Saratoga Springs, New York

On August 4, 2008, I started my pilgrimage to Saratoga Race Course. For any true horse racing fan, the Spa is a must visit. Even though I went for the horses, I as amazed at all I saw on my little trip.

Day one was boring. I was very surprised to learn that I'd only have to travel six and a half hours to reach the hotel in ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags">Albany. After a light breakfast at Panera in Frederick, Maryland, I picked up my rental car at the Enterprise on Waverly Drive. I was thrilled to see a Ford Fusion waiting for me. I drive a Ford Mustang and prefer to stick with Fords. At only 5'1", I like a car company that thinks about those who are below the average. The car also has an awesome feature where it tells you how many miles you have left before empty.

The tank was only half full, so by Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, I had to stop at the Sheetz for some gas. I also emptied my tank and prepared for more driving. At some point, Pennsylvania got downright beautiful. We were zipping along mountain passes that could have passed for out west in the Rockies, but for the diminutive size. There were many road construction areas but traffic wasn't too bad and most of the construction spots weren't active. Before bidding adieu to Pennsylvania, we stopped for a bit at a Friendly's. The name of the town escapes me, but it's the Friendly's that has a McDonald's and Taco Bell across the street. The BLTs were delicious. I had mine with waffle fries.

We forged onward and at some point crossed over into New York. Again, we were met with beautiful valleys and meadows and gorgeous mountain views. Except for the winters, this is my kind of place. As we neared Albany, the traffic definitely started to pick up. Parts of the journey through New York were on a toll road, so right at our exit, we became ensnared in a mess of cars exiting the toll road. Amazing that all those vehicles made it through unscathed.

The hotel wasn't too far after that-the Best Western Sovereign-across from SUNY-Albany. Ironic that I found myself that close to a University I seriously looked at going to better than fifteen years ago. We were directly across from the athletic field and found out that the Champion New York Giants were having training camp. I do regret that we never made it over for a look-see. I'm a New Orleans Saints fan. Should've gone to rub in our recent acquisition of Shockey from the Giants. J

I was too exhausted to do anything, including to drive to find grub. We ate at the 1228 Grille, the hotel restaurant. I can honestly say, do not eat there! The food was over-priced and tasted of the microwave variety. We did go for a quick swim and some time in the sauna before retiring for the evening.

Day one was basically a long car drive. They can get kind of boring, but you get to see so much more and can stop and stretch. I prefer driving all to hell over flying.

Day two of my ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags">Saratoga adventure dawned earlier than I would have liked. The hotel posted a sign that the drapes were just for show and to use the black-out curtain. That would've been great if the curtain would have fit snug against the wall. It left just enough space, and of course on the side where your head lies on the bed, that sunlight came blasting in. No sleeping in late that day, but probably just as well, as there was so much to see.

Breakfast at the Sovereign is still included in your stay price and features a real breakfast, so that's a good deal. The bacon (my favorite) was cooked to perfection-not overcooked, but still crispy. I had a decent donut and some coffee and apple juice. Awake and alive, we were ready to go.

We had planned to go straight to Saratoga Springs and visit the state park before hitting the National Racing Museum and Hall of Fame and the track. On the way up; however, I needed my second tank of gas on my journey. The exit I used, I happened to be the exit for the battlefield. Turned out to be perfect.

We wound our way around beautiful Lake Saratoga to get there. The countryside was dotted with farms and wild land. We arrived at the battlefield a bit before the visitor center opened, so we hiked about two miles on the trail there. We made it out to the position of an important German redoubt and then headed back. The views were simply breathtaking. All around were meadows of green, decorated with purple and yellow wildflowers. It was hard to imagine that when our great nation was getting going that the fields were abuzz with activity as men tried to kill one another.

