Tag Archives: travel

Experience Niagara Falls: A Camping Adventure on the US Side

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Anytime you hear about someone visiting Niagara Falls, the question of which side is better to view the falls comes up. Discuss it with friends who have not yet been there or have been. “Is the US side or the Canada side better?”

Well, when we picked our 2nd camping adventure, we picked the US side, primarily because we had seen the Canada side many years ago on a non-camping trip. We looked for campgrounds not far from the falls and found a place called Branches of Niagara Campground Resort.

We stayed at Branches of Niagara in September of 2022. Since then, the campground’s name has changed to HTR resorts. The address is 2659 Whitehaven Road, Grand Island, NY. It took us about 8 hours to get there from our home location in CT. But the campground is only about 8-10 miles from the falls on the US side which was perfect for us.

It was a rainy trip on the road. It was quite an adventure for us as new travelers. We were pulling our 16-foot travel trailer with our older truck. We were so excited to be going. Nothing was going to stop us.

Because it was September, there were not too many campers at the campground – just a few – maybe like 6. The pool was closed but the pool area looked very nice and is well set-up. There is a fishing pond, and the grounds were very nice with lush green lawns. There are also some cute cabin rentals at this campground. It is a well-maintained place, and nothing looked old or worn out while we were there.

We were new to camping so we had no idea, but they didn’t give us the best site. It was number 71 on the map. My husband recalls it wasn’t completely level. It was good enough for us because we were newbies on the camping scene. It was a smaller site in an odd space. The bathroom was directly across from this site, which was handy. We have a bathroom in our small camper as well.

We couldn’t wait to go see the falls on the US side the day after our arrival. It was about 10 miles from the campsite to the falls park on the US side. We prepared for the day by making sure we wore good shoes and a sweatshirt with rain jackets. It had been mostly cloudy and rainy on our travel up to the campground. However, when we went to go visit the park, it turned out to be a beautiful sunny day. I was so thankful for that.

To be honest, I was sold on the US side of viewing the falls immediately because you can get so close to the water views. There are a couple parking areas on the US side on Goat Island, and I think we were in parking lot 3. We kind of just winged it and parked and then found the trail and followed it. It was so much fun. You can spend the whole day following the trail here. And you can get very close to rushing falls. We loved it. There are many spots to stop and check out various views of the rushing waters.

We came across a seating area and things like that. We did bring a small bag pack of snacks and stopped to eat where there were some tables and I think they sold food there, but we didn’t check that out at that time.

Look how close we were on the US side to the rushing waters. It was a thrill to be that close. While the Canadian side has many benefits, you really can’t get this close to that view shown above in the photo I took.

This was another area you reach while following the paved trails. You can see how lovely it is. It is a spot you want to just gaze for a while.

You can see the observation tower across this water view. However, for me, being so close to the fast-moving waters was bliss. Hearing the rushing sounds of it felt amazing.

I could share lots more photos of our walk on the trail. I’ll save them for when you go visit the falls yourself. There are many points to stop. You can take in the views and feel the misty rainfall from the falls. I’m sure there were things we missed too because we just winged it for the day.

The next day, we did go over to the Canada side. I did think ahead to have our passports handy. It was easy to cross over a bridge to get there thru customs. The Canada side is more hectic. There is a casino and more restaurants, and lots more people.

As I mentioned before, we had been there on the Canada side many years prior. We didn’t do the walk along the falls on the Canada side. Nor did we venture to the wine trail. We are “been there, done that” type of people and like seeing new things. We had explored the whole Canada side of the falls many years ago, doing a boat ride and visiting the casino, and having dinner at the top of a building, stuff like that.

Canada side above photo with the view of the casino and other buildings. When we exited here, we saw a nice view of the falls on the Canada side. But there are walkways below this area to view the Canada side of the falls. The trip happened back in 2022, which was 3 years ago. It is difficult to recall everything. Let’s just say we had a pleasant time.

The campground was a great location for us. We ate at two places nearby. One was called Griffon Gastropub on Military Road. I recall it wasn’t too thrilling. And another place was called the Brickyard Pub and BBQ in Lewiston, NY which we liked.

I would say in regard to the campground, it was a very nice place. We’d go back in warmer weather months. We actually used the heat in our camper because it was very cool at night that visit. We had full hook ups, and it was a clean place with full bathrooms. It was also a quiet place in September.

Hope this helps you visit. You may decide to see Niagara Falls in the US. You could also choose to visit Canada. You can do both like we did!

Cathy Testa
Date of Post: 12/8/2025

Our First Camping Adventure at Moose Hillock, NY

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When we took our very first camper out for the first time, it happened to fit well with a trip my younger sister had planned to Lake George, NY with her family. She mentioned a campground called Moose Hillock and it is in Fort Ann, NY near Lake George.

It was in mid-June of 2022, and it turned out it was going to be a very hot and humid week during our first camper adventure. No worries, luckily our new adorable retro looking little 16-foot camper has excellent air-conditioning, and the campground’s website indicated it had a huge, heated pool.

