Day 95, 96, 97 & 98 of 166 Days of RV Adventures in the Summer of 2026

Sunday August 9th is day 95. Have I told you about the great local tomato stand? It is on my morning walk route. They begin the tomatoes early in the season in their greenhouses. They are big, juicy, tasty and very hard to get! Many times we drive past the stand and there are no tomatoes. We are told they put them out early, so I was going to out smart the other buyers. I grabbed money and I was going to purchase some on my walk. Well, when I got there, the stand was fully stocked. I pulled the ten dollar bill from my pocket. Oooppps, it is a twenty-dollar bill. There is no change at this stand. So, it looks like I am getting twenty-dollars of tomatoes! Two big bags added a bit more weight to my walk, so I called Charlie to come and get the goods!

We made a trip to Best Buy in Henrietta, to grab some printer ink. I used the Best Buy bucks I had and it was almost half-off. We took Route 15A up and Route 15 back. This statue is carved from wood and sits on Route15 in Rush. It has been there for many years! So, here is the "rest of the story"... Corporal Robert Frank Hodes (Company F, 2nd Battalion, 24th Marines, 4th Marine Division) was killed in action at age 19 on February 21, 1945, during the intense early stages of the Battle of Iwo Jima. In 2004, Fellow Rush resident, Captain Richard Updaw, a local USMC Vietnam War veteran, was visiting the cemetery with a friend, he noticed a headstone next to one of his friend’s, Mike Hodes, with the name of Bob Hodes. Dick asked Mike’s widow, Yvonne, who Bob was and she explained “He was Mike’s older brother who died in World War II. Bob was the golden boy in the family. Following his death, his family was so deeply traumatized by the loss that they rarely spoke of him, and his story faded over time. Dick made it his personal mission to research and preserve the memory of the young, largely forgotten Marine. He was profoundly moved by the fact that nobody seemed to remember the young corporal, Updaw traveled to Iwo Jima to trace Hodes' final steps and meet people who knew him. In 2012, Captain Updaw commissioned a distinctive hand-carved wooden statue depicting a World War II soldier holding an American flag. He placed it on a highly visible location on his own 59-acre farm property right along Route 15. Bob is memorialized with the statue in Dick’s front lawn and now proudly stands watch over his great-great-grandfather’s farm. The land, and those memories, will now be passed on for generations in the Genesee Land Trust.

Over this past weekend was the Rochester Air Show. Today is Monday August 10th. While we were enjoying our morning coffee outside the RV, we saw this plane and a jet going overhead. Where is Larry Blankenship with his airplane identifier app, when you need it!

Today we are driving to Hornell to see Charlie's sister, Mary, and her husband, Jerry. On our way down, we went through Howard. Wow, there were no wind turbines in this area, the last time we were over here! The Howard Wind Farm is a 55-megawatt operating renewable energy project located in Steuben County. Commissioned in late 2011, the facility features utility-scale wind turbines spread across local agricultural farmlands, producing enough clean electricity to power roughly 12,500 homes annually. 

In May of 2022, Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company purchased Howard Wind Farm from the BlackRock Global Renewable. The Howard project marks Greenbacker’s first wind asset in New York, building out the company’s presence in a renewables-supportive state and increasing access to cheaper clean energy.

We enjoyed a nice visit with Mary & Jerry and Charlie brother, Kenny, and his wife, Joyce. Mary and Jerry sold their place in Florida and moved back to NY. So, this was our first visit to their new house. We were going to stop and see our friends, Ron & Julie, but it was getting late in the day. So, we headed back to the RV.

Day 97 is Tuesday August 11th. I enjoyed a morning walk along my normal square 4-mile loop. 

Most of the day was spent working on finalizing the plans for our next RV caravan job with Yankee RV Tours. All of the initial contacts have been made and we just need to confirm numbers. Touch base with the vendors and get them final payments.

Sheila planned a night out at No BS! It is steak and taco night. 

Donny & Donna and Tony & Natalee came too! Not all of the "NY Camping crew" came, but the ones that were there had a good time! 

I have to get all the PB&J Cream Ale that I can, before we leave NY! PB&J Cream Ale is a craft beer that replicates the flavors of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich using a smooth, light cream ale base. No BS Brew Company has perfected brewing this novelty beer It tastes like a liquid childhood sandwich without heavy malt or stout weight. The only other one I have found, but it is not a cream ale, is from Broad Street Brewing in Brooksville, FL. "Field Trippin'" is a popular PB&J Social Sparkler, a seltzer that they have brewed.

