Burnt-Rossman Hills State Forest, spanning an impressive 10,588 acres, proudly holds the distinction of being Schoharie County’s largest state forest. This natural haven has garnered immense popularity among enthusiasts of outdoor pursuits such as hiking, camping, and various recreational activities.
Traversing a segment of this expansive landscape is the Long Path, a trail adorned with aqua blazes, stretching over 350 miles. Within this forest, the Eminence Lean To stands as a notable point of interest along the Long Path, positioned roughly 0.5 miles to the east of Old Cemetery Road. A crossing of Old Cemetery Road can be spotted just to the south of an ancient burial ground.
Among the captivating features of the forest are the campsites discreetly nestled along Betty Brook Road, as well as the inviting spots found at Duck Pond, situated along Burnt Hill Road.
For those with a penchant for angling and boating, Looking Glass Pond, located along Rossman Hill Road, offers an inviting prospect. This charming pond not only facilitates fishing and boating but also boasts well-maintained fishing platforms courtesy of the Fulton Fish and Game Club.
And I’m mad angry that Wally World in Watkins Glen didn’t have plain, non fat non sugar Greek yogurt that I ducking love. I’m going to Geneva after my bike ride on the Kueka Outlet Trail and I’m hoping after visiting Seneca Lake State Park and riding the Geneva – Waterloo towpath trail and maybe a quick swim I can get Greek yogurt in Geneva as I need that do badly with all the fresh fruit I bought today.
But in the mean time I’m getting ice cream at the Spotted Duck which better be good! And I’m burning daylight. I better get rolling again!
“They say that all good things must end some day. Autumn leaves must fall.” – Summer Song, Chad and Jeremy
Today starts the first weekend of August, the final full month of summer. We very well may have some hot and balmy days well into September, but the reality is the very short season known as summer is rapidly fading into history. Those delightfully long summer days with their balmy heat are rapidly starting to fade into the rear mirror. It’s not say that we won’t have hot and humid summer days in August, but the reality is hottest weather on average, is well behind us.
The days are rapidly getting shorter. The longest day, with dusk not occurring until well after 9 PM is now just history, gone soon after the calendar officially said summer. Now every day gets shorter – maybe only a few minutes each day, but its still fading away quickly. Now that I’m done with grade school and college, the significance of Labor Day weekend, in a few weeks, is not as big as it might have been in years past. But still the tyranny of the calendar can not be overcome – summer will be overcome by fall then quickly winter in a matter of weeks.
Peak color will overtake Moose River Plains three weeks after Labor Day. The highest peaks of the Adirondacks will see falls beauty even quicker. Fall in lower elevations comes a little later – maybe mid-October, but even those dates are not that far away. Those colors are like the yellow on a traffic light, warning us all that winter is not far around the corner. Indeed, by the time we see fall’s beauty, it may very well dip into being pretty cold.
I like fall, and I am sure many of you do too. But it’s coming much too fast, as it always does. Please, get out and enjoy Summer 2023, before it’s too late. There will be future summers, but there will never be another Summer 2023 in our lifetimes. We all will be a year older next summer, and the we all will have changed, regardless what pretend to do.
Honest, I’m trying to do better on the sleep thing. I was asleep by 10 pm last night, after I drove home from Cayuga Lake in Ithaca it was straight to bed. Plus I wanted to get started early today, as I plan to head to Dresden then bike to Penn Yann on the Kueka Outlet Rail Trail, poke around Penn Yann for a while. Then maybe Sugar Hill then Watkins Glen pool. Like if I have time, lol. Or whatever hits my fancy, I will need to get a few groceries later.
Good morning! HappyTuesday. 🌄 Mostly sunny and 53 degrees at the Finger Lakes National Forest. There is a west-northwest breeze at 5 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 53 degrees. Fog 🌫 over Seneca Lake I can see from the backbone.
Decided to set my alarm ⏰ to catch the sunrise but by the time I made it to Searsburg Road I saw the sun had partially beat me. Regardless I got close to eight 8⃣ hours of solid sleep 😴 last night and the sun was just starting over the horizon. Still a good early start to the morning. Lots of coffee ☕ this morning plus cream of wheat with chea seeds for added fiber 🌱, some lemon 🍋 and stevia for sweetness plus walnuts and non fat Greek yogurt. Yum.