My sister was also staying there for her family vacation with her two young boys and husband with their 5th wheel camper. She was excited to learn we had purchased a camper at an RV show in the winter so we arranged to do our first venture out to Moose Hillock where she and her husband would be there to assist us if needed.

I did feel overwhelmed when I first started searching for campgrounds online. There are so many to choose from and being a planner, I really like to research, but I quickly learned, there are so many that it would be difficult to pin down which place to select for our first camping adventure.

On top of that, I learned campgrounds have rules and many of them all listed on their websites. It made me go cross eyed reading them all – pages of them. I remember thinking, “Holy Moly, these places have so many rules. Will I like camping?”

It didn’t take too many future trips to realize rules are more about just being a really good camper person, doing the simple things like not being noisy after posted quiet hours and picking up your trash, or not walking through neighbors’ sites, and keeping your dog under control, etc.

I don’t have a dog, but my sister does. When she was walking her dog the day we arrived to Moose Hillock, she saw us at our camper site setting up. She walked over and said, “I promise, I didn’t intend to show up immediately, but I was walking my dog and saw you.”

You see I had told her before we left, “Please don’t run over right away. I’m so new to this camping thing, I want at least an hour to setup our camper inside while Steve, my husband, would setup everything outside”.

Rosalie continued off to walk her dog after a brief hello, and I was excited to unpack all the boxes I had staged on the floor in the camper into the camper’s cabinets. It turned out to be a good system for this smaller sized camper, and I did the same routine every time we traveled with it.

Moose Hillock surprised me because I had absolutely no idea there were campgrounds more luxury style. This pleased me right away. You see, when we got our first little camper, it was quite spontaneous at an RV show. And I really was concerned about if we made the right decision. I knew I don’t like flying anymore, for obvious reasons, but would I like camping? I really never liked tent camping the few times we did that years ago when much, much younger.

When I saw the pool at Moose Hillock with a rock wall of skulls and waterfalls with a slide for the kids, I was impressed. I thought to myself, “My gosh, this competes with pools I’ve seen at luxury hotels.” I was really impressed with the abundance of lounge chairs around the pool area, the clean bathrooms, and the pool itself.

My nephews loved that we were there to join them in the pool too. My husband is a kid at heart and had no qualms about going down the big pool slide right after my nephews did – and repeatedly. It was fun to watch them having such a good time. I was even a bit disappointed that Steve and I had booked a steamboat tour on Lake George that day because we were having so much fun enjoying the beautiful big clean pool on a hot and humid June day.

Another bonus about this campground is the fact it is very close to Lake George, and lucky me, there was a wine festival happening the week we were there. Steve and I attended that on the next day while my sister and her husband stayed at the campground to enjoy the resort’s amenities. She and I are 13 years apart in age, and Steve and I really enjoy visiting an area’s features while she prefers to stay at the campground filled with amenities and fun for the kids. Make sense.

Regardless of camping styles and goals, we all enjoyed the private sites at Moose Hillock. Each site is lined with trees on each side of the site, and each has a big firepit with large rocks. One big rock on the back side and a few on each side. This was another surprise to me. I just had no idea it would be this nice.

Our first camping trip to brought surprises!

Again, one of the fun parts was my nephews really enjoyed visiting us at our site, making popcorn with Steve and roasting marshmallows. To honor our first camping trip with my sister’s family, I got her and I matching t-shirts. I had decorated my camper with the whole black and red classic tartan plaid theme, and even our t-shirts matched. She loved it!

We visited them at their site too. It was so fun. It really kicked off our trip and first adventure, and I knew we would have many more. Moose Hillock was a perfect choice for us beginners.

To recap, the things I really liked about Moose Hill lock are:

Big private sites with trees on each site
Amazing massive clean pool with nice lounge chairs
Being close to Lake George and doing things like the steamboat ride and wine fest
Big firepit to make amazing camping fires at night
The rv style to this campground

And unique to us – being able to enjoy our very first camper trip with my sister and her family.

Cathy Testa
Date of this post: 11/7/2025

Happy Holidays

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Just sharing an old photo – taken the last year we held my annual holiday workshop here – before COVID. I love this photo; despite I had a cold that day and was so disappointed I couldn’t enjoy it as much as usual. I stayed away from my guests while they all crafted their holiday creations where they made beautiful wreaths and kissing balls with fresh holiday greens, so they wouldn’t catch it from me. My wine glass held juice that day, but my heart was happy to enjoy a wonderful holiday tradition we had created.

Fast forward to today; this morning, I thought about how my husband, and I created a “tradition.” Yes, the workshop was a big tradition for everyone for many years, and many have said, they miss it, but some decided to hold mini gatherings with their friends and continue the spirit. That makes me happy, that despite I do not hold this big holiday event anymore, others continued to do their own mini version of the day of creating with friends to make wreaths, centerpieces, and holiday kissing balls – to kickoff the holiday season and spirits.

Anyhow, I don’t have much to say today. First snowfall of 2024 is here – light and will melt quickly. Christmas is not too far away, and I’ve done pretty much zero shopping because I was hit with a head cold that lasted over a week! I missed some fun holiday events too, boo! Hopefully I can start enjoying some holiday fun this weekend. Looking forward to that.

