Rochester Harbor and Carousel Festival

I never realized that a great American road trip was located right in my backyard! So this past weekend when I had to travel to Rochester for the Harbor and Carousel Festival, I decided to leave early, so I could start the weekend with a little road trip…
Some of the highlights were: Wolcott Falls, Webster Park, The Strong National Museum of Play and Visit Rochester (for some info on the city).

There was a lot to do at the festival: midway rides, a food court, 2 stages (one of which I could see from my tent – thanks Jim!), vendors, the beach, a lighted boat parade Friday night and fireworks on Saturday, but one of the best parts of the Festival was the wonderful people that I met. On Friday, Bob Klos (a former Seaway Trail Board member) came to help me with the booth. Also, I had some amazing neighbors: Neal Budd from the Charlotte Genesee Lighthouse and Staff Sergeant Barnes and Private Campion from the Army National Guard.

However, I think my favorite activity this weekend was trying to jump start a Humvee. On Saturday night, my friends from the National Guard packed up to go home, but one of the decommissioned Humvees had a dead battery and wouldn’t start. And just in case you ever find yourself in this situation, regular jumper cables do not work to jump a Humvee. Eventually, Private Campion went to the Armory and got the cables needed to get the Humvee started.
Once the festival was over and I was all packed (thanks for the help guys!), I headed over for a tour of the Charlotte Genesee Lighthouse.

As I stood at the top of the lighthouse, I reflected back on the amazing weekend that I had. And even though I had fun and I didn’t want it to end, it was time to hit the road again….