For Kyhle's 26th birthday this year, his mom got him tickets to go see his two favorite bands, The Head and The Heart and Death Cab for Cutie! The cool part--it was in Rochester, New York! About a week before our trip, Kyhle totaled his car, so we had a rental car for a month to give us time to buy a new one. At first we were bummed about the timing, but it turned out perfect! We piled the miles on a rental and didn't have to worry about all the wear and tear of the 22 hour round trip drive on our own car. Plus, the insurance paid for a luxury rental, so it was extra spacious, leather seats, and had a quiet cabin while on the highway.
The concert was over Memorial Day weekend, so we had an extra day for drive time and play. We loaded up the car, took the dogs to Kyhle's mom's house and headed out early in the morning for the 10 hour drive to New York. On the way there, we drove through Ohio, Pennsylvania, and then New York. In Pennsylvania, we took a little detour to go check out a park called Presque Isle and see Lake Erie, which is where we saw our first of many lighthouses. It was a gloomy day, but the beach was beautiful! It was completely empty, so Kyhle and I took off our shoes and ran around in the sand and acted like two kids young and in love. :)
We arrived in Rochester just in time for the concert, and luckily our tickets included close parking. The concert was on a beautiful college campus, at an awesome outdoor venue. It was drizzling rain, so lucky for us, we had seats under the covered area. I'm not a huge Death Cab for Cutie fan, but I really enjoy the Head and The Heart, as this was our 2nd time seeing them. We got there just in time and enjoyed a fun night together listening to some awesome music. Kyhle was like a kid in a candy store--so excited and singing along to every word!
The next day, we didn't really have any plans, so we took a while at the hotel deciding if we wanted to head home or find something fun to do. The something fun we decided on? Niagra Falls! On our way, we made some pit stops along the Great Lakes Seaway to tour some more lighthouses. There are 27 total lighthouses, and we were able to get to 9 of them. As we were driving out in the middle of nowhere along this Seaway Trail, we suddenly passed a tiny ice cream shop on the side of the road with the cutest little setting. Obviously we had to turn around and get a little treat. :)
We then made it to Niagra Falls! Amazing doesn't even begin to describe it. I wish I could put in to words the experience we had there. The crowds were insane, the lines were miles long, and the falls were incredible! We did the Maiden of the Mist tour and it was such a fun ride! You can feel the power of the water underneath the boat, and get completely soaked as they get closer and closer to the falls. Everyone on the boat was laughing an clapping because it was just so exciting and cool to witness. Definitely worth the wait, and by far one of the coolest things we have ever done.
After Niagra, we decided to start the trek back home to stop halfway in Cleveland, Ohio. On the way, we took another country road that led us to our second favorite part of the trip, and a perfect ending to a perfect day. We arrived at this lighthouse in Barcelona, New York that sat on top of a hill overlooking the lake at sunset.
After driving through some pretty sketch areas, seeing some scary run-down homes, and starving until we could finally find a restaurant for food, we made it to our hotel in Cleveland. I don't know if we had ever been so happy to see a big comfy bed (that we didn't have to share with our dogs), and we passed right out. We woke up early Sunday morning, stopped at Bob Evans for breakfast, and drove the last 5 1/2 hours home. We had such an incredible trip, one that we still talk about often. We hope to make it back to the north east to see more of the lighthouses on the Seaway Trail, driving up in to Maine, preferably in the fall. We were so grateful for the opportunity to take this trip, and we love doing road trips together. Thanks for another fun, successful vacation, love!
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