We didn't see much today except from the highway. We left Saranac Lake and took NY3 to Watertown. The morning started off a little foggy, but quickly burned off. Once we got to Watertown, we took I81 down to Mahanoy City, P afA, where I'm spending my last night in a hotel. Tomorrow night, it's back to the couch and not sleeping with Mom. We are in a really nice Comfort Suites hotel. We have a full kitchen and a cook top. We tried to find a place to eat, but there wasn't really anything we wanted around. The name brand restaurants were about 30 minutes away. Me-Maw came up with the idea of having grilled cheese sandwiches. We already had bread and cheese (from Quebec). We finally found butter and chips at Family Dollar. They were pretty good sandwiches (they shared with me). There is a lot of room for me to run here. Mom took me out after dinner. On a hill behind the hotel is a huge, mowed, grassy area. I ran some but mostly smelled all the smells. Tomorrow morning, we head for home. We were chased north by a hurricane and now we're going home into a tropical system. Today started off at 39 degrees. It didn't feel that cold and quickly warmed up throughout the day to around 72.
The first stop this morning was Lake Placid where the 1980 Olympics were held. They were also here in 1932. We walked some at Mirror Lake which is right in town. It reflected a church and the trees and mountains. Next was High Falls Gorge which had 3 waterfalls, then on to the Ray Covered Bridge. We walked through this one. It was long, but not as long as the one last week in New Brunswick that we drove through. I met several people who wanted to pet me. From there, we went to Fort Ticonderoga. We went through the corn maze first. That was pretty cool, but the very large grasshoppers jumping everywhere kept causing me to jump. We went through Maze 1 quickly, but Maze 2 took a little longer. We did get lost briefly. We had a card that showed 7 markers we were supposed to find and we did end up finding all 7. From there, we went to the gardens and then on to the fort. I've never been to a fort and was fascinated with all the new sights. Just outside the fort were 2 cows with long horns; I was very interested in them. I made several new friends at the fort. The lady at the entrance gate and one of the costumed ladies went on and on about how handsome I am. Our admission to the fort also included Fort Defiance, which was up on the mountain overlooking the fort. The road was narrow with barely enough room to pass a car, but the view was awesome. It was a clear, sunny day and we could see across Lake Champlain to the Green Mountains of Vermont. I did not get to add Vermont to my list of states visited. On the way back to the hotel, we went back through Lake Placid and stopped at the John Brown Farm. From there we could see the ski jump that was used at the Olympics. It's a whole lot larger in person than on TV. We ended up stopping at McDonald's tonight for dinner and finally saw some wildlife. In the grassy area between McDonald's and Aldi were 2 large doe. They were as fascinating to me as the horse the other day in Quebec City. I'm getting ready to go out for my nightly walk, then we're going to bed early because we have a longer drive tomorrow to the hotel in PA. My international traveling has come to an end. We are now in the Adirondacks in New York for 2 nights and plan to be home on Friday. I can't wait to see Olivia. I miss her and I know she misses me.
Today we went to Ottawa and saw the Prime Minister's estate and the Royal Mounted Police Academy. When we finally found a parking garage, we walked down the street where Parliament Hill is with all of its huge, old buildings. To get out of the parking garage, we had to take an elevator up from the garage, then the escalator or stairs up to the street level. I tried to be brave and get on the escalator this time, but put one paw on and decided the stairs would be better. Once on the street, I had a terrifying experience with a statue. We were standing there reading a sign when I looked up and towering over me was a huge man. I jumped and tried to pull away from Mom, who realizing what was going on, started laughing. Then I stood there for several minutes staring at him and would not walk past him. There were a group of Japanese tourists watching me and one of them was videoing me. I finally allowed Mom to lead me away, but I kept my eye on him. Mom reminded Me-Maw about the time Olivia was in Vicksburg and walked around the corner and there was a soldier in front of her. She started barking at it. At least I didn't bark and cause everyone nearby to look at me. We walked for about an hour, then went back to the garage. This entrance had a revolving door. I decided I don't like revolving doors either. We had to go through the regular door. Back in the car, we drove along Rideau Canal and then headed for the US border. We arrived into New York around 230 this afternoon. We are now planning what to see tomorrow. I think we're seeing more waterfalls and a covered bridge and going to Lake Placid. We didn't do a whole lot today except ride. It started off rainy when we left Quebec City, but stopped after about 2 hours. We stopped at a service plaza about an hour from Montreal and there was plenty of room for me to run around. When we got to Montreal, we weren't too impressed. There was a lot of graffiti on everything and a lot of litter as we went into the city. Once in Old Montreal, there were homeless people walking the streets and one was walking in the street with a cup asking for money. We saw Notre Dame and some statues and stopped at a tourist in formation center for a map. We could not find a parking lot that wasn't full and there were so many times we had to detour because of road construction. The roads were rough and everyone single corner had either a stop sign or a light. The stop signs took less time than the lights. We decided to find something else to do and took the drive along the river. Mom tried to find a dog park for me, but the only one that actually ended up being a dog park only had street parking with no place to park. We are staying in La Chute tonight at a brand new hotel. La Chute is a neat little town with sidewalk cafes along the main street. We drove around a little then stopped at Tim Horton's again for dinner before coming to the hotel. Mom took me for a long walk and there was plenty of room for me to run. Tomorrow, we're going into Ottawa, then back to the USA. We're staying a couple of nights in New York before heading back to Virginia. Here are today's pics. Didn't have the opportunity to take many. Today was another day filled with new things to see and new people to meet.
