MY SATURDAY IN THE HOCKING HILLS AREA NEAR LANCASTER,OHIO

     This Saturday adventure starts in Lancaster,Ohio (my hometown) and meanders to the Hocking Hills area of Ohio. Heading S.E. on Rt. 33 our first stop is in Logan,Ohio and:

 

For a charge of about $36.00 Linda and I coasted down the hocking river in a canoe. (Linda did the paddling and I steered)  It was about a two hour trip.

The Hocking Hills Canoe Livery rents canoes (duh), Kayaks, and rafts. Notice the rafts in this picture a little partying going on. I was once that young but it has been a couple years.  They also have Cabins and private primitive campsites.

In order to get to the start point of our canoe trip ( near Enterprise,Ohio) we took the old bus.

Make sure to say Hi to Sandy the dog that sits in the front seat. After all that work steering the canoe we were hungry.. So off to Laurelville,Ohio and:

This was my first time to the Ridge Inn and was I ever impressed. My wife Linda introduced me to Jo Eaves and her husband David the owners, as we sat outside on the deck. Daniel took our order and all I can say is, the food,service and ambiance was GREAT…

   

I had the Santa Fe wrap with salad and highlander grog coffee.. Some of the salad fixins come from the garden at the back of the inn.

When we have more time we will stop in and see Jo at her shop:

If your in need of some patio chairs

Right across the street from the restaurant is:

In season this is a must stop.

One last item about The Ridge Inn Restaurant: They make there own donuts and are they good…

Laurelville,Ohio also seems to be a crossroads for motorcycle touring in the Hocking Hills

As we leave Laurelville we make a quick stop at the local park

and take a short hike along the stream..Our next stop is just a couple miles out of town ( a place we camped when they first opened back in 1997.

 

 We talked to Mike at the “Bunk House” and/or office

They offer one two and four hour trail rides and seem to be reasonably priced and of course camping is available.

Linda says we will save the trail ride for another day. Sounds good to me…

Mike says for a trail ride one must be a least seven years old. In about six months William will turn seven then all my GRAND CHILDREN  will be old enough for a trail ride and a visit to this working ranch

 That is all for today. Smiley says have a great day.

Technorati Tags: LANCASTER OHIO,HOCKING HILLS,LOGAN OHIO,HOCKING HILLS CANOE LIVERY,CANOES,KAYAKS,RAFTS,LAURELVILLE OHIO,THE RIDGE INN RESTAURANT,KALEA HOUSE,LAUREVILLE FRUIT COMPANY,SPOTTED HORSE RANCH,TRAIL RIDES,WORKING RANCH

SKYWATCH FRIDAY

Check out SKYWATCH friday for some great photos.

SUMMIT OF MOUNT WASHINGTON ON A CLEAR DAY.The mountain is located in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains, in Coos County, New Hampshire.

I HAD THREE SEPERATE DREAMS LAST NIGHT. WHAT DOES IT MEAN??

First, my dog Sam ( German shepherd now dead for more than 30 years) bit the neighbor. In real life Sam was THE BEST.

I then had to put him in a doghouse that was sitting on top of a Truck Camper at the local fishing hole

THE OLD TRUCK CAMPER

THE OLD FISHING HOLE (HOT CHICK WASN’T IN THE DREAM)

THEN SAM SPOKE TO ME AND TOLD ME HE WAS SORRY.

SECOND, Since I was at the old fishing hole I had to go fishing but the rod and reel was broken

I was trying to put a new one together but it was just to complicated. (VERY FRUSTRATING)

MOVING ON, It was time to go mountain climbing.

  Of course in real life I am in “great physical condition” Pretty good body for being almost 63 years old. The goal was to climb to the top of three successive ledges and then receive an award.

NOT THAT KIND OF LEDGES (HOT CHICK NOT IN DREAM)

Well of course I only made it  to the second ledge not the third. I didn’t get the award.

