New England Meanderings

We spent a little over a week meandering through New England. Here are some of the highlights...

Olneyville NY Systems, Providence, R.I.

Upon the advice of our friends Laura and Scott (check out their website at http://eatyourworld.com/ ) we stopped in Olneyville NY Systems in Providence, Rhode Island (State Motto: “Hope”), for the lauded “best hot wieners in Rhode Island”. We ordered a serve of “weiner dogs” each and a chilli cheese fries to share. The meal lived up to its reputation – delicious American fare - perhaps even the best hot wieners in the world...

The rest of Providence looked a little too like a sense from “The Wire”, so we hot-tailed it out of there soon after we ate our weiners and chilli fries.

Hammonasset Beach State Park, CT

In desperate need for our first swim of the summer (yes, I know, appalling, it took us until September to get in the water), we stopped in for a quick dip at Hammonasset Beach. American beaches can be a confronting experience for foreigners like ourselves. First of all, you have to pay an entry fee to the beach. $15 in this case. Second, they are crowded. Third, you are not guaranteed blue water or even clean water for that matter. Hammonasset lives up to its expectations as an American beach. We swam and it was pleasant enough, but the green-pea soup consistency of the water was a little troubling.

An interesting food item we tried at the concession stand at Hammonasset was Georgia Dogs. These are hot dogs with chilli in the dog and a bun fried in butter. Delicious, but I am now seriously concerned for the health of the citizens of Georgia.

Arcadia Management Area, R.I.

In keeping with our “Acadia” theme, we did a drive through Arcadia Management Area in the east of Rhode Island. The park did look much like an arcadian paradise, but alas the campgrounds seemed to be shut and we couldn't find a ranger or any type of park-sort official. So moved on to nearby Pachaug, which was appropriately staff and had recognizable campgrounds. That is all it takes to get our business these days.

Pachaug State Forest, CT

Pachaug has a similar type of forest to Arcadia Management Area. We stayed in the Mount Misery campground within the forest, which was not miserable at all. The campground was well organize and the ranger was very friendly. He stopped by for a chat and to warn us about Hurricane Earl which was to hit the following afternoon.

One particularly nice thing about this campground is that it is next to a trail exhibiting a Rhododendron Forest. Unfortunately the rhododendrons were not flowering when we did the short stroll along the trail, but it was impressive nonetheless.

An easy camping meal which we had that night was Campfire Chilli. The recipe is as follows:

1 x small onion

1 x small can of tomato sauce

1 x can of beans (kidney beans or something similar)

1 x stock cube

Dried herbs to taste – I recommend basil and fennel seeds.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Fry onions in a little butter or oil till they are starting to brown. Mix all of the other ingredients into the same pot with the onions and let simmer over the campfire for no more than 10 mins.

Serve hot with a side of pasta, rice or bread.

Catskills Park, NY

The Catskills Park in New York State (State Motto: "Ever Upwards") was the scene of our first weekend away from NYC after we started working there in 2007. So it was fitting in a way that we returned there before we left the North East. We stayed at the delightful Clark House Bed & Breakfast, hosted by Michael and Christine. Eclectic paintings and photography don the walls of this B&B and each room is individually and charmingly designed. We stayed in the Marine Room, which was a nice reminder of our recent jaunt to Maine. The breakfasts at the Clark House are a real highlight. This time Michael prepared us a delicious cheese omelet with two types of cheese, along with a course of fresh fruit, proper yoghurt and tea cake. We are still marvelling at the lightness he managed to achieve with this omelet.