If No BS brews it this winter again, I will have to ask Sheila to bring some more down in her suitcase in March!

Wednesday August 12th brought more time to work on our Yankee RV Tour music caravan. Of all the caravans and rallies we have worked for Yankee, this is our favorite. We are true music lovers and are so very blessed that we get to share all of this music with so many others! Thank you Sheryl & Gary and Rod & Helen for creating it and entrusting the success of it to us!

We enjoyed some time outside this afternoon, before the weather started to turn. Tonight, there was no cooking for me. We were lucky and are here for the Livonia Methodist Church Take Out dinner. It is Charlie's favorite, Spaghetti! The take-out meal consists of a huge container of spaghetti with house sauce, meatballs, undressed side salad, and garlic bread. We will get a few meals out of these meals for sure! I should have taken a picture of the feast!

Stay tuned for more Two Lane adventures!

Day 92, 93, & 94 of 166 Days of RV Adventures in the Summer of 2026

On Thursday August 6th, I enjoyed a last walk at Lake George Escape RV Park and God sent down a beautiful ray of sunshine that I captured in the marsh. 

We departed Lake George on our two lanes, heading south on 9N. We came into Lake Luzerne. It is a charming southern Adirondack resort town known for its rich history of presidential visits, outdoor water adventures on the Hudson River and local chain lakes, and unique cultural touchstones like the Adirondack Folk School and the Painted Pony Rodeo.

In Lake Luzerne we passed Tubby Tubes River Company. Co-founded in 2002 by Eric and Heather Hamell, they pioneered family-friendly lazy river tubing on the local waterways near Lake George. They sought a calm, accessible alternative to intense whitewater rafting.  The company maintains status as a top-ranked US lazy river destination. In 2021, the Johnson family, owners of the Adirondack Extreme Adventure Course, acquired the company.

The Hudson River is Saratoga County's eastern and southern boundaries, serving as a vital historic divider and lifeline separating it from Washington, Warren, and Rensselaer counties. This aquatic border witnessed critical Indigenous pathways, fierce Revolutionary War campaigns, and 19th-century commercial canal navigation.

I don't know if I was more excited to capture a picture of the cars from Cars or the deer and her fawn eating from the bush! We have seen replicas of Lightning McQueen, a stock car mixed with a Corvette and Ford GT, and Tow Mater, a rusty 1950s International Harvester tow truck, in Baxter Springs on Route 66. Surprised to see a set in NY!

Corinth is a small town in Saratoga County known as the "Snowshoe Capital of the World." The community historically claimed this title due to its heavy winter snowfalls, rich outdoor culture, and traditions centered around winter sports like snowshoeing, skiing, and snowmobiling. They are also known as a scenic "Gateway to the Adirondacks." Nestled along the upper Hudson River north of Saratoga Springs, it has a rich history tied to paper manufacturing and outdoor recreation. 

In Corinth there is a patriotic seagull statue. The Patriotic Seagull appears to be spreading the flag, flapping in the breeze or just drying off its wings. I am not sure who thought a patriotic seagull was the best thing to make out of concrete, but it is a first for us!

Rock City Falls is a small historic hamlet located within the town of Milton along NY Route 29. It features a 15-foot waterfall, "Big Falls", on the Kayaderosseras Creek and a rich past tied to 19th-century paper manufacturing. 

Established as a mill town in the 1800s, it was home to industrial innovator George West, inventor of the folding paper bag, who built the Empire Mill here in 1862. A scenic curtain-cascade drop located near the historic bridge on Rock City Road, adjacent to remaining industrial structures like the Cottrell Paper Company.

We saw torch runners on Route 20. They were part of the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run, a massive global torch relay promoting world unity and peace. On August 6th, an international team of 12 runners representing nine countries covered 95 miles along Route 20, traveling from Manlius to Esperance, NY. They had previously traveled through Buffalo and Rochester earlier in the week. The runners are carrying a single torch across all 50 states to mark the 250th anniversary of America, stopping at schools and community organizations to share a message of personal and global harmony. The run was founded in 1987 by athlete and philosopher Sri Chinmoy, the continuous relay has visited over 160 nations.

