Well, it had been a long trip and we ended the major historical sites with a visit to the Saratoga National Battlefield. We drove onto the grounds and checked in at the gate (so, don’t get too worried about the traffic line). Once we paid the fee, it was up the road to the museum and gift shop. There is not too much there. Mostly just placards. The battle table is nice. It is diorama style (not just plastic) and followed the different portions of the fight with lighting, giving the watcher a clear view of how the battle unfolded. We checked out the rest of the and then decided to drive up to Schuylerville to get some lunch!
https://www.nps.gov/sara/index.htm
Once we fully gorged ourselves, we drove a couple of blocks to check out the battle memorial (which is located in a park). We then headed back to the battlefield and started the road tour. Like all national parks, there is an online narrative tour, which we availed ourselves to. You just follow the trail and it takes you to stopping points along the way. Each has some placards showing you were you are on the battlefield and the walking trials to each labeled area.
So, we would hop out of the car and walked each. The first had some park rangers that gave us some good information about the battlefield. We worked our way around each point and checked out each. Following the trials, you get placards describing what happened at the point and some other fluff placards talking about the period.
As al the British entrenched positions are marked on the battlefield with white stakes (with different colored tops), you get a very good idea of how the various fights developed in each area. There is even a monument to Benedict Arnold’s boot! It does not have his name on it, for obvious reasons, considering his later decisions…. There are also a number of cannons laid out in key potions to get an idea of sight lines. Since the park to very well preserved, you can see everything similar to how it was during the battle. No dredging through new woods or housing developments like most other sites!
We did the entire run and squeezed out everything, driving out, just as the park closed! We could have spend even more time, so the cut off was probably helpful! If you are into the battle, it is an easy full day trip.
We still have some sun time, so we drove back to Schuylerville to check out the marker for the British surrender. Another little park with a nice memorial and display. The sun had finally caught up with us, so it was time to get some dinner and head to our hotel. The next day would be our drive back and the end of the trip. A great time. With that, time to get back to regular life and gaming!
- Manteuffel