A sweet stop

 After leaving Gettysburg, we journeyed south the Hershey Pennsylvania, home to - you guessed it - Hershey chocolate.  We stayed in a Thousand Trails outside of town that is earmarked for a return visit - utterly beautiful and well maintained with full hookups - a premium at a lot of Thousand Trails.

We went into Hershey with the intention of a) visiting an Amish community and b) attending the Hershey RV show.  But first we went into Hershey Park

When Milton Hershey started Hershey, he wanted a place his workers could relax, so he set aside a large parcel of land for relaxation.  This land is still operated by Hershey, but has morphed into a  stadium, an amusement park, a convention center, a candy store and corporate promotion.  .

I can tell you that Disney has nothing on the the good folks at Hershey.

You drive in, park for free and then enter the worlds largest candy store.  In the back of the candy store is an entry to the "Hershey Story".  This is a ride through a animatronic representation of the chocolate manufacturing process.

You exit the ride once again through the worlds largest candy shop, where you can (and we did) spend significant amount of money on Hershey's wares.

Of course there is a picture you can buy

The more we looked at Hershey and Milton Hershey, the more we were impressed with him.  In addition to the town, the factory, the park, the hotel etc, Milton Hershey started and endowed the Milton Hershey School, as a boarding school for disadvantaged children.  

I don't think Henry Ford ever did that.

Hershey is fairly close to Lancaster PA.  which has a large Amish population.  We took a drive over there and toured a "Amish Farmhouse" that had been opened to the public.  It was right next to a Target store that had a number of Amish scooters (they use them for short distances) parked outside.  The guide said Costco has barn for parking the Amish buggys.

We then took a bus tour through the Amish countryside, seeing Amish schools (the kids walking home waved to us) people working the fields behind the horse drawn equipment.  There were an number of "retail opportunities" on the bus tour and we took advantage of some Amish baking and preserves.

One of the more interesting stops was an Amish dairy farm.  It unfortunately had stopped diary production due to the milk glut (we have a milk glut?) because the Amish with the older method of feed production can't really compete with the large commercial dairy farms.   They were trying to repurpose the farm into a handicraft gift store until perhaps the milk glut gets unglutted.

I was surprised at the practicality of the Amish people.  They do have electricity - generated by onsite propane generators, propane powered forklifts on the farm.

The Amish don't like their pictures taken, so we honored their wished and kept the camera in the pocket.

We also attended the Hershey RV show at Hershey Park and met some friends from nearby Maryland and lusted after some high end (hello Newmar) Motorhomes.  I don't think we are in market yet, unless we hit lottery big.

History, more history, still more history and a lot of history

 After leaving Niagara Falls, we journeyed south to Gettysburg, PA, site of the famous dust-up between the north and the south.  We stayed in RoundTop campground that sadly was not on either of the more famous Roundtops.

This Stop Sign has been there a while

We found an area that literally drips in history.  

The Gettysburg battlefield has been mostly preserved as a national memorial site (not by NPS?) and everywhere you look there are memorials to what happened in June-July of 1863 there.  There are houses there where the homeowners mow their lawns around the stone memorials and cannons in their front yards. 

Kinda of sparse on pictures - I was having camera issues.

The town of Gettysburg itself has identified all the building that were standing during the time of the great battle with small bronze plaques.  Houses that played that played a significant role in the battle had signs describing what happened that day

There is a large museum there operated by the Gettysburg Foundation that along with the inevitable gift shop and snack bar has a number of interesting exhibits - including a lot of artifacts from the battle itself.  There is a movie that describes the various actions and the highlight is a restore diorama painted after the war, but early enough to have the participants vouch for it's accuracy.

The museum also offers a bus tour around the battle ground with a guide who provides a detailed description and color to the historical events.

The battle was fought essentially between two ridges - Seminary Ridge for the south and Cemetery Ridge for the north.    This can be driven, but is also easily walked - much to Gingers utter joy.  There are spectacular monuments on both sides that thoroughly document the battle.

We spent 10 days in Gettysburg.  In retrospect probably 5 days would have been sufficient.

We weren't sure what this one was about - I always thought the Indians were too smart to get wrapped up in the Civil War.

 Name:  Thousand Trails Williamsburg VA

Location:  4301 Rochambeau Dr.  Williamsburg, VA  23188
Sewer:  Most
Water:  Yes
Power:  50A
Cable:  Yes
WIFI:  Very Good. Fast enough to stream. 
Cellular:  T-Mobile:  
Comments:  Some spots are bit short and some are uneven.  Very nice RV resort.

September 2021

Other Thousand Trails should follows this parks example for maintenance and cleanliness.  We were quite impressed with this park.  The pools (indoor and out), the spa, the minigolf and the other facilities were immaculate.  Water pressure was good and the EMS had no issues with park power.

The staff here is very accommodating and arranges weekend programs for children and adults.

The sites can be bit short and not totally level, but we had no problem in our 38foot Class A.   Satellite can be difficult due to the trees.  We managed to find to clear spot to aim the dish.

There are a lot of seasonal RVs and Cabins here, but we had no problem getting in after labor day in a fine site in Section C.

The Thousand Trails is located on the edge of the Historic Triangle of Williamsburg, Yorktown and Jamestown.   This is an excellent jumping off space for these  historic adventures.

Upstate New York

We left Kenisee Lake Thousand Trails traveled along lake Erie to upstate New York and stopped in a KOA in Medina, New York.  

This was unusual for us.  We very seldom stay in KOAs since they seem to be vacation resorts that have and do a lot of things we don't necessarily want.  KOA are also mucho dinero.   This one was no exception.  It was very nice and we enjoyed the park, but it really was setup for families with kids on vacation.  