Every time we travel on Route 20, I see this sign. The Petrified Creatures Museum of Natural History was a quirky roadside outdoor museum in Richfield Springs, New York. It opened in 1934 and permanently closed in June 2016. The site featured colorful, old-fashioned concrete dinosaur statues, mailboxes with buttons that played audio  Hand-painted concrete dinosaurs, audio mailboxes, and a public fossil-digging pit. But the sign still survives, 10-years later! 

In Richfield Springs, on US Highway 20 is a premier youth baseball and fastpitch softball tournament destination that held its grand opening weekend in July 2026. Built to serve the greater Cooperstown area, it provides modern diamonds and training facilities just minutes from the historic birthplace of baseball. It may be "new" but it sure looks like it could use some TLC!

The post clock in Richland Springs originally stood directly in the middle of the nearby street intersection before being moved into Spring Park. The famous Richfield Springs post clock is a historic landmark installed in 1918 along US Route 20 and Church Street. Presented to the village by Thomas R. Proctor. The clock post is celebrated as an iconic centerpiece of the community. 

On the way to Lake George, we saw them putting up tents along Route 20. We wondered for what? Coming back, we learned about the Antique Meca this area is! We are still 3 days ahead of the start of the event!

Bouckville, NY is a renowned destination for antique enthusiasts, often referred to as a hub for antique shopping in Central New York, particularly along Route 20. Madison-Bouckville became an antique destination through the growth of the Madison-Bouckville Antique Show, which started in 1972 with just 10 to 12 vendors on an airstrip next to Route 20 to attract patrons to a local tavern. It expanded into a massive, week-long seasonal tradition drawing thousands of dealers and collectors.

The area features numerous permanent multi-dealer shops, and it hosts the major annual Madison-Bouckville Antique Week. The Madison-Bouckville Antique Week will take place from August 9 to August 15, 2026. It will feature over 2,000 dealers and independent show fields along Historic Route 20 in Madison and Bouckville. The show offers free admission and daily hours from 8 to 5. They anticipate over 2,000 vendors across 12 show fields. The fields cover miles of walking terrain. 

We stayed overnight at the Cider House Campground and Show field. This property hosts one of the permanent antique shops in the area. It is hosting a large portion of the tents for the show too, as well as parking! 

It is day 93 - Friday August 7th and we decided we had better get an early start. Antique vendors were streaming in this morning, in the heavy fog to get set up! The campground offered us a great level FHU site.

What is the North Country National Scenic Trail? It is the longest National Scenic Trail in the US, stretching approximately 4,800 miles across eight northern states. The trail connects diverse landscapes from Lake Sakakawea State Park in North Dakota to its eastern terminus in the Green Mountain National Forest of Vermont. The trail spans roughly 700 miles across New York State. It is a premier corridor that connects the state’s diverse public lands, historic canals, and rugged wilderness areas. Traversing NY from the PA border in Western New York all the way to Lake Champlain at the Vermont border, the trail passes through deep gorges, old-growth forests, and historic landmarks.

Lakeland Park in Cazenovia, New York, originated as the private estate of Samuel Foreman. It later became the site of the J. Fairfield Carpenter mansion. After the grand estate struggled financially during the 1930s, the village bought the property to create a public park.

The CazArts building is officially known as the "Carpenter's Barn." It is a historic 1889 stone carriage house located at the corner of Lakeland Park. Originally built for the private Lakeland estate, it has transitioned from a Gilded Age amenity to a municipal garage, an ambulance corps base, and finally a vibrant community arts hub. Talk about repurposing!

Lafayette, NY, is famously known as "Apple Country" and features several outstanding local apple orchards. Beak & Skiff Apple Campus was voted the #1 Apple Orchard in America by USA Today. It is a massive campus featuring wagon rides, a massive variety of U-Pick apples, and their famous 1911 Tasting Room where they serve premium estate-made hard ciders, spirits, and wines.

1911 Hard Cider stems from Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards, founded in 1911 in Lafayette, New York, by onion farmer George Skiff and dairy farmer Andrew Beak. Fifth-generation family descendants launched the 1911 Established brand in 2001 to craft small-batch hard ciders from their fresh orchard apples.

