Musings

Another Quilt for the Show

2012-01-29T08:56:00.001-05:00

Miami Beach, Everglades, Etc.

2012-01-15T20:27:00.004-05:00

On Friday we all went to Shark Valley and as usual enjoyed the large selection of birds. While I tried not to take too many photos of things I'd taken plenty of pictures of in the past, sometimes one cannot resist. Here is a snowy egretand a great blue heron.Yesterday we went to the main section of the Everglades and walked on the Anhinga Trail and saw lots more birds and alligators. Today we went to the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens. We saw this turtle in the water near the parking lot.The garden has lots of beautiful tropic foliageinterspersed with various neat sculptures.We fly home tomorrow.

In Orlando

2012-01-12T20:08:00.004-05:00

We, plus our younger daughter, flew to Orlando yesterday and spent the evening at Epcot.Today we headed for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal's Islands of Adventure. This is the entrance to Hogsmeade,and the Hogsmeade skyline.We drank butter beer and pumpkin juice and bought a chocolate frog and every-flavour beans. Needless to say, much of the attraction has to do with shopping. We toured the castle, but bailed before the ride at the end. And W rode the Dragon Challenge roller coaster. It was neat, but definitely not worth a trip by itself. We had to walk through the Dr Seuss portion of the park to get to Harry Potter and stopped there afterwards to ride the Caro-Seuss-el and see the Lorax. Later in the day we drove to Miami Beach to meet up with the rest of the family.

First Quilt of the Year

2012-01-04T15:54:00.003-05:00

I love paper piecing.

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T09:04:00.004-05:00

What great friends and neighbors we have. We managed to get 20 people in here for the appetizer portion of the neighborhood progressive dinner. W's penquin appetizers were a hit.Then after more courses and more visiting we headed for the get-together with our paddling friends in Saranac Lake for more good food and company. We left too late to get to any of the First Night activities but one of these years I'll get there. We did go out and see the fireworks at midnight and they were especially neat. The warm temperatures - it was in the mid 30's all evening - combined with the little amount of snow that is still left resulted in a lot of fog. It made the drive a bit of a challenge but it made for some great effects with the fireworks. The higher ones disappeared up into the fog then floated down out of it. And many lit the whole sky, reflecting off the fog. A great way to start the new year.

We're headed back to New Jersey tomorrow.

At Camp

2011-12-29T20:38:00.002-05:00

We drove to camp today in order to be here for the usual New Year's festivities. The drive was uneventful, but cold. The temp here when we arrived was 16 degrees and going down. There are a few inches of snow on the ground, but not enough to be plowed.

Tallis Scholars

2011-12-13T08:22:00.000-05:00

We saw the Tallis Scholars in Princeton last evening. Wow.

King-sized Quilt

2011-11-29T09:14:00.004-05:00

I finished piecing the king-sized quilt for our bed in NJ. Of course, this is just the top. It still needs to be quilted, but I'm hiring someone to do it with her long-arm. So it may be a while before it is complete.

Hawk Mountain

2011-11-05T21:49:00.002-04:00

We all went to Hawk Mountain today.We didn't see many birds but it was a nice get-together.

At Camp

2011-10-29T13:16:00.002-04:00

We drove to camp last Thursday and are driving back to NJ on Tuesday. We're looking forward to the Halloween progressive dinner Monday evening. Also looking forward to missing New Jersey's first snowfall happening there today. We are supposed to get a dusting here at most. Definitely good planning on our part.

Back in NJ

2011-10-17T20:39:00.002-04:00

We're back home after good visits with relatives. We spent last night in a very nice airport motel in Portland and had a great dinner at Salty's on the Columbia River. I'm posting this so we remember it for next time.

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 6

2011-10-10T20:33:00.000-04:00

We returned the boats this morning then drove to Moab, Utah. Again, the drive was spectacular, but we did not spend the time to take pictures. After a night in Moab we will drive to Grand Junction, fly to Denver to visit my sister, fly to Oregon to visit my parents, then home to NJ.

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 5

2011-10-09T20:31:00.002-04:00

Today we decided we should gas up the runabout and see what the Dangling Rope Marina store had to offer.Then we went to Rainbow Bridgebefore returning to the houseboat and beautiful sunset colors on the rocks.

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 4

2011-10-08T20:26:00.004-04:00

Another gorgeous day, including sunrise on the rocks above us. This morning we walked around above where the boat is moored.This afternoon we went out in the runabout again to explore Face Canyon and Last Chance Bay.

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 3 PM

2011-10-07T00:32:00.003-04:00

After lunch we took the runabout and went up the canyon to explore. We went as far as we could, then climbed out of the boat and went for a walk

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 3 AM

2011-10-07T00:22:00.006-04:00

Good weather, finally. After breakfast (and a neat shadow of the boat on the rock wall we were moored beside) we left for West Canyon to find a mooring spot for the next few days. We couldn’t find a spot with enough sand to use the anchors, so W improvised. Here is some of the surrounding scenery.

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 2

2011-10-06T00:14:00.003-04:00

This morning the first thing we did was to move the boats across the cove to a better anchorage. Here is some of the surrounding scenery. It was still very windy but in the afternoon we took the runabout across the cove and went for a walk. Thankfully, the weather is supposed to improve over the next few days.

A Houseboating Adventure - Day 1

2011-10-05T00:11:00.004-04:00

We left Grand Canyon this morning and drove to Page, AZ to pick up our houseboat and runabout, preparing for several days exploring Lake Powell. The scenery along the way was spectacular, but we didn’t have time for many photos. This is the Colorado River where we crossed it at Marble Canyon.By the time we did a lengthy grocery shopping and got underway, it was too late to get very far up the lake. It was also VERY windy. We tied up the best we could in the first cove we came to, along with 4 other houseboats. The wind tossed us around all night, so we didn’t get much sleep.

Grand Canyon - Day 3

2011-10-04T23:57:00.003-04:00

Here is a view of our 2-room cabin on the rim.Today we walked part of the Widforss trail along the Transept side canyon. It is a nicely forested trail that leads to great views of the canyon We saw the largest ponderosa pine on the north rim. We also saw a pair of blue grouse.

