A Quiet Man

If you've been reading along you know Petey and I just returned from a trip out east.

The trip had been planned for a while and the dates firmed up, finally, about a month or so ago.

Besides the lighthouses and the PA Grand Canyon, we were going to be spending some quality time with Peter's side of the family which we were both looking forward to.

Our last visit was two years ago and our brother-in-law, Lee, was in the hospital with a leg injury which limited our time with him.

Since Peter's sister, Patty's, death five years ago we've stayed in pretty close contact with Lee via phone calls so having some face time with him was important.

As we were leaving our house, bags packed, our nephew, Mike, called to tell us that his father, our brother-in-law, had died suddenly.

The funeral was going to be in four days and we were encouraged to go ahead with our travel plans so we did with heavy hearts.

Lee Kichline was a quiet man.  A man from humble beginnings.  He was an honest, hard working man with a professional work ethic that was never surpassed by anyone.

He was a very generous man who opened his home to Peter's parents without a backward glance.

He catered, sometimes grudgingly (the guy was a saint), to Patty's every request.

He loved his grandchildren and was very, very proud of his two children, Mike and Stephanie.

The man loved to cook and we were the grateful recipients of many of his meals.

He will be missed by many.

The PA Grand Canyon

Did you know there was one?  Neither did we until two years ago and we lived in Pennsylvania for a number of years.

We found out about the Grand Canyon when we were in Williamsport, PA for a Blues concert.  We were chatting with a fellow from Wellsboro (directly north of Williamsport) who said "next time you're out this way, come on up to Wellsboro and see the Grand Canyon."

He didn't act or look drunk so we continued our conversation.

Yup, sure enough there's a Grand Canyon and we headed toward it after we finished our round of lighthouses in Ohio.

First off, Wellsboro is a darling Norman Rockwell kind of town. Complete with a village green and cute shops.

The canyon is about 10 miles from Wellsboro and here's what we found when we arrived:

First stop was the Wellsboro Diner for lunch.  We almost passed it by but it started to rain and we took shelter.  Plus we were starving.

So glad we made that quick decision.  The diner has been there forever and for good reason.

Hot diggity dog.

OMG, this cookie was outstanding.  The reason there's a crack in it is because I had already split (it's a relative term for me) it when Petey reminded me to take a picture.  Guess which half he got.

Here's the village "green" I mentioned with a lovely fountain.  We attended a concert there in the evening.

And now for the trek down the canyon.  It was a mile of switchbacks down and obviously the same coming back up.

There was a lot of shade which we gratefully thanked Mother Nature for - it was a hot day!

Peter was trying to text for an uber but there was no cell service. ha!

Most of the pathways were dirt but there were places with wooden steps and ramps as well.

Watch out for the tree roots!  I never took my eyes off the path and was quite skittish on the way down.  The pictures were only taken when I stopped to gasp for air.  Not really, I was surprised at how well I did.  Slow but sure and thanking Jazzercise all the way.

See how chipper and "dry" we are?  That changed, big time, on the way back up.

A little waterfall.

How come Peter looks the same as he did in the "before" picture and I look like something the cat dragged in ???

After a rest and IV fluids (just kidding) we strolled through Wellsboro and spotted this piano on the sidewalk.  It's there for anyone to play.  Cool, eh?

We also took in the local cemetery.  I couldn't help but notice the food related head stones.

I got a kick out of this one: the first and second wife made the stone.  That Luther, what a thoughtful guy.

We definitely plan on returning to Wellsboro and want to visit the Finger Lakes of NY next time as well.

So now I can say I hiked the Grand Canyon with a straight face.  I needn't include the Pennsylvania part, right?

Lake Erie lights

Petey and I just returned from a trip out east to visit with family.  Along the way we took in some lighthouses on the shore of Lake Erie.  This one is in Port Clinton, OH.

Marblehead

Cedar Point

Huron

Vermilion

This is as close as we could get to the Lakeview Park light

Even further for this one so you'll need to squint a bit.  Conneaut - Lakeville

The last light (I missed one somewhere along the way) is the Barnegat Lighthouse on Long Beach Island, NJ

Petey got to go up two of the lights so he was a happy camper.  I stayed below and let the wind blow my hair about.