{"id":6764,"date":"2016-08-29T00:34:16","date_gmt":"2016-08-29T00:34:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/?p=6764"},"modified":"2016-08-30T00:06:22","modified_gmt":"2016-08-30T00:06:22","slug":"near-plattsburgh-new-york","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/?p=6764","title":{"rendered":"Near Plattsburgh, New York"},"content":{"rendered":"

I got out my maps and my apps and picked my next campground. I wanted to find a place to stay that was still a comfortable drive to Montreal. That was important for two reasons: 1) I had never been there and 2) a friend of long standing was visiting her son while I was in the area. I found a campground in a town near Plattsburgh, NY.<\/p>\n

The campground I stayed in was a very pleasant place named Twin Ells Campsites<\/a>. It is a family run business, and when I checked in, three of the family members jumped into the golf car to show me to the site and help me get backed in. With six extra eyes, it was easy to get into the tree-shaded site.<\/p>\n

A tree-shaded site was important, as electricity isn’t included in the rate. This was the first time that I’d encountered this in a campground that rents by the day.<\/p>\n

\"Electric<\/a><\/p>\n

But, the site rental was reasonable, and the electricity only added $2 per day to the total cost. It was pretty cool for many of the days I was there. I wonder what it would have been if I had needed to run my air conditioner all the time?<\/p>\n

As with most campgrounds, rules abound. The odd thing about this campground is that everyone<\/em> follows the rules!<\/p>\n

\"Campsite<\/a><\/p>\n

Yes, walking speed. Their website even emphasizes this by saying that the speed limit is not 5 MPH, \u00a0it is walking speed. I am very thankful that my campsite was quite close to the exit. Do you know how hard it is to drive that slowly?<\/p>\n

The pool was pleasant, and I did take a couple of dips while I was there. Rules abound there. I didn’t take photos, but I think there were four massive collections of rules. The most surprising was that there had two be two adults in the pool at all times. The first time I saw that sign, I thought it meant when children were present. No, they meant AT ALL TIMES! Luckily, the last time I showed up to swim, one of the full-season campers stayed with me so I could take a dip.<\/p>\n

\"pay<\/a><\/p>\n

I had read about coin-operated showers before, but I had never seen one. I decided to skip their showers and make do with my own plumbing.<\/p>\n

With good television reception, wifi that worked some of the time, and gloomy weather, I stayed in my lovely trailer more than usual. I did make a few forays into the area to see what I could find.<\/p>\n

The first thing on my agenda was Lake Champlain. I figured I needed to see it, so I went out looking. I found it and pulled over to take a picture. Oddly enough, the place I stopped was right across from a monument commemorating Benedict Arnold.<\/p>\n

\"Benedict<\/a><\/p>\n

Benedict Arnold?! Apparently, he was a hero in 1776, until he made a deal with the British in 1980 to hand over West Point.<\/p>\n

So, how long did it take for his positive contributions to the history of the country to be honored? Well, I can’t give you a definitive answer,<\/p>\n

\"plaque<\/a><\/p>\n

but this monument was erected by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1928. So, even a traitor’s reputation can be rehabilitated. In this case, it only took 148 years.<\/p>\n

\"looking<\/a><\/p>\n

After I finished examining the Benedict Arnold memorial, I raised my eyes to the lake. That’s Vermont over there!<\/p>\n

I consulted my History HERE app, and it directed me to a couple of different places that were significant to the region. However, I couldn’t seem to find them. I got out and was walking around looking for the place and chatted with a cyclist who was taking a break. She didn’t know what I was looking for, but recommended that I visit the Macdonough Monument.<\/p>\n

\"MacDonough<\/a><\/p>\n

Commodore Thomas Macdonough lead the naval defense of Plattsburgh and maintained control of Lake Champlain. This ended the final invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812.<\/p>\n

\"MacDonough<\/a><\/p>\n

Around the 14 foot square base of the 135-foot monument are the names of the four primary vessels in the fleet: Eagle, Preble, Ticonderoga and Saratoga. I must admit that I am a bit perplexed by the Roman-style armor in the bas relief frieze. But, no one asked me.<\/p>\n

\"MacDonough<\/a><\/p>\n

The monument, which was dedicated in 1926, was designed by John Russell Pope. He\u00a0also designed the National Archives and Records Administration building, the West Building of the National Gallery of Art and the Jefferson Memorial. Just in case \u00a0you were wondering, the wing span of the bronze eagle on top is 22 feet.<\/p>\n

\"city<\/a><\/p>\n

Oh, and he also designed the Plattsburgh City Hall, across the street from the monument. The City Hall was built in 1917. I guess they liked his work.<\/p>\n

\"Riverwalkway\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I walked around to the back side of the monument and got a nice view of the Saranac River.<\/p>\n

\"Bilingual<\/a><\/p>\n

I noticed that a lot of the signs in town were bilingual. That’s a welcoming touch, as Montreal is only about 60 miles to the north.<\/p>\n

\"War<\/a><\/p>\n

In Trinity Park, just a few steps away from City Hall, is the city’s war memorial. The lighting and positioning of the lettering was such that I wasn’t able to make out much about it.<\/p>\n

If only it were easier to park the truck and read the historical markers. They are everywhere in this part of the state. Well, when you have the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and then the regular historical happenings, there are lots of places to put markers.<\/p>\n

\"Historical<\/a><\/p>\n

Another day, I managed to catch a delightful sunset over Lake Champlain. I wasn’t expecting to see this much color, as I was facing east. After all, I was in New York and I was facing Vermont.\u00a0\"Sunset<\/a><\/p>\n

Still, isn’t it lovely?<\/p>\n

Oh, and an amazing part of this beach is that there is a McDonald’s right there. I had gone to take advantage of their reliable wifi and have a light supper.<\/p>\n

\"McD's<\/a><\/p>\n

The sunset was just a bonus.<\/p>\n

Speaking of McDonalds, when I first got into town, I stopped by for a beverage, the bathroom and some wifi. When I saw this sign, I said, “WTF?”<\/p>\n

\"Lobster<\/a><\/p>\n

Lobster? At McDonald’s?!<\/p>\n

\"McDonald's<\/a><\/p>\n

I guess so. I’ve only had lobster once in my life, and I wasn’t overly thrilled with it. Since I am visiting New England this summer, I do plan on having lobster – whether I want to or not. However, I am NOT spending $9 on a sandwich at McDonald’s, no matter how much I like their drinks, bathrooms or wifi.<\/p>\n

Another day, I went to check on the ferry to Vermont. I wanted to make sure that Bart and Flo would fit. I’ve seen all sorts of ferries, and I figured it would be easier to check it out ahead of time.<\/p>\n

\"Ferry<\/a><\/p>\n

There’s a ferry coming in. It looks pretty large.<\/p>\n

\"Ferry<\/a><\/p>\n

It looks like there will be plenty of room for Bart and Flo. So, when it’s time to go, I know I’ll be able to take the ferry.<\/p>\n

Stay tuned for my adventure in Montreal with Mary! Coming soon!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I got out my maps and my apps and picked my next campground. I wanted to find a place to stay that was still a comfortable drive to Montreal. That was important for two reasons: 1) I had never been there and 2) a friend of long standing was visiting her son while I was … Continue reading Near Plattsburgh, New York<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[641,642,640],"class_list":["post-6764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-benedict-arnold","tag-commodore-thomas-macdonough","tag-plattsburgh"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6764"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6967,"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6764\/revisions\/6967"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.towingsilver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}