Road Trip - Including Maine Fun 2017.02

The second half of August, 2017 was a whirlwind of life on the road. A combination of work, opportunity and family had me in Baltimore, Charlottesville, Boston, Portland and Providence before I could start heading home.  I managed to enjoy each stop; I had a fine couple of weeks.  Here are a few pictures capturing some aspects of the trip.

I stepped off the light rail train at Camden Yards in Baltimore.  Of course, the O's were in Texas, but it was still nice to see this beautiful park in person.  Plus, the official keepers of the National Lampoon "Vacation" series of movies "liked" this pic when I hash-tagged "Clark Griswold", having arrived to a closed attraction.

I expected Eutaw Street, between Camden's right field fence and the Oriole's office, to be bustling on a beautiful weeknight.  But, without the O's in town, it was pretty much deserted.

Each Major League home run that finds Eutaw Street is commemorated with a plaque.  I looked for, and found, Red Sox' Jackie Bradley, Jr.'s marker for a blast he hit (and that I witnessed on MLB.tv) earlier this season; I believe it was No. 49 to reach Eutaw Street in the 25-year history of Camden Yards.  Here's his temporary mark, right where I thought it would be!  Based on a couple of nearby, permanent markers, the ball travelled about 413 feet.

Camden Yards from Eutaw Street; I am about 410 feet from home plate, and I'm elevated at least 25 feet from the playing surface.  There's a smattering of plaques behind me, too, including David Ortiz at 416 and 420 feet; and Ken Griffey, Jr. at over 440 feet and off the wall of the building across the street.  Wow!

Walking around Baltimore felt like swimming through soup for a week, but Virginia's Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park afforded some comfortably fresh air, as well as a good meal, some nice views, deer and fox sightings, and was part of a very agreeable visit with my Mom.

All together in Boston, we walked past Fenway Park.  The Sox were elsewhere, and that was okay, because we had fun, anyway!

This sign looms over the left field wall at Fenway and is unusually mesmerizing at night games.  Its likeness adorns my new hat, a very nice gift from my daughter, K.

Great breakfast, a walk on the beach, and all together in Maine; things are good!

The stripers cooperated nicely during our few days in Maine.  For the most part, they weren't too big, but they did provide a lot of action!

Striper No. 150 for 2017 was my largest of the year at 28.75 inches.

M was happy and excited to move into her new dorm in Providence!

Buffalo, New York is a frequent staging area for us as we travel between New England and Michigan.  Quite often we end up staying at a particular, privately-owned hotel.  It's very nice, in it's own way, but it is filled with the original owner's personality and memorabilia.  Regardless, this is good news from Rocky.

As always and regardless of the fun, it's nice to be home.  Our back yard is our current sanctuary, and what is more peaceful than watching a whitetail fawn suckle?

Of course this doesn't even come close to the important parts of the trip; learning some new skills and meeting new folks for work, cruising with loved ones on a fairly loose schedule, scoring some extra time with the kids, and sharing lots of good food with nary a problem along the way.  It was a good couple of weeks!