Diet Log - Lessons Learned on the Road

Today is my last day in Pennsylvania.  Tomorrow I return to Florida to await my next trip out with my husband for his job.

This was my first time away from home for extended period of time.  I did some things that I will correct with the next trip.  I also did some things right and I'll continue those.

The availability of so much free food is challenging.  I've struggled with that the whole trip.  I've got some brainstorming to do while I'm back at home.  Now that I'm aware of the temptation I can do some things that will help with that.

We in a beautiful hotel, in a lovely room.  Unfortunately, there's no microwave.  So, I've been limited in what I can do in the room as far as foot prep.  I own a small crock pot and I think I'll pack that for my next trip out.  That will enable me to make  a soup each day.  I will also pack my extra large, plastic salad bowl with a lid.  I can then make a big salad to keep in the room.  These two things will help me considerably to avoid the free buffets at the hotel.

Exercise is where I've done great.  I have lots of time on my hands now and I was lucky that my husband was stationed in such a great city.  Staying active and spending time out of the room is very important for mental and emotional health.

So, taking everything into consideration, I did very well.  The challenges of living out of a suitcase are acceptable when compared to the exciting adventure I'm having on the road.  I've seen and done so many things over the last month and I'm excited about heading out again to parts unknown.

Reading Log - A Merciful Death by Kendra Elliot

I love crime mysteries and this one is a good one.  A Merciful Death is the first in a series by Kendra Elliot.

I loved the story.  There's lots of background given about the main character, an FBI agent, Mercy Kilpatrick.  She is brought in to solve several murder cases in her home town of Eagle's Nest, Oregon.  She does so with the help of the local police chief, Truman Daly.

It's a very engaging story and I couldn't figure out the who done it part until it was revealed by the story.  I love that.  The other thing I really like about this story was the lack of a cliffhanger at the end.  This story has a beginning, middle and end.  So you can go on to the next in the series or not.  you'll enjoy the book either way.  I really appreciate that.

I can't to read more by Kendra Elliot.

Travel Log - Gettysburg, Pennslyvania

We decided to drive over to Gettysburg for lunch after we finished kayaking at the Pine Grove Furnace lakes.  It was too late in the day to visit the museums, so we had a wonderful lunch and strolled around town.

I had never been to Gettysburg and I found the town to be beautiful.  There are lots of historical buildings, restaurants and shops.  It's a very clean and inviting city.

We had a delicious lunch at the Pub and Restaurant on the square.  I'm a vegan and they had a great hot veggie wrap with fried potatoes.  So good.

After that we just wandered around.  We did go in one shop; Gallery 30.  This place was unbelievable.  Packed full of gourds made into every conceivable thing.  Plaques galore.  A huge selection of jewelry.  The store was really beautiful and we enjoyed walking through.  Unfortunately, everything in this store is very expensive so, for us, it was just a looking tour.

Many of the old houses are now businesses and have been restored and made beautiful.  I know I keep using the work beautiful, but this town is so pretty.  It was well worth a visit.

Travel Log - Pine Grove Furnace, Pennsylvania

We visited this area the first weekend I was here but I didn't have a bathing suit so we just walked one of the trails and talked about returning.  This last weekend we returned.

Pine Grove Furnace has two lakes; Laurel Lake and Fuller Lake.  We wanted to go kayaking and that's only offered at Laurel Lake, so that's where we headed.  I grew up canoeing in Central Florida, but I've never been in a kayak.  I loved it.  I don't have any photos from our kayaking because I didn't want to take my phone or camera in the boat.  I really enjoyed it.  There were people there with paddle boards and I want to try that too sometime.

After Kayaking we walked around the lake area.  There's a dam at one end of the lake to control the water level.  When you kayak up to this spot it looks like you'll go right over the edge.

The beach area is lovely.  This whole park is beautiful and a wonderful place for family fun.  After kayaking we got drinks and sat on the beach.  What a great place.

Travel Log Ricketts Glen State Park, Pennslyvania

I would have never known of this park.  Since arriving in Harrisburg, PA I've been doing google searches on day trips and day hikes and places to visit near Harrisburg.  Ricketts Glen never came up.  So, in talking to my husband on what we should do during our last weekend in Pennsylvania he mentioned that several of his co-workers had mentioned this park.

I googled it and was amazed.  So many waterfalls!  All in one park!  Yes!  We were definitely going there.  And we did.

Ricketts Glen State Park is a couple of hours away from Harrisburg.  It's easy to find with gps.  We stopped at the ranger's station and picked up a map.  We were told by the ranger to take the Highland Trail route to see the waterfalls.  Once we got to the trail head we realized we could go that way or take the other way around, toward Beaver Dam Road.  Having never been there, we followed the advise of the ranger and I'm so glad we did.

There are lots of steep areas to climb and since the trail goes through waterfall areas, it's wet.  So you are either climbing or descending steep, wet stone steps with no railing.  It's challenging in areas.  Taking the Highland Trail route allowed us to climb the wet, steeper areas, instead of descending them.  So, I highly recommend everyone take the Highland Trail your first time to this park.

Get there early.  We started at 8:30 am and there was already plenty of traffic on the trail, though we were spaced out.  By the time we finished the trip the parking lot was full and there was people everywhere.  The pressure of having people behind you, waiting, can make the hiking less enjoyable.  I'm glad we started early.

We did see a few families with very young children and I wouldn't recommend this.  The climbing is challenging and small children will struggle or need to be carried.  We saw a couple of dads with babies strapped to their fronts.  Very dangerous.

