Finger Lakes Day 4

The college kids were loud as expected. I called the park ranger at eleven and she came and talked to them. They were quiet enough for a bit that I could fall asleep, but they woke me up at a quarter after one, so I called again. Once I am awake it takes forever for me to fall back to sleep. Needless to say I did not get much sleep last night. So those guys were completely lying to us last night telling us they heard us and that they would be quiet. They had every intention of being loud and just thought they could push us around and get us to bend to their whim. However, the second time I called the ranger, she called the park police. They must have dealt with it because I don’t hear the drunk guys again.

I was up this morning just before seven as was G3. I got the Jetboil and we made hot chocolate and coffee. While we sipped our drinks we read. I just started the memoir Through the Groves by Anne Hull. It is the book my book club has selected for our July discussion. Even though I will most likely miss the next meeting—we’ll be on the road again—I want to read the memoir because it looks good and so that I can talk about it if it comes up in future discussions.

This morning we went to Watkins Glen to hike the gorge trail because I had read it was pretty. And it was. There was a series of waterfalls and the rocks were carved and grooved by the creek running through them. The trail was paved and contained 837 steps. It was three miles out and back and felt much more like a walk than a hike. And the crowd. UGH! There were far too many people and the fact that they were walking sometimes two abreast along a narrow path and stopping continuously to take pictures severely damped the experience. At one point, I commented that I felt like I was in the New York subway during rush hour, but kati replied pointing out that it was worse because people in the city walk with a purpose and don’t stop to take pictures. She was right. I am glad we went. If we hadn’t, I might have felt like I missed something, but I certainly have no desire to go back, unless I have the opportunity to so in the off season.

This morning, Kati came across a pamphlet for the Corning Museum of glass, and since G3 had been enthralled by the glassblowing demonstration years ago in Jamestown, she thought it might be fun for him if we went there. While booking the tickets online, Kati noticed that you could also pay to make your own glass. She thought that would be fun for G3 so she bought him a ticket for that as well. What a bust. A complete waste of our money. He didn’t get to make the glass. He blew three times. That’s it. The employee did all the work. So disappointing. They should not call it making your own glass because that is deceiving. A corporate ploy to get you to spend money.

The glassblowing demonstration was okay. I suspect we might have enjoyed and appreciated it more had we not experienced glassblowing demonstrations elsewhere. We all agreed that our glass experience in Jamestown far surpassed our experience here and that was all entirely free. Even back then G3 got to blow the glass. The demonstrator let him try because he could see how interested he was.

As for the exhibits in the museum, most of them touched on the science of making different types of glass. What I found interesting was that Corning devised fused silica, a type of glass that can withstand extreme heat. It’s what NASA uses for the windshield of the space shuttle.

We are in the Finger Lakes, so of course we needed to stop in at a winery. Kati chose Bet the Farm Winery since it is only a few miles from where we are camping. After tasting all ten of their wines, Kati declared it was the best winery she had ever been to. She liked each wine more than the previous. I thought the wine was good, but I wasn’t as enthralled she was.

Back at our campsite we ate an early dinner and then played cards. In the distance, we could hear the fireworks going off. I am worried about our kittens home alone. It’s their first fourth of July. I hope they aren’t too scared by the noise. I miss the little guys. I always dread going home after being on the road, but at least now I can look forward to seeing them.