And Back in Deep River again (May 1)

Since Chuck’s parents were not home when we last visited, we decided to head back to Deep River, see how they are doing and give them a tour of the RV.  They are expert RVers, and we are always eager for their advice about various aspects of RV life.

With a large storm forecast for the State College area, we rushed to pack up and head out.  We are glad we did – the storm was intense with power lines down and a possible tornado.  However, we left about two hours before it all hit, and did not have any wind or rain for our trip.

Chuck was quite intent on getting to Deep River in one day – a trip that can be difficult even in the car.  However, we know the route well.  We took a couple of long stops and made it in time for a late dinner.

I have been impressed at the extent to which highway rest stops are mini nature preserves.  Now that I am uploading to eBird (a citizen science project to obtain information on bird distributions) during at least one dog walk daily, I often take a bird count at rest stops.

This particular one on Hwy 81 did not have many birds (that I could spot), but it did have a nice forested area and many wild flowers.

Our activities in Deep River are centered on seeing family and friends.  We have spent quite a bit of time with Chuck’s parents.  They are always busy and active.  We also spent time (and dinners) with both sisters and their significant others.

We also arranged to have dinner at La Cantina with Chuck’s high school friend, Joe Markley who is now a Republican state senator for CT.  I had only met Joe once previously, and Chuck last saw him at a high school reunion in 2012.  So there was quite a bit of catching up to do.  Joe managed to convince me that there are some reasonable Republicans left.

We went back to La Cantina with Chuck’s parents the following night.  Did I mention the enormous servings?  The 2 dishes shown here are after a full loaf of bread and a huge salad.  An the dish in front comes with a side of pasta, too.  Each of these dishes provides enough left-overs to feed both of us twice, so we now have 8 meals in the freezer.

The Chester boat show was on Saturday and we went with Chuck’s parents to see the boats.  The emphasis was on power yachts, but there were also some very nice sailing boats.  We enjoyed touring the boats, but Chuck and I are sticking to the RV for now.

My nephew Max just spent several months doing service projects in several developing countries.  He was supposed to arrive home on Saturday.  We were hoping to see him before we left.  However, whether it was the weather or just the vagaries of modern air travel, his flight was delayed until after our departure on Sunday.  🙁