May
6, 2018
We
left Pine Crest campground today and headed to MA via Highway 2. This is called
the Mohawk Trail and I think originally it was a deer trail, then maybe the
Indians used it, then years later I think some genius came along and paved
it…and widened it…a little. It’s called a scenic route, and it is. But, it’s
not the kind of road that you want to do with a 38’ rig behind you.
Not even any
warning from the GPS.
Our
destination was Country Aire Campground in Shelburne Falls, MA. Once we were
down off of the mountain the scenery was beautiful, trees are budding out,
flowers, green grass and (for a change), blue sky’s!! The campground is very
nice, large sites with full hook ups. Still early in the season, so we were not
jammed in.
We
are here because Phil’s Taylor ancestors lived here for awhile, in Ashville,
just a little ways from where we are camped. We walked a couple of cemeteries
together, then he went off and hiked through a few others on his own.
We
took a day to walk through one of the little towns close to the campground,
Shelburne Falls. This is an old town, very well kept up. It’s like an artist
colony, little shops everywhere with handmade items. Unfortunately, it was a
week end and most of them were closed.
The
town has tuned the old trolley bridge into a bridge of flowers, and it was
beautiful!! It was the obvious that it was the work of many, to plant and keep
up with. Some were still waiting to see if spring was serious about sticking
around, the wisteria for one. Or three or four, they were wrapped around
anything they could find, and had been provided with additional things to crawl
on, so that they made arches all along the bridge. I bet they were lovely when
they bloomed, arched across the bridge the way they were.
From
there we walked down the hill to the Glacier Pot Holes. This caught our
interest. Multicolored rock at the base of the falls, which is actually caused
as the water from the river comes out of the power plant. The rock surface has
been smoothed as if a glacier has receded over it, but the pot holes don’t look
to me to be a result of the water from the falls.
The pictures of the rocks really don't do them justice. They are an orange-tan color, swirled with grey and white, even dry. When the water touches them, the color really comes out
Just
up from the falls is a small sandwich shop and bakery where we had a bite to
eat. Humm, Humm good!!
We
went to the little store up the block to pick up a few items we needed.
Remember the grocery stores from when we were kids, they weren’t huge
buildings, but on the bottom floor of an old 2 or 3 story building. This was
the store in Shelburne Falls, little nicks and cranny’s where it might have
been added on to at one time or another. Like a blast from the past.
May
7-8, 2018
Phil
has spent the week meeting with a lady from the Ashfield Historical Society
about the Taylor’s that settled here, mucking through sopping wet cemeteries
and taking hundreds of pictures. He has been having a blast!!
The
weather has been cool and the rain seems to be following us around.
I
have stayed busy tying up loose ends for the Maritime Caravan and trying to get
points settled for the Alaska Caravan. Keeping them straight presents a bit of
a challenge.
May
13, 2018
Turns
out we had a little glitch in our reservations for the next campground out on
Cape Cod. We were supposed to go out there today, but the reservations got made
to go in tomorrow. It worked out well though because Phil has a cousin he met
through DNA that lives near New Bedford, MA. So, we found a campground near
there and arranged to meet up with him and his girlfriend, and his daughter and
her boyfriend. They had tickets for us to go through the Whale Museum, which
was very interesting. Then we walked down the street to a brewery for dinner.
Phil
took one of the extra DNA kits we had for his cousin, Geoffrey. Phil had his computer
with him, so he dug right in and started
to build Geoff’s tree.
Our
campground is Gateway to Cape Cod, in Rochester, MA
May
14, 2018
We
were only about an hour from our campground, so it was a very short drive for
us today. We are in the Old Chathan Road RV Park. We picked this park because of
it’s location in relation to the Taylor/Bray Farm, the reason we are here. Of
course, there are more wet, squishy cemeteries to walk through. And hundreds of
more pictures to take.
We
have been to the Cape before and so have done most of the touristy things, so
while Phil was off exploring, I stayed home, washed, and of course, worked on
the caravans. Might have taken a nap or two as well.
May
18, 2018
Yesterday
we moved up the coast, north of Boston and out on the little peninsula east of
Boston, our campground is Cape Ann Camp sites. The mailing address is Gloucester,
MA.
Having
grown up on the west coast, California in particular, you have to drive forever
to get anywhere. Here, in these small states like MA and CT, it takes no time
at all to get from one point of the state to another. It’s really amazing!!
Today
we drove over to Ipswich where our history abounds!!! This is the area where it
all started, Boston and it’s surrounds. Ipswich claims to have the most
surviving homes from the early 1700’s, and they are all in excellent condition,
and being lived in!
We
wanted to go to the Museum today, but in spite of being advertised as open,
they weren’t. So we went to the visitor’s center and the lady there told us that
we were a little early, things wouldn’t really be open until Memorial Day
Weekend.
So,
we went to the library to see what they had in the way of a Genealogy section.
What a disappointment!! They had a few
books on Ipswich early history and vital records from the early years, but not
as much as we thought they would have. But we did spend a few hours going
through the few books they had. Phil found lots of Boardman’s and a few Taylor’s.
I found lots of Baker’s, but they are all prior to what I have on my tree, so I’m
going to have to research backwards to see if any of those Baker’s are
connected to my line.
When
we came out of the library it was raining…again…surprise!!! It has rained most
of the afternoon and into the evening. Temps today topped out at about 57.
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