09/25 - 10/01 - Croton Point Park

 

Rix comes to say good-bye.

Anticipating the early morning rain, I packed everything away leaving only the electrical connection to be pulled the next morning. As I sat relaxing, who should appear at my door but my next door friend; my friend forever, Rix. Silent and untethered, he wandered to my site obviously looking for a treat (which he received). His owner was right there soon after to bring him back "home." I never heard him bark; he's an amazing dog.

 

I left Searsport, Maine at 8:00 am relieved that the skies were grey, overcast and dismal. The pitter patter of rain about 5 am gave me some worry as to what kind of driving conditions I would encounter on my trip to Brattleboro, Vermont. Fortunately, the rain stopped after twenty minutes. My arrival at the Brattleboro KOA at 2:00 pm ended the six hour, 280 mile drive. A stop for brunch and TWO stops for fuel added to the time. I keep gas credit cards for all the major distributors not knowing which I'll encounter in my travels. At the pump, it was nice reading that my "reward" was a reduction in the price per gallon of 10¢. Overall, the journey was dreary, dismal, and drizzly with overcast skies. Speeds were kept to speed limits but the drive through Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, as always, was scenic and pleasant. Many times the roadway followed the curved path of the Connecticut River rapidly flowing like a creek or small mountain stream running parallel to the highway. Today, I saw the first signs of leaf changing colors which are about to claim its season.

C-34 was to be my little corner of the world for tonight

A tent was set up in the lean-to behind
me; the couple's unoccupied
parking spot is to the right.

Tomorrow I'll return to Croton Point Park three hours and 181 miles away and busy myself back at my apartment to catch up with laundry and printing. Just two weeks left of my RV season.  I stopped at the Flamingo Diner in Brattleboro for a real breakfast that held me over nicely till dinner around 6:00 pm. 

Compared to the day before, the ride to CPP was near perfect (except for I-84 through Connecticut). I'm talking about the day, not the traffic. Sunshine all the way with the temperature at 75° when I arrived at CPP at 1:30. I relieved Vicki and George on site 50 of my caddie and headed back to my apartment and accomplished my tasks...one of which was to check my weight. Since my last 'weigh-in', I lost another 1.1 lbs. bringing the total to 33. With my remaining time at CPP, I tried to squeeze as much in as I could; a visit with my mom in Fishkill, shopping, a doctor's appointment and dining with friends and neighbors.

Monday - I took friends, Jaycee and Pete to Dee Dee's Diner in Ossining. Beside the delicious specials of the day, their menu is as extensive as I've ever seen for a diner. If you're into diners, do check out the variety of choices on their website. Come June and September of next year, I'll be suggesting the Hudson Islands enjoy a breakfast, lunch or dinner at this restaurant less than five miles away.

A special appetizer

Tuesday - was neighbor Jack's long awaited promised sushi dinner at Sakura Garden in Hasting, NY. . After numerous cancellations, I was able to squeeze the trip into my schedule. As always, a trip and a special sushi roll at Sakura is always worth the wait. Jack enjoyed the Hastings Roll: Shrimp tempura and lobster salad topped with spicy tuna and avocado with four kinds of tobiko. For me, I was once again eager to see what Evan, one of the three sushi chefs, would "create" for me off the menu. He's been doing this for me for years and has never duplicated the combination of flavors of this edible art. This night a video would be worth a few words. For sure, it was topped with mango.

     

Wednesday - Another squeezed in promised dinner...yes again sushi and again at Sakura but this time, a different theme. I treated three neighbors, Diane, Elaine and Diane to a "thank you" dinner at Sakura. Be it driving me back and forth to pick up or drop off Winnie from storage in Cross River, NY, or hosting dinner get-togethers in their apartments to picking up my mail and watering my plant while traveling, these ladies extended themselves thus making my life easier with less worry. As they'll tell you, "That's what neighbors are for." All sushi lovers, a dining experience at my favorite sushi restaurant was my way of thanking them and wishing Diane W a Pre-Happy Birthday October 1st.  

l. to r. Diane F, Elaine, Diane W, and Lucky Me
Note Evan's "creation" for me in the foreground

Edible Art we enjoyed

Diane F's Sushi Deluxe

Charlie's Evan Roll

Diane W's Hastings Roll

Green Tea, Mango and Vanilla Mochi
for dessert to end our great evening.

And it all comes to an end....for this week anyway. The last hurrah awaits me as I pack it all up and take off Friday morning, October 1st. Happy Birthday, Diane. My last blog for the 2021 will be written in Greenfield Park, NY. No one knows where the heck this place is. It's a hamlet in Ulster County about 75 miles from CPP and should take me about 90 minutes to get there. Ellenville, New Paltz and Saugerties are more familiar name in the area you may recognize. To the best of my knowledge, I'll be joined by nine other members of the Hudson Islanders for our last rally of the season.

I'll probably include my Winter Itinerary for 2022 which is set in stone as deposits have been paid on long term stays and full payments paid for the many overnight stays as I travel south through Florida and back home by way of Texas. I'm looking forward to that adventure.  So stay tuned for the Last Hurrah. Till then take care, stay well and be happy.