Cooperstown, NY to York, PA

We got up early to fog as we were staying in a hotel on Otsego Lake.  We drove the 8 miles to Cooperstown and ate breakfast at the town pier overlooking the lake (all we could see was fog).  From there, we walked a couple of blocks to the Baseball Hall of Fame and waited for opening.

The front entry of the Baseball Hall of Fame (HOF) on Main Street in Cooperstown, NY

Main St. in Cooperstown.  The hall is located in Cooperstown as this was the home of Doubleday, who is credited with inventing baseball.

Waiting on the doors to open

I have looked forward to the HOF for a long time and never really thought that I would have an opportunity to see this shrine.  I felt a great deal of emotion as I saw old film of baseball players which my dad and I talked about when I was growing up.  Probably very few of you know that I was named after a baseball player.  I was named after Mickey Vernon who was a first baseman for the Washington Senators and had the distinction of playing in four decades.  He still holds the major league record for double plays by a first baseman.  My dad would have loved the Hall.

It was a wonderful building.  The exhibits were laid out well and was not cluttered.  We spent four hours and could easily have stayed longer, but I saw the old players exhibits and all of the Reds players.  I was surprised by the Pete Rose exhibits.  I grew up a Rose fan, but feel that if he is banned from the hall then he should not be represented.

For Eric--Ozzie

For Kade-A 5 gallon bucket of David Sunflower seed

Along with Johnny Bench, Tony Perez was one of my all time favorite players

Another shot of Main Street looking the opposite direction with the HOF on the right

This shot and the one below are of Otsego Lake.  This is a beautiful  9 mile long natural lake and was referred to in the novels of James Fenimore Cooper as Glimmerglass.

 

The view from out the restaurant window (after the fog lifted).

We left Cooperstown and was planning to drive 300 miles to somewhere between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., but ran into rain by Scranton, PA and was in a deluge by getting through Harrisburg, PA.  We hit Harrisburg at rush hour and combined with the weather we lost too much time.  It took 1 1/2 hours just to drive through this city.  We managed to get to York, PA and the visibility was so bad driving that we have stopped for the night.  More rain is predicted for tomorrow.

We heard on the radio that although Mt. Vernon is open the parking lots are controlled by the federal government and are closed.  I called Mt. Vernon and they assure me that their lots are open.

Is spite of the rain it was a great day!