Boonville Fitness

The Boonville Health and Fitness Club, located at 199 Post Street,  has been serving the Boonville area for 25 years or so.  As recently as two months ago, it has been acquired by new owners and renamed Boonville Fitness.



 

Chad Richardson, formerly of the US Army's 101st Airborne and now a DEC cop and his wife Trista, an occupational therapist, just appear to be the perfect couple to head this center.




On our first visit, 2 weeks ago, we were welcomed by a very friendly Max with a free trial.  Pleased with the facility, we are now regulars at the gym.  With about 10 treadmills, 4-5 bicycles and ellipticals, 9 Nautilus, and others I can't name, there are more than enough machines to get us pumped up.

Main Room at Boonville Fitness.  More equipment in smaller rooms.

Leg Press

If we want to use a machine we're not familiar with, Chad is always eager to teach us how.  We've also met some other very friendly clients who gave us helpful tips as well.  If we want to, we can hire our own personal trainer.

Special classes are offered there by different instructors, like zumba every Saturday.  A 3-day youth fitness clinic is planned in July followed by the kids' fitness classes in August.

Chad is hoping that these programs will generate more interest in the fitness center.  We wish Boonville Fitness much success because we plan to continue to go there for as long as we have our camp on Kayuta Lake.

Boonville Farmer's Market

The last time I went to the Boonville Farmer's Market, it was a dreary day in October.  There were not that many vendors and aside from the sweet corn, I was not impressed with the produce selection.  The market was then located on Main Street and Route 12 behind the Nice N Easy.

February 2013 saw a suspicious fire which totally destroyed a century-old building at the site of the farmer's market.  The 2 1/2-story village storage barn was used as a warming hut for the village skating rink.  Destroyed during the fire were all of the skates for the skating rink and 17 brand new canoes donated by the Black River Environmental Improvement Association (BREIA) as well as some historical artifacts from the Black River Canal Museum . The farmers market lost all its equipment and supplies among which were some tents, a stereo sound system, billboards, signs and banners, all new gas grill, refrigerator/freezer and 2 picnic tables.  Despite the devastating loss, the farmer's market was able to move to the Boonville Fairgrounds and open the 2013 season on time. 

Now on its fifth year, the Boonville Farmers Market is open every Thursday noon to 6pm from June to October.  Only vendors from Oneida and Lewis counties are allowed to sell in the market. When my husband and I visited last Thursday. there were about 12 vendors with products consisting of cheeses, tea, bread, pies, herbs and some potted plants, and even some clothes.  Aside from some strawberries, rhubarb, lettuce, there were not that many fresh produce.  But then  again, it was only the middle of June.

We found an early favorite in Creative Shepherd Farm from Ava NY.  It was interesting to listen to farmer/owner Sebastian Interlandi as he enthusiastically explained how he made the products that were displayed.  After trying his samples, we bought the roasted garlic and herb cheese and the strawberry rhubarb jam.  He said he makes regular trips to Ecuador to buy the raw sugar he uses for all his jams which he also sells to the public.  I looked so disappointed when he had ran out of the ginger-flavored cheese that he generously allowed me to take home the sample bottle. What a great guy!

From the Cranberry Ridge Farm Bakery of Williamstown NY, we got a garlic baguette to go with the cheeses we just got.  And then a raspberry pie from another baker.

Savoring our purchases back home, we made a vow to return to the farmer's market in the near future.




Sources:
Boonville Farmer's Market: Local Harvest
Fire ravages Boonville Farmers Market Site: Watertown Daily Times
One of a kind historical artifacts destroyed in Boonville Fire: WKTV

Market, museum, lose equipment, artifacts: Rome Sentinel

100-year-old building, skates, canoes destroyed in Boonville fire:UticaOD.com

Oriskany Battlefield

During our visit to Fort Stanwix, we learned of the fort's contribution to the cause of the War for Independence.  In August 1777, it was attacked by a combined force of British, German, Canadian, Loyalists and Indian forces led by Lieut. Col. Barry St. Leger.

While Fort Stanwix (then called Fort Schuyler) was being attacked, Brig. Gen Nicholas Herkimer led 800 militiamen and 60 allied Oneida warriors from Fort Dayton (now Herkimer, NY) to aid the fort against the siege.  Before reaching the fort, they fell into a trap set up by British and loyalist troops (who were sent from Fort Stanwix ) in a ravine west of Oriskany Creek about 6 miles east of the fort. The ensuing battle fought on Aug. 6, 1777 was described as "one of the bloodiest battles of the war."  Only about 150 of the 800 rebels survived without serious injury and many of them were taken prisoners by Tory Indians. The Battle of Oriskany caused the death of General Herkimer 10 days after sustaining a wound to his leg. The battle only ended when the Tory Indians (followed by the British-Loyalists) left after hearing news that their camps have been raided by rebels.