Back to fog in the valley. Valley fog in NY forms on clear, calm nights when cool, dense air sinks into low-lying areas like the Mohawk river valley. This traps moisture near the ground and reduces visibility, though it typically burns off by mid-morning as the sun warms the surface.

General Lafayette visited Skaneateles at 1 am on June 9, 1825, during his grand farewell tour of the US. Despite the middle-of-the-night hour, cheering crowds and an illuminated village greeted the Revolutionary War hero as he stopped briefly at Hall's Hotel before heading east toward Syracuse. The day before, he visited Waterloo, as part of his tour through all 24 states. His welcome was marred by a tragic cannon explosion that killed Captain Jehiel Parsons. 

The Seneca Falls Convention was the first formal women's rights meeting in the US. It took place in July of 1848, at the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, NY. About 300 people attended, including leaders like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, and Frederick Douglass. It is captured in this mural close to the Wesleyan Chapel.

Women's Rights National Historical Park is located in Seneca Falls and Waterloo. Founded by an act of Congress in 1980, the park was first opened in 1982.  The movement was controversial because it challenged the social, religious, and political norms of 19th-century America. Its demand for women's suffrage (the right to vote) was seen as too radical, leading to heavy public mockery, backlash from religious leaders, and the withdrawal of many participants' support. It resulted in the signing of the pioneering Declaration of Sentiments.

Look! There is a cow on the roof! Max's Custard is a popular, cow-themed seasonal roadside ice cream stand in Seneca Falls. It is highly regarded for its dense, ultra-creamy frozen custard made with a rich egg-yolk base, alongside massive portions of traditional ice cream. Too bad they are not open at 9am!

I loved the outside decor of Connie's Diner. It has been operating since 1989. It is a nostalgic 50s-style diner that is famous for its vintage setting, fast friendly service, and generous portions of classic comfort food. Their most popular item is the Cheesecake Stuffed French Toast. There is never enough room to park an RV towing a car!

Seneca Falls and Waterloo are full of history! The National Memorial Day Museum is in Waterloo. Waterloo was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1966. The museum is located in the historic William H. Burton House and preserves the history of the 1866 community observance that established the continuous holiday tradition. The house is a historic 1830s Federal-style home later remodeled into the Italianate style around 1870.

Moving along Routes 5 & 20, you come into Lima, NY to the intersection of Routes 5 & 20 and Route 15A. It is known as the "Crossroads of Western New York". Settled in the late 1700s, this historic crossroads evolved from ancient native paths into a bustling 19th-century agricultural, commercial, and academic center. The first fire company in Livingston County, formed in 1830. Reorganized in 1876 as Centennial Fire Department and in 1927 again, as Lima Fire Department.

The Mark Lodge formed at Lima 1809. The Union Lodge was chartered June 11, 1816 and the New Masonic Hall at four corners was built in 1866. The Masonic Lodge building used to be the Lima Morning Break, a small coffee shop that Charlie and I used to stop at when we worked close to each other!

Friday night we enjoyed a few craft beers at No BS. Music was provided by Dan Ripley. Dan is a singer, songwriter, and survivor. He is a two-time kidney transplant recipient. He is still playing every note with everything he's got. 

Dan's roots are in country, acoustic rock, and country rock. Dan brings an authentic sound shaped by life itself. Dan's music carries a depth that only lived experience can give. He performs with raw gratitude and relentless energy.

Saturday August 8th brought a day of quiet time. We truly enjoyed relaxing at "home" watching the barn cats learning to hunt! I could not get a good picture of their "prey." but it was a turtle... but every creature has to begin somewhere!

Stay tuned for more Two Lane Adventures!

Day 89, 90, and 91 of 166 Days of RV Adventures in the Summer of 2026

On day 89, Monday August 3rd I took a walk around the Richfield Springs Cooperstown KOA and the farm road in front of the campground before we left. Today we have a little less than 150 miles to get to Lake George.

Our main reason for going to Lake George was to see Brian and Lisa. We also are using our free 13-months of Thousand Trails Membership for the last time. We have so many friends that use it and love it. But, Charlie and I never got the "draw" to it. But, more about that later.

On our drive, we drove through rain most of the morning. So, not much to see. We did pass The Saint Kateri Tekakwitha National Shrine. It is dedicated to the first Native American saint. The Saint Kateri Shrine is Catholic in identity; but their ministry and site are ecumenical and they welcome people of all faiths. These grounds are dedicated to Kateri Tekakwitha because it was here she was baptized and lived most of her life. 

