The Newport Blog: Kapalkas Visit

Ginger's parents Ron & Nancy came for another visit in July.

The Moon Gate at Chateau-sur-mer:

We drove to Lowell, Massachusetts, to Lowell National Historical Park to see the old mills of this industry center. A room full of mechanical looms is still active, and several run to show visitors. see the video. The noise of just a few looms was overpowering, so it was hard to image working here in 12-hour shifts in the sound and heat. 

Then we visited our friends John and Holly in Rye, New Hampshire. They took us to Fort McClary. During the Civil War, Lincoln's Vice President Hannibal Hamlin took some time off to serve here- as a private

We noticed that 25+ years of marriage leads people to dress alike without planning it.

 We also saw the Bush compound in Maine. Ginger played paparazzi. (That's George Bush Sr. in blue!)

We drove by the Wedding Cake House, a carpenter gothic style home. While we were admiring, the owner came out, invited us inside, and gave us a tour! (He is wearing blue and holding a dog in the distorted mirror image.)

Ron & Nancy drove from Montana to North Carolina, then Rhode Island, and back to Montana during July. 

Ron just retired as Pastor at Evangelical United Methodist Church in Billings, MT, and will be taking a church part time as an interim pastor in Cascade, MT, starting in August. 

The Newport Blog: Quechee VT

Camping at Quechee State Park, Vermont
For the Fourth of July, we wanted to go camping and chose a state park in Vermont (because it was one of the last six states Ginger needs to visit!) We forget our cameras. The images below are from a disposable camera, an interesting experience to force us to limit the photos and try to focus on people-shots.

Quechee State Park surrounds a gorge with a deep slow-moving river. All weekend, the swimming hole was crowded with people escaping the 90 degree heat. We also went on a hike, got completely lost, came out in a trailor court, and had to walk back along the highway.

Our dog Winnie came along this trip. She has a new collapsable kennel for the car and was well behaved on the 3-hour trip. At camp, we hooked a 30 foot leash to the picnic table to keep her close, which also worked for swimming. She also wasn't afraid of the fireworks show.