Grand Canyon - Day 2

2011-10-03T23:51:00.003-04:00

We drove toward Cape Royal and Point Imperial, stopping at various viewpoints. This is the only glimpse of the Colorado River you get from this side of the canyon.We started down the Ken Patrick trail along the rim from Point Imperial, but impending rain made us turn around.

Grand Canyon - Day 1

2011-10-02T23:45:00.002-04:00

This morning we packed up and drove from Bryce to the north rim of the Grand Canyon. We hiked the Bright Angel trail behind the lodge. But the light was not good for photos, except of the lodge on the rim. Later we went back to the rim to wait for the sunset.

Bryce Canyon Day 2

2011-10-01T19:04:00.005-04:00

This morning we hiked a portion of the Fairyland Trail, which is in the northern part of the park. We only hiked down about 550 feet and walked a total of 3.5 miles. Coming back up is enough of an effort; we didn’t want to overdo it. Then this afternoon we drove the length of the road, stopping at the various viewpoints.

Bryce Canyon Day 1

2011-09-30T17:20:00.005-04:00

This morning we hiked a 3.5 mile loop into the amphitheater and back. We climbed down the Wall Street section of the Navajo Loop from Sunset Point and back up on the Queen’s Garden trail to Sunrise Point and back to our cabin. We’d never been on that section of the Navajo trail before, probably because it is frequently closed due to rock slides. The descent is on this great set of switchbacks,through a narrow section, and out down these stairs.I had promised myself I wouldn’t take many photos in Bryce since I have so many from our previous trip, but I couldn’t resist. It is so photogenic.

Headed for Bryce

2011-09-29T17:13:00.004-04:00

Today we left the wonderful Slot Canyons Inn and headed for Bryce Canyon National Park. Along the way we stopped at Kodachrome Basin State Park, 7 miles south of Route 12. While it had some nice formations and great views, it wasn’t that different from other things we had seen.There were some nice-sounding hiking trails, but we overdid it hiking in the heat yesterday and just walked a bit on one trail. Then we drove to Mossy Cave, a turn-off just 4 miles east of Bryce and actually a part of the park. In 1890 Mormon pioneers began digging a 10-mile canal to divert water into this drainage, known as Water Canyon. The area has formations similar to the rest of Bryce Upon arriving in Bryce we checked into our wonderful cabin on the rim.

Calf Creek

2011-09-28T19:29:00.005-04:00

Today we hiked along Calf Creek (called that because ranchers used to bring newly weaned calves here where there was a source of water and walls on either side of the creek that guaranteed they couldn't wander) to the lower falls, a round-trip hike of about 5 miles. The scenery along the way was beautiful.

This pictograph was high on one of the cliffs overlooking the creek.

The falls was spectacular and the water was nice for soaking the feet and cooling off.

The drive was very scenic too.

This is a view of the Escalante River valley from Kiva Koffee House where we stopped for a late lunch after the hike.

And this is a typical view of the Escalante National Monument scenery with Route 12 winding through it.

Devil's Garden

2011-09-27T19:19:00.004-04:00

Today we explored Devil's Garden, another neat spot off Hole-in-the-Wall Road. We love the fantastic shapes

and the endless washes to explore.

Pictograph

2011-09-27T19:15:00.003-04:00

This is one of the pictographs above Slot Canyons Inn. There is a dig that takes place near this spot every summer.

Escalante Slots

2011-09-26T19:19:00.005-04:00

We spent most of today down Hole-in-the-Rock Road. We turned off onto a very rutted road (thank goodness for 4-wheel drive rental cars) to Dry Fork and some slot canyons. These are some views as we headed down the path to the bottom where the slots begin. We first investigated Peek-a-boo slot, but as we had feared, we couldn't get in. Here is W at the bottom of the 12 foot wall that must be climbed to get into the slot. W got up part way but there is no way I could have, so we gave up and headed for Spooky slot. As advertised, it was very tight in places. Knowing we had to go back the way we came, we stopped at the point where we would have had to climb up, and headed back out instead. We climbed up above the slot to explore and then walked to Dry Fork.It does not qualify as a slot, we are told (not narrow enough I guess), but it was very neat. We were too tired at this point to explore very far, but it goes on for miles.

Sunrise

2011-09-26T17:16:00.002-04:00

This is the view from our balcony this morning. The stars are beautiful from there too.

Around Slot Canyons Inn

2011-09-25T17:31:00.005-04:00

After two long days, and another one planned for tomorrow, we decided to take it easy today. For exercise we hiked around behind Slot Canyons Inn rather than getting in the car again. Walking through terrain like this, we were headed for the top of this plateau. Here are some scenes along the way, including some beautiful fruiting prickly pear cactus. We scrambled through here and after another scramble we ended up on top. Here is a view of the inn from the cliff.

Drive to Escalante

2011-09-24T21:58:00.003-04:00

The drive to Escalante was amazing. We drove through Capitol Reef National Parkthen through other fantastic scenery, arriving at Slot Canyons Inn in time for dinner. If I'd stopped to take photos along the way, we would never have made it.

More Goblin Valley

2011-09-24T21:40:00.006-04:00

After lunch in a nice picnic shelter overlooking the valley, we hiked off another direction down to the desert floor with great views. Then back out via a dry stream bed.

Goblin Valley

2011-09-24T20:28:00.008-04:00

What a great day. We drove about an hour out of Green River and stopped at Goblin Valley State Park where we spent several hours.This photo shows the only "civilization" anywhere around; that being the parking lot you can just barely see in the background. We had a great time climbing around the neat rock formations. We especially like this "goblin".

Instant Breakfast!

2011-09-24T11:02:00.004-04:00

We're not sure whether this is a copy machine or a 3-D printer.But you push the button and a minute later a pancake pops out. Sad to say, this was the best part of the free breakfast at the Holiday Inn Express in Green River, UT. Sure glad we will be at a B&B with yummy breakfasts the next few days.

Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas any more

2011-09-23T21:36:00.003-04:00

Or New Jersey, or New York.At the moment we are in Green River, Utah, on our first day of our western vacation. This was the view from a rest stop between Grand Junction, CO and Green River.

In New Jersey

2011-09-16T21:57:00.001-04:00

We drove back to NJ today. Went shopping and to a movie when I got back. Definitely not in the North Country any more.

Irene, Google, and Duck Hole

2011-09-12T19:05:00.003-04:00

Friends hiked into what is left of Duck Hole recently, to see what is left after the devastation caused by hurricane Irene, which resulted in the breaching of the dam. What had been a pretty pond, as seen on this satellite view compliments of Google maps,is now a pretty stream winding its way through what had been the lake bed. I've wondered how often Google, or whoever provides their satellite views, overflies an area. Especially an area like the Adirondacks where little supposedly changes from year to year. It will be interesting to see if and when the new view of Duck Hole shows up on the maps. Stay tuned.

Paddling Summary 2011

2011-09-12T19:00:00.002-04:00

Today was our last paddle of the season, since we leave for NJ on Friday. Here is a summary of the 26 paddles we did this year.
Hoel Pond
Stony Creek Ponds and Ampersand Brook
Weller Pond
Upper Osgood River
Little Tupper Lake
Floodwood/Rollins Loop
North Branch Moose River
Indian Lake
Round Lake
Six Carries
Oswegatchie River
Lower Saranac Lake from Ampersand Bay
Middle Branch St Regis River
Rainbow Lake
Quebec Brook
Taylor Pond
Kunjamuk River
Long Lake
Schroon River
Kushaqua Lake
Ampersand Bay to Lake Flower
Tupper Lake to Bridge Brook Pond
Bog River
South Creek to Second Pond - twice
Raquette Lake to Forked Lake

Paddling Raquette Lake to Forked Lake

2011-09-12T18:55:00.002-04:00

Today the group put in at the town of Raquette Lake and paddled up the lake to the carry into Forked Lake and then paddled to the campground at the east end of Forked Lake, for a total of about 10 miles paddling and 1/2 mile portage.This completes another section in our quest to paddle the navigable portions of the Raquette River.

Paddling from South Creek to Second Pond

2011-09-10T21:53:00.002-04:00

Today we took Carol and Larry on one of our favorite paddles. They had not realized there were locks nearby and were excited to go through one. It was a beautiful Saturday but since it is after Labor Day we figured there wouldn't be too much traffic. There were a few motor boats, but not enough to spoil the trip. We even got a parking spot at South Creek. We of course had to climb up to the bluff on Bluff Island for lunch and they really enjoyed that too. While I was waiting at Second Pond for W to return with the car, I took this photo looking south from the bridge.

Paddling the Bog River

2011-09-09T21:48:00.002-04:00

It was another beautiful day so the two of us put our boats in at Lows Lower Dam and paddled to Hitchins Pond. A lot of other folks had the same idea and there were lots of cars at the put in. We also met many boats on the water. If we go to Lows Lake to camp next year, we'll have to wait a bit later in the season. We initially thought of heading at least partway to Lows Lake, but now that we are paddling tomorrow as well (see the next post), we decided not to go further. We did explore all around Hitchins Pond which we had never done before, for a total paddle of about 8 miles. While we were on shore having our lunch we saw this neat cloud formation over the trees.

Paddling Tupper Lake and Bridge Brook Pond

2011-08-31T20:13:00.003-04:00

Today just the two of us paddled on Tupper Lake and into Bridge Brook Pond, where we'd never paddled before.We put in at Rock Island Bay (at the lower right on the map) and paddled across the lake to Bridge Brook. Then we portaged our boats into Bridge Brook Pond. This satellite view from google shows how full of vegetation the upper portion of the pond is. So we could not get as far as we had hoped. But it was still a neat explore. The entire trip was about 8.5 miles.

There were lots of frogs around the pond, including this one that was so big and so still he could have been made of bronze.And I got a good view of a large beaver who slapped his tail and dove when I got near. There were lots of water plants around the edges with these neat fruits, but I don't know what they are.

Hurricane Irene

2011-08-29T07:59:00.004-04:00

According to a neighbor who checked on it for us, our condo came through the hurricane unscathed. The flooding was not as bad as predicted and there didn't seem to be any leaks. Here in the north country we had lots of rain and wind, but it could have been a lot worse. We haven't been out yet to see if we lost any trees, but since nothing fell on the house, I'm happy.

Paddling from Ampersand Bay to Lake Flower

2011-08-26T22:34:00.002-04:00

Twelve of us put in at Ampersand Bay on the east end of Lower Saranac Lake and paddled about 11 miles through First and Second Ponds, through the lower locks on the Saranac River, through Oseetah Lake, and into Lake Flower where we took out at the boat dock. It was a beautiful day.

Paddling Kushaqua Lake

2011-08-23T16:35:00.004-04:00

10 of us paddled about 7 miles on Kushaqua, not an easy thing to do given its relatively small size. But we did some back and forth looking for a good place for lunch. Another beautiful day, though it is finally getting a bit cool. I actually wore a jacket for much of the paddle.

Paddling the Schroon River

2011-08-18T19:12:00.003-04:00

We checked off another river on the Paddler's Pursuit today. We went with Al and Jini and planned to paddle the portion of the Schroon River north of Schroon Lake. But lots of signs at that put-in on Rt 74 just east of the northway made it sound as though you could only put in if you were fishing and the tone of the signs made us reluctant to leave a car there. So instead of doing a one-way trip, we drove to the south end of the lake and put in at a state boat launch there. We paddled about 3.5 miles downstream then turned around and paddled back. There were camps along much of the route and the noise from the highway made the trip less pleasant than it might have been. Quite sure we won't be going back.

Paddling Long Lake

2011-08-17T21:01:00.002-04:00

We led a paddle of the southern portion of Long Lake today. We paddled about 9 miles from the put-in at the northern end of the carry around Buttermilk Falls up to have lunch on the beach by the bridge, and then back again. After the paddle we drove down the road a bit and walked in to Buttermilk Falls.We hadn't been there in years. There are even nice picnic tables nestled down in the rocks. We definitely need to go back.