The visitor center was filled with a former archaeology major's favorite kinds of things-that's what I originally went to school for. I grew up mostly in the South and got to so a great many Civil War sites, but the Revolutionary and French and Indian Wars have always been my preference. The staff at the visitor's center was warm and friendly. They told us about some re-enactors that would be there that day. In the center, there were the trophy cannons that we captured from the British and the excavated stem of the Gunboat New York, the only US ship to survive the battle. They also have the cannon that exploded on the NY which killed one.

After looking over all of the old artifacts and making a few purchases in the gift shop, we headed out on the driving tour of the field. We were treated to many more beautiful view of countryside that is just simply amazing. More than once I was struck at how peaceful this place was that had seen so much bloodshed nearly 300 years before.

We visited the Nielsen house that served as headquarters for Benedict Arnold and other patriot leaders. That small, basically one room house, would eventually house a family of about 10 individuals. Take a look at the pictures in my photo section titled: 2008 Saratoga Springs NHP. Could you survive there with that many? The young lady who was dressed in period clothing told us that in the early part of the 20^th century that a group had wanted to do a theme park there based on the revolutionary war. I have to laugh at that. Even that long ago, we were thinking up ways to make a buck off our past. The house had been moved from its original spot then, but when the plan fell through, it was moved back. Most of it is not the original - some of the floorboards and the wind casements are about it - but the restoration was done in the middle part of the 1800s, so it's still a relic of our past.

We saw the re-enactors-two Brits and an American loyalist. The Brits, of course, were in their bright redcoats while the American was in green. I hadn't known before this trip that those American who fought with the British wore green. Hence, the title of my blog-it was a war of many colors.

I also was amazed to see a monument to Benedict Arnold. I knew that he had truly been one of our heroes before becoming a traitor, but somehow I figured any monument to him would have been destroyed. Behind the German redoubt and near the Canadian cabins area, there is a small monument enclosed in wrought iron fencing. It features a boot on a down-turned cannon. On the reverse side, it tells how after the fall of the American commander Arnold rallied the troops, jumped on his horse and led the charge. He was wounded rather seriously in the leg, but the redoubt fell to the Americans.

We took another trail while on the drive that went down toward the Hudson River. On that trail I saw the adorable baby bunny in the pictures. He never moved a muscle, an important lesson that this wild prey animal had down pat at a very young age. A white-spotted baby deer bounded in front of my car at one point as well.

We ended our trek around as noon approached and headed toward Saratoga Springs . . . very hungry!

The pictures really speak much more adequately than my words as to the beauty, nature and history on display at the Saratoga Springs NHP. I strongly encourage ever American to make a pilgrimage there at some point in their lives.

Day two of my trip was so packed, that it really is better to split it up. After spending a splendid morning at the battlefield, we headed toward the town of Saratoga Springs and the racetrack.

The backup to get into town was sizeable. Not surprising, given that ESPN was in town to cover the Test, the Saratoga racing season was in full swing in general, and the Jonas Brothers were in town for a concert. With parking at a premium and not really knowing the area, we opted to head straight for the track, park and either eat there or walk to a close restaurant.

The track itself certainly is pretty and has a quaint feel to it-a bygone era when horse racing was king of sports. The general people there; however, leave a lot to be desired. I understand that drinking, smoking and gambling all go along with being at the track, but here it seemed to be taken to a level akin to the Kentucky Derby. It doesn't make a visit as enjoyable as a typical day at the track can be. At both venues, there is also a lot of ignorance about horse racing. You get that when you get a group of people who are most interested in getting drunk, being seen and possibly getting laid.

You could get a rail spot relatively easily and the horse racing was good. The food was even pretty decent as well. I had a muffaletta that while not 100% authentic, was passable. We asked around to see if any of the connections to Secretariat were there, but got mixed messages and did not find them before our trip to the National Racing Hall of Fame and Museum. We watched a couple of races and headed that way.

