Zigzagging around...

Last week it was a woman's outing to Longwood Gardens. This week it was John's turn for a man's outing - a baseball game. (To my way of thinking I got a MUCH better deal.) It was NOT a Yankee's game (their stadium is usually full) but the Syracuse Chiefs (to our north). Fans John & Karol are being photographed by fan Bruce. If YOU are into baseball, the minor leagues are a fun way to enjoy the sport (I'm told).


Karol and a couple of other guys from Maine were around most of the week working on a barn nearby. Boys baseball night was followed the next night by dinner at Matthews on Main in Callacoon on the Delaware (to our south). Absolutely wonderful food (the women were HAPPY to join in that event). And a new trick was added to our repertoire. Put a cork in a bottle and then a toothpick in the cork. Hook the tines of a fork over the bowl of a spoon, then poke another toothpick through the tines of the fork. Now put the toothpick points together to suspend the fork/spoon in perfect balance. It's easier than you think (but comes increasingly harder with each glass of wine consumed).


Saying goodbye to friends and barn reconstruction we headed towards Jefferson County on the St. Lawrence (back to our north). In Watertown we just happened to park in front of the Museum. "Free" & "Open" the sign said so of course we had to take a peek. Thanks to someone named Kinne, it has the largest collection in the world of cast iron turbines. (The "pointer" in the photo found the exhibit much more interesting than the photographer...)

Most of you owe many a good night's sleep to a Watertown invention. Turns out that in 1853 the wife of James Liddy wanted him to take her to town. While she was shopping he decided to take a nap on the buggy seat - best nap he'd ever had. He decided it was because of the springs in the seat. The next day when he went to work in the carriage shop in Watertown he devised springs to replace the planks or ropes in beds and thus became the inventor of bedsprings. Unfortunately he neglected to get a patent so only his dreams, not his wallet, benefited from the invention.


The St. Lawrence is home to the Thousand Islands and thousands of different things - far too many for this blog. However, the Wooden Boat Museum in Clayton is a must visit anytime in you are in the area. They also host special events including weddings. The Zipper just "delivered" the bride and groom (NOT John & Terry).

While Terry was at the wedding reception, John & I wandered off to the NYS Food & Wine Festival where we sampled FAR too many "products". In the food line there were LOTS of different cheddar cheeses, a few salsas & barbecue sauces, maple syrup products, honey. And then there was the wine........

Peterboro & ...

For the past 15 years Peterboro has hosted a Civil War Weekend to raise funds to preserve and restore its historic buildings. Seems like a strange location until you realize Peterboro was the home of Gerrit Smith, a very wealthy and very active abolitionist. Both the NYS and National Underground Railroad trails list the National Abolition Hall of Fame and Gerrit Smith's Land Office has sites in Peterboro to visit. This is the first time we had ever been to a reenactment (we probably do NOT need to do that again). The South won the day we went, the North won the day before (apparently they take turns). It was rather odd to watch the reenactment take place under electric lines with a wind turbine on the hill in the distance.

Elizabeth Smith Miller, Smith's daughter, was very active in women's rights, suffrage and even dress reform - in fact she was responsible for what would later be known as Bloomers. The talk I went to on "fashions of the times" was very interesting (John chose to go elsewhere). Thank heavens we do not have to wear corsets (you couldn't breathe) or bonnets (they held the heat in - NOT good on hot days) so us modern gals do not worry about passing out on a regular basis(goodbye smelling salts!)

The last thing this little hamlet (don't you love that term) is known for (thanks again to Gerrit Smith who imported the mom)... it's the home of the first registered Holstein-Friesian cow in the US (those are the black & white cows that supply more milk in the US than any other breed). The name chosen for this first calf was Agoo...

On a totally different trip last week, I zipped down to Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania with my friend Mary. It's always a beautiful spot to visit - you can see lots of great pictures (much better than mine) on their web site. Have you been there but don't recognize this one? That's because it's outside Mary's back door right here in NYS. Who needs to leave home when it is so beautiful here?!

On the other hand, I might never have spied this sign outside a convenience store near where we stayed in Amish country in Pennsylvania.

Watkins Glen...

Watkins Glen was one of my parents favorite stopovers when they drove from Arkansas to visit us in NY. John and I have been to Watkins Glen several times. We've even been to the auto races (once -quite enough for me, thank you). But (we should hang our heads) we had never walked the gorge.

