Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Monday, October 7, 2013
Lions and Tigers and Bears....
OH My!
Ventured across the border last weekend with a buddy to see my beloved Chicago Bears visit their division rival Detroit Lions, at Ford Field in downtown Motown. Where do the Tigers come in, you may ask? Well, the Detroit Tigers play major league baseball across the street (literally) at Comerica Park.
We took the tunnel bus, a nice option to avoid driving in Detroit, parking, general mayhem, etc. Pretty slick setup actually, you catch the bus in Windsor, take the tunnel under the river, quick stop at US Customs, and they drop you a few blocks in, a short walk from the stadium. Reverse, rinse (it WAS raining), and repeat coming home. Works for all three major sports (Joe Louis Arena is also right on the river bank) and other significant events in downtown Detroit. Unlike Comerica, Ford Field is an indoor stadium, so the rain was not a factor in the game.
Good game, though the evil hometown Lions took the match 40-32, hardly numbers the vaunted Bears defence should even be associated with. It wasn't even as close as that seems, most of the Bears points came late, when the game was out of reach and the Lions playing prevent. Cool experience though, first NFL game but hopefully not the last. Looking forward to attending the open air re-match in Chicago sometime at Soldier Field!
Ventured across the border last weekend with a buddy to see my beloved Chicago Bears visit their division rival Detroit Lions, at Ford Field in downtown Motown. Where do the Tigers come in, you may ask? Well, the Detroit Tigers play major league baseball across the street (literally) at Comerica Park.
We took the tunnel bus, a nice option to avoid driving in Detroit, parking, general mayhem, etc. Pretty slick setup actually, you catch the bus in Windsor, take the tunnel under the river, quick stop at US Customs, and they drop you a few blocks in, a short walk from the stadium. Reverse, rinse (it WAS raining), and repeat coming home. Works for all three major sports (Joe Louis Arena is also right on the river bank) and other significant events in downtown Detroit. Unlike Comerica, Ford Field is an indoor stadium, so the rain was not a factor in the game.
Good game, though the evil hometown Lions took the match 40-32, hardly numbers the vaunted Bears defence should even be associated with. It wasn't even as close as that seems, most of the Bears points came late, when the game was out of reach and the Lions playing prevent. Cool experience though, first NFL game but hopefully not the last. Looking forward to attending the open air re-match in Chicago sometime at Soldier Field!
And the Bears take the field!
National anthem at Ford Field
Backfield in motion
Roary, the Lions' mascot makes the rounds in the 300-section
The Bears offence threatens
Fans spill out into the street postgame - Ford Field on left and Comerica Park on right
Riding the tunnel bus back to Canada!
Entering the tunnel on the US side
Crossing the border under the middle of the Detroit River
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Juke Swap Hero
Clearly, Jane's got stars in her eyes.....witness!
Swapped the "old" 2011 Juke for a brand new one, right on the heels of our trip to Newfoundland. Nothing wrong with the old one, other than a relatively high km count for her age, but Nissan was clearing out the 2013's and made us an offer we couldn't refuse....
Swapped the "old" 2011 Juke for a brand new one, right on the heels of our trip to Newfoundland. Nothing wrong with the old one, other than a relatively high km count for her age, but Nissan was clearing out the 2013's and made us an offer we couldn't refuse....
Saturday, September 28, 2013
East Coast 2013 - Day 17
....and this is what we awoke to our first morning home, a beautiful way to end a memorable road trip.
East Coast 2013 - Day 16
September 14/13 - New York State and CANADA!
Our last day on the road was ironically the nicest for travel, and we enjoyed sunny skies and warm temperatures as we sped west across the I-90 to Buffalo. We crossed back into Canada without incident at the Buffalo/Fort Erie Peace Bridge, having already decided NOT to finish our vacation on the 401.
Instead we took Highway 3 and followed the Lake Erie shoreline all the way from Fort Erie to Wheatley. We noted how many motorcycles were passing us in the opposite direction, and then we remembered that the previous day had been Friday the 13th and Port Dover would have been crawling with bikers. The wisdom of our decision became apparent as we enjoyed a nice relaxing drive home, including stops at fruit stands as we drew closer to home.
Pulled in the driveway by late afternoon, all buildings still standing and all felines accounted for relatively quickly.
Our last day on the road was ironically the nicest for travel, and we enjoyed sunny skies and warm temperatures as we sped west across the I-90 to Buffalo. We crossed back into Canada without incident at the Buffalo/Fort Erie Peace Bridge, having already decided NOT to finish our vacation on the 401.
Instead we took Highway 3 and followed the Lake Erie shoreline all the way from Fort Erie to Wheatley. We noted how many motorcycles were passing us in the opposite direction, and then we remembered that the previous day had been Friday the 13th and Port Dover would have been crawling with bikers. The wisdom of our decision became apparent as we enjoyed a nice relaxing drive home, including stops at fruit stands as we drew closer to home.
Pulled in the driveway by late afternoon, all buildings still standing and all felines accounted for relatively quickly.
Buffalo
...where the Buffalo roam....
Has anyone seen the bridge?
Peace Bridge
Brief glimpse of the Niagara River
Oh CANADA!