The HOF was definitely worth the trip. I got to see many items donated by Paul Mellon, owner of Rokeby Farm in Virginia and the breeder/owner of Sea Hero, Blue's dad. I also got to see silks from Rokeby and Meadow (Secretariat) on display. They had a bridle and halter worn by the great Ruffian. Of course, at the HOF portion, I snapped photos of Alysheba and Alydar's plaques - Alydar is Blue's great grandfather and Alysheba is his grandfather.

The highlight of my time there was getting to ride the mechanical horse and play jockey. It was certainly a blast. My face doesn't show my pleasure because I was very into the moment and it's tough work!

After we completed our trip to the HOF, we went back to the track and stumbled upon Jim Gaffney and Charlie Davis, exercise riders for Secretariat. It was a big honor to meet them both.

We stayed until the last race because I had to snap a shot of the Sea Hero statue in the saddling area. I was in shorts, and they won't let you back there during racing if you are in shorts. I also visited the Big Red Springs - possibly named for Man 'O War or Secretariat, I though, but the woman didn't know - and drank the water. Ack! don't ever do so.

While we were there, I did pick up a pin by American Artists (http://www.americanhorseart.com/servlet/StoreFront) of Rags to Riches to go with the Ruffian pin I already have by them. Leaving the track actually went smoother than I thought it would.

At this point, we were definitely in need of food again and headed for downtown Saratoga Springs. It's a quaint little town. After a battle for parking, we opted for Hattie's: http://www.hattiesrestaurant.com/. They've been in business since 1938 and had that perfect NOLA hole-in-the-wall atmosphere down to a tee. The Creole Jambalaya was about the best I've ever had outside of NOLA.

Then it was back to the hotel to rest up for another full day.

We began day three with another early morning wake-up call a la the sun through the slit that the curtains didn't cover. Ugh! This is supposed to be a vacation. Breakfast was a bit of a disappointment as sausage had been substituted for the excellent bacon of the previous morning. I opted to stick to a waffle and fruit.

We hit the road to go to Howe's Caverns (http://www.howecaverns.com/). We knew we wanted to go there, but had no idea where else the day would take us. The GPS system didn't let us down as it took us right to the Caves without incident. On the way in we passed the ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags">Iroquois Museum and made note to stop there when they opened. We also passed whimsical signs pointing the way just up the road to Secret Caverns (http://www.secretcaverns.com/) just up the road from Howes. The signs were something straight out of the 1940's and 1950's when Americans hit the road for summer fun. We knew we wanted to stop there as well.

We were one of the first to arrive at Howe's and got on tour 3 for the day. It was a nice small group made up mostly of families. The morning had turned chilly for August, so we were glad that we had changed from shorts to pants before leaving the hotel, but we made a stop at the gift shop to pick up a sweatshirt for the visit to the cave. Both caves that we were to visit that day were founded originally not by humans but by cows looking for shade! Howe's Caverns is definitely a big tourist operation. They have a hotel, gift shop and a few other activities.

The cave itself was a gem. It had all the beautiful kinds of features that caves get noticed for and the formations which people have named after animals or other people. Three items really stood out for me at Howe's. First, the boat ride. Although it wasn't a long ride, the huge flat-bottom boats that traversed us through the final parts of the cave are unique in the caving world. The second very interesting feature was the altar that has seen many a couple off to wedded bliss. The altar itself was pretty, but the carved heart in the floor that features a light beneath to illuminate was a beauty. The picture I took could not do it justice. Probably my favorite part of the cave was the winding way. It was a narrow passage that looked like it had been windswept. The cave also featured a flowing, and often deep, river that originally carved it. Before we left Howe's, we took a moment to do the "mining" for gems and fossils and arrowheads. I can't ever pass up those sorts of things. We also ate lunch at their café. I have to say the sandwich was very good.

