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Aug. 31 – Exploring Six Mile Creek

By Trawlers on August 31, 2023 in The Pearl

“Why fit in when you were born to stand out” —Dr. Seuss

We took advantage of a beautiful day to explore an area of Ithaca we haven’t been to since 2017. We parked at Mulholland Wildflower Preserve and hiked up to what is called the second dam on Six Mile Creek. The water was very muddy and moving quickly from all the rain we’ve had. Once at the bottom of the dam we backtracked to a trail that took us to the top of the dam and the reservoir. At the top of the dam we found a great spot along the cliff to enjoy our picnic.

The bottom of the dam.

Part of the trail to the top of the dam.

The view of the top of the dam.

Our lunch spot.

Our lunch…homemade chicken salad, cheese, crackers, wine and cake.

The muddy reservoir above the second dam. This is where we saw kids swimming the first time we were here. One of our views during lunch.

Some of the interesting things we saw along the trail.

After lunch we made our way back to our car to leave our picnic basket and then explored the creek north of Giles St. We’ve been in the area for years and didn’t realize this beautiful waterfall existed just a mile from downtown.

Wells Falls, also known as the Businessman’s Lunch Falls, is 65 feet tall and drops in a series of four drops. Of these, the largest is a 30-foot man-made dam. It’s located directly adjacent to an abandoned power plant. The Van Nattas Pumping Station was built in 1893 on the site of an old flour mill. It provided water for the city both for drinking and for fire stations. Over the years, the site grew as new pumps were added so it could create electricity. Since the 1940s, the station has sat abandoned next to Wells Falls creating one of the most unique waterfalls in New York.

The top of Wells Falls.

Hiking down the hill to the bottom of the falls.

Looking over the cliff to the road that leads to the falls.

Looking back at the cliff where I took the photo above. We took this road back to Gile St. It was a bit easier than the route we took coming down.

The bottom of Wells Falls.

Aug. 31 – Exploring Six Mile Creek

By Trawlers on August 31, 2023 in The Pearl

“Why fit in when you were born to stand out” —Dr. Seuss

The bottom of the dam.

Part of the trail to the top of the dam.

The view of the top of the dam.

Our lunch spot.

Our lunch…homemade chicken salad, cheese, crackers, wine and cake.

The muddy reservoir above the second dam. This is where we saw kids swimming the first time we were here. One of our views during lunch.

Some of the interesting things we saw along the trail.

The top of Wells Falls.

Hiking down the hill to the bottom of the falls.

Looking over the cliff to the road that leads to the falls.

Looking back at the cliff where I took the photo above. We took this road back to Gile St. It was a bit easier than the route we took coming down.

The bottom of Wells Falls.

Aug. 17-20 Cayuga Lake Vacation

By Trawlers on August 22, 2023 in The Pearl

“The Lake….where families go to make memories.” -Author Unknown

We spent this year’s last family lake vacation at a nice house just south of Seneca Falls on Cayuga Lake. The weather was beautiful, but a bit too windy to spend time on the boat riding on the raft…no problem we found other things to do. We spent our first full day taking the boat through part of the Cayuga–Seneca Canal. This part of the New York canal system connects the Erie Canal to Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake. It was built in 1818. Since we were already in Cayuga Lake we took everyone through C2 and C3 that leads to the town of Seneca Falls. These locks are a set of locks called a staircase or flight. We were lifted up a total of 49′ from the Seneca River to Van Cleef Lake. Check out this old blog post to see how a lock works. We wandered around town a little and then had lunch before we headed back to the house.

CONTINUE READING HERE…»

Aug. 17-20 Cayuga Lake Vacation

By Trawlers on August 22, 2023 in The Pearl

“The Lake….where families go to make memories.” -Author Unknown

The house

This house had a great movie and game room above the garage. The perfect place for a family movie night.

The kids get to the marina around lunch each time we rent a house. So we have a little time to fill before we can check in. This time we had lunch on the boat then rode bikes along the trails by the marina and played in the park.

After playing we stopped at the Sheldrake Point Winery to enjoy a little wine and a beautiful day.

We spent a lot of time at the house just hanging out together, relaxing, playing games, eating and celebrating Hattie’s 4th birthday.

