Camel's Hump Mountain

WOOOHOOOOOOOOO!
I hiked up a mountain today!
:)
Carol and I set off this morning on our way to the mountain, and after running a few errands, got started on our hike around 11:30. It was a little daunting knowing that Camel's Hump is one of the three tallest mountains in Vermont, but I had the knowledge that my dad, and a 65 year old Aunt Mildred climbed this mountain, not to mention that Carol climbed it every day for a few years. If they could do it, well darn I could too! The climb wasn't as hard as I expected, but I was definitely breathing harder at points. The trail was easy to follow, but had its rocky points. A couple breaks and a couple hours later we had made it to the top, and man was it windy! We stayed up there for a while (staying off the vegetation of course), and had turkey sandwiches for lunch. For those of you that don't know, on the top of Camel's back there are these tiny wildflowers that are endangered or some such, and so you're not allowed off of the rock (which is fine because most of the top of the mountain it rock). A ranger comes up every day to keep hikers from walking on the vegetation, and a while ago that used to be Carol. I wasn't ever worried about getting lost on Camel's Hump, 1) because the train was really easy to follow and 2) because Carol knew that mountain like the back of her hand. Anyways we were up on top of the mountain, and because there were no trees on the top of the mountain you could see everything. it felt like you were on top of the world. Really cool.
So then we started making our way down, and once we got past the really rocky part at the very top (which is pretty steep might I add), it was an easy climb down. We made our way down pretty quickly, and hopped back in the car and came home... not before getting ice cream of coarse.
One of my favorite parts of the day, other than the views (and being able to say that I climbed a mountain), was just being able to talk to Carol for a few hours. Its great to be able to have someone's attention for period of time, uninterrupted; and I like to take advantage of that when I can, especially with people I enjoy being with, like Carol.

Anyways, I feel accomplished for today. I'm exhausted.
Here's some pictures.

Biking and Ben & Jerry's

Biking day today!
After sticking the bike in the back of Mike's car, we were headed off to Montpelier to catch the bus. Every bus has a pretty slick bike rack in the front, that takes about three seconds to secure your bike to. So I hopped on the bus with my bike on the front and was on my way to Waterbury.
This starts the beginning of my biking journey. I started at the train station in Waterbury, and headed up Main St to generally check the town out, before setting off towards Stowe. I had to ride on Route 100 a couple times throughout the trip, but never for very long, and there was a decent sized shoulder, so no biggie there. The rest of the route was on back roads, a few of which were unpaved but 1) they weren't rough and rocky, more dirt and 2) I had Carol's mountain bike. I'm not used to mountain bikes, but Carol's worked for me just fine. Anyway, it was only about ten miles to Stowe.... but rather hilly for someone from the Great Plains. It was a nice, scenic ride (too busy biking to photograph, sorry). I got to Stowe, and it was a lot like Waterbury; small, cute, old-fashioned. Stowe, on the other hand was a bit more touristy, as it had ski resorts and whatnot, so there were a lot more little shops (and ski shops). So, after a short break in Stowe, I rode the ten miles back, on different, equally scenic, equally hilly roads. At the end of the ride I made it to the Ben & Jerry's factory. You can't ride your bike past the Ben and Jerry's factory and not stop by. So I went on the factory tour, which was alright, just lots of machines, and got my free sample of ice cream. Then of course, I had to buy a whole cone. You know how it goes. After that I checked of the 'Flavor Graveyard', some of the most and least popular retired flavors. And then I made my way back to town and wandered around a bit until my bus came, and I hopped on back to Montpelier. There I had a wait before Carol could pick me up, so naturally I went to the library and finished The Fault in our Stars.
And that was my day. I had a nice ride, and it felt good to get on a bike again, even though it wasn't mine, I didn't have biking shorts, and the terrain was a bit hillier than I prefer.


*On a side note, my computer is having slight troubles uploading pictures, so I'll try to get them up tomorrow.

Rainy Days and Discounts

I am tired. If this blog post makes no sense or really sucks, that is my excuse. Also, if I don't write it now, I know I probably won't and my last two days will just be thrown into a paragraph in a later post. So I shall write them now, with hopefully more detail than just summarizing them into a paragraph... but with my tiredness, who knows.

Yesturday:
I woke up. I showered. I ate. I went for a short bike ride. It started raining. I got a little wet. I came back. I surfed the net. I slept.
Yeah. That's how my day went.