Quilt

2011-08-15T11:36:00.002-04:00

Just finished this quilt for the guest room here at camp. Now I have to make curtains to go with it.

Walking 'n Biking

2011-08-10T17:23:00.001-04:00

We did so much driving Monday we stayed home yesterday and just walked the 3-mile loop on the road. This morning we walked to the dam and back. This afternoon when the forecasted rain did not materialize we drove the bikes to Fish Creek and did 2 loops, for a total of about 9 miles.

Paddling the Kunjamuk

2011-08-08T21:36:00.004-04:00

Six of us had a nice paddle on the Kunjamuk River today. We launched off Route 30 at the "x" on the map at a put-in just past the parking area with picnic tables.We paddled across the bay and up the river to Elm Lake and back again for a total of about 8 miles. There were many beaver dams and W did a great job helping everyone and their boats over them on the way upstream. Then we got some good rides going over the dams on the way back. There were lots of things in bloom including pickerel weed,the neat buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis in the Rubiaceae), and lots and lots of cardinal flowers.

Trombley Landing

2011-08-07T16:30:00.003-04:00

Had a nice walk to Trombley Landing this morning.

Paddling Taylor Pond

2011-08-05T18:32:00.005-04:00

We paddled a new body of water today - Taylor Pond. It is on the Paddle Pursuit, which we're still sort of trying to complete. So it seemed like a good choice for yet another gorgeous, calm day. Though the pond seems small, we managed to paddle nearly 9 miles, so that was plenty. This view is courtesy of Google Earth and gives some idea of the surrounding mountains. Taylor Pond would be a great place to go at the height of fall colors. And if we take a group in, we'll have to remember that those of us 62 and over don't have to pay the day-use fee.

Hiking 'n Biking

2011-08-04T18:27:00.002-04:00

With the beautiful weather we have been having, we exercise outdoors most days. But I frequently don't blog about it; then we forget what we've done. So this is just a note to say that yesterday we hiked/walked about 4 miles along Bloomingdale Bog, going in from the southern end. We had hoped to find lots of blueberries, but didn't see many. Then today we drove the bikes to Fish Creek and did a couple of loops, adding up to about 12 miles. We had been biking around town but decided to brave the camping crowds today. And it wasn't bad. There really wasn't much traffic, so we'll probably do that again soon. The trick seems to be to go early afternoon when everyone is already wherever they intend to spend that part of the day. A little later, the new campers are coming in so the traffic picks up.

Paddling Quebec Brook

2011-08-02T16:58:00.005-04:00

We led a 14-person paddle on Quebec Brook today.We drove in about 6 miles from Route 458 on a rough but passable road. Then we drove down a very narrow road used by the hunting camps all the way to the shore, marked by an "x" on the map, and put in there.We paddled up Quebec Brook to the end of the western branch and back again for a total of about 7.5 miles. I had hoped to explore Madawaska Pond as well, but the winds were very strong as we were coming back, so we were all very tired by the time we got back to the cars. Next time I'd like to park in the parking area on the road and carry the boats the mile to the put-in by the dam, marked with an "O" on the map. Then paddle around the pond and get out where we did today, carrying back up to the car. That should be doable with the light-weight boats and includes nice walks along with the paddle.

Paddling Rainbow Lake

2011-07-28T18:13:00.006-04:00

Nine of us had a nice paddle on Rainbow Lake today. We had never been there because of the motor boats, but we only saw a couple so we will definitely go back. The red line marks the route we took, for a total of about 8.5 miles, starting at the bridge on the northeast end of the lake.We'd like to explore the Flow off to the northwest next time.

A Quiet Day - Sort Of

2011-07-25T10:07:00.002-04:00

I was wakened too early this morning by a young hairy woodpecker that clearly needs more training. It was banging on the metal around a window and making a horrendous racket. Fortunately, it doesn't seem to have done any damage. Then not long after I woke, the guys showed up to redo our driveway. We had a brief discussion about whether we should take the car out to the road so we could get out, but then it started raining. So we are staying home for a "quiet" day.

Paddling the Middle Branch of the St Regis River

2011-07-24T22:44:00.007-04:00

The weather has cooled, with it forecast to get only into the mid-70's today, so we decided to go paddling even though it is a summer weekend. We just had to choose someplace relatively far away and isolated, and we succeeded. We had the beautiful river to ourselves, as we did 3 years ago when we paddled it..There were lots of cardinal flowers in bloom. And this time we found a nice place for lunch. It is a former house site on a rise above the river before it really starts meandering. We marked it on the GPS for future reference. This was our view as we ate lunch. The water was higher than last time so we got farther up the rapids. We think we found the take out for the portage, but it was very grown over so we headed back downstream and found a spot along the shore to get out and stretch.
Our wildlife sitings included a bald eagle, several great blue herons (or one seen several times), a couple of otters, and a flock of kingfishers.

Then this evening we drove to Lake Placid for the Sinfonietta concert. A very good day.

Hot!!!

2011-07-21T19:53:00.002-04:00

We drove to Plattsburgh today to see the final Harry Potter movie. Just had to see it in 3D on a big screen with big sound. Today seemed a good time to do it since we could be in air conditioning in the car and in the theater - as well as in stores because of course we also did some shopping. It was 94 degrees in mid-afternoon in Plattsburgh. And still 84 degrees when we arrived home at 7 PM. Fortunately, it is due to cool off by Sunday. Sure glad we aren't further south.

Paddling Lower Saranac Lake

2011-07-19T21:50:00.002-04:00

We did a leisurely paddle around the Ampersand Bay end of Lower Saranac Lake today - out around Eagle Island and back. W even went swimming. Then we all went to John and Susan's for a yummy potluck dinner and birthday cake for John. Good times with good friends.

