August 13, 2008

August 13, 2008

From Fishkill, NY, we drove the half hour southwest to West Point, NY, the home of the US Military Academy. Our first stop is the Visitor Center where we sign up for a one-hour bus tour of the campus. Since 9-11 the campus has been closed, (something we hear a lot!) The bus tour is nice and the narrator is very informative. We learn a lot about the demanding life of an army cadet. Our main stops are the Protestant Chapel and the Parade Ground. West Point is a beautiful campus with gray stone gothic-style buildings set on a bluff overlooking the Hudson River. Back at the Visitor Center we learn about the entry process and some of the more famous graduates of the school. In my past, I have hired several West Point grads, all of outstanding quality. I have always felt our military is in good hands with West Point providing the leadership.

Behind the Visitor Center is the West Point Museum. The Museum is outstanding with sections on the history of the Academy, the history of warfare, and the history of American Wars. Definitely a place I could see again.

West Point was famous before the Academy was founded here in 1802. During the Revolutionary War, West Point was strategic in preventing the British from cutting off New England. The Hudson River makes a hilly S-curve here making it easily defended. Two forts were built here and a massive iron chain was stretched across the river to prevent British warships from passing. West Point was the coveted prize that hero-turned-traitor Benedict Arnold was going to pass to the British in 1780. Fortunately that plan was thwarted.

We spend the night in a nice park west of here in Florida, NY.