In a Zoom conference with Kathy Curto this morning, she suggested that I alternate my work on the memoir with some other kind of writing project. The idea of publishing some of my favorite travel photos perhaps with some flash nonfiction was a brilliant one, and I am grateful for this mini vacation.

In 2015 I bought a twenty-six foot Winnebago, and went on a solo trip around the US and Nova Scotia after I retired. I will do a series of posts about some of the high points of that trip as a way to do a little armchair travel while I am home alone as the corona virus runs its course.

The most difficult part of the trip was leaving my family behind.

Before driving north towards Maine and Nova Scotia, I spent some time seeing the sights around New York State. Niagara Falls! I don’t have words for how spectacular the falls are. I couldn’t believe how sweet the air was there. All the tons of moving water releases negative ions that clean the air. That’s not something you get from photos or video, you’ve got to stand there and experience it. Glorious!

I requested a family vacation as my retirement party. We had a great time together up in Acadia National Park. They all drove the ten hours from NY to the park. Now that is a serious way to say“I love you!”

This visit to Maine with my family and best friends was absolutely perfect. We took hikes together. And reduced the Maine lobster population by a little bit.

The “grown-ups” followed the kids into the tide pools. Turned out to be muckier than I expected, but we had a lot of laughs, and ended the day with ice cream, so it was all good.

We sailed with Captain Tony. Learned a lot about the critters on the sea floor.

My kids gave me a Martin Backpacker guitar to play while I traveled. It’s a gorgeous instrument and fit perfectly into the RV.

Alice rented a giant VRBO property just outside the gate to the Blackwoods Campground where I was staying in the RV with my friends. It was the best location and a brilliant idea. There’s camping. And then there’s glamping!

It’s vacation. Let the kids start dinner with dessert! We took a sunset trip up to the top of Mt. Cadillac hoping to do some star watching. There were too many clouds that evening, but to stand on top of the mountain with my loved ones was a spectacular send off into my Third Act.

I toured New England as I made my way to Nova Scotia. I hiked around and swam in Walden Pond, visited Thoreau’s (recreated) cabin and Emily Dickinson’s home.

I didn’t have a clear plan for this blog post, and it has turned into a mental meander of the sort I’ve been taking solo around NYC for the past month. What called to me from the photos of 2015 were the photos of my family and friends whom I miss very much right now. Sorry. I will be posting the greatest hits of my 30,000 mile odyssey. But all great journeys begin at home. And that’s where the family is.