The village of Caughnawaga, which was Kateri’s home, was rediscovered in 1950 and is now the only fully excavated Iroquois/Haudenosaunee village in the world. This distinction has earned the site listing on both the New York State Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places. The main grounds feature Saint Peter’s Chapel, housed in a former Dutch barn built in 1782; museum exhibits of Native American culture and history; Saint Maximilian Kolbe Pavilion; a Candle Chapel dedicated to Saint Kateri; Grassmann Hall and the Shrine office; a friary; a gift shop; an outdoor sanctuary; and maintenance facilities. The 130 acres of the Saint Kateri Shrine & Historic Site include hiking trails that are open to the public year-round from sunrise to sunset. The Shrine was established in 1938 by Fr. Thomas Grassmann and the Franciscan Friars, Order of Friars Minor Conventual.

But only on two lane adventures can you travel behind a manure spreader for miles and miles and miles!

We did drive alongside and cross the Mohawk River. The Mohawk River is a 150-mile-long waterway located entirely within New York State. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. Named after the Mohawk Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy, the river has served as a vital migration, trade, and transportation corridor for centuries. The Mohawk River valley provided a natural gap through the Appalachian Mountains, making it the ideal route for building the Erie Canal in 1825. Today, a 117-mile section of the Erie Barge Canal parallels, mirrors, and integrates directly with the river channel. The river features five permanent dams, nine seasonal movable dams, and five active hydroelectric plants east of Rome to control water levels for navigation and power.

The Central Adirondack Scenic Byway is a spectacular 150-mile road trip corridor that cuts a horseshoe-shaped path through the heart of upstate New York's Adirondack Park. Tracing primarily along New York State Route 28, it links the historic city of Glens Falls in the east to the revolutionary-era city of Rome in the west. We started at the Eastern Gateway Glens Falls and wound north toward the mountain-rimmed southern basin of Lake George.

Glens Falls, New York features prominent historic military monuments honoring local service members from the Civil War through modern conflicts. This 42-foot-tall sandstone and granite obelisk caught my eye. It was dedicated in May 1872 to honor local men from Queensbury and Glens Falls who served in the American Civil War. It features stone soldier sculptures, relief carvings, and battle inscriptions. It is located near City Park.

The prominent architectural landmark at the intersection of Glen Street and West Notre Dame Street in Glens Falls does not feature a traditional pointed spire. Instead, the First Presbyterian Church of Glens Falls is topped by a massive, Neo-Gothic bell tower. The tall spire caught my eye! It is truly unique!

We arrived at Lake George Escape Campground, a Thousand Trails park. We got checked in and found our site. My first challenge was to back Charlie in on a narrow gravel site with large ponds of water on either side of the pad! It took a bit, but I got him safely in and kept my shoes relatively dry! We got set up and ate a light lunch, then we headed to see Brian & Lisa. 

After we visited for a while, we went to Martha’s Dandee Creme, on Brenda's suggestion. They say hiking the high peaks of the Adirondacks is a reason to visit, and that’s true. But there is another reason to visit, but in this case you start at the top and work your way down, to the bottom. None of us had one, but there is a glimpse of the  monster ice cream cone from Martha’s Dandee Creme!

A landmark for more than 50 years on Route 9 between Lake George and Glens Falls. The site is a former chicken farm owned by the Harkness family. Its fame as a restaurant and later an ice cream stand started in the late 1930s. Sometime in the late 1990s, Six Flags began buying up properties on the west side of Route 9. In 1999 the Lafontaines decided to sell everything to the Great Escape and with a five-year “no compete” clause, the Lafontaines were out of the ice cream business, temporarily. In 2009, Beth and Dennis LaFontaine purchased Martha’s from Six Flags, putting the ice cream stand back into the hands of the family that owned it for almost two decades and for Lafontaine generations to come!

On Tuesday August 4th, Brian & I had Board of Directors actions to take care of this morning. A bit of history about the town of Lake George. Early local industry centered around lumbering and sawmills before shifting to steamships and the railroad. By the late 1800s, the area grew into a fashionable summer escape for wealthy Americans, later attracting notable artists like Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz. The mid-20th-century construction of Interstate 87 further accelerated tourism, cementing its reputation as the "Queen of American Lakes". It was Thomas Jefferson who famously dubbed it the "Queen of American Lakes" in a 1791 letter.