Loon Census

2011-07-16T15:12:00.002-04:00

We did the annual loon census on our lake this morning. We have 2 adults and a chick. I didn't want to get close enough to get a good photo, but here is a silhouette view of the chick riding the back of one of the adults.

I Did It....

2011-07-15T17:07:00.002-04:00

Biked 16 miles, that is, on hills no less. And that is something from a resident of the coastal plain. I'd never biked that far, ever, and certainly not on hills. We parked at the little park in Gabriels, at the intersection of Route 86 and the Gabriels-Onchiota Road. Then we biked south on Route 86 for a little over a mile, then turned onto the road to Bloomingdale. Going that direction was definitely the way to do it, since we got a nice ride down a very long hill that I wouldn't want to try to bike up. Then in Bloomingdale we turned up Oregon Plains Road and rode its length to the Gabriels-Onchiota Road as we did last month. The final leg took us back to our starting point. The weather was great and there was little traffic, but I'm not sure I can say I enjoyed it. It was certainly great exercise and I'm sure I'll get better at it if I get my legs (and my butt) in better shape. It had been a couple of weeks since I'd been on the bike. We'll have to be sure we get out at least once a week if we want to do more long trips.

Paddling the Oswegatchie

2011-07-11T17:41:00.002-04:00

We hosted today's paddle on the Oswegatchie. We put in at Inlet, past Wanakena, and paddled to High Rock for lunch then returned, for a total of about 7 miles. The water was significantly lower than a couple weeks ago when we checked it out so paddling upstream was not too difficult. We saw our first cardinel flowers of the summer, and lots of other things were in bloom. After the paddle, the group came to our place for snacks and brownie sundaes. Another great day.

Paddling the Six Carries Route

2011-07-07T20:04:00.000-04:00

Lots of socializing this week. AA&J left Tuesday; yesterday we drove up to the St Lawrence to visit at Jean's camp; today we paddled the 6 carries route in the St Regis Canoe area with some of the usual group. This was the first time we had done the 6 carries route with our light-weight boats. What a difference. I actually viewed the carries as a chance to walk in the woods, though the mosquitos were annoying. These maps show the route, from the bottom of the second one to the top of this one, from Little Clear to the take-out at Paul Smith's College on Lower St Regis Lake.I didn't take a map along so I quickly lost track of the names of the lakes, but on one of them there were lots of large sundew in bloom, though I didn't get a photo of the tiny flowers.There were also lots of rose pagonia orchids.

Mt. Arab

2011-07-03T19:53:00.002-04:00

We all climbed Mt Arab today.It was easier than I remembered, though the weather was very hot and humid, for here anyway.

Wild Center

2011-07-02T19:51:00.001-04:00

AA&J arrived Thursday evening and today we went to the Wild Center, where we saw the cute porcupine named Stickley.

Speaking of Books

2011-06-28T07:50:00.002-04:00

I keep meaning to list some of my other favorite books. These are culled from a list of 181 books that I have read in the past 5 years - kept in a spreadsheet on my computer of course. Within each section they are listed in the order I read them.
Fiction:
Hosseini, Khaled - The Kite Runner
Hosseini, Khaled - A Thousand Spendid Suns
Cross, Donna Woolfolk - Pope Joan
Gimenez, Mark - The Color of Law
Adiga, Aravind - The White Tiger
Grisham, John - The Appeal
Haddam, Jane - Hardscrabble Road
Adamson, Gil - The Outlander
Schwartz, John Burnham - The Commoner
Larsson, Stieg - all 3 Millenium books
Gruen, Sara - Water for Elephants
Morton, Kate - The Forgotten Garden
Quindlen, Anna - Every Last One
Stockett, Kathryn - The Help
De Rosnay, Tatiana - Sarah's Key
Ford, Jamie - Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Non-Fiction:
Kingsolver, Barbara - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
Mortenson, Greg & Relin, David Oliver - Three Cups of Tea
Schneider, Paul - Brutal Journey
Johnson, Steven - The Ghost Map
Ulrich, Laurel Thatcher - The Life of Martha Ballard
Roberts, Cokie - Founding Mothers
Winchester, Simon - Krakatoa
Royte, Elizabeth - The Tapir's Morning Bath
Goodwin, Doris Kearns - Team of Rivals
Chang, Leslie T - Factory Girls
Forsyth, Adrian; Miyata, Ken - Tropical Nature
Boorstin, Daniel - The Americans: The Colonial Experience
Hackett Fischer, David - Albion's Seed
Pepperberg, Irene - Alex & Me
Horwitz, Tony - A Voyage Long and Strange
Meacham, Jon - American Lion
Conant, Jennet - Tuxedo Park
Conant, Jennet - 109 East Palace
Hessler, Peter - Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory
Johnson, Steven - The Invention of Air
Standage, Tom - A History of the World in Six Glasses
Phillips. Jonathan - Holy Warriors: A Modern History of the Crusades
Bryson, Bill - At Home: A Short History of Private Life
Kimball, Kristin - Dirty Life
Campbell, David G - A Land of Ghosts: The Braided Lives of People and the Forest in Far Western Amazonia
Mukherjee, Siddhartha - The Emperor of All Maladies - A Biography of Cancer

Wonderful, Amazing Book

2011-06-28T07:41:00.002-04:00

I just finished reading "The Emperor of all Maladies: A Biography of Cancer" by Siddhartha Mukherjee, by far one of the very best books I have ever read. He is an amazing writer. I've always enjoyed reading about medical history and have a background in biology but I think anyone would enjoy it, especially if they have any personal experience with cancer which I imagine everyone does these days.

Paddling Round Lake

2011-06-27T20:12:00.002-04:00

Yet another beautiful, still day. And another group paddle, this time on Round Lake.

Paddling Indian Lake

2011-06-20T19:10:00.005-04:00

Another beautiful day. The usual group paddled an 11 mile loop on Indian Lake. The water was beautifully still. We even paddled by a waterfall that comes in on the west side.

Foxglove

2011-06-18T18:58:00.004-04:00

My foxgloves are beautiful again this year. The weather has been perfect and all the plants are showing their appreciation. After all that rain the sun has been shining for days.

