Vermont — Day 2

It was cold last night, but it was the crying kid and barking dog in the site next to us that kept me up, not the cold. I kept trying to fall back to sleep but then my bladder felt as if it was about to explode so I gave up, slithered out of my sleeping bag, and walked to the bathroom. The air was cold, cold enough that I knew Kati would be uncomfortable when she woke up. On the way back to our site I gathered sticks for kindling and then started a fire. We usually don’t have a campfire in the morning, but it’s not usually in the low 40s when we camp either. My efforts were well received and much appreciated. The moment Kati heard the words fire she happily got out of the tent and pulled a chair up to the fire ring. For breakfast, I made egg sandwiches which always taste better while camping than they taste at home.

We continued our history tour this morning with a trip back into New York to visit Fort Ticonderoga. Its advantageous location on Lake Champlain has made it a key location for conflict since the the arrival of the first Europeans. Samuel de Champlain fought a skirmish here with his Algonquin allies against the Mohawks. In 1759, during the French and Indian War, Fort Carillon was under French command, but they were undermanned when troops rushed north to defend Quebec. Realizing they couldn’t hold the fort, they blew up the magazine and retreated. The English then took control and renamed the fort Ticonderoga. At the start of the Revolution, Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold defeated the British there which proved to be an important moral victory for the Continental Army. However, two years later, the British recaptured the fort in an attempt to clear a path for the British to advance from Canada down to Philadelphia. They may have succeeded in their goal had the colonists not stopped them at Saratoga.

We arrived at the fort in time for a musket demonstration. When I said I wanted to watch, Kati all but rolled her eyes. We’ve seen many such demonstrations through the years at various historic sights, but I enjoy them anyway. Mostly, I mavel at how basic and technical the muskets were nearly 250 years ago. It’s hard in today’s gun obsessed society not to be intrigued by how different the weaponry was back when our Founding Fathers wrote the Second Amendment. Can you picture someone walking into a crowded place today—a school, mall, grocery store, etc.—and opening fire with a musket? The aftermath would be much different than the bloodbaths that result when a shooter uses a modern day assault rifle. First of all, they would need a hell of a lot more training in how to use a musket. They couldn’t just buy it and start shooting. Second, stopping to reload after every shot would give would be victims a chance to escape. Third, a musket ball does not shred the body the way assault rifle bullets do.

G3 and I took a stroll through the King’s Garden. There was a fencing tournament going on which G3 stopped to watch. He found it interesting because the technique appeared similar to his combat sparring technique.

Before leaving, we took a tour of the history of the fort. It was extremely informative but not engaging in the least. The tour guide, dressed as a Red Coat, gave the history of the fort from its inception to the end of the Revolutionary War. He threw so many names and dates and facts at us that it was hard to process and remember them all. In fact, I walked away with not much more information than I extracted from the interpretive signs I read near the entrance to the fort.

After leaving, we drove up to Mount Defiance from which we got a stunning view of the lake. The water is brown, not terribly tempting for a swim even though the temperature was well into the 80s. We could also see Fort Ticonderoga down below. From that vantage point it looked rather small and not terribly imposing.

By now, after following me for years, you know the rule: for every battlefield we visit, Kati gets two wineries. She cashed in on one of them en route back to the campsite. The wine at Whaleback Winery wasn’t very good. At one point Kati turned to me and said, “I haven’t tasted one I’d want to spend money on.” I agreed. Then we tasted the maple syrup dessert wine, and yum. It was good, but very very sweet. I couldn’t drink more than a small cordial glass at a time. And yes, that was the one we spent money on.

As we were heading back to the campsite, we spotted an ice cream shop. I love ice cream. I wanted ice cream, so we stopped. I got two scoops of maple walnut. It is Vermont after all. G3 got a peanut butter chocolate milk shake—complete with a peanut butter cup—and he declared that it was the best milk shake he’d ever had.

There is a redneck white trash family staying at this campground. They are blasting their country music so freaking loud we can hear it clearly on the other end of the campground. Seriously, if all you want to do is sit around a table, drink beer, and listen to music, stay the hell home. People are so damn rude and self centered. The older I get, the more I hate people. There are exceptions of course…though not many.