In the meantime, stay safe and festive. Enjoy your traditions while they last!

Cathy T
12/16/2024

I predict you won’t need to pack any clothes when you travel in the future.

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Wacky thought, right?

You won’t need to bring ANY clothes with you when you travel to a vacation destination in the future – except for the clothes on your back.

Imagine a hotel, resort, or heck, a glamping site that provides your wardrobe for you in your hotel room (or in your glamping camping tent).

This has been in my head for a few years.

And this is how it goes:

You arrive at your hotel, there is a nice long closet in your hotel room, and you open it up – and before your very eyes, you see all the outfits you need for the week while visiting your vacation destination.

They are neatly pressed. Professionally dry cleaned. They are in your favorite colors and size. And heck, the jewelry to match is sitting in a jewelry box on the dressing table near the closet.

This would be heaven to me.

It would eliminate the need to go thru the grueling task of packing the suitcases, which is always a challenge, at least for me.

Will it be cold? Will I need formal wear? Will I have enough room in the suitcase? How much will the suitcase weigh? Will it fit in the overhead?

Oh, and talk about benefits to this idea – no bringing heavy and bulky luggage on an airplane. How exciting does that make you feel right now? I’d be jumping for joy and talking to all my friends about how I only need the clothes on my back. I don’t have to pay for extra suitcases at the airport, wait in line to have them checked in, or feel panicked after a long flight when it doesn’t show up in the luggage claim area.

How could this whole concept be accomplished?

Easy – just have a hotel partner with a clothing store – and then setup an online link on your hotel web site to click your clothing preferences before your departure date.

You log in to the hotel web site – click their wardrobe link, and then enjoy the process of entering your size preferences, and of course, there should be photos to pick outfits from – where you easily click the outfits you want to be placed in your hotel room closet.

Let’s face it – we usually want a comfy pair of black pants (because black goes with everything), one or two dressy outfits for any formal dinners, a set of comfy hiking shorts, some tank tops perhaps, and a pull over for the night it is cool on the beach. Throw in some flip flops, and you are one and done.

Imagine the possibilities with this concept, my friends.

Could LL Bean be your fav clothing line for hiking gear, while visiting a destination like Sedona, Arizona?

Ok, I don’t have any idea what the latest hot trending clothing lines are – but I do know you may buy clothes online today, easily – why not make it available at your hotel too?

Or perhaps, LuLaRoe leggings, which are extremely popular in my area – everyone and their sister is selling their women’s line of various leggings at host parties – imagine your favorite Minnie Mouse leggings when you visit Walt Disney already in your hotel room when you arrive?! With matching Minnie Mouse slippers of course.

This concept would save time on everyone’s part – no more hotel staff having to lug your luggage to your room. No more need for space in the back of taxis or van shuttles from the airport to your location. No more replacing damaged suitcases. Not to mention, no more scanning luggage at airports for hidden, potentially dangerous weapons.

And, imagine the marketing side for clothing companies. They could offer some of their styles for people to try while visiting their vacation destination and this could lead to a traveler becoming a new fan of the company’s clothing line – and here’s a thought, add the option to buy the wardrobe to hotel guests before they depart. Hmm, I totally think I’m on to predicting a really great idea for the future.

Last night, we watched The Fifth Element – one of our favorite movies. Do you remember the scene where Bruce Willis shows up at his hotel room and they roll out a whole set of black tuxes – I think it was tuxes – for him to pick to wear at the evening’s big event where the Diva was to perform on stage?

When that scene of the tuxes rolling out on a rod showed up – I said to my husband, remember when I said hotels should fill your hotel closet for you with pre-selected clothes as a service? Well, look – they were doing that in this futuristic movie. That movie was made like 20 years ago – catch up people.

I don’t know if this concept exists somewhere already? Maybe for the rich – but anyhow, I predict this will be a thing of the future, or better stated – should be a thing of the future.

We are a society that likes one and done. We like to click and buy. We like to not have hassles. We love our smart phones and the flexibility to get what we want when we want it – or to see it on our phones before we decide to buy it at our pick up location or delivery location. We want this done easily and quickly. If we see it and we want it (and then click it) – we want it there when we arrive.

The ownership would be on the hotel companies and clothing lines, I suppose, but aren’t those entities (hotels and travel) one of the hottest things still popular today? Meaning “travel” is popular, thus hotels are popular, and cloths are popular – and still the type of activities or things people will continue to use, and pay to do or use.

What does this have to do with my passion of plants and offering workshops? Well, probably not much directly – however, I feel offering all for you as an attendees in one location is a valued service, so you don’t have the hassle of lugging soil, or bringing all the other components needed to make a beautiful creations at my plant related workshops with you. I make it easy for you. Have it all here already for you. I try to make it one and done.

And yes, there are still those personal items you may prefer to bring on your own, and that’s okay. Say for example, uh, underwear – true, I’d have to think about that one.

Cathy Testa
860-977-9473
containercathy@gmail.com
www.WORKSHOPSCT.com

P.S. If you know of a vacation destination that offers this service – update ME!