While exploring the area, we discovered Golden Hill State Park on the shores of Lake Ontario.  In the future when we travel to this area, we will stay there rather than the KOA.

This is near the Eire Canal and we spent a fascinating day exploring the locks and canal museum in Lockport N.Y.  and took a ride along the canal in a paddle wheeler.

The primary reason to stay in this particular area was to hook up with family in nearby Rochester NY.  We did so and had a very pleasant evening with them.  Thank you Wyatt and Jess.

We stayed a couple of days and then headed out along Lake Ontario towards Niagara Falls.

We stayed a little bit out of Niagara Falls in a little town of Grand Isle at the Cinderella Motel and RV park.  This worthwhile institution is a small, family run semi-residential motel with a full hookup RV park in the back.

Niagara Falls has two sides:  American and Canadian.  We elected not to enter Canada due to Covid Restrictions (it was possible, just a hassle) and visited the Niagara Falls State Park.  Unfortunately a restaurant where we wanted to eat at the Falls was closed due to "Lack of Inventory" (supply chain issues?), but the rest of the falls was open.  We did both Cave of the Winds and the Maid of the Mist tour.

Cave of the Winds doesn't exactly exist anymore.  Originally it was a cave behind the falls and you could go behind the falls and experience the power of Niagara that way.  

The cave collapsed in the 1930s.   So what the state did was build an elevator and a set of platforms near the base of the falls (on rather rickety looking 2x4s) for tourists to get close to and sprayed by the falls.  Sprayed to the extent that they give you a poncho and a set of flip-flops to wear on the excursion.

We thought the money spent on the experience was well worth it.

We also took the Maid of the Mist boat trip to the foot of the falls.  This is also a traditional Niagara Falls thing.  The boat also issues ponchos.

 We thought this was also worth the money.

One thing they do not really advertise is the free Niagara at Night light show.  Probably because they don't have to.

We only spent a couple of days in Niagara, but it was certainly eventful.  We are planning to go back someday.

 Name:  Thousand Trails Hershey Pennsylvania

Location:  492 S. Mt Pleasant Rd, Lebanon, PA
Sewer:  All
Water:  Yes
Power:  30A/50A In all spots
Cable:  None
WIFI:  Available at extra charge. 
Cellular:  T-Mobile:  
Comments:  Very beautiful RV Resort

September 2021

This is a high end RV resort located outside of Hershey PA.  It is somewhat rolling, but the sites were spacious and level.

There are large green areas surrounding a small catch and release lake with immaculate pool, spa and tennis (pickle ball) area.  

When we were there, they were preparing for the winter and had covered the pool.  The indoor spa however was open and warm.

The park is within an easy driving distance of the Hershey Park area and Lancaster with its Ahmish population is nearby.

The staff was extremely friendly and accomadating.

We highly recommend this park and the nearby attractions of Hershey and Lancaster.

 Name:  Gettysburg Round Top (Trails Collection)

Location:   180 Knight Road, Gettysburg, PA 17325
Sewer:  Mixed.  Most site appear to have some sewer.  On-site holding tanks on some.
Water:  Yes
Power:  30A/50A (we had 30 only)
Cable:  Some
WIFI:  Available at extra charge.  Fast enough to stream.  Free at the lodge
Cellular:  T-Mobile:  Pretty Good
Comments:  Very close to the battleground.

August  2021

First off, this is a trails collection campground.  This means that they are primarily a public (rvonthego.com) campground that reserves some spots for Thousand Trails members.  It is on a hill side - not the famous civil war round tops - but nearby.  If you are a civil war buf, this place, with is close proximity to the National Museum, can't be beat.

It is fortunate it is on the hillside.  We arrived in the midst of the Hurricane Ida aftermath and some of the other local Thousand Trails were closed due to flooding.

The close proximity to I-15 made for more noise than usual.

It appears that most of the spots are occupied by seasonals.  The place kind of fills up on the weekend empties during the week.

The pools and grassy play areas are very well maintained are are quite inviting.  The sites, by and large, were quite nice, but there were some - possibly retired and no longer used - that fell into the category of "you expect me to park in that?".   In our site for example, we believe it was a vacated annual site, the sewer connection was quite strange and required a trip to a hardware store to purchase some rubber sewer adapters.

Thousand Trails Kenisee Lakes

 Name:  Thousand Trails Kenisee Lakes

Location:  2021 Mill Creek Rd, Jefferson, OH 44047
Sewer:  All
Water:  Yes
Power:  50A
Cable:  None
WIFI:  Available at extra charge.  Fast enough to stream.  Free at the lodge
Cellular:  T-Mobile:  Marginal is some parts. 
Comments:  Very beautiful RV Resort

August  2021

Note:  This is a seasonal park, closed in Winter.

This is a very beautiful RV Resort outside of Jefferson Ohio.  Unlike many Thousand Trails the upkeep here is perfect.  It has on site fishing lakes, boats available for fishing and massive green areas for walking, playing etc.  The playgrounds are modern.

This park has a majority of seasonal sites, so getting in can be difficult during peak periods.  

The sheer beauty of this RV resort can't be beat.  We were so struck by it, when we pulled in we instantly got on the computer and extended our stay.

If there is a problem with Kenisee Lakes it is that there is nothing really in the area.  The area has tried to up its tourist value by building modern covered bridges which are, well... ok.  There are a couple of state parks on the nearby Lake Erie, but they are dog hostile and therefore did not get a visit.

Cleveland, with the Rock and Roll hall of Fame is a bit of drive away, but was surprisingly worth a visit.