So... we packed up Rambo (Tillie is out of the barn for the summer but hasn't been re-licensed yet) and headed west. As luck would have it we made it to the Finger Lakes region in plenty of time for lunch at one of the local wineries (Red Newt - the BEST food I've had in ages. When was the last time you had homemade whole wheat ravioli with caramelized rhubarb and a creamy roasted garlic sauce? - heaven!) Anyway, it turned out it was a good thing we took time to fortify ourselves. There are over 800 steps UP (did my parents actually "climb" that trail every time they stopped?!) on the mile and half gorge trail. The 19 waterfalls offer plenty of photo opportunities (and let you catch your breath). If you have not been there it is well worth the trip/walk! Once to the top you can opt to come back via the Indian trail along the top and past a massive cemetery (is that for those folks who didn't quite make it to the top?).

The camp site in the park was quite nice (it was a bit disconcerting to hear the drone in the distance from the racetrack). The next day dawned with a promise of hot and muggy (but Rambo has air conditioning so we weren't worried). First stop - Ovid. The map indicated this is the home of the Three Bears. The Three Bears = buildings. The health dept. is in the big one (no one there). The sheriff's dept. is in the middle one (no one there). The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War is in the small one (no one there).

Next spot of interest on the map - the "Museum of Drainage Tile" (now really, how could you NOT want to go there?!). Inquiries were to be made at the Rose Hill Mansion (photo). Unfortunately, the Drain Tile museum's furnace had "backfired" over the winter and covered everything in oily grime so the tile were still out being cleaned (we were encouraged to come back in the fall). We took a tour of the mansion instead - not a bad second choice.

As luck would have it there was another winery serving lunch across the street. We enjoyed a pleasant meal on the deck but when the temperature reached into the 90's we decided to head towards home. Roll up the windows in Rambo, turn on the air and start out. I said "turn on the air", okay "please turn on the air"... Rambo refuses to cooperate - no air, no fan (this vehicle does NOT have Tillie's charm so when the air refuses to work I am more than happy to take it to the junk yard!) But no... we sweat our way home. Rambo's outdoor thermometer (never reliable) fluctuates between 95.0 and 108.4 - I believe the latter! Maybe next trip it will be Tillie's turn.

Oswego....

Even if you don't live in New York State, chances are you hear of Oswego at least once a winter. That's the place that measures lake effect snowfall in feet rather than inches. When we left to journey south in February, Oswego's snowfall for the week (that's 7 days) was already over 8 feet. From that particular storm they ended up with 11-15 feet depending on where you live (and who you talk to). LATE spring is a MUCH better time to visit!

One of the most interesting and perhaps least known tidbit about Oswego is that it is the only place in the US that took refugees during WWII. Roosevelt was VERY reluctant to admit refugees but in 1944 (perhaps due to Eleanor's influence), 982 refugees from 18 countries, most Jewish, boarded a US ship in Italy and came to New York. Fort Ontario in Oswego was chosen for the camp because the barracks were habitable (barely). The refugees lived for two winters (18 months) in these barracks - no insulation, frame structures, tar paper roofs, long two story buildings with only a pot belly stove at either end for heat (coming from warm Naples...). The common language was Italian, but local teachers taught them English and the kids went to Oswego public schools. When the war ended no one knew what to do with them. Roosevelt had died, they had no visas and they had all signed documents saying they would return to Europe except they had nothing to go back to. Congress finally decided to put them on buses, take them to the American consulate on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, get their visas stamped, bring them back to the US and put them on a bus to wherever they wanted to go. Some had relatives in this country. A good many chose California. Only one family elected to stay in Oswego (I wonder if the snow played a part in their decisions...) Anyway the museum in the former office for the camp and is well worth a special trip (just try to make it in and out before the snow starts falling!)

Our next stop - Mexico (still in Oswego County). If you're a baked bean fan, you might recognize Mexico NY as being the home of Grandma Brown's baked beans. Unfortunately they no longer give factory tours but I was able to snap this photo of Grandma (her photo is on the label) and, the rarely seen, Grandpa Brown (note he did NOT need to wear a hairnet).

Also in Mexico is what the sign describes as "Upstate New York's Liberty Bell". It's in the public school and not a bell at all but "La Guerre d'Independence" - a multi-colored woodblock series of murals depicting America's War of Independence. It was made in France and only two exist -the other is in the White House. (You might be interested to note that when we asked the high schools kids "loitering" at the front door where the mural was described on the sign to their left, they had no idea. It turned out to be about 20 feet behind them on the second floor just opposite the library. They were able, however, to tell us where the baked bean factory was. You can draw your own conclusions...)

Our last stop in Oswego County - a little walk in the woods to Salmon Falls. This falls was the "end" for Atlantic salmon that came up river to spawn. It's 110 feet straight up and even a salmon can't jump that high. It was an important fishing ground for the Iroquois Indians who caught and smoked the salmon. (Dams of course now prevent the salmon from spawning here. Instead there's a salmon hatchery down the road...) Although we didn't see any, the brochure says bald eagles winter here (are they nuts?!!! perhaps this is the reason they are/were endangered!) Can you see the rainbow in the middle of the falls?