We were spending one more day visiting with George and Judy before heading off to Boston and our cruise. Judy suggested a trip up to the Kringle Candle Village. Kringle Candle Company in Bernardston, MA was started by Mick Kittredge, son of the founder of Yankee Candle Company. His father had sold Yankee Candle for health reasons when Mick was only 8 years old. The Kringle Candle Company specializes in all-white candles wi, th over 100 distinctive fragrances. We first visited the candle store, but it wasn't just candles -- they had lots of decorative items as well. We were also impressed with the layout of the store and the way the merchandise was presented. There were lots of interesting things in areas that were set up to look like rooms (kitchen, dining room, etc.). We spent a while browsing, but I wasn't interested in buying anything. Another building featured food, teas, Christmas items and toys. After wandering around the stores for a while, we decided to eat at the Farm Table Restaurant there. The food was very good. Karl and I shared a bowl of corn chowder and a Cuban sandwich.

While we were visiting Kringle Candle, Judy was talking to one of the employees and she mentioned that we might want to take a short ride up to Shelburne Falls to see the Bridge of Flowers . It was still pretty early in the day and Judy said it was worth the trip to see it, so that was our next destination. The Bridge of Flowers is an old trolley bridge across the Deerfield River between the towns of Shelburne Falls and Buckland. The 400 foot, five arch span was built in 1908 and abandoned by the trolley line in 1928. In 1929, the vision of Antoinette and Walter Burnham became reality when the project was undertaken by the Shelburne Falls Women's Club, who still maintain it through their Bridge of Flowers Committee. Donations and volunteers keep the bridge blooming from spring through fall every year and thousands of people visit the free attraction each year. We really enjoyed the bridge -- there were both familiar and unfamiliar annuals, perennials and shrubs. It was just beautiful.

After our visit to the bridge, Judy mentioned that she remembered some interesting rocks along the river In Shelburne Falls. With her help we were able to find the glacial potholes which actually form the rapids there. There were interesting formations ("potholes") carved by the swirling of glacial waters laden with rocks, sand and silt. The colors of the rocks were beautiful, enhanced by the swirling foundations.

We took some backwoods roads back to Enfield, but decided to get back on the expressway for the last hour. We spent a bit more time visiting with George and Judy and enjoyed the pizza they ordered for dinner. Then it was time to say good-bye for now. We will see George and Judy again when we return from the cruise.