Oak Haven Family Campground - 08/14 - 08/17
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| The Smiths' just ahead of me in site 94. |
Today's trip was uneventful with light traffic...yes, along I-84 once again. Time driving and distance traveled worked out to be very close to what I saw on Google maps. I arrived about an hour before Vicki and George and after we settled in, we had dinner together. Beside their company, the treat for the evening, at about 7:45, was moon rise. Peak will be Thursday morning at 8:29 am but the waxing gibbous still provided an awesome spectacle. With temps dipping down into the 60's, fire master, George, provided comfy heat with his propane fire pit. No smoke, just heat; only that smell of a campfire was missing. :-(For those who never heard of Wales, MA...like me, you'll find it a very small town (2010 census showed 1,838) and settled in 1726. It's 6 miles north of the Connecticut border on the Connecticut River.
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| My site 93 was nestled nicely in a shady corner adjacent to Pratt Field. You can see from campground site map above, the bulk of the campground was more to the northeast of us. |
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| George and Vicki, on site 94, were but a few steps away with the pavilion just to their left. |
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| Pratt Field also provided shady sites along its perimeter. |
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| Looking east from my doorway, the treeless McCleod field was empty. The RV along the back edge were protected from the morning sun but baked once the sun rose above the tree line. |
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| Dakota is a nine month old Alaskan Huskie, |
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| She's a rescue of only three weeks for her owners |
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| Agreed, her eyes are not the ones I'd like to meet entering a dark house. But...she's beautifully colored and a most laid back, docile, friendly sort that took my dog treats appreciatively and didn't mind a pat or two on the head. |
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| Her owners are recently retired and live a short distance away in MA. This week was Dakota's first trip, one of many more they have planned. I have yet to hear her bark. |
With our dinner plans put on hold, we ate "at home" tonight, I made meat loaf, mashed potatoes, peas, and applesauce. With it, I finally got to treat myself to something special. A birthday gift to me this past May from the Breglia family, their homemade Prosecco. Thank you, Giacomo and Roseanna, it was outstanding.
Friday night, our last night here at Oak Haven, we had the good fortune of driving through Sturbridge, caught a glimpse of Sturbridge Village and wound up at George's pick for dinner, The Steaming Tender in downtown Palmer, MA. The "19th century Romanesque style building, designed by renowned architect H.H. Richardson, is wedged between two rail lines, with trains coming going all day long. Behind the building is a diamond crossing, a unique configuration of rail lines that allows trains coming in to travel North, South, East and West. Inside, the thirty-foot ceilings and high brick arches make the space feel open..." The "Palmer Diamond Crossing Interchange is one of only eight left in the United States. Memorabilia for the railroad enthusiast are in remarkably good shape and plentiful.
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| The Parlor Car - A birthday party was in progress this evening. |
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| A 1909 New Haven Railroad Passenger Car |
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| Lane, our waitress, like the others, wearing the classic blue white hickory stripe bib overalls |
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| Across the railroad tracks, the building caught our eye because of the color. Upon closer examination... |
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| ...one notices the owl perched on the roof top to ward off other birds. Guess it would be called a "Scare Owl." Notice how clean the roof looks. |
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| The locomotive pictured on their home web page, a 1914 steam engine was not the same as the one in their parking lot. |
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| Out in the parking lot a 1915 Porter Locomotive was on display |