This summer has started off very hot and continued all the way through till August. One of the hottest summers I can remember. “The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said that based on preliminary data, July 21 was Earth’s hottest day since at least 1940” Between the heat and the humidity it was just too darn hot to go out plein air painting this July. I did manage a little sketching though. Always good to make an effort despite the heat or cold.

We managed to take the camper out on a little trip to Vermont. My main focus was to visit childhood friends. Lucy and Ed were perfect host sharing their favorite places with us. They live in the lovely little village of Derby Line, just on the Canadian border. I was so impressed with the lovely old architecture and beautiful countryside. Our trip to Canada was cut short due to unforseen circumstances and truck trouble. Going up a big mountain to the Green Mountain Forest where we were going to camp, the truck made a wierd pop sound almost like a flat tire. Thank goodness we made it to a campsite nearby in Dorsett. Luckily we found an amazing mechanic at Warren’s Garage in Manchester . He fixed the problem in minutes and only charged us $20!

Few More road pics……We had a beautiful ride through the rolling hills of Vermont

Carl and I love to find good doughnut shops on our travels. I mean you can always find a Dunkin but you will be hard pressed to find another bakery like The Brickhouse Bakery in Cobleskill, NY. What a gem. What a doughnut! What a cute town!

We ended up in the little town of Bainbridge, NY at an old Motel/Campground that is kind of like the old Hillside Motel near Harpers Ferry, my husband’s mom used to own.   The man who runs it is very sweet and also has an all night fruit stand that we can help ourselves to just leave money in the box.  We have fresh tomatoes, corn and cantaloupe!  I love these kind of real places with character even if they are a little funky.  

The little town is cute too.  We walked across the bridge to town last night and ate at one of the two restaurants called Jerry’s Inn.  Wouldn’t want to stay in the inn but the restaurant was a pretty good burger and fries joint.  Friday night was jamming with locals coming in. Seemed like everyone knew each other.  Kind of nice to see that.

On route we stopped off in a fantastic diner called The 4 Aces Diner “Home of the All American Retro Brunch 50’s Diner” Located in West Lebanon NH. Carl and Archie both were so glad to stop here.

One of the highlights of the trip for me was stopping off at the magnificent new studio owned by the wonderful painter Kathleen Speranza who graciously allowed me a short visit to her gorgeous studio in Pawlett, VT. I was enthralled by the surrounding countryside there. Truly a painter’s paradise. The barn studio has just been opened to the first class and I had the privilege of peeking in. Thank you again Kathleen! To see her work and sign up for classes please visit https://www.kathleensperanza.com/workshops. The work the students were doing looked amazing.

KATHLEEN SPERANZA

It was a great trip. I would love to come back through Vermont again and this time have more time to paint. So very scenic and beautiful.

Take care everyone and keep painting and travelling…………

Jeanean