Niagara on the Lake

In June we traveled north to Buffalo to spend the weekend and celebrate the 2nd birthday of our youngest granddaughter.  We arrived on a Friday but planned to connect with family after breakfast on Saturday since Friday was a work day for them.  Since we had an early morning start (5 am), we managed to get to Niagara on The Lake in Ontario, Canada for a late lunch.

We found a parking spot on the street and had a walk around before settling on a spot for lunch.  A pending rainstorm make that a quick decision.

The lake is Ontario.

Across is the US and Fort Niagara which we visited the next day.

Here's the restaurant.

Scenes from the Main Street through the business district.

There were an incredible number of people in little tour groups throughout the town.  Later we saw where the tour buses park.  I imagine if you come to Niagara Falls and book a tour it must include a stop over here too.

An old hotel sits on this corner.

The park was filled with blossoms.

If you like to sample wine, then this is the place to be.  There are at least 20 vineyards outside of town and you can rent bikes to travel between wineries taste testing as you go. We didn't indulge!

 The town is also known for its playhouse with multiple plays and musicals being performed through the week.  We didn't come for that either.  After a short couple of hours we headed back to Buffalo and our overnight accommodations.

Summer Reruns - 6

This is the last of the summer reruns. By now I am back from three trips: Buffalo to visit daughter and family in their new environs, Oneida Lake vacation with both daughters and families, and a mission trip with church to Lumberton, NC.  Watch for new posts on these trips in the weeks ahead.

From an early post in my blogging life, here is one from July 2010 about the perennial garden at our house.

... is shaped like a compass rose. Here is how each triangle looks at this point in the summer.

Lilies are closer each day to blooming.

I started with three of these geraniums but am down to one.

Phlox is blooming well.

Newest day lily bloom, but not many scapes there for future blooms.

Purple cone flower.

Now the following photos may have appeared in blog but I can't find that one.  I wanted to show what the perennial garden looked like before we sold our house.  These photos date to 2014 or 2015.  I can't recall when I added the stone in the pathways.

Summer Reruns - 5

Taking a summer hiatus of sorts and as with TV shows, I'm offering some reruns.

Here's one from July 2018 - a day trip to Calvert Cliffs.

The western shore of the Chesapeake Bay has some incredible cliffs that have been eroding through time.  Many of these are now in state ownership to preserve them.  They are known for the fossils that can be washed out including shark teeth.

Sunday the 8th we headed to Calvert Cliffs State Park arriving about 11 am.  The parking lots were filling fast.  We parked and took the trail to the beach, 1.8 miles away.

The trail was through some very lovely woods and along side a creek which became wetlands 

  

 partially due to the beaver dam.  

The creek emptied into the bay at a small beach.

The cliffs to north and south were closed to the public.  

Above looking north.  Below the creek we had to cross at the bay to go south.

It was high tide too so the little strip of sand was a bit crowded. 

We stayed a bit and chatted with a local resident at a picnic table and then headed back.  We passed so many people, adults, children, babies and dogs headed to the beach.  Many looked like they planned to stay awhile with their chairs and coolers.  I don't know how they would all fit.

We didn't find any fossils but someone had left this on the picnic table.  If you look closely you can see the fossils of shells.

The Chesapeake is a major waterway to and from Baltimore.  A large container or tanker ship passed by.

We took a detour after leaving the park to find the Bay House - a vacation home that my parents built in the early 1960s.  Despite all the development and new roads I got us to Drum Point and to the street.  Someone was mowing the lawn when I took this photo.  I spoke to him and discovered he lived across the street and was mowing for the owners who were on vacation.  The development is no longer a vacation home community.  People commute to Washington or across the Patuxent River to St. Mary's County and the Naval base there.

I sent the photos to my siblings and it generated lots of memories for them and for me.