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.