Today:
Today I woke up and had Mike drop me off in Montpelier. All of the weather reports called for rain so I was expecting a day spent mostly in shops or reading books, but I was pleasantly surprised that after I ate breakfast it still looked pretty decent out. So instead of just going straight to the library, I decided to walk around a bit while I still had the chance (I didn't know it was going to be nice all day, hot even). So I spent a while exploring some of the side streets in Montpelier. Really, they're just the same as Main, but the shops are less condensed and there are a couple churches and of course houses. I just stayed fairly close to Main street so as not to get lost... If one could ever get lost in a time with iphones. While I was walking down State St, which I had been on in my previous visit to Montpelier, (the capital building is on State.. go figure) I stumbled across a little bookstore I had previously not noticed and decided to check it out, as I like books and all. I went in and immediately noticed that they had 'Magic: The Gathering' cards for sale, as well as event decks and other accessories. For those of you who don't know what MTG is, (most of the normal population) its a card game nerds play. Its very addicting. Right before I left home Nick (brother) taught me how to play and I attended one Friday Night Magic, and became aware that they were played across the country, although I was more thinking that I might play a couple times in Boston or New York, but never thought I could find one close by in VT. Anyways, I was looking at some of the cards and I asked the worker if he knew of any games around here, and I was surprised to hear that they played Friday Night as well. So after a while of getting the details on Friday Night, we started talking about decks and cards, and he noticed that I was looking at a certain event deck (pre-made deck) that costs around 25 dollars. I got it for a little less than 15. The perks of womanhood!
So after my snagging of Magic cards I headed to the library (nice sized, well stocked, and free wifi.. what more could you want from a library!), and other than a short lunch break, spent the rest of the day reading another John Green novel, The Fault in our Stars. Favorite one so far, although Looking for Alaska was pretty good too.

Anyways, got a couple of pictures of the streets in Montpelier if anyone was interested, so I'll share those. :)

The Tops of Mountains plus Bread and Puppet Circus

It has been a long day!

We left this morning around 8 or 9, picked up Laura, Mike and Carol's friend, and started on our journey. After dropping off Mike and Laura in Victory Basin (a bog that they went bugging in), we made our way to some higher elevation. While those two were walking around the bugs, we decided to go hiking around the mountains. We were trying to stay in the same area so we wouldn't have to make too many switchbacks, so we decided on Burke Mountain. The downside was there are no hiking trails going up the mountain, only on top of it, which means we only got to hike for about an hour. It was still really neat, with some nice views (pictures below) and pretty easy. Carol and I are working on plans to hike up Camel's Hump on Thursday, weather permitting. I'm pretty excited about that, so I'm sure you'll be hearing a bit about it as it happens.

So, we picked up Mike and Laura and headed over to Glover for the Bread and Puppet Circus. Bread and Puppet put on a circus every Sunday throughout the summer that everyone can enjoy for free. You came in and parked, and it was just this huge open field that they used to preform. They had no official stage, just a backdrop that they kept everything behind. The performers come out and have costumes or masks made out of paper mache, and preform skits. Not the normal circus you're used to, but a really cool form of art. There was a lot of dancing, and a great band too. You could tell they put a lot of effort into it. The circus itself was pretty political, a good portion of it focusing on the wind turbines going up in Vermont. If I've learned anything in Vermont its that its natives are against anything that takes away from nature. Its really actually kind of inspiring. In the whole state of Vermont there is only one Walmart, and no billboards. The mom and pop shops have a lot better chance of surviving. Anyway, back to Bread and Puppet, after the circus was the 'pageant', where you moved over to a larger field and they used paper mache puppets and props to tell a story. Honestly, I'm not sure that anyone knew exactly what that story was.. but it was interesting to watch. You really got a sense for the camaraderie between all of the performers. As soon as the pageant was over they opened up the break shack and true to the name Bread and Puppet, they gave away free bread to everyone (and man was it good!). They do this, as well as sell various art very cheap, because they believe that puppetry and art should be as readily available as bread. They think that art shouldn't be withheld museums and the rich, but that it should be available to everyone who want to enjoy it. 

 Burke Mountain

Some of the Puppets

A couple slices of delicious bread! :)

Caledonia County Fair

Carol and I had a blast today! We decided to go to the fair because she had a client over in the area, so we made a day out of it. At the beginning of the day we didn't have high expectations for the fair, and brought our hiking/swimming gear in case we decided to go on a near by hike. We didn't end up hiking today, but we have plans to in the future. Anyways, we got to the fair, and were pleasantly surprised to find out that there was actually a decent amount to do. First, we checked out the cattle and other livestock (Note to Jay: looked for Herefords, but none to be found, I guess they're not popular in VT), watched some horse pulls, and grabbed a hot dog. Later we went to the singing competition, but left due to lack of talent, and stopped by the maple syrup tent and got a maple milkshake to split (YUM!). 