East Coast 2013 - Day 15
September 13/13 - New Brunswick - Maine - New Hampshire - Massachussetts - New York
Friday the 13th!
Left Moncton early, bidding farewell to Roxi and following Highway 1 along the coast as we angled southwest towards the Maine border. Not that we could actually SEE the coast, for we spent the first few hours in a heavy fog that hung low over the Saint John area and chased us pretty much to Saint Stephen and the Calais, Maine crossing. A heavily treed drive across Maine Hwy 9 brought us to the interstate, and we headed south.
Spent much of the day driving through torrential rain down I-95 through Maine, New Hampshire and into Massachussetts. Heavy traffic and accidents on the 495 further hindered our progress. Finally we got off and took Highway 2 straight west through rolling hills and wooded river valleys of northern MA, apparently following the "Mohawk Trail" through the Pioneer Valley. Very nice drive, very nice area, and one we hope to explore again in future.
The town of North Adams was also quite a nice surprise, with a large number of repurposed mills and factories that now house art galleries and other cultural exhibits. Missed the bluegrass festival by one weekend! We crossed into New York state and carried on into the outlying areas of state capital Albany, and finally got a cheap hotel room and a nice meal in Schenectady, near the interstate for an easy morning departure.
Friday the 13th!
Left Moncton early, bidding farewell to Roxi and following Highway 1 along the coast as we angled southwest towards the Maine border. Not that we could actually SEE the coast, for we spent the first few hours in a heavy fog that hung low over the Saint John area and chased us pretty much to Saint Stephen and the Calais, Maine crossing. A heavily treed drive across Maine Hwy 9 brought us to the interstate, and we headed south.
Spent much of the day driving through torrential rain down I-95 through Maine, New Hampshire and into Massachussetts. Heavy traffic and accidents on the 495 further hindered our progress. Finally we got off and took Highway 2 straight west through rolling hills and wooded river valleys of northern MA, apparently following the "Mohawk Trail" through the Pioneer Valley. Very nice drive, very nice area, and one we hope to explore again in future.
The town of North Adams was also quite a nice surprise, with a large number of repurposed mills and factories that now house art galleries and other cultural exhibits. Missed the bluegrass festival by one weekend! We crossed into New York state and carried on into the outlying areas of state capital Albany, and finally got a cheap hotel room and a nice meal in Schenectady, near the interstate for an easy morning departure.
Border between Maine and New Hampshire at Portsmouth
Heavy traffic means a longer look at this cool ride
Accident on the 495
A long day of this....
Florida, MA lookoff on the Mohawk Trail
The Juke is made for hairpins
North Adams, Massachussetts
Coolest state line (except maybe the Hoover Dam) - on a winding mountain road between MA and NY
East Coast 2013 - Day 14
September 12/13 - Cape Breton to Moncton
Packed up in a light mist, though luckily we got everything stowed away before the rain intensified. Stopped a little ways down the road at the main campground to enjoy a nice hot shower before we hit the road in earnest.
After a souvenir stop at the Canso Causeway, we actually headed southeast rather than OFF Cape Breton Island, through Port Hawkesbury and down the 104 to visit the Isle Madame area - yet another island off the coast of an island, with yet more causeways. Nice area, certainly a much more quiet part of Cape Breton, less rugged and spectacular but still pretty nice.
After a quick loop around the island, we headed back to the Canso Causeway and crossed back over to the mainland, making good time westbound on Nova Scotia 104 and then New Brunswick's Highway 2.
We already knew we were stopping for the night in Moncton, staying with Jane's friend Roxi - thanks again for the hospitality! Ironically her boyfriend was in southwestern Ontario at the time as guitarist in the band The Motorleague - check 'em out, they're about to be big! She also joined us to meet some former Ontario colleagues for dinner and drinks at the Pump House brew pub downtown. Nice to see some familiar faces again, especially when there's beer involved.
Packed up in a light mist, though luckily we got everything stowed away before the rain intensified. Stopped a little ways down the road at the main campground to enjoy a nice hot shower before we hit the road in earnest.
After a souvenir stop at the Canso Causeway, we actually headed southeast rather than OFF Cape Breton Island, through Port Hawkesbury and down the 104 to visit the Isle Madame area - yet another island off the coast of an island, with yet more causeways. Nice area, certainly a much more quiet part of Cape Breton, less rugged and spectacular but still pretty nice.
After a quick loop around the island, we headed back to the Canso Causeway and crossed back over to the mainland, making good time westbound on Nova Scotia 104 and then New Brunswick's Highway 2.
We already knew we were stopping for the night in Moncton, staying with Jane's friend Roxi - thanks again for the hospitality! Ironically her boyfriend was in southwestern Ontario at the time as guitarist in the band The Motorleague - check 'em out, they're about to be big! She also joined us to meet some former Ontario colleagues for dinner and drinks at the Pump House brew pub downtown. Nice to see some familiar faces again, especially when there's beer involved.
The sign says it all!
Isle Madame - Arichat - Little Anse
Canso Roundabout
Crossing the Canso Causeway and Farewell to Cape Breton
A fine selection of beverages from the Pump House in Moncton
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
