July 14, Orwell, VT

Nice rain overnight. This morning is overcast and still rainy and supposed to clear by afternoon.

Our first look at Lake Champlain. Big hills and some mountains.
The water is more like a river than a lake.

Harvesting machine cleaning up the weeds.
Wonder what they do with the stuff? Ethanol?

We moved 20 miles north on Lake Champlain to Orwell, Vermont, where we are staying at the Chipman Point Marina.

Chipman Point Marina.

We are here as this is the closest marina to Ft Ticonderoga, in New York. We, along with loopers Larry and Lola Huggins traveling on LOLA MARIE, borrow the loaner car from the marina (a nice four door Toyota Scion) and cross Lake Champlain from Vermont to NY using the local car ferry, so we can visit Ft Ticonderoga.

Car ferry links Vermont and NY.
This ferry crossing is one of the oldest in the country.

Ft Carillon (now Ft. Ticonderoga) was built by the French in 1755 and housed up to 3500 French troops. It was successfully defended by the French in 1758 who, with 3500 troops, held off a British army of 16,000. The famous Scottish fighting unit 'Black Watch' suffered very heavy casualties in this famous battle. This was France's greatest victory of the Seven Years War (French and Indian War).

Fort Ticonderoga. Now beautifully restored.

Impressive fortifications built by the French in 1755.

French fife and drum corps do their stuff on the parade ground.

Bronze cannon.

Linda with some large mortars.

Uniformed French soldiers demonstrate the firing of a cannon.

The British returned and captured Fort Carillon the next year (1759). As the French retreated, they blew up the remaining powder magazine, largely destroying the fort. The British rebuilt the fort and changed the name to Ft Ticonderoga.

In 1775 a small company of British soldiers still occupied the fort. Three weeks after the first shots of the American Revolutionary War were fired at Concord and Lexington, Massachusetts, Ethan Allen, Bennedict Arnold and the Green Mountain Boys crossed the Lake Champlain from Vermont and captured the sleeping garrison. This was the first important victory for the Americans. All of the cannon and ammunition were taken from Ft Ticonderoga overland to help George Washington during his battle to free Boston from the British.

Ft Ticonderoga was recaptured by the British in 1777. The British abandoned the fort to the Americans in 1789 after the end of the Revolutionary War. By 1820 Ft Ticonderoga was in ruins. Restoration began in 1908 and has been substantially completed and very well done. There is also a garden, Kings Garden, which is a beautiful example of a garden of that era. The whole complex is well worth a visit.

Linda in the Kings Garden.

Beautiful walled flower garden, too.

We take a quick look at the town of Ticonderoga and find it looks relatively prosperous. The local park has a covered bridge and a waterfall.

Covered bridge in the town of Ticonderoga.

Waterfall in Ticonderoga was used to power the factories.

We make a trip to Lowes in Ticonderoga looking for a/c supplies and we got what we needed. Then a carmel frappe for everyone at McDonalds. Great to have a loaner car.