"Community by definition is: a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals."
Memorial Day weekend is the official start of summer, but here in the Finger Lakes it definitely doesn't feel like summer at the moment. The wonderful thing about being here is the weather never stops people from getting out and having a good time and that's exactly what we did today. We, not as in Stan and me, but some of the ladies from the marina and their friends.
We spent the day doing a wine tasting at Buttonwood Grove Winery and then enjoying a fire in one of their fire pits. We were having so much fun we never moved on to the next winery. We'll save that for another day.
We started our visit with a wine tasting...which included a few snacks. Everyone had a great time.
We enjoyed the rest of the day by the fire pit in the yard. We even had a few minutes of sunshine before we left.
Not a bad way to spend a cool afternoon...good friends, good snacks, lots of laughs and a little good wine.
“A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints.” – Wilfred Peterson
We consider ourselves cruisers, well maybe more as explorers and adventurers now that we have been in Ithaca so long. Nomads at heart. A nomad is defined as a member of a community that has no permanent home, one that moves about from place to place, usually seasonally and often following a traditional route according to the state of the pasturage or food supply. That definition seems to fit the cruising community and our way of life. We move from place to place…not for the food supply though, but for the quest to stay in the 70-80º temperature range.
Most people feel at home when they are near their residence. Explorers feel most at home when they are someplace they've never been before. Nomads feel more at home along the path they follow…returning to places year after year. Each of these places begins to feel like home to them. This is true for us. The coast of Texas will always be home to us. It’s where we grew up, it’s where we met, it’s where we began our love for boating, it’s where a lot of our family is and it’s the place that holds wonderful memories of the past. We have sold our home and feel more like the nomads that call many places their home or the explorers who long to discover new places. The yearning for new adventure is strong in both of us and we enjoy answering its call.
The Pearl's travels since 2011
The places we have gone since we have been in Ithaca.
“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go.” – T.S Eliot
We spent the morning hiking at Watkins Glen State Park. Known for its natural beauty, the park's gorge trail is a two mile hike, which takes the hiker past 19 waterfalls and up 800 stone steps. Carved into the escarpment at the southern end of Seneca Lake, this hanging valley is the oldest and most renowned State Park in the Finger Lakes region. The park is a beautiful work of natural art and it was first opened as a tourist resort in 1863. It's amazing what a little water and thousands of years can create.
The Gorge Trail begins with a dark spiraling tunnel cut into the cliff-side. The tunnel effectively removes all evidence of the world outside the glen and envelops you in a world of natural stone, calming flowing water and gentle breezes.
Looking towards Sentry Bridge from the bottom of the gorge trail. The entry tunnel is to the right.
Tunnels in the gorge were hand-cut into the rock in the early 1900’s. As you emerge from the entry tunnel onto Sentry Bridge, you can look east and see Watkins Glen or west up the gorge towards Cavern Cascade.
The view looking up the gorge from Sentry Bridge
The stairs to the left is what most of the trail looks like.
Cavern Cascade is one of two waterfalls you can walk behind.
This Suspension Bridge is on another trail and is 85 feet above the creek. During the great flood of 1935 the water rose to within five feet of the bridge.
Part of the Glen Cathedral. The gorge widens here like a gothic church, with a natural pool, dubbed the Baptismal Font, facing the “cathedral’s” pulpit: a beautiful stone arch bridge and 60 ft Central Cascade.
Rainbow Falls is the second falls you walk under. If you visit on a sunny afternoon you can see rainbows reflected off the falls. Unfortunately we were there in the morning....no rainbows.
This picture was taken just before the Spiral Gorge. A dark and narrow passage with dripping springs, sculptured pools and thin Pluto Falls.
The Gorge Trail is a one way trail, meaning we had to take the North Rim Trail to return to our car. The following pictures were taken from the trail looking down to the Gorge Trail.
A short video showing part of the gorge. This area is unbelievably beautiful. Hard to imagine it’s just on the outskirts of the town of Watkins Glen.
After our morning hike we drove up Seneca Lake and had a picnic at the Billsboro Winery. The weather has been amazing and we are taking advantage of every minute of it.
"We are still masters of our fate. We are still captains of our souls." ― Winston Churchill
The sun was out today, so we just had to go out and celebrate. We did this by having a wonderful lunch at The Ginny Lee Cafe at Wagner's Vineyard. This has been a favorite of yours for years. We had the best table on the deck overlooking Seneca Lake. The weather was still a bit cool, but it felt amazing sitting in the sun soaking in the warmth of the day and the views of the lake.
After lunch we drove down the lake to Montour Falls to check out a few more waterfalls. The south end of Seneca Lake is full of waterfalls. The best place to go is Watkins Glen State Park...we were there about nine years ago and will go again soon, but today we were on the hunt for some waterfalls we haven't seen before. Our first stop was at Aunt Sarah's Falls waterfall just north of Montour Falls. It's right along the road and requires no hiking, it was nice, but not the best of the day. That honor goes to our next stop...Shequaga Falls, which is also known as Montour Falls. What a wonderful spot, set in a park in the middle of town.
Aunt Sarah's Falls
Shequaga Falls (pronounced She-qua-ga) is a 165-foot tall waterfall located right in the heart of Montour Falls. It can be seen as you drive down Main Street as it towers over this otherwise flat community.
A relaxing spot to take in the view of the falls.
The backyard of this home looks over the falls...what an incredible place to have a fire pit and chairs.
Our last waterfall was Deckertown Falls, which required a little bit of hiking. The falls were easy to find and it was nice to get a little bit of exercise. The visible portion of the falls drop 70 feet in three distinct steps that are easily seen from a small path that leads from the parking area up Catlin Mill Creek.
Just a few of the beautiful flowers we have seen lately.
Rain, rain, go away, Come again another day, The crew of The Pearl wants to play.
We've had a lot of rain in the past week, every day we've had rain. The benefit of lots of rain in the Finger Lakes...it makes the waterfalls amazing. Today the sun came out a little and we drove up to Taughannock Falls to check the sight. We've seen these falls almost dry through the summer, but today we were treated to a wonderful show of power.
Taughannock Falls
The Upper Falls...a picture taken today, one during the summer and another picture taken during the winter. The falls are always changing.
Looking west from the upper falls...one picture from today and another from a few summers ago.
“May your joys be as deep as the oceans, your troubles as light as its foam. And may you find, sweet peace of mind, wherever you may roam.” –Unknown
This will be our fifth season in Ithaca...it's really becoming our second home and we love it here. We are beginning our 11th season on The Pearl and we have this migration thing down to a science. Each spring we pack up our car, close up our house and boat in Texas and head north. This year we didn't have to close up the house...we sold that in January. Although we know exactly what needs to be done, it can be a lot of work, especially unpacking when we get back to The Pearl.
Our last look at Texas Pearl as we left Rockport.
It's a bit cold here in the Finger Lakes...winter doesn't seem to want to go away...but this picture was taken months ago. No snow at the moment, but for us Texans it sure doesn't feel like spring.
Our car was pretty full on our way up to the lake, luckily we keep some of it in our son's basement. Transitioning from one life to another takes a little work.
First job is to take the shrink wrap off...
then we have to unload and haul all the stuff up the ladder and on to the boat. It took us about 4 1/2 hours to complete our work and have the boat ready to live in again.
Early Monday morning we were launched. Stan checked the engine and headed south to Ithaca, while I moved the car.