Paddling South Creek to Second Pond

2011-06-17T16:10:00.002-04:00

We had a nice one-way paddle today from South Creek to Second Pond. We lunched on Bluff Island as usual.

Biking to Hitchins Pond

2011-06-16T20:56:00.004-04:00

Today we and Jim and Cindy drove to Horseshoe Lake, turned left at the end of the road and continued to the gate. Then we unloaded the bikes, amid swarms of mosquitoes and deer flies, and rode the ~3 miles to Low's Upper Dam (shown in red on the map).The bog along the way was full of pitcher plants in bloom. We walked down to Hitchins Pond,which we had to ourselves, then rode back the way we came. The ride was nice (if you ignored the deer flies) but a little difficult with our hybrid bikes. I got bogged down in the sand a couple of times and it was quite bumpy in places. But still a nice excursion.

Flightseeing

2011-06-15T21:52:00.000-04:00

We had a wonderful flight today in Jim's plane. We got a very different perspective on lots of the places we've paddled and had great views of the high peaks.

Paddling the North Branch of the Moose River

2011-06-13T21:24:00.005-04:00

We had a great paddle today. Twelve of us put in the North Branch of the Moose River at the upper right corner of this map, which only shows a portion of the river,and paddled down the meandering river to Mountainman Outfitters in Old Forge for a total of about 12 miles. We encountered one downed tree we had to carry around and there is a 1/4 mile carry around some rapids towards the end of the trip. We had lunch at the North Street bridge over the river, conveniently placed about half way down. The water was high and the current brisk, which made for an easy paddle. If we want to paddle the Middle Branch of the river sometime (needed for the Paddle Pursuit) we would put in at Mountainman and continue downstream for about 4 miles to a dam, then turn around and paddle back. We'd want to do that after the water recedes a bit more. Right now I wouldn't want to paddle against that current.

After our paddle some of us joined Marilyn for dinner at the Old Mill restaurant to help celebrate her birthday.

Floodwood/Rollins Paddle

2011-06-10T20:31:00.003-04:00

Eight of us paddled the Floodwood-Rollins loop today. The weather was perfect - about 70 degrees and light winds. The bugs weren't too bad. Not too many black flies, but plenty of mosquitos on the Copperas to Whey portage. But they didn't bother us when we were out on the water.

When we got home, we tackled the downed tree by the road. We cut some up but have lots more to do.

Storm Damage

2011-06-09T20:26:00.003-04:00

We had really violent winds yesterday, followed by lots of rain. We lost a couple big trees. This one went over roots and all.Thank goodness it didn't fall on the house. There is another big one up by the road that broke. Guess we have some more firewood to chop.

Lake Placid Stroll

2011-06-06T18:58:00.002-04:00

Today was another nice day and we wanted to be outside but not in the bugs. And we needed to do some grocery shopping. So we drove to Lake Placid and did the 3 mile walk around Mirror Lake. It rained on us a bit, but we sheltered under some trees until it passed. We wandered into some shops and then drove to Price Chopper and did our food shopping.

Paddling Little Tupper Lake

2011-06-04T20:06:00.006-04:00

Today's wind forecast was "light and variable" and it was supposed to be partly sunny with temps around 70 degrees. Perfect weather for paddling Little Tupper Lake. It isn't often that you see Little Tupper this calm.And this time we were determined to get into Rock Pond. We were able to get past what is normally a huge beaver dam, because the water was somewhat high and the beavers haven't had a chance to rebuild it yet this year. So we made it to the portage around some rapids. The short walk was lined with beautiful lady slipper orchids and lots of bunchberry (Cornus canadensis). We didn't go as far into Rock Pond as we would have liked because we had a long paddle back and were taking very few breaks due to the bugs - more on that later. Here is the view going back into Little Tupper from Rock Pond. About those bugs - what we didn't take into account was that light winds meant the bugs wouldn't be blown away, and the black flies were awful. I wore a headnet much of the time and I don't like it because it restricts my vision too much. To keep away from most of the bugs we had to paddle in the middle of the lake instead of exploring the shoreline and didn't see any point in going to the island on Rock Pond because we didn't want to get out and be bug bait. We were pretty tired by the time we got back from the 13.5 mile paddle. It would have been better if we had been able to stop and rest more. Definitely a tradeoff - more bugs but fewer beaver dams. I think we'll choose to deal with the beaver dams next time we go. Plus, the pickerel weed is not nearly ready to bloom yet, and the brook to Rock Pond is beautiful when they are flowering.

Another Beautiful Day

2011-06-01T14:44:00.002-04:00

It is another nice day, but too windy for boating. So we have added another activity to our busy schedule - biking. We brought our bikes to camp this season and today was just my second ride. We drove to Bloomingdale and parked at the southern end of Oregon Plains Road just north of the crossroads. Then we rode the 5 miles to the end and back again. It was fairly hilly so it was plenty of exercise.We enjoyed it so much we talked about doing the whole loop sometime from Gabriels, to Bloomingdale, up Oregon Plains Road to the Gabriels-Onchiota Road, and back to Gabriels, for a total of about 16 miles. But we need to get a bit better in shape first.

Then this evening we and Jim and Cindy went to Hemlock Hall for their chicken and biscuits dinner. Yum. And it was just the 4 of us in the whole place, which was kind of strange, but nice and quiet and we had a good time.

Beautiful Weather

2011-05-31T17:55:00.003-04:00

Today was actually a bit too hot - well over 80 degrees. But we certainly aren't complaining because we love the sun. It is actually supposed to be nice all week. All the water followed by the sunshine seems to accelerated everything. The black flies are bad. But the flowers are out. We counted about 10 lady-slipper orchids on the property today, and that was just around the house.I'm trying to stay away from the bugs today, so I didn't venture farther.

Happy Memorial Day

2011-05-30T20:51:00.002-04:00

We celebrated the holiday (though all days feel like holidays to us) by paddling with the group on the Upper Osgood River, putting in on Church Pond off Route 86. The water was somewhat high but getting under the trees and bridge in the canal was not a problem. Some of us had lunch on a rise just to the right of the falls that mark the end of the navigable section.

