July 14 - Finger Lake International Dragon Boat Festival

Allan H. Treman State Marine Park

"The sensation of energy expands with increasing relaxation." ―Ilchi Lee

Today we went to the Finger Lake International Dragon Boat Festival, held at Taughannock Falls Park. Dragon boat races are one of the most typical traditions of the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival which was traditionally held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. They began in the Guangdong Province of China more than 2000 years ago. For more than 20 centuries the competition took place as a part of religious ceremonies and folk customs, but beginning in the 1970s dragon boat racing emerged as an international sport. But the history of dragon boats in competition reaches as far back as the same era as the original games of Olympia in ancient Greece.

A dragon boat has a long narrow shape. Traditional dragon boats were made of teak wood. Currently, boats made for competitive purposes use carbon fiber and other lightweight materials. Both the fore and aft of the boats are decorated with dragon’s head and tail and the body of the boat is carved or painted with traditional patterns like waves, clouds or beasts, using bright colors such as red, blue, green, black and gold. 

The crew of a dragon boat usually consists of a drummer, a sweep (steersman) and paddlers. The main force comes from paddlers who power the boat and the drummer who guides the frequency and synchronicity of all the paddlers' moves. The drumbeat is also a useful way to inspire the crew’s spirits in competition. The sweep controls the direction of the boat.

July 13 - Finger Lake Cider House

Allan H. Treman State Marine Park

“Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true” —Lyman Frank Baum

As we've said many times before...one of the things we like the best about being in Ithaca for the season is exploring all the great little places to sample locally made wine, cider, liquor and food. These small family owned places pride themselves in using fresh locally grown ingredients and the products they produce are wonderful.

Kyle and his family gave Stan a gift card to the Finger Lake Cider House for Father's Day. They're located just up the lake from us and we've seen their sign many times, but didn't think we'd like hard cider...we were wrong. Many of their dry ciders were very good, they were more like wine than we expected.

Finger Lakes Cider House at Good Life Farm is the hub of the hard cider renaissance in New York apple country. They feature their own Kite & String Cider as well as amazing ciders from rotating guest cideries each month. Here's the meaning of their name: 'Kite' means light, playful, balanced, and fun.  'String' means grounded to a place, their small farm. All their ciders are made from farm-based orchards. The tasting room and balcony overlook their crop fields, apple orchards, green houses and horse barn...with a view of Cayuga Lake in the distance.

Our favorite cider was called Funkhouse '17, it has herbal, buttery, earthy notes and is bone dry, with a bright front palate giving way to notes of toasted oak and ending with long chalky tannins.

Their eco-friendly farm has been producing certified organic fruit and fresh vegetables, meat and poultry since 2008. In 2012 they decided to add cider production to their list of endeavors and began planting 300 cider apple trees annually; they now have 38 varieties of American heirloom, English and European cider apples in their orchard. In 2014 they transformed a barn into their impressive Cider House and they now have a spacious tasting room and bar and a lower level equipped with a kitchen and cider-processing facilities. They have a small menu that features ingredients grown on their farm or bought from neighboring farmers in the Finger Lakes region.  

A flight of cider and sandwiches for dinner. Stan had the smoked pulled pork on a sourdough roll and I had toasted cheddar apple sandwich with pesto. Both were served with a salad made with greens from their garden. 

 Here are some of the ciders we tasted

The view from their balcony  

On Friday nights the cider house features local musicians. While we were there we listened to Whistlin’ Dyl. He's an original singer songwriter who cooks up ballads, hillbilly thumpers and alt-rock songs with a smidgin of crooning and a splash of soul. 

Mid July Update

Allan H. Treman State Marine Park

"Never say dreams are useless because useless is the life of those who can't dream." —Jim Morrison

Just a little update of some of the things we've been doing since we returned from the western Erie Canal. The weather has been pretty hot this month...hot for New York and hot if you live on a boat with no insulation. Some days have been almost as hot as Texas, but at least those days don't last long. So what do we do when it gets hot...we try to find a cool spot to spend the day. Some days that means going to a park on the lake and others it means going to a mall.

One particularly hot day we made a trip to a large, very large, mall in Syracuse (Destiny USA). The mall has over 250 stores, go karts, a rope course, mirror maze, miniature golf, I-Max movies and several escape rooms. A little something for everyone. We walked several miles, had a great lunch and bought a few things...it was a good way to stay cool. 

We have the best seat in town for the Ithaca fireworks...all we have to do is sit on the deck and enjoy.

Our son and his family rented a little house on the lake during the July 4th week. We had a wonderful time playing with them.

There are so many cute and interesting places to eat around this area...the other day we found a place on Seneca Lake called The Elf in The Oak. A great lunch with a great view.

July 11th was our 37th wedding anniversary. We had lunch at the Thirsty Owl Bistro that overlooks Cayuga Lake. We enjoyed a fantastic lunch with views of the lake...what's not to like. 

The Thirsty Owl Wine Company

Stan had the salmon with diamond-honey glaze, toasted hazelnuts & coconut roasted veggies and I had the scallops with a quinoa lentil cake served over sprouts. We chose their 2016 Chardonnay as a pairing. Its described as having aromas of tangy green apple, medium-bodied with mild oak. Fruity flavors are balanced by a light, buttery mouthfeel and a lively finish.

A little cool front had moved in, so it was cool enough to anchor out for the night...we spent our anniversary night enjoying the peace and quiet of the lake, the beautiful sunset and a few nibbles on the flybridge.

Looking towards Ithaca

Good night Cayuga Lake