Then we went to the 'redneck competition' with the intentions of spectating, but got lured in by the lack of competition and opportunity at a hundred bucks. It ended up being five different challenges: wheelbarrow race (one contestant (me) in the wheelbarrow, the other blindfolded pushing), a hubcap toss (get the hubcap as close to the tire as you can), a water balloon toss (self explanatory, we won!), a teeter totter (a saw horse with a plank that you had to walk across with out tipping over the can on a tray you're carrying), and a cow call (yeah, we didn't know about that one when we signed up). Anyways, we had way too much fun and got third place, but no hundred dollar bill for us.

After that we checked out the rides, and went on a few, including Carol's favorite, The Zipper. Basically, your in this seat and the seat flips around as the whole thing is spinning around... way more fun than it looks. We then decided that after all the flipping, eating greasy fair food probably wasn't the best option, so we left and went to a Thai place not too far from the fair that was on the way home. It was great... but then again, I don't think I've found Thai food that I don't like... :)

Carnival portion of the grounds

Cattle

Hubcap toss (the paper plate on my back is saying which team I'm on)

Burlington and Things

Sorry I've been slacking off the past couple of days.

Thursday:

I was feeling a bit under the weather, so we postponed the bike ride I was going to go on until Monday. You'll here more about that as it happens. So I spent the day at home, except a small walk and Carol's softball game. We won again! 

Friday:

Friday I hopped on an hour long bus to Burlington, VT, the biggest city in Vermont (not very big). I arrived at 1o'clock and walked a little down the waterfront (I realized later that I forgot to take a picture of that) before heading into town. Burlington is a great place. They have a great (or at least great for the tourists) spot called the Church Street Marketplace where I spent most of the afternoon. Its pedestrian only, and filled with great little shops and restaurants. I believe there was a mall too, but I didn't check that out. I decided to eat outside for lunch since it was a beautiful day, and got to look at all the old buildings and listen to the music (street musicians right next to me, pretty good ones too).

Church Street

Musicians I listened to during lunch (folk music)

Some of the buildings

Fountains (kids and dogs were playing in)

Just wanted to document that I entered a chocolate shop and did not buy anything. Willpower!

Today:

If I don't write about today tonight, I will tomorrow... hopefully.

A House Call Vet's Observer

Well, unfortunately I have no pictures for today, but I got to witness a day in the life of Carol, and tagged along with her as she went on her house calls for the day, saving the world one animal at a time. We started off the morning with a checkup on an adorable dog named Ozzie, who was beaming with energy and perfectly healthy. After Ozzie's checkup, we had a cat neuter scheduled, but after driving all the way to their house they cancelled. So we decided to go for a walk, but ended up looking at maps for biking instead and decided that we might go biking sometime during my visit (not so sure I'll do well in mountains, but we'll find out!) Our next appointment was a cat who was having minor blood problems that should be fixed with a new diet, and after that a euthanization.. I stayed in the car for that one...
Anyways, it may sound like a not so exciting day, but I actually had a lot of fun being with Carol, and I learned a lot as well.

Montpelier and Hubbard Park

Well, I had a beautiful day. :)
I woke up this morning bright and early around 8o'clock... ok, maybe not soo bright and early, but you gotta give me credit, I am on vacation right? Anyways, I woke up this morning and was out the door on a twenty minute ride to Montpelier, as Mike was nice enough to drop me off on his way to a meeting. After walking down main street, I decided on breakfast at a little coffee shop and had a lovely ham and cheese croissant. I meandered through some of the shops before making my way up to the capital building. It was about what you would expect from a capital building, but I got a pretty nice shot of it, so I'll share that with you guys.

After viewing the capital building I made my way up to Hubbard park, and spent most of my day there. It's a beautiful park at the top of a hill with a ton of trails to explore, and some nice views of the town on your way up the hill. It was great to just walk around for a while enjoying nature. They have a nice lookout tower with a great view of the surrounding area as well.

View on the walk up

 Inside the park

 Viewing Tower

One View from the Tower

After a few hours exploring part of Hubbard Park, I walked down for a late lunch (good, but a little pricey..) and had an hour to kill before Carol was picking me up, so I spent some time looking through a used bookstore and found two treasures in the form of books by the author John Green that I've had my eye on for a while. I got the pair in great condition for just under ten bucks.

So that concluded my day in Montpelier. This evening Carol had a softball game, so I tagged along to join the cheering section, and we ended up winning by one! Wooo! She looked like she was having a blast, and the people on her team are really fun. All in all, a good day. 