After the paddle we went to Marilyn and Peter's for a nice picnic. It was a long but very enjoyable day.

Paddling to Weller Pond

2011-05-25T21:35:00.000-04:00

What a beautiful day. We, and our neighbors J & C, put our boats in at the still very high South Creek and paddled across Middle Saranac Lake into Little Weller Pond and Weller Pond. We had lunch at one of the campsites on Tick Island and were surprised at how few bugs there were. We discovered a 1.5 mile trail (actually a canoe carry, but I think I would just hike it) at the very end of Weller Pond that goes to Saginaw Bay on Upper Saranac Lake. I definitely want to hike it at some point. It would be a nice interlude in the middle of the paddle.
Then this evening we all took our bikes to Fish Creek Campground and pedaled the 6-mile loop. Definitely an easy route.

To NJ and Back

2011-05-22T18:30:00.002-04:00

We are back at camp after a quick trip to New Jersey. We drove down on the 17th so W could get a couple of doctor's appointments taken care of. We saw all the family yesterday and now are hopefully at camp for an extended stay. Weather is nice today but supposed to start raining again tomorrow. Sigh.

Paddling Stony Creek Ponds

2011-05-11T21:59:00.000-04:00

We had another gorgeous day today - sunny with temps in the high 60's. So a group of us paddled and "paddlewacked" on Stony Creek ponds and way up Ampersand Brook. While the waters have receded a lot, any beaver dams on Ampersand Brook are still way under water, so the only obstacles were downed trees which we managed to get around/under until we got to a really big pile of logs at the furthest place upstream that any of the group had ever gotten to. Pretty cool.

Hike to Rocky Falls

2011-05-10T17:19:00.002-04:00

Today we hiked to Rocky Falls with some of the Wayfarers.The trail starts near the parking lot at the end of Adirondack Loj Road. We were told that Mount Jo, whose trail starts from the same place, is a fairly short hike with great views. We'll have to remember that.

At Camp

2011-05-09T19:46:00.004-04:00

We drove to camp yesterday and only met with one flooded road - Route 3 through Tupper Lake, which we knew was still flooded. But the waters are going down quickly; today the road was open for the first time since the flooding began. The water in the Flow is still very high. Here is a view of our flooded shoreline; with the water much lower than at its peak.I'm unhappy that all our gentians are gone, along with a lot of dirt. But we fared a lot better than many, so I can't complain. Today we met some of the gang for a paddle on Hoel Pond. We saw several loons and a pair of common mergansers, with the male in full breeding plumage.
On the way home we stopped at the "crusher" to check out the water level. In this photo the river is on the right and the parking lot is on the left.Hard to tell which is which. In this shot someone has painted a line on the rock showing the water level on 4/29/11.

We found some nice blooming dogtooth violets (Erythronium americanum) on the bank thereand then discovered them at camp as well.

Music Review

2011-05-02T18:46:00.002-04:00

An excerpt from a review of our performance Saturday evening of Bach's B Minor Mass.
"...the choir itself was the real star of the evening. The group was extremely well prepared, exhibiting a clear confidence, agility and endurance. Singing Bach is no joke. The lines are difficult and test the mettle of the best choirs. Singing three hours of Bach is an ambitious undertaking."
Yeah, us.

Flooding at the Wild Center

2011-05-01T07:28:00.002-04:00

This overlook is usually overlooking the water, by several feet. Photo courtesy of the Wild Center.

More Flooding

2011-04-29T12:24:00.003-04:00

Looks as though we definitely won't be leaving Monday. If we somehow managed to get to Tupper Lake, which is now partly flooded, it wouldn't do us much good, since we wouldn't be able to get anyplace to paddle other than the Flow. Plus DEC is saying to stay off the flooded waterways which are too dangerous to paddle.

Flooding closes highways in Tupper Lake, Long Lake
April 29, 2011
By staff , Adirondack Daily Enterprise
TUPPER LAKE - The state is about to close a section of state Route 3/30 east of Tupper Lake where the rain-swollen Raquette River is spilling onto the highway, which would cut the community off to points east and block a major east-west highway across the North Country.
The state Department of Transportation has deemed the road unsafe due to flooding and plans to close it roughly half a mile south of the state's Crusher boat launch, according to an email sent at 10 a.m. by the Saranac Lake Volunteer Rescue Squad. "Officials will monitor the road and reopen when it is safe for travel," the message said. The shortest detour between Tupper Lake and Saranac Lake is through Potsdam, which adds roughly two hours to what is normally about a half-hour drive. Meanwhile, Demars Boulevard remains closed in both directions between Santa Clara and Pleasant avenues after water overtook that portion of state Route 3 Thursday morning. Traffic is being detoured using Pleasant, McLaughlin and Santa Clara avenues. The road was initially closed in just one direction but now is closed in both. "The water is still continuing to rise in certain areas," village police Sgt. Sean Stradley said this morning. State police said they're monitoring Raquette River Drive, where they said water had reached the roadway but not in a way that would impede traffic yet. They said they planned to monitor it throughout the day today. Village officials have said they are thinking about declaring a state of emergency and opening up an emergency shelter, which would be needed if homes are evacuated on the flooded River Road. But Stradley said there had been no evacuations yet at as of this morning.
Meanwhile in Long Lake, state Route 30 was closed from the Adirondack Hotel to the bridge over the lake, after students from Long Lake's school were sent home. Tupper Lake-based state troopers said this morning there were about 18 inches of water on the road in front of the hotel. The towns of Long Lake, Indian Lake and Johnsburg have declared states of emergency. Both of the dams in Indian Lake are being monitored.

Going to Camp?

2011-04-28T21:31:00.002-04:00

We've done much of the packing in preparation for heading to camp for the season next Monday. Now it looks as though we might have to put it off for a few days. In addition to the snow melt, they've had lots of rain and many, many roads are now flooded. That includes roads on each of the possible routes we could take to get there. And it seems like such a mess, not sure we want to be there right now anyway. We were really looking forward to paddling and hiking, but I have a feeling those trips will be canceled for next week. Even after the water recedes there will be collapsed roads and bridges. Sigh. I guess we get to enjoy some spring in NJ after all. Stay tuned.

