New York State

Shon and I agree that we have a different understanding of the concept 'New York' now that we have driven through the northern part of the state.  New York state is so much more than just its cities!  We passed so much lovely farmland and so many road side fruit and vegetable stands, especially the harvest of the many corn fields and apple orchards we saw.  Loved the large barns with their stone bases.  As we drew closer to the Niagara Falls border crossing, signs for wineries popped up - although nowhere near as many as we saw driving through the Niagara Peninsula in Canada. 
A highlight of our time in New York was a visit with Shon's second cousin, Stryker Ostafew, and his family in Albion, New York.  It was lovely to meet them and get to know another branch of the clan.  Lots of talk about the family tree.  They live in a rural area near Albion so we were awoken by their neighbour's rooster - delightful alarm clock (yes, I am serious - I loved it). 
Now we are in Toronto again for a few days of visiting and regrouping before we head back into the States to drive west.