We boarded the Minne-Ha-Ha for a relaxing 1-hour sightseeing tour of Lake George's southern basin. The Minne-Ha-Ha is an authentic, fully operational steam paddlewheel boat owned and operated by the Lake George Steamboat Company. It is one of the last steam-powered passenger vessels left in America.

The tour features live historical narration focusing on the lake's ecology and the wealthy historic mansions lining the shore. Lake George is a 32-mile-long, spring-fed glacial lake in upstate New York's Adirondack Park. Nicknamed the "Queen of American Lakes", it spans 45 square miles, reaches depths of nearly 200 feet, contains over 170 islands, and is renowned for its exceptional water clarity. It is the largest lake in the Adirondacks. Renowned for its clear waters, Lake George has quite the history as a vacation destination and more.

Visited by French missionary Father Isaac Jogues in 1642, who named it Lac du Saint Sacrement in 1646. Renamed Lake George in 1755 by British General William Johnson in honor of King George II.

Brian googled if Lake George has alligators, he quickly reported that there were 2,600 alligators in Lake George... then he realized that he was reading about Lake George in Florida! We did not see any alligators, or the monster the locals call "Georgie." Reports of this monster date back to the early 1900s. Unlike Georgie's cousins, Nessy and Champ, there's solid proof of his existence. Harry Watrous, a prominent man from NYC and practical joker, used a log, paint, and a pulley system to create Georgie in 1904. He went on to terrorize locals and tourists alike with his lake monster. You can visit Georgie at the Hague Historical Museum or a replica at the Lake George Historical Museum. 

We saw the Plum Point Minnie Ha-Ha fan club. Plum Point on Lake George, now home to the Antigua Resort on Plum Point on the east side of the lake. It has roots tracing back to the 17th century. Named for historical plum trees on the property, the site features early Gilded Age estate architecture, local French and Indian War artifacts, and mid-20th-century resort history.

Known as Wikiosco, which means “home on beautiful waters” in Algonquin, the Tudor Revival-style residence was built in 1895 for Royal C. Peabody, founder of Brooklyn Con Edison. It was designed by Brooklyn-based architecture firm Ludlow and Peabody; architect Charles S. Peabody was Royal’s son. It is a 20,000-square-foot mansion. On the inside, the seven-bedroom, twelve-bathroom home boasts original carved oak doors, decorative carved built-ins, oak beams, stained glass windows, crown moldings and wainscoting. DId I mention the Olympic sized pool in the front yard?!

We watched the dare devils parasailing on the lake. Nope, that is not something I am interested in doing! For over three decades, long-standing local outfitters like Parasailing Adventures and Parasail Joe's have operated on the lake, taking riders up to 300 feet in the air.

On our way back to the campground, we stopped at Northway Brewing Company. Northway Brewing Company offers craft beers that celebrate the people and landscapes that make up this area. They are located just north of Saratoga Springs on the edge of Adirondack Park in Queensbury. In 2016, they purchased the property, an old movie cinema, and retrofitted it as a brewery. Originally known at Lake George Brew House, they focused on contracting for others. In 2018 the Northway brand was born. They quickly transitioned into brewing their own products and developing new and inspiring recipes. We enjoyed one beer each in their 3,000 square-foot taproom. Charlie had a Sunset Session IPA and I went for the White Watermelon Wheat.

A second stop on the way home... The Adirondack Brewing Company is located in the Southern Adirondacks and provides them with an endless source of inspiration for our handcrafted ales. Springs located deep within Lake George’s bedrock provide beautifully pure water for brewing. It is the perfect blank canvas for their beer. They use locally sourced ingredients to create a beer that is all-natural, unpasteurized, and fresh.

Charlie enjoyed a Lake George IPA and I had the Tangerine Dream. We had a few snacks for supper too!

On Wednesday August 5th, it is day 91 and I enjoyed a great walk around the campground. Our campground is located about 5-miles from downtown Lake George. The campground is nestled on 178 acres of pristine woodland and waterfront property. I talked briefly about Thousand Trails earlier. Many of our friends use it, but every time Charlie and I have stayed in a Thousand Trails, we get a lousy site. Our membership was free for 13-months, from when we purchased our new RV. You would think that if Thousand Trails really wanted us to purchase a membership at the end of our free period they would give you a better site. Nope, not them!

