Love USACOE Sites

Morgantown, West Virginia


We spent two night in a row at campgrounds run by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE).
The first was at a place called Ives Run, in Pennsylvania close to the New York Border.  The second was a place called Outflow Camping close the West Virginia Border.  They were both very nice, but very different.

At Ives Run, we camped next to a lake.  At night is was very still and we were treated to the loudest insect cacophony we have heard in many years.  Perhaps the circadas?

At Outflow, we camped near the outflow of a hydro dam and power plant.  The region has had an excess amount of rain this summer.  We noticed the beauty in the hills coming in because they were exceptionally lush and green.  Very pretty.  Anyhow, the lake behind the dam is normally empty at this time of year, but right not it was filled to capacity and they were spilling water.   There was a tremendous roar from the spilling water.   It was the kind of roar you hear, for example, at Niagara Falls.  Part of the sound you hear, part you feel in your chest and stomach, and part through your feet as the ground shakes.  It is an awesome display of raw power.

We also had (welcome) noise from a nearby railroad.   We also had (unwelcome) noise from a hiss as our air mattress spring a leak.   We had a comical night trying to stay balanced on top of the deflating air mattress.  Compare it to sleeping on a beach ball, but not alone but with two people.  We kept falling off.  I hope we can repair it for tonight.

Youghiogheny Dam Power Plant, Spillway spilling at the left.  ROAR!

Ives Run Campground in the morning

Splendid Day

Mansfield, Pennsylvania

41 48.632 N 077 04.728 W

Yesterday turned out to be lots of fun. We left Booneville after breakfast. Thanks much to Cheryl and Vicky for a fun evening! We drove on the scenic route to Rome, Cazenovia, Deruyter, Homer, Cortland, Seneca, and Watkins Glen to Corning. We saw parts of New York that we have never been to. It was very pretty.

Our goal was the Corning Glass Museum. That was great fun. The artistic glass was beyond imagination in beauty and creativity. The demonstrations were great. We even got to watch a glass blowing course in progress. The teacher is said to be the worlds best glass blower from Venice. We didn't want to leave, there was more stuff to see the we had time for. (P.s. even though we lived in that region, I've never been to Corning before.)

I think that glass blowing would be a marvelous hobby. I (we) could even get training at Corning Glass Works. Alas, we made our choice to live on a sailboat. No way to put a kiln on board!!! Oh well, next life.

We ended the day at Ives Run Campground in Pennsylvania. It is located on a lake surrounded by lovely mountains. Never of us have been in this part of Pennsylvania before. It is beautiful.

Lots of pictures from Corning --- later.

By the way, on this trip we managed to drive by the house in Medford, Mass where I lived at the age of 5. We also drove past, or near, the house in Homer, NY where Libby lived at the age of 3. Very cool.

Labor Day Weekend

Booneville, NY
43 28.468 N 075 19.901 W

We had a great family day and night here in Boonville.   Now it is time to move on.

Labor Day weekend is coming up, and I noticed an article in the news about the big crowds expected to be on the roads.  Uh oh.  We normally hide out on big holiday weekends.   Therefore, I broke our usual rule against advanced planning and reserved a camp,site for Friday, Saturday, Sunday, in Sutton West Virginia.  

That leaves us tonight to camp in northern Pennsylvania and tomorrow night to find a place in southern Pennsylvania.

Federal camping facilities are much more affordable than state or local camps because we have a senior pass that gives us a 50% discount.   State campgrounds in the northeast have been charging us nearly $30 per night.   The federal camp site in West Virginia was $24 for three nights.

The Social Whirl

Old Forge, New York
43 42.676 N 074 58.415 W

We have been doing so many things, I did't have time to blog.  

On Sunday we had a wonderful day on Scandaga Lake with our friends Pete and Mary Ellen.  They have a seasonal trailer up there, and a party barge.   That was the ideal vessel to take us on a tour of the lake.   We saw the north end of the lake, including parts north of the Bachelorville Bridge which Libby and I have never seen before because of a low bridge blocking our way.

You see, from around 1975 through 2005, Sacandaga Lake was our home waters.  We started with an O'Day Mariner, 19', then a Clipper 26, and finally a Tanzer 27.  It is a lovely place to sail with clean water, and surrounded by the Adirondack Mountains.   During those years on our Clipper 26, after hauling the boat out for the winter, I got into the habit of trailering the boat to Champlain in early October for a week's vacation.  That was how our attachment to Lakc Champlain and to Vermont began.

Sunday night we camped at Northhampton Beach, right on the lake.

On Monday we visited with our friends and former neighbors John and Mari.   Then the four of us visited other neighbors, Bud and Nan.   All six of us had a great time, and Libby and I got to catch up on years worth of local gossip.  (Best was the story of a former fellow fireman who is now in jail.  It seems that he was trying to design a ray gun to zap Muslims until the FBI heard about it.  Tsk. Tsk.)   That too was great fun.  We're so glad that we could do it.

This morning we picked up my sister Marilyn and took her for a half day outing.  Poor Marilyn misses us and she doesn't really grasp the idea of us cruising and where we go.

Right now we are in the heart of the Adirondacks en-route to visit our daughter in law, Cheryl and our granddaughter Vicky in Booneville.  We used the most scenic route through this region from Warrensburg, to Blue Mountain Lake, to Old Forge, and Inlet.  On weekends this area is thick with tourists, but today it wasn't bad.

Tomorrow, we start heading south.  We'll probably wind up somewhere in Pennsylvania.

A little historic note:  Northhampton Beach was the site of one of our most memorable sailing moments ever.   Libby and I had just sailed out of a pea soup fog bank on the lake.   We emerged into bright sunlight and blue sky.  We were just ghosting.  The wind and water were entirely calm.   As we approached the camp site at Northampton, someone was playing the song Amazing Grace loudly.  The music set the perfect moment for this idyllic scene and the image burned itself into my brain and Libby's too.  We both remember it vividly.  (Good topic for a future blog -- most memorable moments.  Many of them were not on Tarwathie.)

On The Move Again

Chesterton, New York

 

Well, it's official.we left Vermont and we are heading south. In a bit more than two weeks, we'll be back on Tarwathie.

Before leaving seas an extra nice last day. Jennifer took us up to Richmond, Vermont. There, we put two kayaks into The Winnoski River, one for Jenny and one for me. Libby took Jenny's truck and left us. Then, Jenny and I had a delightful trip down river toward Essex Junction.

It was fun for several reasons. First, me spending time with Jenny. Second, because I've been longing to get back on the water somehow. Third, because all the years that we lived in Essex Junction, I always wanted to paddle the Winnoski but never did. Fourth, because it was a splendid day. The sky was blue. The river was cold, clear, and swift. We didn't have any real white water, but there were a few places swift enough to say "whee."

Today, we are going to have another day on the water. We are visiting Pete and Mary Ellen at their camp on Sacandaga Lake. Pete will take us out on his boat. Oh boy. Oh boy.

But it was sad to leave Jenny and Pete this morning. We will miss them.