Personality Test

2011-04-25T19:39:00.002-04:00

I just took the personality test at humanmetrics.com. Although I haven't taken this sort of thing for years, the result was the same - INTJ or Mastermind. Figures.

Trip to Manhattan

2011-04-17T19:24:00.003-04:00

W, S and I took the train into Manhattan today to see the Harry Potter exhibit at Discovery Times Square. It took about an hour to go through and was great fun. Then we walked around town a bit since it was a beautiful day, though a trifle windy. We wandered into the main New York library and looked around. I asked about taking out books to use in the library (thinking about genealogy of course) and was told you need a library card, but it is free. I just might do that someday.

Cinco de Mayo

2011-04-16T19:19:00.001-04:00

Finally finished the top - I'll do the quilting once I get to camp.

Still in New Jersey

2011-04-09T08:02:00.003-04:00

Just a note to self about weather this year and its effect on our trips to camp. The note being SNOW! We had planned to finally get back up to camp this week, but there is still lots of snow on the ground, though Jim says he did manage to drive in the driveway last week. So we've decided to just wait and go up for the season on May 3rd. That will be a month earlier than last year. Presumably the snow will be gone by then. Going that early means we should get to see the trillium and all the other early wildflowers. We will miss spring in NJ and will get little if any biking and boating done here, but it will be nice to be at camp.

Basketball Fans - Eat Your Heart Out

2011-03-31T19:55:00.003-04:00

We flew to Houston yesterday to visit with W's Uncle Robert for a couple of days. This is a view from the hotel window. It is the stadium where the NCAA Final Four games will be held this weekend. We knew nothing about the games when we planned the trip, and not being sports fans, we are happy we are leaving Saturday morning before the games begin. But I'm sure there are others who would love to be in our place and stay through the weekend. One thing is for sure, there are a lot of very tall guys around. W says it is rare that he feels short.

Happy Early Spring

2011-03-18T18:11:00.003-04:00

It was nearly 70 degrees today so we went for a nice walk at the Highlands end of Hartshorne Woods. Then we stopped for a yummy early dinner at the Inlet Cafe in Highlands. Definitely a good find.

It may feel like spring here, but there are still 1-1/2 feet of snow left at camp. Sure hope it is gone in a month when we head up there again.

Lancaster and Genealogy

2011-03-17T20:31:00.003-04:00

One of the reasons we stayed over in Lancaster was to do some ancestry sleuthing. W and I are both descended from the founders of Downington, PA and I wanted to at least see the area. About all we accomplished was to peer through the trees toward the stone house built by Thomas Downing in the 1730's and still standing. I was informed by a local historical society volunteer that the current owner didn't like history-types nosing around, so I couldn't get a good view of the house. Here is a better one, from the satellite view on google maps.

Trip to Lancaster

2011-03-17T19:53:00.005-04:00

W and I spent part of yesterday and today in Lancaster, PA. We drove first to Burkholders in Denver, PA. It was definitely worth the stop; it was by far the largest shop we were in. We spent so much time there (and bought so much neat fabric), we skipped Sauders completely and went directly to lunch at Union Barrel Works in Reamstown. Then on to the AQS quilt show in the Lancaster convention center. It was a nice show but not sure I would go again. It is much less convenient than when it was outside of town on Route 30. After the show we stopped in at the Spring Blossom Festival, the collection of vendors in the Continental Inn across the street from where the show used to be. The prices at both the show and the vendors were comparable to NJ prices - not the cheaper Lancaster area prices. So we were happy we started at Burkholders. At this point we were beat and happy to head to Creekside Inn, the B&B in Paradise where I had stayed before.

This morning we drove to Intercourse for more fabric shopping. At the suggestion of the B&B hostess we stopped at the new shop Bitty Kinna's, run by a previous owner of Burkholders. It was a nice but smallish shop and I didn't find anything to buy. Then on to the Old Country Store, which was very nice and where I again bought lots. They had some great sales on batiks. Lastly we went to Zooks, even though by then I had exhausted my extensive list of things to buy. I was disappointed that it was not nearly as large as I had remembered and just didn't seem that interesting, possibly partly because I was about shopped out at that point, which I didn't think was possible. For one thing, they didn't have many batiks, whereas the Old Country Store had lots.

I decided at some point in the trip that the next time I went to the Lancaster area for quilt fabric, I would go some time other than the quilt show, so the stores would not be as crowded. That started a discussion of whether it really was cost-effective, given the price of gas. I figure I bought about 35 yards of fabric! (that includes backing for 3 large quilts). The savings of about $3 a yard easily paid for the gas. So I guess that means I'm allowed to go again - after I use up all the fabric I got this time. That could take a while.

So it was a great outing. And of course a trip to that part of the world is not complete without a view of an Amish horse and buggy.

Barnegat Light

2011-03-08T17:49:00.003-05:00

We finally made it to Barnegat Lighttoday to see the sea birds. We try to go every year to see the birds that overwinter there and while we were later in the year than usual, we managed to see most of what we were expecting, though not in the numbers we are used to. We saw harlequin ducksand cormorants, common eiders, brandt, pintails, herring gulls, greater black-backed gulls, a female red-breasted merganser, a couple surf scoters, and one loon whose plummage was changing to the summer black and white. I wonder if he is on his way to the Adirondacks. We were also very surprised to see a young seal pulled up on the beach.

SNOW!!!

2011-03-07T20:44:00.002-05:00

Just talked to our caretaker at camp and gave him the ok to close down the camp if the power should go out. But he'll have to snowshoe in. They just had about 30 inches of snow and there is no place to put it. He said the piles at the side of the road are 7 feet high. And there is no more room along our driveway. So the camp will not be plowed out and we just hope we can get in next month. All snow and ice are normally gone by mid-April, but not sure about this year.