Charlie and I drove to Prospect Mountain. It is a 2,030-foot peak located in Lake George. It is renowned for its spectacular 100-mile panoramic views. Visitors can see the Adirondack High Peaks, Vermont's Green Mountains, and New Hampshire's White Mountains from the summit. 

Charlie and I drove the Veterans Memorial Highway to the top of the summit. There are three vistas along the highway - The Narrows, Lake George, and the Eagle's Nest. 

I took in the spectacular 360 degree views at the top. There are beautiful views of Vermont's Green Mountains, New Hampshire's White Mountains, New York's Adirondack High Peaks and on a very clear day, the Laurentian Mountains of Canada. 

We met up with Brian and Lisa and they drove us into Lake George. We were lucky and found a great parking spot! We walked to The Lagoon for dinner. The Lagoon was established in 2018 and renovated in 2019. 

The Lagoon is located in the heart of Lake George Village on the middle and lower level of The Village Mall. We experienced some of the best views of the southern end of Lake George from the lakeside deck while we enjoyed dinner and the company. Brian's brother and his wife joined us too. Charlie had a BLT and I had the Turkey Rachel. Both were delicious!

After dinner we walked to the Lake George Amphitheater. It is located in Shepard Park. Local residents and friends preserved the lakeside land to honor Edward Shepard's vision after his death, culminating in the 1917 dedication of the original open-air stage. The original Greek-inspired performance center, flanked by columns with an open-air stage was dedicated on September 2, 1917. 

Named after New York City lawyer and philanthropist Edward Morse Shepard, the park and original Greek-inspired performance venue were built to provide a free public gathering space for concerts and community events. In the 1950s, the aging original Greek-inspired structure was taken down.

In 1990 a new bandshell and amphitheater were built using private community donations. That facility provided entertainment to the community for almost 35-years. However an electrical fire destroyed the 1990 amphitheater on June 30, 2024. A new $6.4 million modernized amphitheater opened in July 2026, featuring upgraded lighting, audio systems, stone work, and accessibility improvements. The complete build is not done yet, but the upper level of the Amphitheater is stunning! 

We are here to enjoy the Summer Concert Series sponsored by the Lake George Arts Project. For over 40 years, The Lake George Arts Project has been bringing regional and national acts to Lake George as part of their Summer Concert Series.

The Bluebillies don’t just sing Country songs; they embody them, performing their unique blend of country, bluegrass and folk music with traditional style, sound and spirit. Husband and wife team Mark and Melody Guarino have been singing together since 1984 when they first made it their mission to help revive and preserve the rich heritage of this great and uniquely American art form. The Bluebillies perform together with all the joy and simpatico that only a “family” band can produce. 

Mel “Melba Deen” Guarino was born in Sioux City Iowa to parents who both were musicians in swing bands. The family traveled all around the Midwest following the music and eventually settled in her dirt road one horse hometown of Black Oak Indiana. After hitchhiking and traveling all over the USA, Mel settled in New York City where she played with various rock and folk bands. But soon she returned to the music she first heard and loved in Black Oak, where Country Music was the music of choice among the population. And it was the music that would become the driving force behind The Bluebillies style that forges close harmony bluegrass and hillbilly music into one heart-wrenching all-American wail. 

Mark Guarino cut his teeth on rockabilly and country in his first band, Buck Libido, and opened for bands like Pure Prairie League and New Riders of the Purple Sage. His NYC based band, The Ring, toured New England opening for acts such as The Ramones, Jason and the Scorchers, and Whitesnake. He is an accomplished songwriter and seasoned stage performer, well known throughout the lower Adirondack region.

Greg Bucking has spent the past two decades writing for and performing in a variety of projects and musical styles. One of his current bands, The Vine Brothers, has recorded three albums and spent the last five years touring across the US. His song “Three Bottles” was featured on the Discovery Channel show Vegas Rat Rods. Greg also wrote and recorded three albums for the New York based Mother Freedom, one for Broken Carousel, and penned the score for the independent film My Brother Jack. Greg also regularly performs with the NYC ska sensations The Scofflaws.

It was a great night of music and time with friends! Thursday morning we depart Lake George and head back toward Livonia NY.

Stay tuned for more Two Lane Adventures.