The Rattlesnake Hill Wildlife Management Area is a 5,100 acre upland tract, situated approximately eight miles west of Dansville, New York. Roughly two-thirds of the area lies in southern Livingston County, while the remaining third lies in northern Allegany County. The tract was purchased in the 1930’s under the Federal Resettlement Administration and is one of several such areas turned over to DEC for development as a wildlife management area.
The area is appropriately named after the Timber Rattlesnake, which may be occasionally found in the more remote sections of the “Hill”.
The area offers an interesting blend of upland habitats such as mature woodland, overgrown fields, conifer plantations, old growth apple orchards and open meadows.
The area is inhabited by a variety of game species and is open to public hunting. The white-tailed deer, wild turkey, ruffed grouse, grey squirrel, cottontail rabbit and woodcock are found on the area. An occasional snowshoe hare may be observed adjacent to thick creek bottom brush or conifer plantation habitats.
A number of small marsh units have been developed and provide limited hunting for waterfowl. Some of the area’s furbearing species such as mink, beaver and raccoon may be occasionally viewed at these marsh units.
I used to cook a lot more on charcoal while camping but lately I’ve been using the gas stove more. But I forgot how good a breakfast tastes cooked on charcoal. 🍳 Sausages get that nice smoked taste as do the eggs. The fire tends to be fairly consistent but slow, it radiates warmth even on a fairly cool morning.🔥 Maybe it’s a little bit more work and slower but the results are wonderful.
I’ve decided if I am not going to buy a house right away — and my dreams of building a cabin are probably best to wait until retirement — I am going to focus more on travel in next few years. While I won’t say it will be spare no expense, I should also not be worried about pinching every penny or shaving every mile off trips.
People say I was nuts when I was Coney Island and wasn’t willing to pay $7 for an authentic Nathan’s Hot Dog from the beach. Maye I should have just gone for it, as who knows if I will ever be in Coney Island again. It’s great to save and invest in your future, I do think I should also have a bit of fun and not missing out on some great adventure along the way due to a $5 admission fee, when you’re 500 miles away from home.
If I am dreaming of moving out west, then I really should plan trips out west. Maybe next summer, especially if I end up replacing Big Red with something a bit more fuel efficent. Or gasp! Taking a plane and renting a car. I don’t want to go to tourist traps, I want open country, probably places that are relatively inexpensive and interesting to visit.
As the temperature pushes one ninty plus degrees in my bedroom, I’m still content with my decision not to have air conditioning. I know that these days you can buy a window air conditioner for under $200 and it’s unlikely to increase my utility bill more than $20 a month – it’s not a technology I believe in.
Sure my truck has air conditioning and that works modestly well, but I don’t think I would necessarily use it if not for the noise reduction and fuel savings it provides. I do like the nice cold of the city buses and my office but I also ride them in the day time in the city where the air is stagnant.
I live without air conditioning by avoiding being home during the daytime. That means Monday through Friday being at work, while spending the weekends in the wilderness, traveling, camping and visiting state park pools and swimming holes in the back country. I don’t get home from work until around six, when the worse of the heat usually has broken. I usually have a quick sandwich or a light fare then walk down to the park, or if it’s really hot, the air conditioned library. Then I will sit out back with a cold drink until around around eleven and usually by then most of the heat has broken.
I think it’s better to spend money on traveling to the wilderness, camping and swimming in ice cold mountain streams, having a nice evening out back and in the park fishing or reading then paying for the artificial cool! I have a fairly big box fan I use on stuffy nights like this in my bedroom and I’ll have some ice cream or juice before bed, but I figure it’s just better to get used to the heat and enjoy summer.
Eventually I’m thinking of moving to a warmer climate to avoid the snow, ice and road salt. That means even hotter summers. I need to learn to adapt to the heat as I don’t believe in air conditioning and it can be expensive and difficult to do in an office grid cabin – although with ample insulation and sufficient storage it’s definitely possible. The more practice I get in embracing the heat today, the less trouble I’ll have tomorrow.
I often think it’s silly how worked up people get about politics. The fact is, as an individual, you don’t have a lot of control over the political system. You are as much of a victim of politics as everyone else is in the public. However, you real power in your own life choices, be it the community you choose to live in, the lifestyle you choose and the people you choose to associate with day to day.
That’s an awful bigoted slogan in my book. While one should pay attention to anything that follows the rule of three – be it the fire gong in an office building or three leaved plants, not all three leaved plants are harmful. Box alder and virignia creeper is common along river banks and partial sun exposure ecosystems in Upstate NY but it is harmless – it’s not Urishol bearing poison ivy.
I am terribly allergic to Urishol. This sap gives me blisters that can easily explode on my skin, pop and be an itchy, goo filled mess. One my face I’ve had my eyes swell shut and it’s hard to breathe. Often poison ivy hangs out close to immature box alder and Virginia Creeper as they like similar ecosystems and in some forms can look alike. But I don’t fear or stay away from Virginia Creeper and all three leaved plants, I just look carefully to ensure no poison ivy and be on my way.
