We suddenly found ourselves with some time off at the same time so we left town...in a red convertible!!! (That was not in our plans, a cheap, gas efficient, economy car was but as it turns out the red convertible was our only choice...well, that or a mini van so naturally we took the convertible. And yes, we got it for the entire week and paid the price for the economy car plus a little extra on gas but I would say it was WELL WORTH IT!) The car made the trip that much more memorable for us.
Boy, it sure was nice to leave the city and enter the lush foresty Upstate area. We camped four nights, the first two at a rather ridiculous "KOA Kamp Ground" in Palmyra, NY and the second two at the beautiful Buttermilk Falls campground only to discover we were a half a mile from the city of Ithaca, NY. Not really our idea of camping but it was still fun...all except the really cheap practically worthless camping pads and the pouring rain one night, but even that was kind of fun.
Our first two days were spent strengthening our convictions at church history sites including The Sacred Grove where the restoration of all truth began in the beautiful forest behind the boyhood home of the prophet of that restoration, Joseph Smith-1820
Then we went to the printing press where the first 5,000 copies of the Book Of Mormon were printed and walked on the original floors and saw how this book of scripture is now being printed in many languages and the truth it contains being spread throughout the earth. Next we visited the Hill Cumorah where the prophet Moroni in A.D. 421 deposited this sacred record to be uncovered 1,406 years later and translated by Joseph Smith.
The next day we went to the Peter Whitmer Home where the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint was organized on 6 April 1830, the first meeting of the restored gospel held, and the remaining Book of Mormon translated. It was a peaceful spot. We took advantage of the quiet openness and surrounding beauty and significance before going to the Palmyra Temple.
One day at work a man mentioned something about a book with a yellow cover entitled "God is Dead." To him I wish I would have mentioned something about a book with a blue cover entitled "Book of Mormon" through which I have learned God is not dead but indeed He lives and loves us!
From there we cruised to Buttermilk Falls where we enjoyed the beauty of the falls and all the things we love: being outdoors, camping, hiking, swimming, slack lining, and cooking and eating around a campfire.
After that we cruised to Buffalo, NY to see our friends Creed and Tiffany. We went to see the spectacular Niagara Falls four ways: the Canadian panoramic view, from up close and personal in the famous boat ride "Maid of the Mist", from up above in the new Skywheel ride, and the drop off view on the American side.
They took us to Duff's for famous Buffalo wings and shared their home with us; thanks Creed and Tiff!
What a great way to end a great trip!