Piercings, Briefly in Boston, and Entering Vermont

I finally have pierced ears! WOOHOO!
Saturday morning the troops awoke and started packing our gear up to leave the Cape. It was a sad occasion, and our plans to spend the afternoon at the beach were ruined by dreary, rainy weather. Instead, we took our time packing up and decided to leave earlier than planned. Although, before we left we visited the Bearded Lady. That's right, I got my ears pierced by a bearded woman. She, Aimee, was a very interesting character, and you could tell she was a very experienced piercer. I had had my ears pierced as a child and let them close up (allergic to the cheap metal). Instead of just re-piercing my ears, she just reopened the existing holes that had only completely closed in the back. What I'm getting at is, she only charged me ten dollars instead of forty, and threw in a few extra balls for my hoops in case I lose them. Of course I still had to buy the hoops, but they are industrial grade hoops that were reasonably priced and well worth the money. So now I have to clean them 2-3 times a day with saline solution, and hopefully they will heal wonderfully! :)
(Who knew I could write a whole paragraph just about getting ears pierced...)

So, we left Cape Cod after lunch and drove three cars filled with people and belongings up to Peggy's in Boston. I couldn't really get a good impression of the city in the brief time I was there, but it seems like a wonderful place, and I'm excited to spend more time there as it's the next stop in my adventure. We had some lovely Thai food (Dad's fav.) and spent the night.

Others are spending more time in Boston, but Carol and I already had plans, so we woke up Sunday morning an hit the road around 8o'clock after saying goodbye to family. We drove the 3-ish hours through some BEAUTIFUL mountains (you don't see those in IL) to her home near Montpelier, VT. After dropping our bags off, we hopped in the car with husband, Mike, and two friends from Canada, and drove twenty minutes to High Mowing's gardens. High Mowing is a seed selling company, and every year they open their gardens up to the public and offer tours of the different varieties and seed making processes. It was all very interesting and makes me want to start a garden, although I don't think I would get very far in that process knowing my abilities in procrastination and productiveness. They even let you take produce home (which we took full advantage of) and at the end of the night had students from the New England Culinary Institute use the fresh produce as well as cheeses and breads donated from neighboring farms to cook a fantastic meal. Now it was all wonderful and healthy with lots of veggies.... until they brought out the chocolate.... It was made from fennel though, so thats good for you right?!? Trust me, it was a lot more fun than it sounds, and I'm glad Carol brought me along, because if I were home I would never have thought of going to anything like it.

So today I am unpacking, relaxing, and enjoying the scenery. We had some trouble remembering wifi passwords, but we resolved the problem and I'm now looking up some possibilities on how I want to spend my time in Vermont, there is already some talk about hiking a mountain or two!

Note: Cell phone reception at Carol's house is non-existent, so if you can't get through to me that would be why.

View from the gardens

Beaches and the Beginnings of a Journey

Welcome! Welcome to the accounts of the journey of a teenage girl as she takes off of school to travel around the states for a year.

For starters, some background information. My name is Jenna (well, isn't that obvious?..) and I just graduated from high school. I was born and raised in central Illinois outside a town of around a thousand people. I have many hobbies including biking and art, but I don't know exactly what I want to do with my life (one of the reasons why I didn't jump on the college bandwagon right away, although I hope to end up there eventually). Instead, I've decided to travel around in hopes of gaining some life experience and knowledge.

So here I am. A week ago today I was standing in Union Station in Chicago with my train ticket in hand hugging goodbye to my dad, about to embark on my first solo adventure. I boarded the train and found a seat, starting my 10-ish hour ride to Ossning, NY to meet my cousin Ruth. You know, those seats aren't as horrible as I thought they would be, and I slept pretty well considering. I even had a pretty good breakfast in the diner car with some lovely company to talk to, but lunch was less than spectacular. I arrived on time around 5:30pm and spent the night comfortably at "Club Ruth".

We (Ruth, Great Aunt Mildred, and I) packed everything up in the car and set off to Cape Cod for the week. Cousin Peggy and her husband Paul rent out a house on the beach for a week every summer and invites her family, and there are 13 of us here now. Its a great time to bond with the family and they're a hoot to hang around. I've gone swimming multiple times, kayaking, walking, biking, and even whale watching! We boarded a boat Wednesday afternoon and rode out into the Pacific off the Cape and saw some really great humpbacks right next to the boat, plus a pod of dolphins. (I'll try to put up a couple of pics, but who knows if that'll happen or not..)

Whale Tail!

View from the back porch

Dolphin

Its been a fantastic week filled with great company and great, fresh fish and other assorted goodies, but alas, it must come to an end, and we pack up tomorrow to leave. But we're going to spend the last night on the beach watching the sunset and eating lobster.



 We're headed to Peggy's tomorrow (Boston), and then I'm headed up the Vermont with cousin Carol and her husband, Mike. More on the progress of the journey from there! :)

Sunset on the beach