns that border the park – Bar Harbor, Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor. I think the towns are every bit as interesting as the park. Marlene – who loves shopping – agrees. But we bought very little. This is not a place for bargain shopping (example: a one-scoop ice cream cone was nearly $10).

Our home for the two nights was the White Birches Motel in Ellsworth ME. This is a (relatively, for the area) inexpensive motel that had good reviews. I have to concur. A large room with a minifridge, microwave and electric cooktop, with a clean shower and 24-hour coffee (which was quite good). I rate it 8 out oof 10.

The trip began with breakfast at The Real McCoy in Wilmington MA where we met Kim, an old neighbor and friend. If you are even in need of breakfast north of Boston, try this place. Good food (and HUGE servings), great service and reasonable prices.

We made the entire trip, both to Maine and back, without paying tolls. This added some travel time, but had the benefit of giving us more views of rural Maine. It was a lot of driving – over 700 miles – but interesting. We stopped for a while in Ogunquit ME on the trip north and traversed the Kancamangus Pass on the trip south. Our return destination was the bucolic cabin of Jett’s brother and sister-in-law in New Salem MA.

Swift River, along the Kancamangus Highway

Categories: Adventures, Family, Friends, MA, ME, NH, Routes | Leave a comment

A week in Worcester MA

Posted on August 4, 2025 by Sparky

We started our brief stay in MA with a week with Jett’s brother Ray and sister-in-law Kim in Worcester MA. They provided us with a comfortable bedroom with a TV and a nice bathroom. But, more importantly, they provided friendship. And some terrific meals. Kim is a wonderful cook. Maybe “chef” is a more apt description.

It was great catching up with them. They are “just” the family of my late wife but they feel like real family to me.

We didn’t do much the first couple of days. Resting after our 3,000+ miles of travel, I guess. But things picked up later in the week:

On Wednesday Marlene and I traveled into Boston to visit the Christian Science “mother church” and Maparium. This didn’t work out quite as I planned. You can see these attractions only on a tour, so, believing that both were seen on the same tour, I inquired at the information desk about the tour. They said one would by leaving in 10 minutes, at 3pm. We waited for the tour and were taken into the Maparium. When we came out we expected to be escorted to the church. But the guide simply walked away. At the information desk we learned that there are TWO tours – one for the church and one for the Maparium. The Maparium tours are frequent; the church tours are not. When was the last church tour of the day? 3pm – when we were viewing the Maparium. I don’t know why they assumed, when I asked about the tour, that I was referring to the Maparium tour. They apologized and took us over to join the church tour. But it was too late – it had already left the big church and was in the smaller, original church. We never did see the mother church. Dang! But we did get to see the Moroccan women’s bathroom in the administration building.
The Encore Boston Harbor Casino. After the less-than-perfect Christian Science tour we zig-zagged our way through rush hour traffic to the Boston casino. I lost a bit but Marlene won nearly $500 and covered my $80 in losses in appreciation for taking her there.
Dinner with my son Frank. After the casino we drove to Watertown MA to have dinner with my son Frank. Just did some catching up and gave him the toy samurai sword that I got for him in Japan two years ago (he had asked me to bring him a samurai sword).
A New England Patriots scrimmage. I have never been to an NFL game. I still haven’t. But I have now attended a scrimmage of a real NFL team in a real NFL stadium. It wasn’t very exciting – we drove and hour to see a pretty sloppy hour of practice with no real hitting.
A WooSox game. I think I have been to nearly 10 Worcester Red Sox games. This is the Red Sox AAA farm team. These are ballplayers who are just one promotion away from the Big League, so the level of competition is pretty high. And the beer is a lot cheaper than the beer at Fenway Park. They lost, but it was a close game on a beautiful night.

Categories: Family, Food, MA, Sports | Leave a comment

“The Last Juror” by John Grisham

Posted on August 2, 2025 by Sparky

Grisham is noted for his legal thrillers. Usually the protagonist is a lawyer, a judge or some other officer of the court. This one is a bit different – the protagonist is a small-town newspaper editor. The legal aspect is due to his coverage of a sensational murder trial in a small Mississippi town. The “last juror” chosen was an elderly black woman with whom he formed a long-term bond – an unusual relationship in the 1960s/1970s Mississippi.

The sensational trial was for Danny Paggett, a young member of the county’s most notorious criminal family. Everyone knew that the family grew and sold marijuana and trafficked in other illegal drugs, including moonshine. But they were wealthy and could buy the cooperation of the county sheriff and got away with everything. Until the rape and murder of a young mother. Everyone was relieved when Danny was charged and convicted, then sent away for life. But they were disappointed that he had not received the death penalty.

