Meigs Point Nature Center Canoe Trip @ Hammonasset State Park

Named after Johnathon Meigs a American Revolutionary hero and recipient of a congressional sword for the Battle of Sag Harbour, Meigs Point Nature Center offers a weekly 2-hour guided tour of the Hammonasett River. The tour is by reservation

Dan and I brought our own kayaks for the tour while my parents reserved a canoe. The cost of the tour was $5 and departed at 12:30 from the Nature Center. After a brief drive down a trail we arrived at the launch zone. We were almost immediately uninvited by mosquito's and horse flys. Dan and I unloaded the Kayaks while tour leader Mike and his helper unloaded 9 canoes and related life jackets and paddles. As they reviewed safety rules Dan and I launched the kayaks to escape the attacking insects. 

Once on the water we were thankfully left alone and the first canoe to launch was my parents. Having canoe'd before they had no problem and we made our way out the small canal towards the Hammonasset River. As the remaining tour participants joined us we crossed the channel and followed the salt marshes with our tour guide Mike pointing out the various birds and other wildlife we encountered.  We traveled roughly 1.3 miles up river to the bridge at route 1. There Mike told us a story about the history of the area before we began the paddle back to the launch spot. 

It was a beautiful day on the water. When we reached the laugh ramp we quickly got the kayaks out of the water and on the roof rack.  We moved quick as the mosquitos and horseflies were still hanging out.   We thanked Mike the tour guide for the experience and headed out. 

Frank Pepe Pizza

As a child I have fond memories of Frank Pepe's Pizzeria in New Haven.  They are famous for their coal fired brick oven pizza made with the freshest ingredients. We would go as a family and sometimes wait hours in line to enjoy one of their famous pies if we could even find parking on the small Wooster Street.  You know you have arrived when you pass beneath the Wooster Stret arch.  

This New Haven institution has been operating since 1925 and celebrate its 90th year this year and not much has changed. The interior looks just as it always has for the past 30+ years and is comprised of two large rooms.  

There are a half dozen booths in the first room along the right wall with a large counter along the left. The oven are along the back wall.  The second room is to the right and both walls of that room are flanked with booths. The walls are covered with historical photos of Frank Pepe memorabilia. 

This time I wasn't with my family and was sharing the experience with a few friends. We selected the fresh tomato pie which is a seasonal pie they make every summer with fresh local tomatoes. I also chose to get a bottle of Birch beer soda which I can't say I have found anywhere else but Pepe's pizza.

The pizza pie is served on a standard half-sheet and is the quintessential example of how a pie should be. The chewy charred crust surrounds the fresh sliced tomatoes and secret cheese blend that oozes and bubbles flavor. The sauce is sweet and tastyand couldn't be more perfect.  They also don't slice a pie into perfect slices some look like you might expect while others are not triangular.  It's part of the experience to have different sized slices of pizza here. 

It didn't take us long to polish off the pie and one large was more then enough for the three of us. Sometimes as a kid I would get an Italian ice next door but today it wasn't meant to be since I was stuffed with the perfect pizza. 

If y find yourself in New Haven around lunch or dinner don't hesitate to stop by and if there is a line it's worth the wait.  

One Wold Observatory: See Forever

Located on the top floors of the newly finish One World Trade Center the multi level observation center offers panoramic views of NYC however the experience starts many floors below ground level at the Global Welcome Center. 

After buying your tickets or checking in you pass through security and enter a large hall where a world map is displayed. There we learned interesting statistics about visitors to the observatory. Today the most represented country was Germany. After leaving the lobby and ticket area we entered an area known as Voices and Foundations. In the dimly lite queue visitors can feel and touch a simulated stone representing the bedrock on which this structure is built and hear the personal stories told by those who built the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere. 

As we emerge from the winding pathways we reach a bank of modern elevators known as Sky Pods which will shoot us to the 102nd floor in less then 60 seconds while riders enjoy a simulated view of New York from its beginning to present day. This was a cool experience watching as we climbed altitude the years and growth and development of the city occurred at an accelerated rate. 

After the short elevators ride we found ourselves squished into the Forever Theatre on the skyscrapers 102nd floor where a view of city life plays out. Then the wall opens vertically giving visitors their first glimpse of the city skyline. That glimpse is very brief as the wall lowers almost immediately. 

Like cattle we are then herded into a room and directed down a flight of stairs into a high pressure sales area where employees of the observatory swarmed like bees in a final push to up charge the visitors by encouraging them to rent iPads designed to help identify key locations as they view the skyline of the city. This pressure created a significant bottleneck preventing many people from reaching the next views of the city on the 101st floor easily. 

As if that push to pay more wasn't enough the next view of the city was along a small balcony which lead to their income generating cafe. Here visitors had the option to purchase overpriced pain au chocolate or artisan sandwiches with the hope to be lucky enough to find an available table on which to eat. It was a chaotic mess with many visitors unsure what to do ending up in the cafe only to discover that they needed to turn around to take the stairs down on more level to the 100th floor, known as the Discovery Level, where the first full panoramic view of the city were available. 

The Discovery Level allows visitors a full360-degree view in all directions. It also includes the sky portal, a 14-ft wide circular disc hat provides real time views of the streets below. It also offers an interactive skyline known as City Pulse which helps guests connect with and observe landmarks around the city. 

While the view were amazing and you truly could See Forever I have to agree with my father that the experience was no where near as dramatic and awe inspiring as the observation deck of the previous World Trade Center. 

While the sky pods were very cool the smooth and quick ride left you barely realizing that you had just shot up 102 floors. It lacked the experience that the old slower elevator with 102 lighted numbers that slowly counted up. 

The Forever Theatre was also a let down as you were so close to the wall it was hard to see much other then what was right in front of you. When the wall finally opened exposing the amazing view it was so short lived you barely had a chance to figure out what direction you were looking before the walls dropped back down and you were ushered like animals into the sales slaughter. 

The discovery floor certainly had awe inspiring views but it lacked that open air feel with the wind rushing by which helped give value to how high you really were. The visitors were so cocooned behind safety glass that it was hard to really appreciate what it was really like on the other side of the glass.  It's an amazing facility and a valuable venue but that intense experience the old observatory provided wasn't the same.