09/01 to 09/07 - Croton Point Park

Another week has flown by and it's time to pack things here in Croton's RV Park (CPP) and head for Maine with one overnight stay in Saco/Old Orchard Beach. I anticipate it with mixed emotions. Labor day has come and gone, schools are back in session, a couple of hurricanes may have their eye on the east coast and certain trees, like the sycamore have leaves that have already turned brown and are an omen of things to come. Once that first frost comes, it's good by green and hello to the fiery brilliance of the Fall Foliage. For my interested readers, here's a link for DRIVING TOURS you may want to take here in New York State. The Fall Foliage Prediction Interactive Map, developed by the Smoky Mountain Tourism Bureau, lets you see the "where and when" the Fall brilliance occurs. Remember, links to other websites are highlighted in red.

My upcoming trip will last until the first day of fall (sniff, sniff), September 21st, and reminds me that my RV season is coming to an end. The last flickers of RV pleasures will be in Cape May, NJ, the week of October 11th when I'll once again join the Hudson Islanders for that last fling (yay, yay)

To ward off these thoughts, they (my thoughts) turned to traveling south to see friends and relatives once again. So, I began mapping, booking, placing deposits and confirming my Winter Itinerary. When finalized, it'll appear as a link to the side of my blog page titled, "2019 Winter Itinerary." It will begin later than in years past because I want to be home to celebrate Chinese New Year (Year of the Pig) with my friends at Sakura. This year it falls on Tuesday, February 5th. I'll take off south on the following Friday, February 9th.

But, back to this week. I was on site #32, a corner site and diagonally across from where I usually stay. The one negative associated with this site (or any on the east side of the road) is that the afternoon sun bakes your RV until setting behind the trees across the road. And yes, this is the week of the heat wave where temps were in the 90's and the heat index was about 95-100 from Labor day until Thursday. Across the road were Craig and Trish and behind them, Vicki and George. An easy walk to visit either. It was a very pleasant, relaxing week highlighted by the presence of those great friends.  As mentioned in earlier blogs and surely an ongoing theme, being with people...makes the difference for RVing...more so when they're your friends. One night I had dinner with V & G; an outstanding stand-alone dish: a baked potato (done to perfection) topped with chili, shredded cheddar cheese and kidney beans with a dollop (okay, maybe two or three) of sour cream. It was delicious, satisfying and just enough to hit the spot. I totally enjoyed it. Thank you, Vicki

George & Vicki (2018)

Trish & Craig (2016)

Another night, the five of us ventured down to our favorite sushi place, Sakura Garden, in Hastings, "Our..." is correct because we've all been there before and agree, there isn't another sushi restaurant that comes close to the freshness and creativity of the chefs who prepare these culinary works of edible art:

Thank you, Evan

Our "Sushi Pizza" appetizer

Craig's Shashimi Deluxe

Trish's Bento Box #1

Vicki's special roll...no rice. George's Sesame Chicken dish. Hmm. Why
didn't I capture that dish? Maybe the answer will be in the comments below.

Charlie's "Anything Roll" (chef's choice and creativity let loose). I ask for the

same thing every Monday and have never had the same thing twice. Regular

eight piece roll cut into ten pieces for easier handling.

And finally, on Thursday evening, Trish and I joined the Hoffman's in Ossining at Dee Dee's Diner. The Hoffmans, Dr. Pete and JayCee, who will soon be celebrating their 60 years of marriage are long time residents of Croton who keep their RV here at CPP. I've known the Hoffmans for years and have "taught" them their Word Processing "skills" when they attended Adult Ed classes given by the Town of Cortlandt Rec Department back in the 80's. I've also driven them many times to airports or piers as they've embarked on their World Cruises and other adventures or was on call for their computer problems. It was good to get caught up on everyone's comings and goings.

l to r: JayCee, Trish, Dr. Pete, ACR

Friday, my last day here at CPP was a very cloudy, overcast day and provided an excellent opportunity  to finish writing this blog.  V & G have left for their few days with the Hudson Islanders at the Catskill Adventure Resort in Wurtsboro, NY. I've been there twice and shared with you via previous blogs what a nice experience it was. My next blog will be from Maine. The cooler weather has set in and I'm looking forward to seeing my cousin, John and wife, Barbara. 

Barbara & John (2014)

They live in the Boston area and have a most beautiful and cozy "summer home" in Northport, Maine. My campground, Moorings Oceanfront RV Resort is right on Penobscot Bay in Searsport, ME, about 15 minutes away. This will be my fourth year traveling the 7 hour, 450 mile trip (in two days) and another annual trek I look forward to. Okay, it's Wine O'Clock here in CPP, so I'll see you soon.