Back at Fort Shuyler,  Leger's Native American allies, discouraged by the failure of the siege and wary of the coming reenforcement led by Major General Benedict Arnold, abandoned him causing Leger to end the siege and retreat to Canada.  Leger's forces were supposed to go to Albany to join Gen. Burgoyne's campaign to capture the Lake Champlain-Lake George-Hudson River waterway. Leger's retreat lead to Burgoyne's defeat in Saratoga. The American victory in Saratoga and Fort Schuyler lead directly to alliances with France and Netherlands.  With these alliances, the United States was able to sustain the fight for independence leading to their final victory and British surrender in Yorktown in 1781.

On Aug. 6, 1884, an 85-foot high monument was dedicated on the site of  this battle as a memorial to those who fought bravely for freedom. The Oriskany Battlefield was designated a New York State Historic site in 1927 and a National Historic Landmark in 1963.

 
Now, visitors can explore the site and read interpretive signs.  A mowed path leads to the ravine where General Herkimer's troops were ambushed.  We wanted to follow the entire trail which according to cnyhiking.com is only 0.8 mile.  We were however being inundated by a driving rain, somewhat akin to what occurred during the battle. Unlike the brave combatants who regrouped, we decided to retreat and come back another day.

Hemlock Tea

We took our time getting back to Kayuta Lake from our primary residence by stopping at some of our country's famous sites - LasVegas, Hoover Dam, Carlsbad Caverns.  One unexpected consequence of this late arrival appeared to be the loss of our hummingbirds.  Up until a few days after we arrived, they still have not come.


Looking at our lonely feeder, my attention was directed to the young buds on the hemlock tree, one of  several surrounding our camp. The Eastern Hemlock. (Tsuga canadensis), also called Canada hemlock is a slow-growing tree which can take 250 to 300 years to reach maturity to a height of around 70 feet.  It can live for as long as 800 years.  It had been an important source of lumber, its use peaking between 1890 and 1910, primarily used for light framing, sheathing, roofing, subflooring, boxes, crates and general millwork.  Presently, it is used in pulping or newsprint and wrapping papers. In the past, tannin from its bark was used to process leather.  The dark color of the Black River is purportedly due to tannin in its waters.

The bark and leaves of the hemlock can be used to make tea. For centuries, the Iroquois people drank it as their common tea especially in the winter when they needed extra vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamin C.  In 1525, the French explorer Jacques Cartier was the first European who used tea from the bark and leaves of "annedda" (the Onendaga name for Hemlock) to treat his crew members who were afflicted with scurvy. Some other beneficial effects of hemlock include being helpful in kidney and bladder problems,  as a wash for external sores and ulcers, as a mouthwash for canker sores, gangrene and throat problems. Powdered bark can be put in the shoes for tender or sweaty feet or for foot odor. It is good for uterine and colon problems, can be used as douche for leukorrhea and as an enema for diarrhea.  Leafy twigs have been used in steam baths for rheumatism, colds, fevers, diarrhea, cough, stomach troubles and scurvy. Hemlock however, has an abortive effect and should never be used in pregnancy.


The Eastern Hemlock should not be confused with poison hemlock which caused the death of Socrates. Poison hemlock (Conium maculatum)is a herbaceous weed that grows between 5-8 feet tall with leaves that resemble parsley and small white flowers in the spring.  All parts are poisonous and ingestion causes death by respiratory paralysis. According to wikipedia, the similarity in smell of the crushed leaves of the tree probably lead to its being named hemlock despite of its being totally unrelated to poison  hemlock.


Assured of its safety, I was ready to try brewing my own hemlock tea. Internet sites showed varying amounts of needles to be used: half a palmful of needles from short twigs (yourleaf.org), one palmful of young needles (vintagehikingdepot.com, needles from 8 small branchlets (youtube), 1 tsp of inner bark, twigs or needles (coolhemp.com). These are then steeped in a cup of hot/boiling water for 10-12 minutes and then strained to remove the needles.


Since the more favorable taste was reported by those who used young needles, I collected only the lightest green needles found on the tips of the branchlets.  I poured a cup of hot boiling water and steeped it for 12 minutes.








The tea was light in color, with a subtle, pleasant taste and a piney aroma.  I did not notice any bitter taste which might be related to the tannin content which is mostly the source of its beneficial effects.  Maybe I should have used or added more mature needles but then again, I think I like my tea just like the way I made it.