1,742 mile NYS drive, thx bubba and teejay

[coldfeet]

It's not a view from the top but since my knees aren't feeling well I wanted to go site seeing around NY....I've been slowly working on my viewandbrew list (Tom Rankin's)

I started on 8/18 and finished on 8/24..Drove from Long Island to Buffalo to Niarga to Rochester to Syracuse to Oswego back to Syracuse to Ithaca to Watkins Glen!...every spot was beautiful!...so many different types of landscapes....from waterfalls in Letchworth park to the bottom of Niagra Falls at Devil's hole....Little Rock city is crazy to the gas burning flame at Eternal Flame....Bluffs at Oswego (Lake Ontario) to the Gorges .....


Big thx to bubba for putting me up for 2 nights and driving app 400 miles with me in Buffalo.....sorry but my car can't hit 100mph on those roads.... and big the to teejay for showing my around the Syracuse area ....biggest salt producer in the 1850S....ps the NY State Fair was awesome.....wine slushies, beer and COWBELLS!...More Cowbells!

Big thx to Tom and Dawn for their web site....i found a very close long lost friend in Syracuse....I'll be going back up there to ice fish and snow mobile in Dec and hopefully winter camping....here are some pics....seems like a lot (47) but I went to 10 breweries and 10 hikes, many were nature centers...

ps..my wife joined me in Syracuse and hated the 325 mile drive back home..

I just recently bad a beer in Brooklyn and saw Grant's Tomb in Manhattan...Do you know who's buried in Grant's tomb?...

http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/566136605qsjBkx

 

[1ADAM12]

To bad I did not know you were in the area. I am not far from Watkins at all and maybe we could have done some wine tasting around the Finger Lakes

 

[Jay H]

Yeah, but wine tasting wont count as a view and brew

I might be able to drive that distance for ice cream but you wont find me driving for beer...

Jay

 

[ajtiv]

Coldfeet
Sounds like a tasty way to see the state.
That was a lot of mileage.
So what was your favorite beer and favorite hike?
Al

 

[ROCKYSUMMIT]

Hey David, I love beer but that's some mileage! Looks like you had a great time! Loved the pics.
-Tony

 

[daxs]

Well, Wagner Winery on Lake Seneca also has a micro brewery. The beer there though is just OK. Tom/Laurie is this one on your list??

Dave when were you in Watkins Glen? I was in that area the weekend of 8/23 myself.

 

[Tom Rankin]

Well, Wagner Winery on Lake Seneca also has a micro brewery. The beer there though is just OK. Tom/Laurie is this one on your list??

Dave when were you in Watkins Glen? I was in that area the weekend of 8/23 myself.

Yup! http://viewsandbrews.com/ny/NYList.html

I agree with David, VNBs was a great way to see many things that NY State has to offer! It was a great adventure!

 

[coldfeet]

Hi guys, will answer some questions....

1ADAM12 and DAXS....Watkins Glen was really nice...we were there on our last day, Sunday the 24th...I can imagine how the gorge looks after a huge rain storm.....I should be back in that area probably in the Fall, my son wants to visit Cornell and some other schools...will keep u posted..

Jay and Tony....It was a long drive but the weather was beautiful and there really wasn't any traffic at all until I got back near Harriman...I did get to taste Buffalo's best hot dogs and Syracuse's best hot dogs...I think Brooklyn's Nathans has them beat....maybe I'll do a hot dog/ hike NY drive next time?...hmmm is there a patch for that?

Al....tough question....I did like the Syracuse Empire beer a lot....maybe because it was the 3rd brewery I was at that day and I was not rushing....I also liked the Scale House beer in Ithaca....the best hike?....well if you look at at the pics the trips were all so different....I loved the bluffs over looking Lake Ontario.....the gorges are amazing with all of the ladder type rock waterfalls and carved out swimming holes.....natural gas flowing behind a waterfall in Buffalo was really cool and the glacial deposits that were cracked and you can walk through them was something to be seen....#24 coming up is Montauk Point and you know how nice that is....and the last is FDR's mansion/library off the Taconic which has to be really nice......many of the trip I have done with family/friends has been educational....just walking over the Brooklyn Bridge was really nice and last week I went to Grant's Tomb off 125th st....like Tom said the list takes you to so many different towns, cities, habitats.... I didn't mention how spectacular our Capital building is....Al, if you haven't been there you would love the building, both outside and inside.....hey don't get me wrong I loved the views from the top but NY has views from many different angles....if I had to pick one place I'd probably pick the view from the bluffs on Lake Ontario....just something about the beach/water and sun setting....but all of the waterfalls are next....I remember meeting a guy at one of the gatherings who wrote a book about NE waterfalls...anyone remember him?....be well everyone.....David

 

[Rick]

Wow - Glad you liked the state CF!!
So taking your idea further, maybe a bunch of us around NYS (and other states for that matter) should set up a VFTT volunteer hostel Overnighter program. To join everyone (who is interested in joining) signs up and hosts other hikers at their abode for a night or two. It could be anything from sleeping on a porch or lawn with their gear to sleeping in a spare bedroom.
Folks could charge say $5/per person or some other nominal figure to cover breakfast or showers or whatever.

In order to be in the program you would need to offer to host.
Thoughts?

 

[daxs]

Gee Dave, I was wine tasting on Lake Seneca on the 24th and spent some time in Watkins Glen. It is nice doing something different. On Saturday, Jim and I biked along the Pine Creek Trail outside of Wellsboro Pa ( the grand canyon of PA). Sunday did the wine tour. Its been a couple of years since I have been at the family property in PA so I spent time exploring our acerage and just enjoying being outdoors. MAde me question why I was not making more use of our camp in PA and enjoying all there is to offer in that area.

 

[Jay H]

Wow - Glad you liked the state CF!!
So taking your idea further, maybe a bunch of us around NYS (and other states for that matter) should set up a VFTT volunteer hostel Overnighter program. To join everyone (who is interested in joining) signs up and hosts other hikers at their abode for a night or two. It could be anything from sleeping on a porch or lawn with their gear to sleeping in a spare bedroom.
Folks could charge say $5/per person or some other nominal figure to cover breakfast or showers or whatever.

In order to be in the program you would need to offer to host.
Thoughts?

Too Late, there are already various hosting places set up, I'm a member of warmshowers.org

which is just one of the various hosting sites but WS is geared towards bicycle tourists, of which I am one. I hosted two couples last year, both on their way to NYC and I always have fun talking to them about their travels and they always appreciate the hospitality as well as the local knowledge of the roads and stuff.

I extend this option to the VFTT family, I'm fairly convenient to NYC, but not exactly the ADKs or the Whites

Jay

 

[coldfeet]

Great idea Rick!....Don't know how you could set it up on the web but I'm sure someone knows how to do it...

In case anyone is interested seeing the East end of Long Island....Wineries, Hamptons, beaches....my place is open!...Just send a pm and I'll help out as best as possible...

Carol....it's weird how we get caught up in other places and forget what's in our own backyards sometimes...I heard the NJ grand canyon is really nice....also love the Mullica river....we should do a fall gathering there....