The view from the front porch was nice in the evening and in the morning.

On our way to Seneca Falls.

These boards are at each lock to inform boaters of their elevation and how far it is to the next lock.

Heading into lock C2. It lifted us up 24.5′.

Once inside we put a line around a cable so we could stay close to the side of the lock.

Once inside and ready the Lock Master closes the door and the water begins to fill the lock.

Going up!

Once we were through the two locks we were in Van Cleef Lake and right in the heart of Seneca Falls.

Everyone had a great time on the way home.

Graham was the captain most of the way back.

Our second full day was beautiful…but very windy. Kyle and Graham explored in the kayaks before we tried to have fun on the runabout. It was just too rough, so we played at home.

The waterfront was pretty and we had plenty of room to play, but it wasn’t very nice for swimming. Luckily the weather was cool and we really didn’t want to swim.

Our traditional last night fire and s’mores. It’s our way of saying goodbye to summer.

July 26-28 Clayton, NY

By Trawlers on August 2, 2023 in The Pearl

“When the sun shines, there’s nothing I can’t do; No mountain is too high, no trouble too difficult to overcome.” –Author Unknown

We’ve really been reluctant to take a big vacation this summer. We talked about going to Ireland in July last winter, but the thought of being stuck in airports, dealing with rental cars and crowds of people just wasn’t what we wanted to do. So we’ve been enjoying the countryside closer to home. One of our favorite places to visit around New York is the 1000 Islands. Even by car it’s a great place to spend a little time.

CONTINUE READING HERE…»

July 26-28 Clayton, NY

By Trawlers on August 2, 2023 in The Pearl

“When the sun shines, there’s nothing I can’t do; No mountain is too high, no trouble too difficult to overcome.” –Author Unknown

It was a last minute decision to go there this week. The smoke from Canada and the spotty showers we’ve had this month has made it hard to plan very far in advance. We rented a house downtown close to everything but it was lacking some of the things we like…mostly a porch or patio to relax on. But we made the best of it and really enjoyed relaxing, shopping and eating some great meals in Clayton. The house we stayed at was originally built in 1844.

Clayton is a cute little town that sits on the Saint Lawrence River in the middle of the 1000 Islands.

Since finding good places to eat was difficult in Lake George we made reservations in advance this time. The first night we had dinner at the Clipper Inn. We went early to take advantage of the wine and dine menu. We each enjoyed our meals.

Since we ate early we went to The Hop for dessert later in the evening.

Our second night we ate at Di Prinzio’s Kitchen. We enjoyed our dinner here last year and it was even better this year.

After dinner we visited with our friends George and Lori and watched the action on the river.

Coming and going to Clayton we spent a little time chasing waterfalls. Wednesday on our way we stopped at Salmon Falls near Pulaski. The trail is short and leads to several views of the falls as it makes its way to the top. We also took a trail towards the bottom of the small gorge so we could get a better view and photo. It was a pretty day and the falls were beautiful.

Salmon Falls plunges 100ft in three parallel sections becoming a single raging torrent during spring thaw.

On the way home we stopped at Pixley State Park near Booonville first. The falls are easy to see from a short trail that takes you right to the bottom. We also saw several smaller falls on tributaries that run into the Lansing Kill Gorge.

Pixley Falls is a 50ft cascade waterfall.

Our second stop was at Redford Falls. A small park in Sherburne allows easy access to the falls from 30ft above. The footbridge above the falls was constructed in 1877. It’s a metal bowstring truss bridge that was rehabilitated in 2006. To reach the bottom of the falls we followed a trail along the top of the gorge till we reached a spot where we could climb down to the Mad Brook. From there we walked up the creek to the pool at the bottom of the falls. It was a spectacular place and we were the only ones there.

Redford Falls is a 75ft tall cascade waterfall located under a historic footbridge.

Looking over the bridge to the pool at the bottom of the falls.

Part of the trail went through these blackberry bushes. We also found a few blueberries. It’s always fun to find a snack on the trail.

The trail leading down to the creek bottom.

Mushrooms we saw along the trail.

This is where we came down to the creek.

Walking back to the falls.

Redford Falls

Can you see the bridge that we crossed?

