Departure from Clarkston, Michigan on Saturday, August 9 11:00am. We worked our way over to Fenton and started out on Hwy 23 South to Toledo, OH. We missed Hwy 2 and instead got onto I-75S. Exit #187 took us through Dunbridge and Luckey (SR 582) to SR 102 through Woodville. On we went on SR 590 to Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge. Then we picked up Hwy 2E along Lake Erie. We were caught in a major traffic jam near Gypsum that held us up for almost 2 hours without ever knowing why. Hooked up to Hwy 6 at Huron where we enjoyed the beautiful mansions and parks along the Lake Erie shore line.

We were sent on many detours, but we made it to I-90E, which took us through Cleveland. There we continued on Hwy 2 and Hwy 20E to Geneva. We took the scenic routes 534 and 531, where we again ran into many detours. We managed to get back to I-90, however, which took us into Pennsylvania. We followed I-90E to Hwy 17E across Chautauqua Lake into Jamestown, NY, where we spent the night.
The day had brought some sunshine and some rain, which had us raise and lower the convertible top more than once. The total distance for day one came out to 426 miles.

We left the next morning at 10:45am and drove through downtown Jamestown in search of a place to have breakfast. Halas, not a single restaurant in town, so we drove on along I-17E past Allegany State Park. The park was absolutely beautiful, even though the morning was foggy. Fuel shortage prevented us from driving further into the park. So we continued on to Olean (NY) where we had our brunch.

After that we took Hwy 16N, which turned out to be very scenic, and I-400 to Buffalo. Hwy 62N took us to Niagara Falls. There we came very close to accidentally crossing the Canadian border, which would have been too adventurous. 😉

We made it into Niagara Falls where we parked at Goat Island. We walked the island and got a little wet. We took the “Cave of the Winds” tour which is in the American Falls and got kind of wet. We did the “Maid of the Mist” boat tour, which goes to the Horseshoe Falls and got soaked. Both tours were a lot of fun. Of course we got the T-shirt and sweatshirt.
We concluded the day with a good dinner at the Timber Lodge Steakhouse on Hwy 16. While visiting Niagara Falls on your honeymoon may be a little corny, we had a very nice and fun day.

Day three took us along the Niagara River on Hwy 18N, further along Lake Ontario. The weather was sunny so we drove with the top down, which adds so much to the experience by widening the view.

From Rochester(NY) we took Hwy 104E and 104B into Watertown. That was a pretty route with a view of the Lake and lots of beautiful homes along the road. A very relaxing drive that took us 220 miles further from home.

On day 4 we took I-81 to Hwy 12 to Alexandria Bay, where we took a 4 hour boat tour along the Thousand Islands in the St. Lawrence River. Here is the answer to the trivia question: How many islands in the Thousand Islands?...1793!
We see a little island with a big house for sale at $485,000. Unfortunately Kathleen just wants a little house...
The area holds a lot of history of fights between the French and the English, English settlers in Canada and rebellious colonialists, the English and Americans (1812), and Americans and Canadians (1838).

Boldt Castle on Heart Island is grandiose on the outside, but an unfinished mess on the inside. Mr. Boldt didn't feel like finishing the place after his wife Louise died. Yes, this is the Boldt of the Bellevue-Stratford and Waldorf-Astoria hotels and the one who introduced the Thousand Island dressing (first concocted by his steward), comprising mayonnaise, chili sauce, chopped eggs, pickle relish, and chopped parsley.
We left Alexandria Bay and continued on Hwy 12E to Hwy 37E to Massena, where we spent the night.

Day 5 and Hwy 37E takes us to Hwy 30S all the way through the Adirondack Mountains. A fabulous drive! We stopped at Long Lake for an aerial tour over the mountains. It was Kathleen’s first time in a small Cessna 180 and my first time in a water plane. The view from above is breathtaking. The area is extremely remote, with many of the lakes and camps only accessible by foot or by air. The plane ride over the mountains, finger-lakes, and camps was unforgettable. The pilot had many stories to tell, which he had to shout out above the noise of the engine. Another fun day.

On it went along Hwy 28S and at Indian Lake Hwy 9S to Lake George. There we had a salmon dinner and watched some fireworks.

Day 6 got us on Hwy 9 to Glenn Falls, Hwy 254E to Hwy 4N and Hwy 22N into Vermont.
At Vergennes we continued onto Hwy 7N into Burlington (VT), where we take a break and have an icecream at the harbor site over looking Lake Champlain. There isn’t much of a breeze, but some enthusiasts with a nice 6-meter yacht make the most of it. We just enjoy the calm.

We can’t help but notice that there are a lot of other Saabs on the road in Vermont. Obviously there is a high concentration of S(n)obs here! 😀

We move on taking I-89 to Waterbury and then Hwy 100S back through the beautiful Green Mountains. At Rutland we continued onto Hwy 7S and the beautiful scenery brings us to Bennington. There we find the Alexandra Inn Bed & Breakfast, which as it turns out, is owned by former Dutchman Alex Koks. Alex having been in the US since 1961 was a little rusty on his Dutch, but made up for that in his cooking.

The setting of the Alexandra Inn is beautiful. It was therefore no surprise that we spotted some deer in the parking lot, late in the evening.
Alex treated us to blueberry pancakes in the morning and shared his secret to making Dutch apple pie in the US, where you can’t get the right kind of apples (goud-rennetten).

Our hostess, Andra Erickson then sent us on our way to the Bennington museum, which we visited as well as the Clark Art Institute in nearby Williamstown (MA). The latter hosted a Degas exposition (including The Little Dancer), which was a rare treat.

Our free time was used up, so we took to the highways and freeways and made our way back through New York, Pennsylvannia, and Ohio into Michigan and back home.
 

We arrived there at two in the morning, tired from a long drive, only to find the house in complete disarray. Not a single light bulb left in its socket, plastic wrap over the toilet seats and vaseline everywhere you wanted to grip. Toilet paper was hanging from the doors, lamps, and just about everything else.

Our good friends Stephen and Kathleen, who were only supposed to look after the cats, had taken the opportunity to give us a (US) traditional honeymoon welcome home. Unfortunately for them, they had forgotton about the upstairs and the flashlight I keep handy. So we made it into bed alright and dealt with the mess the next day. All in all a memorable (honeymoon) trip!