Before being sent away he told the jury that he would come back to kill all of them. While disturbing, the threat seemed empty. Until he was pardoned after only 9 years in prison.

Then the murders of the jurors began. Two of the 3 jurors who voted against the death penalty were shot dead by a very skilled sniper. Would the “last juror” – the editor’s close friend – be next? The entire town was on edge, hoping that Danny would be charged and sent back to prison.

Would the sniper be caught? Would it be Danny? That is the mystery in the book. But that mystery doesn’t really develop until late in the narrative – about three quarters of the way through. Most of the book reads like the autobiography of a small-town newspaper editor from the years of the Vietnam War.

Grisham is always entertaining. This is not his best work, but it is a worthwhile read.

7 out of 10.

Categories: Books | Leave a comment

TN_11 wrapup

Posted on July 29, 2025 by Sparky

This trip north started with a trip to Texas to see friends, which made it an exceptionally long trip north. It also included our dog, Becky, which dictated where we could stay and what we could do. But I think we found activities and places that were dog-friendly and, overall, it was a successful, trouble-free trip.

By the numbers:

11 days, 10 nights in 7 hops, 3.209 route miles (458 miles per hop).
215 extra auto miles, mostly in TN, traveling to/from Pigeon Forge.
95.9 gallons of fuel consumed (35.7 miles per gallon).
Total fuel cost: $269.16 ($2.81 per gallon).
Six nights in hotels: $535.63 ($89.27 per night).
No tolls.

Highlights:

Seeing our friends John and Deb in Texas and playing cards with them.
Hot Springs AR. This is a really fun place to visit.
The Corning Museum of Glass. This is a very interesting museum. Recommended.
Winning money in the two casinos we visited.
Having absolutely no car problems.

Lowlights:

The Super 8 in Twinsburg OH. This hotel was truly disgusting.
Spending a night in a rest area after the first hop. It made sense to do it but it wasn’t fun.
Numerous delays in travel, mostly on the interstate highways.

Planned and actual routes:

There weren’t any major deviations in the route but there were some minor ones:

Adding a 7th hop due to the horrible hotel in OH.
Spending the first night in a rest area rather than in a hotel.
Visiting the Corning Museum of Glass.
Avoiding tolls all the way through NY and MA.

Categories: TN_11 | Leave a comment

TN_11 Hop 7: Elmira NY to Worcester MA

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Sparky

354 miles via I-86, I-88, US 20, MA 9, MA 116, I-290 and MA 122A with a morning trip breakfast at Bob Evans and a visit to the Corning Glass Museum and a shopping/bio break in Northampton MA. Auto miles: 354. Cumulative route miles: 3209. Cumulative auto miles: 3424.

We decided to start the final day of TN_11 with a real breakfast at Bob Evans, with Marlene paying for it with her casino winnings. On our way there we got some ice for the ice chest and some gasoline for the car. After breakfast we visited the Corning Museum of Glass, which I had visited in 2022 and which I knew Marlene would love. I was right – she loved it all.

We departed the museum before noon, headed to Worcester MA. I intended to take non-toll roads through NY (because the SunPass transponder on Marlene’s car was not one that was recognized in NY) and then take the Massachusetts Turnpike through MA. But we had time and so decided to take non-toll roads the entire way. That probably added an hour to our travel time. But the route was pleasant. The weather was not – cloudy, foggy with occasional drizzle. We stopped in Northampton at the Goodwill to let Marlene shop and both of us to get a bio break. Becky too. Then on to Worcester. We arrived just before 8pm.

Our brief stay in Elmira was at the Relax Inn. This is a bare-bones place, with no pool, no gym, no breakfast and a very small ice machine. It is also not pet-friendly, despite Trivago’s assurance that it was. But the clerk was very accommodating and let us stay.

The TN_11 wrapup will be next.

Categories: Hotels, MA, NY, Routes, TN_11 | Leave a comment

Two nights in Luray VA

TS_11 Hop 2: Front Royal VA to Luray VA

TS_11 Hop 1: New Salem MA to Front Royal VA

Eleventh trip south (TS_11) preview

Three nights in New Salem MA

Two nights in Maine

A week in Worcester MA

“The Last Juror” by John Grisham

TN_11 wrapup

TN_11 Hop 7: Elmira NY to Worcester MA

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