All Aboard!

All aboard the Essex express!  In case we have some visitors sometime while we're serving, we decided to explore a few places that folks may find interesting. So it was off to the seaport of Essex that's about an hours drive south of Bloomfield. We didn't make it into the city, but we did hop the steam train and then the Becky Thatcher paddle boat and enjoyed a lazy morning on the Connecticut River.

The train is coal powered similar to the engines at Silverton, Colorado. The conductors were fun and had lots of trip commentary including fun things for kids to notice on the way.

The train took us to the boat launching area. The boat ride was refreshing on a hot summer's day. It lasted about an hour and a half.  Along the way we saw some gorgeous lake front homes including one mansion that was getting ready for a wedding that evening.  The tour guide said they planned a huge fireworks show.  Most large weddings, like Chelsey Clinton's, include fireworks.  (My kind of celebrating!)

Along the Connecticut River is the Gillette Castle.  It was built at the turn of the century by an actor who played the role of Sherlock Holmes. He included in the estate a train and tracks that run around the periphery of the estate.  He left no heirs and the mansion along with the acreage was gifted to the state of Connecticut.  It is now a state park.  The castle is open for tours and we were told there are some great hiking paths.  The only access to the castle is by a river ferry.

The boat also was a great vantage point to see this boarding school dedicated to under privileged youth.  It kind of reminded me of Hogwarts. The tour guide said it's a prestigious school and children are chosen to attend rather than placed by the state.

We also saw several bald eagle nests and eagles. There were special stands built just for nesting areas.

Old Saybrook and Saybrook are close to Essex. We stopped for lunch at a diner on the way and had Rhode Island clam chowder.  It's a clear broth chowder that to me tasted more fishy than pleasant. Mikey (alias Doc who eats anything) enjoyed it. It reminded him of the oyster stew his mother fixed.

Doc picked up a map at the train station and noticed lighthouses in Saybrook that's along the Long Island Sound. We were disappointed the two lighthouses are not accessible to the public.  In fact, most of the beaches are privately owned. We had to stop on a road and and quickly grab this shot.  Notice the eagle nest in the foreground.