Fri - 24 Apr/15

A below freezing night; however, today will be warmer with sunshine before rain returns on Saturday.

They are busy working around the park getting it ready for spring.

I brought the car battery up to full charge overnight and placed the portable jump starter in the Del Sol. I cancelled our plans to do the "Shawshank Tour Trail" and the "Wally Road Scenic Byway" because I did not know if the battery charge would last for that distance.

The "Shawshank Tour Trail" covers 14 filming sites for the Shawshank Redemption movie based on Stephen King's book of the same name. It is a drive-it-yourself tour, not a walking tour and some locations are 45 minutes from one another. 95% of the movie was filmed on locations in and around Mansfield, Ohio. There is a self-guided tour (Sundays, in season, a guided tour) of the now closed Ohio State Reformatory. Malabar Farm State Park can also be visited. The tour trail allows for movie fans to visit sites where Andy, Red and Warden Norton once walked.

The "Wally Road Scenic Byway" is Ohio's largest outdoor recreation area. The byway is 10.41 miles encompassing 3 counties on the county roads that parellel the Mohican State Scenic River allowing glimpses at the scenic wonders that were created by the last great glacier in this river valley. It follows the a portion of the Walhonding Valley Railroad route which was considered one of the most scenic train rides in Ohio during its operation. We passed it on the way here; however, I did not want to drive it with the Motorhome with the car in tow in case there were narrow sections.

Perhaps we can do both next time we are in this area.

Our first stop today was at the Walnut Creek Foods. This place is huge. The large selection of local items, great products and good prices motivates 10,000 to 20,000 people to shop in here every week in a store in the town of Walnut Creek which has only 600 people.

Shopping here is an experience with plenty of everything and great displays

...and the samples!

The store seemed to go on and on forever. A few purchases, most notable of which was a full size raspberry cream cheese pie w/crumble topping for what would be the price of a slice in a fancy restaurant.

Our next stop, also in Walnut Creek, was the Amish Flea Market. With 55,000 sq. ft. of floorspace it was larger than the Homes County Flea Market we visited yesterday. They even had a parking lot shuttle for those that had to park far away. We were lucky, the handicapped parking was available right next to the entrance.

One booth had a really large selection of  T-Shirts. I found one that looked a great deal like my '31 Ford Model "A" Hot Rod. Just had to get two!

The  helpful and friendly staff made them up right there in a matter of a few minutes.

I also found  a metal sign to add to my Lucinda Lewis collection. My daughter Kat, bought me her book: "Roadside America: The Automobile and the American Dream".

Lucinda Lewis chronicles America's fascination with the automobile; from hard-tops to convertibles, headlights to tail fins, and hood ornaments to bucket seats, every remarkable feature of the American car is shown in 200 dazzling color photographs. It's a great book!

I bought the "Route 66 Park-In Theatre" sign. I already have the other two.

I also added a Route 66 Pick-up in Monument Valley Flickering Light Canvas to my Route 66 collection. Small LED lights show through the canvas. The headlights and taillights stay on, the sunset flickers.

Next on our tour loop was the Baltic Mill Winery in Baltic, OH (where else?). Originally a flour mill, it transitioned to a bulk food and gift shop and finally to a winery.

Dan and Judy Garver purchased the Baltic Mill building in autumn of 2013. In the time between then and the winery opening in October 2014, the new owners renovated the building for business. Shelving was removed to expose the walls and floor of the original mill. The chutes and machinery that have been preserved from the early 20th Century are a prominent part of the decor. If you walk upstairs, you’ll be transported to the past. The mill machinery remains the focal point of the second and third floors. The Flour Mill’s steam engine still rests in the cellar where it was once used to power the milling process all those years ago. To often the past is lost during remodeling. They wisely preserved the heritage of the bygone era.

The cozy atmosphere was as welcoming as the hosts. Charlotte's preference was for the sweeter wines. She liked "Little Daisy", a sweet, but not too sweet, white wine made from the Moscato grape. Much of the CO2 that is produced in the fermentation process is preserved to provide a little extra "bubbly" sensation to the palate. They suggested enjoying it with Chinese Food. I'm sure as a compliment to food or by itself, Charlotte will enjoy her purchase.

Little Daisy is named after the brand name of flour milled in this very building over 100 years ago.

For those of you who are planning a visit, they are currently open: Th 1-7 pm, Fr-Sa 11am-9pm.

Time to eat. We headed for the Chalet in the Valley Restaurant in Doughty Valley.

Reminiscent of the Swiss heritage of it's founder the Chalet offered a wonderful view of the valley below.

We chose the Classic Fondue which was so tasty.

Linda, our server, was excellent. A friendly and informative server makes a good meal even more enjoyable.

I asked about the sign. If my name was Robert I would have been given a free sandwich. Unfortunately, being Bill, I did not qualify today.

After a most enjoyable meal we crossed the road to the Guggisberg Cheese Factory and Store. We have been to one of their three factories (Middlebury, IN) so we couldn't miss stopping here.

They produced the 2015 Ohio, US and World Grand Champion Swiss Cheese here. They are best known for being the home of "Baby Swiss" Cheese. After purchasing a few cheese choices we returned to the RV. I am glad we came at this time of year as the traffic was continuous, making it difficult to pull out onto the main road. In a few more weeks it gets "crazy busy". We had figured out many years ago that, in areas like this, we visit the attractions only on one side of the road (until the end) and do the other side on the way back, making it easier to getting back into the line of traffic. Otherwise, trying to "Cross the Line" takes forever.

I am surprised that we made it back without having to "Boost" the battery. I hooked the Del Sol up for travelling tomorrow and did a "Dump" of the holding tanks.

Tomorrow will be our last stop for the night on the way home: The KOA in Farmington, NY, west of Syracuse.