July 17-20 Cora’s Visit

By Trawlers on July 29, 2023 in The Pearl

“My granddaughter is the adventurous co-conspirator I’ve always wanted.” -Author Unknown

The summer is flying by and it seemed like Cora had to wait a long time for her special time at the boat. But she really got the best weather and we had a great time filling every minute with fun activities. We made time to ride the scooter, explore around the marina, hike, shop, paint, string beads, play in the water, cook, have picnics, see waterfalls, play at the park and ride on our little runabout. We made a lot of great memories.

A picnic at Buttermilk Falls.

CONTINUE READING HERE…»

July 17-20 Cora’s Visit

By Trawlers on July 29, 2023 in The Pearl

“My granddaughter is the adventurous co-conspirator I’ve always wanted.” -Author Unknown

A picnic at Buttermilk Falls.

We love doing arts and crafts together.

Cora is a great little artist with a great imagination.

“What happens at Mimi’s. Stays at Mimi’s.” But it’s fun to send a few pictures home to torment the siblings. Hahahaha

Cora and I went to Michael’s to get art supplies and she found something she wanted to buy. So she did a little work around the boat to earn the money she needed. She truly had fun sweeping, washing dishes, washing the windows and wiping down the decks.

No summer visit to the boat would be complete without a trip to an ice cream shop.

We spent one full day at Taughannock State Park. First we walked to the bottom of the falls. Exploring along the way and walking in the creek.

Cora loves nature and she had fun in the water and finding bugs, frogs and earthworms. Everything on a hike is interesting to her.

Taughannock Falls. Cora was only six months old the first time she came to this falls. She enjoyed it much more this time.

After hiking we had a picnic lunch near the lake…also at the same park. Cora and I love to do crafts, no matter where we go.

Taughannock Park has a wonderful new playground…Cora thought it was a lot of fun.

One of our favorite things to do is to take our runabout up the inlet to The Boatyard Grill for dessert. It was a beautiful evening so when we were done we also took a ride in the lake. It was a great way to end a wonderful day.

This is why we have our runabout. Seeing how happy it makes the kids means the world to us.

July 10-14 Lake George, NY

By Trawlers on July 22, 2023 in The Pearl

“The sky loves lakes rather than oceans because it finds the opportunity to watch itself in the crystal clear mirrors of the lakes!” -Mehmet Murat Ildan

This week we celebrated our 42nd anniversary with a trip to the Adirondacks. We visited Lake George, which is located in the southeastern portion of the park. It sits on the lake of the same name, which is one of the most pristine bodies of water in the world. We stayed at the Fort William Henry Hotel, which is located on a bluff at the head of the lake. The view from our room was fantastic. The original hotel was built in 1855.

CONTINUE READING HERE…»

July 10-14 Lake George, NY

By Trawlers on July 22, 2023 in The Pearl

“The sky loves lakes rather than oceans because it finds the opportunity to watch itself in the crystal clear mirrors of the lakes!” -Mehmet Murat Ildan

The view from our room.

The town of Lake George.

We took our bikes with us, so one morning we did part of the Warren County Bikeway.

We spent a relaxing three days taking in the sights around the lake. One afternoon we went on a cruise up the lake to the islands in the area known as the narrows. This would be a wonderful place to spend the summer on our boat…if we could actually get it here. The water is so amazingly clear and there are over 200 islands scattered throughout the lake. We fell in love with the lake, but not so much for the town. The town is cute, but it’s so touristy, from the shops to the restaurants. We drove over to Bolton one afternoon and decided that’s where we would stay if we come back.

Watching the water as we waited for our cruise on Luc de Saint Sacrement.

Some of the steamships on Lake George. Steamboats arrived on the lake in 1817. The 190 foot long Lac du Saint Sacrement is the largest cruise ship on the inland waters of New York State.

Just a few photos of what we saw. Lake George is 32 miles long, 3 miles wide at its widest point, and reaches depths of nearly 200 feet. It’s the birthplace of the American vacation.

The Sagamore Resort. One of the most exclusive resorts on the lake. Built in 1883.

On our second full day we did a hike to Shelving Rock Falls. It was a beautiful hike that started in the hills above the lake. Once we reached the top of the falls we made our way down to the creek and followed it till we got back to the lake.

The beginning of the Shelving Rock Falls trail.