Day 5: Barreling on to Beantown!

We seem to be settling in nicely to this nomadic life...we awoke in Cooperstown, breakfasted on the porch while drinking in the landscape of the lakefront one more time, then threw our luggage in the car and hit the ribbon of two-lane asphalt by 9 a.m. Today's To-Do List read very simply: 1. drive to Massachusetts 2. stop and hike 3. navigate the rest of the way to Boston. The first part went smoothly and without any noteworthy tale to tell (which I suppose is desirable, from a traveling perspective). The second task required us to locate Beartown State Forest, which we accomplished by following a gravelly, narrow, potholed track through thick trees until we finally arrived at the parking lot (Husband took a great deal of abuse for choosing this entrance to the park, like every time we bounced up and down in our seats over a broken part of the "road"). We then set off to hike around the small-but-pretty lake, with a short additional trek northward on part of the Appalacian Trail so we could say we've added another state (or Commonwealth, in this case) to our checked-off column. The walk was pleasantly challenging--flat and woodsy for a while, then rocky and uphill, until we reached our scenic overlook goal.

With that accomplished, all that remained was to finish the car portion of our day. And this is one of the few cases in our ramblings so far about which I can say: thank goodness for Babs the GPS. Husband and I know quite well, from bitter experience, what a...goshdarnawful (family-friendly version) trauma driving in Boston can be. I realize the city has its origins in the 17th century, when horse and wagon travel was the norm, but it still seems as though the streets were laid out for farm animals...and designed by inebriated Pilgrims. Babs instructed us in her clipped Australian tone to take a turn and we thought we complied...until 2 seconds later when she "recalculated". (Drat!) So she patiently told us what to do next and we confidently did so..."Recalculating". What the? Now we were just stymied and flustered, weaving about the road like...out-of-towners or something...as we awaited her next incomprehensible command. I swear if she had the capability to yell at us in frustration, she would have. ("Would you people just listen to me? Don't make me stop this car!") At last, we succeeded in deciphering the ridiculous maze of intersections and pulled gratefully up to our Courtyard Marriott. Then we parked the trusty Subaru, hopefully until Tuesday when we leave for home (until then, it's all T-trains, all the time). Therefore, in summary: halfway through Road Trip 2011, 973 miles under our butts--I mean "belts"--and tomorrow we officially take on Boston (in a non-confrontational, sightseeing kind of way, of course)!