Across Lake Champlain to Burlington, Vermont.
It was just below freezing this morning, and about 32 degres as I started out, first taking a drive through Cornwall in the daylight, which at 47,000 is actually bigger than Burlington, where I was heading, about 3 hours south east. But, Cornwall is no Burlington, and rather nondescript.
I very soon came upon the Seaway International Bridge, which spans the St. Lawrence Seaway and crosses into upper New York state, and on the other side, dealt with a sort of surly U.S. immigration officer who wanted to know, well, was I coming from Michigan or California, and then sort of disgustedly handed me back my passport card. Nice welcome back to the U.S. And I was only gone two days.
Then, east across the top of New York, about 85 miles and maybe 2½ hours, and a very nice autumn landscape. Lots of run down homes and buildings along route 11, though, and within the first ten miles of crossing the bridge into New York I counted 13 plus cannabis dispensaries. What does that say?
I didn’t realize I was taking the ferry this way (because I’d told google maps to take local roads), until I saw the ferry ahead. $12 and on board we went for a maybe 15 minute ride from Plattsburg, NY, to Grand Isle, Vermont, across the lovely Lake Champlain on this gorgeous day, and by now, although still cool, nice to be outside. I stepped out of the car and onto the deck while crossing.
Lake Champlain, which of course looks like every other lake I’ve seen (other than those emerald green lakes near Banff), is beautiful and serene, nonetheless, just like all those other lakes. It’s always a pleasure to get out over a lake, at least when the water’s flat and calm like today.
Getting off the ferry, I picked up route 2, the Lake Champlain Byway, for the maybe 22 mile trip south from Grand Isle to Burlington.
Pretty soon, I was in Winooski, the town bordering Burlington, and soon after that I arrived at Rachel and Jimmy’s lovely home on South Union Street.
It was great to see Rachel and Jimmy. I last saw them at Bev’s service, but we really never got to talk much. We talked, we hung out, and then Rachel and I took a walk, and we stopped by Rachel’s studio, full of wonderful sculptures. I’m sorry I never thought to take a photo. Later, Anna and Lance came over for dinner, and we had a petty damn good evening. It was a good way to end the trip.
Anna had a hip replacement just a week ago, and is doing well but definitely in some pain and discomfort. Still, she and Lance are planning to return to Mexico in just about two weeks. They were both in Oaxaca until a couple of weeks ago, when Anna returned for her surgery, and Rachel too has just returned from Oaxaca, and returning in January for three months. Not Jimmy, though. He’s a hold out.
I’ve decided to not stick around two nights as I’d planned, but am just going to head home tomorrow, about 3 hours south. What the hell.
