2015 Year in Review

Quite an exciting year this has been.  For the first time, we were able to attend a dance social, that was hosted by the Mohawk Valley USA Dance Chapter #3066 in Utica.

We went on a short Erie Canal Cruise.






  

For the third year in a row, we enjoyed another day at the Woodsmens Field Days, this time watching the chain saw carvings and the birds of prey.

We visited the source of the Black River, the North and South Lakes, and even returned at another time to go paddling on North Lake.

 


 
We loved Eight Lake for its serenity and for the loons that entertained us as we paddled around the lake. Being the only nearby state campground we could find that was open after Labor Day, we were able to return with some visiting relatives.  This time, they not only saw the loons but also a cormorant.



The highlight of the summer was a weekend trip to the Finger Lakes which started with another social dancing in East Syracuse, followed by wildlife viewing at the  Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge then wine tasting on the Cayuga Wine Trail.   We were mesmerized by the beautiful waterfalls at Taughannock Falls State Park.  Watkins Glen State Park's proved worthy of its status as the 3rd best state park in the nation.

Taughannock Falls

Watkins Glens State Park

Like the past years, we've enjoyed the usual lake activities of paddling, swimming, barbecuing, meeting friends and neighbors.  For about a week in the summer, we heard and saw a loon around the lake. We had some excitement rescuing a drifting pontoon using our old aluminum canoe.



But now, the good times have to end.  Fall has arrived and it's time to say adieu to the camp.  Til next year.

Paddling on North Lake

 When we first visited North Lake, we were enthralled by the serenity of the lake and promised to come back to do some paddling.  We finally got the chance to do it on the last Friday of August.  It was a cool, mostly cloudy day but with 0% chance of precipitation, we just had to go.

Unlike the first time when we were just driving through, we signed up at the registry as a day user.

It was still early in the day so there were still a few prime camping sites available.  Although we were not planning to spend the night, it was necessary to secure a campsite where we could set up our inflatable Sea Eagle kayak. Very close to the park register is Site #3 which appeared adequate and it was even close to a fairly clean outhouse.

 The water was very calm that day with hardly any wind, at least at the beginning of our paddle.   Even though we could see a few homes on either side of the lake, it was extremely quiet.  There was only one other vessel in the water, a slow moving pontoon boat.  Surrounded by a dense forest, it felt like a real wilderness.  The water was blackish characteristic of the Black River but still clear in the shallow places, where rocks and boulders can be seen at the bottom, as well as the shore.  Some areas have sandy beaches, including some of the small islands in the middle of the lake.

We would have loved to see a loon or two but sadly, we did not see any nor any other waterfowl.  Even the geese were nowhere around even though their droppings were all over the campsite.  Have they already left for the winter?


After an hour of paddling, we felt we've reached our half-way point and it was time to head back to our campsite.  With an area of 307-acre, North Lake was a little too big for us to completely navigate in 1 day.

On the way back, we decided to put our kayak into Site #5 which had a really nice sandy beach which appeared to have been ignored by the geese.   After our kayak had dried and been packed and we've had our picnic lunch, we set out with the idea of returning someday.  We then hope to pick a campsite further up the road to make sure we'll reach the northern end of the lake.