So after the amazing trip to Nantucket, we spent a few days hanging out. Cooking together, fires, beach day for the girls and a rainy afternoon painting. All fun times!

Oh, and I was able to get a lot of hairs cut off!

This was a great day as we took a ferry over to Nantucket Island with Joni, Mike, Dave,Mike B. and myself. It had been years for the Cape Cod’rs and Mike B.  And I had never been. Weather was perfect and it was beautiful on the water.

The town reminded me of Mackinac island without the horses. A LOT of gift shops and restaurants. The Whaling museum was fantastic and was our first stop on arrival.

Afterwards, it was lunch. Then we went separate ways to explore.

We have continued to find great things to do here in Cape Cod. Saw a play at an old town hall, Made a prime rib dinner for multiple friends and ended the night with a great fire.

I was introduced to the art of gathering quahog clams. Frankly, it’s a little boring.  Dragging an improved rake across the sand, hoping to uncover a quahog clam. We were allowed to harvest 2 inches or larger clams in 1 bucket. Between 3 of us we accomplished this goal. Now I have to learn how to open or shuck them to use in some amazing sounding recipes.

Next day was time to shuck these clams and get ready to cook up some chowder and stuffed quahogs. I will admit I only opened 1. Dave was the expert and shucked close to 40 of these babies.

Final results! Stuffed Quahogs and Chowder.

It was a great day to leave early and see not only whales but a lot of dolphins as well. I didn’t get a lot of good pictures. It was very rough on the water and I didn’t want to lose my phone.

This was so awesome. From making the horns and getting them secured to the car. To placing spots,eyes, and ears correctly. Then to find Moo sounds on YouTube and connect to Bluetooth speaker as we rolled down the street throwing candy,  beads, key chains and inflated cow horns. We were all styling in our cow outfits as well!

Guess what? We took 2nd place in the Parade!

It’s always a pleasure to visit Joni and Mike at their beautiful home in Cape Cod. There is always something to do. From crafts shows, to concerts, to walks on the beach.

We’ve done a couple of tours of historic homes put on by the National Seashore as well. Atwood Higgins house which is one of the oldest owned by the National Seashore. A lot of restorations were done by a descendent of the original owner in 1717. You’ll have to read some of the banners below for the full story.

Our other house tour was at Fort Hill and the Penniman house. Passionate tour guides and way more information about the family and whaling during this time.

I needed a safe place to sleep for a night while traveling east towards friends. This was a great place. Nate was very nice. The driveway was very level where I parked. And there was a beautiful field in which to walk. Happened across this Solar field on top of the hill and behind their house.

From Plattsburgh, Sam and I headed to a state park for a few days. Showers, dump stations, and electric hook up were all needed. The park was pretty empty and trails well maintained. We did venture out 1 day to discover a little of Vermont via a ferry ride. All in all, it was great to walk a little in the campground,  city of Burlington, and have multiple fires each night.

Met up with a very good friend from Canada at Four Maples Vineyard and Winery in Champlain, NY. Sam(Sandra) and I have known each other for 25 years. We also try to meet up whenever we can. This was a spur of the moment get-together. We enjoyed the private wine tasting here and the peaceful atmosphere.

From there, we went south to Plattsburgh, NY. We really tried to find interesting things and places here but we pretty much laughed at our antics and some of the places we found. Thank goodness Valcor Brewery was a positive experience. It was a great place for a drink and late lunch. As well as discovering the history of the Air Force base that was once here.