Our next stop of the day was to the whimsical Secret Caverns. It was just up the road and definitely more of a low-budget, overlooked stop than Howe's, but it featured something that I've never seen before in a Cave (and I've been to a lot of them). It's piece de resistance is a 150 waterfall. I know my pictures cannot do it any justice at all, but they are worth a look. The video, if you take the time to view, will let you hear the powerful noise it makes as the water descends. Secret Caverns was a much tighter passage throughout the cave, and I admit that I was a bit claustrophobic at times given the number of people in our group. I loved the energy, knowledge and passion our young guide showed here. It's nice to know that the people taking you along are not merely doing a job. If you look at my pictures, you can even see a picture of me acting very stupid in front of their gift shop. Isn't that bat great!

The day had turned quite warm at this point, so we ditched the sweatshirts and headed for the second half of the day - Museums. If you are visiting the Albany area anytime, I highly recommend that you visit both of these caves. For the low price of admission, you'll see some very beautiful and amazing sights.

After enjoying wonders under the ground, we headed toward the museum portion of our day. Our first stop was the Iroquois Museum just up the road from Howes Caverns (http://www.iroquoismuseum.org/). It happened that they had an exhibit all about Native Americans in baseball. I love the game of baseball and found it fascinating to learn of all the Native Americans who have played the game. Some of the artwork, whether old or new, was simply breath-taking. The building itself was truly a work of art. We took a trail that was located on the premises. It felt great to get out and stretch the legs some more. While we were on the trail, we saw many gorgeous views of the New York countryside. The creek that ran through was especially picturesque and a good spot to take the shoes off and dip in the cool, running water. I noticed at one point that we were being watched by a deer. It was a bit of a distance off, but you can see her in the center of the picture. After we finished our walk, we had to decide our next stop. Day 3 - Iroquois museum..

Had I known that Cooperstown was so close, I would have driven there. As we did not, we had picked up a brochure on the Old Stone Fort (http://www.schohariehistory.net/OSF.htm), so we decided to head that way.

The church that is the Old Stone Fort was constructed in 1772! It houses an odd assortment of items. The church was fortified for use in both the Revolutionary and the Civil War. It's a beautiful church with thick walls. I was tempted to purchase one of the old roof slates. I already have such a slate from my beloved New Orleans, but I opted to pass since I didn't have any place to really put it.

The upper floor is set up like a turn-of-the last century museum. There were many interesting artifacts that came from local sources or from areas that locals had visited throughout the world and then donated to the museum. The oddest 2^nd floor find were the collection of hair wreaths. The wreaths were constructed out of loved ones hair, typically after death, to have a keepsake. It was rather bizarre since I was wearing my bracelet made of Blue Blue Sea's tail hair (thankfully, he's still very much alive).

The most interesting item on the first floor for me was the oldest fire engine in the country. It was one of those great old manual pumper ones that were pulled by horses. It was originally in use in the UK, but imported for use in New York city. After service there and several other cities, it ended up in Schoharie.

Included in the complex are four other buildings. These include an 1700's home, a 1780's Dutch barn, an 1830's law office and 1890's schoolhouse. The schoolhouse, barn and law office were all opened. It was amazing to see two structures that were over 300 years old still standing strong and proud. Compare that to most of what's constructed today! The barn was the most amazing to me, as you could have been quite happy having it on your property and using if for storing hay, cattle or horses. Inside it was cluttered with various old farm implements. The floor was smooth and worn and truly beautiful. History certainly surrounded you on a visit there. Day 3 - Old Stone Fort..

As the day was waning, we decided to head back to the hotel. Before we left Schoharie, we noted a covered bridge. As soon as I could, I turned around and we visited the bridge. It was an interesting recent build with a rushing creek below it. You could almost imagine the headless horseman following along behind you. A house near the bridge was very old and had a sled outside under a gazebo. After snapping some shots there, we headed back to the hotel. We ate dinner that night at an Olive Garden. The service and food were quite good. My youngest brother and sister have both worked at Olive Garden, and I must applaud the chain for consistently providing good service and food through top-notch training. I was a little sad that night as we watched some of the races at Saratoga on TV. I knew that we would spend some time the next morning at the track and watching the Hall of Fame induction, but that essentially our time in the Saratoga area was coming to an end.