Today will be sunny 🌞, with a high of 69 degrees at 4pm. 15 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 28th. Maximum dew point of 54 at 8am. Light and variable wind becoming north 5 to 7 mph in the morning. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies. It was somewhat humid. The high last year was 89 degrees. The record high of 101 was set in 1933. Not this year, lol. 😂
How fast time comes and goes on vacation but there is much more to do. Dresden – Penn Yann today ⛵ and then maybe kayaking 🛶 and fishing 🎣 on Seneca Lake tomorrow, paddling up to Hector Point as it’s expected to be calm. Swimming in Cayuga Lake Thursday I’m thinking 💭 as it will be warmer, maybe the Black Diamond Trail from Ithaca to the Taughannock Gorge. Maybe get clams tonight. 🦪 I concede probably best just to wait for my Labor Day Weekend trip or a Piseco-Powley long weekend trip for the clams but you know what’s on my mind.
Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:14 pm with sun having an altitude of 65.5° from the due south horizon (-5.2° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.7 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:49 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (289°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (296°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:29 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 12 seconds with dusk around 8:59 pm, which is one minute and 9 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the east-southeast (120°) at an altitude of 0° from the horizon, 226,453 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:41 pm. At sunset, look for mostly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 61 degrees. The dew point will be 50 degrees. There will be a north breeze at 5 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 31 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 11 seconds over yesterday.
Busy day yesterday, 🚲 starting at Stewart Park 🏞 heading up to Ithaca Falls and spending the bulk of the day exploring the gorge through the historic Forest Home 🏡 and Beebe Pond 🦆 and then ultimately spending many hours in the Cornell Botanical Gardens. Hell of it is I ended up riding past the dairy bar and it was still open 🥤 but I didn’t realize until I was past it. The ride down Buffalo Street 🐃 in Ithaca was a blast, my bike rotators were so hot from the braking. University 🎓 Ave over Canachilla Creek didn’t offer much in views but riding along the Cayuga Waterfront Trail from NY 96 to the end at other end of Stewart Park was nice. Those suspension bridges 🌉 the trail crosses are neat, and the size of the Ithaca Farmers market building is impressive. I wonder when they are open, I could stop by and stock up. And the sunset 🌇 was great.
Tonight will be mostly clear 🌃, with a low of 51 degrees at 6am. 11 degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around September 19th. Maximum dew point of 50 at 6pm. Light and variable wind becoming south around 6 mph after midnight. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies. It became sticky as the night progressed. It got down to 70 degrees. The record low of 45 occurred back in 1976.
Cool this weekend with temperatures running 10 degrees below normal but otherwise sunny. 😃 Saturday, mostly sunny, with a high near 71. Maximum dew point of 58 at 11am. Sunday, partly sunny, with a high near 75. Maximum dew point of 60 at 4pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 83 degrees. Very low humidity and sunny. Should be a great weekend once we get past the ☔ rain and clouds on Friday.
One month 📅 from now will be September 🍁 when the sun will be setting at 7:43 pm with dusk at 8:11 pm. About fifteenth minutes later then Albany. Enjoy summer before it’s gone as Labor Day will be a memory by then and the kiddos 🧒 back to school 🚸.
And here I am sitting at Stewart Park listening to Otis Redding waiting for the sunset. Maybe I won’t get up so early tomorrow morning. I’m so tired and a bit sunburnt though the protein from the hard boiled egg and a banana gave me some go. Going to be a good sunset tonight. Don’t have to stay up that late after I return to camp.
I was thinking that maybe a big part of the declining mental health of many Americans may be their diet. At one level that seems kind of silly and trivial but diet is the fuel for the human body, and if you are eating poorly not only are you more likely to be bullied and get worse opportunities in life, the quality of your thought processes decline and your ability to think clearly isn’t as strong as one with a good diet.
Now it seems silly to blame serious things like depression or even suicide or homicides on eating too many cookies or hamburgers. I don’t buy the unhealthy chemicals argument but I do think there is a lot of evidence that poor blood sugar levels can lead to poor decision making and impulsive behavior. I’ve seen that in my life. Low blood sugar makes me cranky and angry, while high blood sugar can put me in euraphic state, taking unnecessary risks. Insufficient protein levels not only makes you weak but gives you unclear thinking and vitamin deficiency can cause all kinds of issues.
A bicycle is a great thing. You can park for free and ride all over. No searching for parking or paying, just need a bike rack or a sturdy location to lock the bike up to! 🚲
Now I want to see more of the campus and get a milk shake at the Cornell Dairy Bar 🐮 but that will have to wait for another day as it’s getting late and I want to explore a bit more of the gorge, 📸 then head back down to Stewart Park 🏞 on Cayuga Lake before heading back to camp ⛺. I’m tired 😴 I stayed up super late last night with a sugar high but then woke up early too. Vacation should be relaxing and not so busy, so I want to have a good dinner before retiring to bed 🛏 in my pickup.