No award.. and then I woke up. I am now looking forward to my next dream.

and thanks to Smart Mouth Broad I did get an award

SO JUST FOR TODAY EVERYTHING IS OK….

FRUGAL OHIO VACATION IDEAS: AMISH COUNTRY, CLOSE TO LANCASTER,OHIO YET A WORLD AWAY

We arrived at Whispering Hills Campground on Monday and made this our “base camp”

Whispering Hills offers, a peaceful setting where beautifully wooded hills and lush, rolling farmlands come together. The area became a settlement for the Amish and their quiet, traditional values. We arrived on Monday and left on Friday thus avoiding the busier weekend. Yet Linda and I like to set up a comfortable camp:

After a “Hard Day” exploring Amish Country we would usually relax at the campground pool.

I usually try to explore a vacation destination via the internet before making the actual trip. That way I usually come up with a surprise for my wife who loves teddy bears. In this case  about three miles from the campground in Shreve, Ohio I found: The Village Bear Shop

For a little info about Teddy Bears see the picture below

TEDDY BEARS NEVER BORROW MONEY,BEAT YOU AT CHECKERS,OR EAT ALL YOUR CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES. THEY ARE ALWAYS READY TO GIVE YOU A HUG AND LISTEN TO ALL YOUR PROBLEMS. BEST OF ALL THEY WILL NEVER EVERY TELL YOU HOW TO DRIVE. (LOL)

Well after setting up camp and visiting the Teddy Bear Store (I made a lot of points with this one) It is time to eat. We were able to stay right there in Shreve,Ohio and eat at; Des Dutch Essenhaus Restaurant Amish Cooking/ Quilts ’n Things
176 N. Market St., Shreve 44676,
330-567-2212

A couple more pictures of the countryside to finish this post.

Notice the Amish Buggy in background.

NEXT POST: LEHMAN’S HARDWARE,AN AMISH FARM AND ME IN JAIL..

TIL NEXT TIME EVERYONE HAVE A GREAT DAY.

Technorati Tags: MY QUALITY TIME,SHREVE OHIO,AMISH COUNTRY OHIO. WHISPERING HILLS CAMPGROUND,LANCASTER OHIO,HOLMES COUNTY,LEHMAN'S HARDWARE.TEDDY BEARS,CAMPING

OHIO VACATION IDEAS: CHERRY VALLEY LODGE,VELVET ICE CREAM,LEHMAN BROS. HARDWARE AND AMISH COUNTRY

     Sometimes you don’t have to travel far from home (Lancaster,Ohio in this case) to really get away from it all. Our first stop was

In Newark,Ohio This isn’t roughing it.

There she is again

Have to eat:

 Then we relaxed by the pool

That pool is no longer there. Instead you have CoCo  Key Water Resort . Now lets head to Amish Country but on the way we will stop near Utica,Ohio at

The Velvet Ice Cream Factory and The Ole Mill

And of course eat VELVET ICE CREAM

THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY TO TRAVEL

 

     Well I think I will break this post up into a couple different sections.. In the next post we will visit Amish Country in Ohio. That means Holmes County

First stop will be our base camp at Whispering Hills Campground near Shreve,Ohio then on to Millersburg , Berlin , Schrock's Amish Farm and More..

A Special thanks to Nature's Scenic View for their post..

We wish everyone a great day Joe Todd and Linda

Technorati Tags: MY QUALITY TIME,AMISH COUNTRY OHIO. CHERRYVALLEY LODGE,VELVET ICECREAM.NEWARK OHIO,LANCASTER OHIO,WHISPERING HILLS CAMPGROUND,SHREVE OHIO,MILLERSBURG OHIO,BERLIN OHIO,CAMPING

PICTURE FOR SKYWATCH FRIDAY

This picture was taken in 2006 at Lake Penage near Sudbury Ontario. I have been fortunate to be able to visit this area for almost 45 years.

Check out other wonderful photos at SKYWATCH FRIDAY