We drove back through Old Quebec City as we were going to Ile D'Orleans. This is an island in the St Lawrence River with 6 villages and about 7,000 residents. QC368 goes all the way around the island. At the north end of the island, we climbed a tower. The south end was right on the river and we could see Quebec City. We saw huge pumpkins for sale at one roadside vendor. Others were selling apples and people were standing beside the highway trying to direct cars into their parking lots. It only took about 2 hours to make the complete circle. As we were going off the island, the traffic going on was awful. Glad we went this morning. Directly off the island is Parc de la Chute-Montmorency. The waterfall is higher than Niagara Falls. We went to the overlook at the bottom of the falls first. Mom wanted to take my picture, but there was spray and it was too much like getting rained on. I wasn't scared of the roar of the water, just the spray. To get to the top, there were 487 steps going up the side of the mountain. We made it to the top and got ice cream. Then we crossed the falls on the suspension bridge. There are probably a hundred or so steps down the other side of the falls to the viewing platform. We could see rainbows as the sun hit the falls from that angle. Then it was time to go back down the 487 steps. Going down was a lot easier than going up. As soon as we got back to the car, I stretched out in the back seat. There is a Costco a few minutes from the hotel. We stopped for gas and pizza and came back to the hotel to eat. We are heading to Montreal in the morning, so Mom and Me-Maw started packing and Mom made our reservation for tomorrow night. I had pizza, fruit, and wet dog food for dinner. I walked almost 7 miles yesterday and walked and climbed 4.25 miles today. I'm a tired puppy. I think I will enjoy the approximately 3 hour ride to Montreal. We're hoping the rain that's in the forecast for tomorrow will hold off so we can walk around Old Montreal. Pictures to follow as soon as Mom downloads them from her phone. Today, we explored Old Quebec City and a lot of people wanted to pet me. I had a great time smelling all the new smells.
The streets were a little crowded. There was a Celebrity cruise ship in town. We talked to 2 couples from the ship and they were in town an extra day because of the hurricane. There were also a Holland America and the MS Hamburg ships in port. We walked up and down a lot of hills and stairs and rode the Funicular. We saw the umbrella street, Eglise Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, Chateau Frontenac, Hotel du Parlement, Plaines d'Abraham, and many other sites, statues, and fountains. We attempted to go to La Citadelle de Quebec, but they wouldn't let me in. Many of the streets were for walking only and were lined with cafes and shops. I believe we walked down every one of them, plus those that are open to cars. Mom said it looked like we're in Europe. I also found something very interesting...a horse. I've never seen one before and I couldn't keep my eyes off him. He was pulling a carriage. Mom wouldn't let me get too close to him because she was afraid I would spook him. I was a little fascinated with the fountain where the water was coming out of the frogs mouths. However, there was another fountain that kids can play in where water shoots up at different heights. I was a little scared of that. We had lunch at one of the sidewalk cafes, Chez Samy. I got to share Mom's and Me-Maw's sandwiches. When we finished walking around town, we drove the du Cap-aux-Diamants. It made a loop beside the La Citadelle. It was along the Plaines d'Abraham and had a scenic overlook for the river. The Promenade Des Gouverneurs ran from there to the top of the Funicular. Me-Maw went back to the car because she didn't want to climb any more stairs. Mom and I followed it to where we overlooking the cruise ships, then went back to the car. I met a husky. I walked almost 7 miles today and am REALLY tired. Mom is running back and forth to the laundry room, but I gave up a while ago and just lay on the bed and look at her as she comes and goes. I need to rest for what they have planned for tomorrow. |