May 22 - Keuka Lake Outlet Trail

Allan H. Treman State Marine Park 

“It is never too late to be what you might have been.” ―George Eliot  

There are so many places to explore around this area and it seems like we're finding new places all the time. Today we drove over to Pen Yan and walked part of the Keuka Lake Outlet Trail. The trail follows an old rail bed; previously a canal towpath (Crooked Lake Canal), that even earlier, was a pioneer dirt trail. The canal is now mostly dismantled or buried, but it can be traced by swampy ditches and crumbling locks. Along the trail you can see old factories and mill foundations. It was fun trying to envision what the area looked like hundreds of years ago.

The Keuka Lake Outlet is a natural waterway that drains the waters of Keuka Lake into Seneca Lake crossing over 8 miles and dropping 280 feet along the way. The first saw and grits mill on the outlet was built in 1790 and over the years there have been 40 mills in operation on the outlet. Now the outlet caters to recreation with a multi-use trail that offers access to the outlet waters. 

Birkett Mills is the only mill that remains on the Keuka Lake Outlet. It's been in continual operation since 1797 and today is the world’s largest producer of buckwheat products.

Seneca Mill Falls is the most popular stop along the trail. The falls are a three-tiered cascade that starts as a small dam spillway and then crashes down two large limestone drops into a deep pool. The remains of the paper mill can be seen at the foot of the falls and above the falls you can see the rusty old mechanics that once harnessed the power of the outlet, and was a component of the electrical plant that took over the site after the paper mill left. 

This is a picture of the falls and the Seneca Paper Mill built in 1884

Cascade Mill Falls is about half the size of Seneca Mill Falls, and definitely not the prettiest site, but the complex is made up of old mills, factories and oddities that are in an advanced state of decay. Most notable is the Baker Chemical Company’s carbon bisulfide plant, which resides right next to the falls, and the Kelly Tire building which reconditioned tires and relied on carbon bisulfide for rayon. 

After hiking the Outlet Trail we stopped at the Spotted Duck Creamery for a little reward. This creamery makes their custard using organic local ingredients...much of it comes from their farm. They use duck eggs, hence the name Spotted Duck. Why ducks...according to the owner’s, they “make a far superior custard than chicken eggs; the increased yolk size makes a much richer flavor while the firmer whites are a better suspender, giving our frozen custard it’s signature creamy texture.” The farm was beautiful, the service from Dane was exceptional, the ice cream was very good and the flavors were fun. 

We shared the Hollywood, which was a flight of four flavors....we chose: Raspberry Truffle, Maple Nutt, Emu Tracks and Real Cookies n Cream.

Aug. 3-10 Keuka Lake Vacation

Lake Life [lāk 'līf] noun - Escaping the daily grind and embracing the simple life by the lake. Slowing down to appreciate the water, wildlife and family. Where doing absolutely nothing is doing something.

This will be a long post with a lot of photos since we were gone for a week. I should have broken it down into more posts, but this will have to do. We enjoyed a perfect week on Keuka Lake. The weather was ideal, the water was amazing and the house we rented was just what we needed. We couldn't have asked for anything more. 

We did a couple of short hikes, the guys rode a portion of the Keuka Lake Outlet Trail and we spent a few hours on Saturday at the Windmill Market. Other than that we were content to be at the house painting, feeding the horses, playing games and relaxing. But most of all we were in or on the lake...swimming, riding on the boat, tubing or knee boarding. 

We all agree we like Keuka Lake the best. The lake is smaller and not as deep as Cayuga and Seneca so the water is warmer. But what we really love is how crystal clear the water is. It’s unbelievably beautiful.

The house

The kitchen...a bit small but we made it work.

The bedrooms

The kids enjoyed feeding the horses that were on property. They love carrots and apples.

The decks on the back of the house gave us the perfect place to paint and enjoy our meals. There was a bit of haze in the air from the wildfires in Canada...really not an issue because it made sitting outside a little cooler.

The evening views of the sunset were amazing.

Stan has helped all three of Kyle's kids learn to ride without training wheels at a summer rental. Hattie has now mastered riding a bike.

We enjoyed how close this house was to the water and the great water access. We spent most of our time either in the water or on it.

We were a bit rusty on this little sunfish sailboat...next year we will do better.

Kyle and Cora enjoyed a paddle on the lake one morning.

On Tuesday morning we enjoyed hiking part of the Keuka Lake Outlet Trail. We started close to Seneca Mills Falls. At one time this was a canal that connected Keuka Lake to Seneca Lake. Once in Seneca Lake goods could be moved into the Erie Canal and on to more market places. 

Seneca Mills Falls

Cooling off in the creek.

Brytanie and Graham had to drive home on Tuesday to attend a middle school orientation. So the guys went back to the Keuka Outlet Trail another morning and rode most of the trail on their bikes.

One of our favorite places to visit whenever we are close to Penn Yan is the Spotted Duck Creamery. All their ice cream is made with duck eggs.

The second hike we did was to the Eggleston Falls through the Eggleston Glen. This was a new find for us. We've been in the area for nine seasons and I've never heard of this one before. It was a nice hike up the creek although the water flow was very low and the 80' waterfall was almost dry.

With the low water levels it was easy to keep your feet dry, but a lot more fun to get wet.

We found lots of neat things along the creek. Cora was extremely happy to find a frog and a newt. We also found some great rocks and a piece of orange beach glass.

By far the very best thing about being on the lake for a week was spending time in our little runabout. Most days we went out in the afternoon and again after dinner.

Whether we were riding or being pulled we all had a great time.

We even took turns driving the boat...a few times so Stan could just sit back and relax.

Sunsets were the best time to be on the lake.

Unfortunately not all turns on the tube ended well. A few afternoons the wind was a bit strong and the tube would go flying. 

Lake life can make you tired. Especially when you play as hard as Hattie does.

One evening we took the boat up to the Main Deck Restaurant for ice cream.

We've had our little boat for 7-8 years and it's run very well, but this time Stan had to take time to clean the carburetor. Graham got a lesson in how to fix an engine. 

We enjoyed the fire pit almost every evening.

I think I could live here.

Good night Keuka Lake...we'll see you again next summer.