Archive for the ‘ Places & Trips ’ Category
Finally got around to visiting the now abandoned Medfield State Hospital this weekend. Went on a bone chillingly cold day, slight overcast. I really don’t have a good excuse for why I haven’t visited here sooner, since it’s literally within walking distance of my home and not a bad place to visit.
This weekend was the second annual New England Webcomics Weekend (NEWW) here in Easthampton, MA. Some of the most popular and well known artists come from around the country and meet and greet fans of their various web based comics. The event was two days (Nov. 6 & 7), with several thousand people descending upon the otherwise quiet town from all over New England.
Tickets were $6 for one day or $1o for the weekend; extremely reasonable. Most venders, if not all, had merchandise for sale; books, pins, posters, stuffed animals, etc. Cash was the main way to pay for most things, but there were one or two that accepted credit cards. Lines for the various booths were generally short, and authors were happy to have a quick chat and sign what ever you wanted, a few even posing for photo ops. Various sessions were held throughout the day, run by the artists attending the show, most on things like “Your Star Trek Questions” and the similar. Read more
1200+ miles of driving in 24+ hours over the course of 4 days. Two cases of wine purchased from over a dozen wineries. Oh, and one Starbucks mug too.
I left for Dunkirk, New York this Friday with my significant other at around 1PM, and made the 500+ mile journey from Boston via 90-West. Traffic was surprisingly light, considering the time of day and proximity to major cities. Aside from some nice foliage and a couple of interesting cars (Cube with a sign: “this is a rental, don’t judge us”) a relatively eventless trip. Stopped every 2 hours for gas, food, and a stretch of the legs, arriving at around 10:30PM, on schedule.
Even with no breeze, from the minute you pull into the quant little town, you can smell the grapes. We stayed in the same hotel as her parents, the Clarion Hotel, located right on Lake Erie. For anywhere else in the world, the place would have been a 3 star at best, but for the quant farming village we were staying in, these were serious 5 star accommodations. Room had a water front view, large TV (no hi-def sadly), king size bed, full size tub / shower, and various other amenities. Pool and workout room downstairs (although who really uses those?) as well as a little restaurant. Place looked like it was from the 70′s (pink upholstered walls) and staffed by, what seemed to be, 16 year-olds. Read more
Full gallery here. Paid a visit to the Gillette Castle located in CT. Originally the estate of, now deceased, Sherlock Holmes actor William Gillette, the property is now a state park and historical location. The house (more like castle) is immediately adjacent the Connecticut River in East Haddam, CT. There is a slight admissions charge to get into the castle itself (~$6 for adult), but the grounds are free to walk. Ample parking, and once inside, guided tours are available for free, or you may roam the house as you like. Lots of great period artifacts, and everything is left in it’s original state for the most part. I wasn’t too much a fan of the wild (although interesting) architecture, but I appreciated it none the less. Not the best place if you can’t stand to be around small children or tourists, but otherwise a very scenic spot. Read more
Full gallery here. A few weeks ago, I visited the Hoosac Tunnel in western MA. The tunnel was built in 1877 bridging North Adams and Florida, MA. I made the ride up from southern CT as part of a road trip, using mainly smaller highways and some nice twisty back roads. While the roads were mainly traffic free, there were a few law enforcement and emergency vehicles scattered about, making it less then ideal for a spirited drive.
About 25-30 minutes en route to the North Adams side of the tunnel was a great old fashion wooden bridge (flickr). Although there weren’t any signs indicating that the bridge was closed down, several of the boards were rotted, the frame heavily rusted, and the structure clearly not safe for travel by car. Read more
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