Visit the bathroom before starting.  It takes at least 3 hours to hike this loop and there's no bathrooms on the trail.  That might not be much of a concern for men, but it is for the ladies.

We took water and snacks but we didn't stop to eat until after we finished the trail.  There is a great place at the halfway point to sit and eat if you bring food.  Again, there's no bathrooms, so keep that in mind.

We thoroughly enjoyed this park.  The waterfalls are amazing and the photos don't do them justice.  I'm so glad we made the trip.

Reading Log - Foreign Deceit, A David Wolf Mystery Thriller by Jeff Carson

Now that I'm living on the road with Brent for his job, I have a lot of time to fill.  You can only exercise so many hours each day.  I have figured that out.  So, I am rediscovering my love of reading.  I haven't read much in recent years because I was filling my time with other things; working full time, exercise and diet.  My mind was occupied to the point that I had a hard time settling down enough to focus on reading for leisure.

I have been a lifetime lover of reading.  Now I am enjoying it once more.  It may be for a season.  Whatever the case may be, I'm embracing it.

I just finished reading Foreign Deceit by Jeff Carson.  I love crime mysteries and this is a good one.  It's book one in a series.  The main character is a police officer in Colorado.  In this part of the series he travels to Italy to solve a mystery involving the death of his brother.

The story is engaging and I found it hard to put this book aside.  I recommend it for those who, like me enjoy murder mysteries.

Travel Log - Fort Hunter Mansion and Park

Victorian addition added to the front of the original stone home

What we thought would probably be a 30 minute tour of an historical home turned out to be something else entirely.  We got totally sucked back in time with this visit. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the two families who owned Fort Hunter mansion and the history surrounding it.

Original stone house behind the three story addition

The entrance was originally on this side of the stone home

The original home was a two story stone building with a root cellar beneath.  It was built by a Civil War hero, McAllister.  He was a widower who married a widow and together they had six children who they raised in the stone home.  We were told by the guide that the family of eight all slept in one room.  It's a long narrow room with windows on both sides.  The family ran an outpost for travellers going West.  The house sits right along side of the Susquehanna River and has spectacular views from the back side of the original home.

Patio on the river side of the original stone home that faces the river

View of the Sequehanna River from the ground floor patio

The family prospered and they built a large addition on to the existing home.  Whereas the original home had low ceilings and is very colonial in style, the addition is obviously influenced by the victorian style with high ceilings, wallpaper and other grand furnishings.

Grand staircase in the entrance of the addition

Original kitchen.  Newer kitchen added to second floor later

As some point the McAllisters suffered financial losses and sold Ft. Hunter to the Boas family as a summer home.  They added an inside kitchen addition to the back of the house.  They gave the home and property to their grown daughter Helen and her husband for their full time residence and they lived there the remainder of their lives.

This was the original entrance to the stone home before the addition

Helen never had any children so her nine nephews and nieces inherited the property.  A niece, Margaret Meigs assumed leadership in making sure the property was preserved.  She formed a foundation that runs still today.

People were standing in the river fishing the day we visited.

To properly tour the home and property you need a couple of hours.  We thoroughly enjoyed our trip back in time and high recommend a stop at this historical site.

Travel Log - Washington, DC

I went to Washington DC as a child with my family for summer vacation one summer.  I never went back and I assumed that I never would.  Living in Harrisburg, PA now gave me the opportunity to go back with Brent for a day trip. 

Parking was a major concern and we did some research the night before to find a place to park that was reasonably priced and close to the area we wanted to visit.  Having only one day meant that we had to be specific about what we would see.  There's enough there to see to spend weeks.  We found parking under a Holiday Inn and paid $18 for the day.  We were two blocks from the museums we wanted to see.

We also filled up with gas locally the night before because we were unsure what the gas station situation would be.  We took breakfast and ate it in the car on the way.  We also took protein bars, peanut butter crackers and waters in a small backpack to eat during the day.  The only food we bought was coffee for the return trip.

Brent picked one museum he really wanted to see and I picked one.  As it turned out, we got to visit those and two others.  We went to The museum of American history, the museum of American Indians, the museum of Air and Space and the museum of art.

Security is serious at some of the museums and very lax at others and we have no idea why.  We were patient at the ones where it took more time to get through security.  The wait was well worth it.  We weren't supposed to be able to take food in but they never said anything about our snacks.  Probably because we never ate any of them inside the museums.  There were food trucks everywhere, so getting food there wouldn't have been an issue, but we didn't know that ahead of time.

I didn't take a lot of photos. I wanted to spend my time enjoying the exhibits, not focusing a camera.  So, I tried to take just a couple of photos in each museum.

 The Indian museum was our first to visit.  I was very disappointed.  The exhibits were very political.  The museum wasn't what I thought it would be.  I would liked to have seen more history on the tribes themselves.  I would recommend skipping this museum if you are short on time.

The Air and Space museum was out next stop.  There was a very long line to get in and security was slow.  The exhibits were very interesting and we really enjoyed our time at this museum.

We then went to the museum of American history.  This one was my favorite.  There was so much to see; we could have spent a week at just this museum.  I enjoyed all of it.

Lastly, we went to the Museum of Art.  This was at the end of the day so we didn't have time to look at anything for more than just a moment.  We saw as much as we could, but there was so much we missed.  I really enjoyed this museum too.  I could have stood for hours at some of the paintings.

Overall we have a great time.  It was a lot of walking; 6 1/2 hours of constant walking.  We were exhausted but satisfied that we squeezed every bit of goodness out of the time we had.