Seneca Lake and Geneva, NY

Our latest travels took us to an overnight stay to Corning, NY, in Steuben County in southern New York State. On our way there from Utica, the big news of that day (Sunday) was a huge lake effect snowstorm pummeling areas just north of Syracuse, NY. Oswego County was buried under 3 feet of snow. The city of Fulton declared a snow emergency as visibility dropped to zero and multiple accidents closed roads.

About 20 miles south of all this activity, we we driving along the Thruway, and it looked like this:

Not a snowflake in the air. Absolutely frigid cold temperatures, and the wind was wicked. We could see the clouds to the north– the lake effect clouds blasting the area north of us. Lake effect is so strange and so fickle! As we continued to drive west, we could see dark blue clouds broiling in the horizon. They were white and puffy on the top, but underneath, they were gray and blurry and looked like they were shooting down toward the land. It was like someone with a great big thumb came and smudged the clouds down to the earth. It was the lake effect at work, far, far away to the west over Lake Ontario. We could see it forming and watch it crashing down, but we never experienced a snowflake. I so wished to get a photo of the clouds, but we were traveling too fast. We sped westward.

Geneva, situated at the northern tip of Seneca Lake, is a lovely little city. It reminds me somewhat of Little Falls, but the buildings and streets aren’t as crowded. Population is under 15,000. Geneva is the original site of an old Seneca Indian village. The site is beautiful. The city sits on a slope, and the houses and roads clamber up the hill from the lake. Between buildings, you can see the lake glittering below.

Geneva is part of an area renowned for its great political and social movements. Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to graduate from a medical school, studied in Geneva, because it was the only place that would allow a woman to study medicine. Seneca Falls (haven of the suffrage movement, teetotalers, and abolitionists) is nearby.

Geneva is a well-established, wealthy city. I love the architecture. Here are some photos of the local rowhouses.

They are painted so vibrantly and have been maintained so well.

Below is the old Geneva Hotel, established in 1796. The street is brick.

Here’s the Presbyterian Church. It’s newer than many of the buildings, but the architecture is so clean and pristine.

Seneca State Park runs along the northern brim of the lake. I thought it would be great to venture out on the pier and take some photos out toward the center of the lake. Everyone else was silent and looked at me strangely. The temperature had risen to a balmy 11 degrees, and the wind was whipping wildly. I begged the boys to come with me, and, being the devoted boys that they are (plus risking being grounded for life), they came along.

It was f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g. Almost unbearable. My camera was freezing up and my hands were red and painful. We did run out to the pier to snap a few photos, and ran right back to the waiting van. Brr! See what the New York Traveler does for a blog photo-op?

The photos turned out rather nice, considering the overcast skies.

Here, the Episcopal Church towers over this section of the city. It looks like a castle, doesn’t it?

Geneva was beautiful. We’d wanted to see some of the historical homes in the area, but they were all closed for the winter. I guess heating those old beasts is too difficult. I wouldn’t have minded walking around in them without heat. Oh, well. Maybe someday.

We drove out of Geneva down Route 14 south. This route runs parallel to the western side of Seneca Lake, and the views are beautiful.

Seneca Lake is one of New York’s Finger Lakes– so named because they are long and thin and stretch across the state like fingers of a hand. Seneca Lake is the second-longest Finger Lake. Trout are abundant here. Because the lake is so deep, it has been used for submarine testing!

The Seneca nation of the Iroquois Indians lived here, until they made the mistake of siding with the British during the Revolutionary War (they lost). They were driven from their lands. The fertile land is now home to dozens of vineyards and wineries. The Seneca Wine Trail (something the Mr. and I hope to experience someday) is one of the larger tourist attractions in the area. The views of the vineyards drifting down toward the glassy blue water was exhilarating and left me breathless and trembling. Or, it might have been because it was 10 degrees. Whatever.

One of the finest views of the lake is at the Glenora Winery on Route 14.

None of the lake that we could see was frozen at all (save a tiny portion we saw in Geneva around some rocks and pamphas grass). The lake looked just as fresh and perky as if it was June. There was really no snow in the area from Harmony Beach (just south of Geneva) until Watkins Glen, and the southernmost tip of the lake. These slightly warmer conditions are favorable for grape-growing.

We drove to Corning (south of Watkins Glen), to a little hotel that I’d found on TripAdvisor. As you regular readers know, we do not stay overnight anywhere very frequently, as we prefer daytrips. However, we got a terrific deal on accommodations and sightseeing in Corning, so we made a night of it.

We stayed at the America’s Best Value Inn: Lodge on the Green in Painted Post, NY. I have my full review at my page on TripAdvisor.com. It was a wonderful place and the cost just couldn’t be beat– it was a fraction of what other places were asking. We enjoyed our stay and wish it could have been longer! If we decide to return to this area (no doubt we will), we’ll reserve another room at the Lodge.

I’ll be posting about our jaunts around the Corning, NY, area soon. I’m preparing photos and a few videos, so stay tuned!

The Fish Hatchery in Van Hornesville, NY

The beginning of spring in Upstate New York is a beautiful thing. Spring is coming! Last March about this time, we decided to break out of our winter hibernation hole and go for a drive in the country. My youngest son wanted to go fishing that day (he is a fishing maniac– he even reads fishing magazines), but no one else did. So we did the next best thing, for a fish freak: we visited a fish hatchery.

Our choices were whittled down to the hatchery in Rome or in Van Hornesville. We opted for Van Hornesville; perhaps some other day we’ll see what Rome is like. If you are a fish freak, you can find out more about New York State hatcheries here.

Van Hornesville stocks only Rainbow Trout, a beautiful fish. And yummy. The action starts here, in the Nursery:

The tanks were swarming with billions of teeny-tiny fish. The place reeked something fierce, too. Outside, various muddy paths led to large tanks with medium-sized trout.

There are a total of 12 pools, most of them are filled with the medium-sized fish. Click the photo for a larger one from Flickr.com.

The fish were irresistible. Some of the kids tried to grab one. Rrrrright! These buggers were slippery. The water was very cold. My son said some of the fish tried to nibble his hand with their beak-like snouts.

The fish were a great, big squirming mass of brown fish. When I tapped the pool’s concrete wall with my boot, the entire mass moved in unison away from the wall. The fish were amazingly active. Hundreds of them flagellated just below the surface of the water. Some leaped from the water, showing off their pink flanks and brown freckles.

Wandering further, we came to an employee of the hatchery (there are three who work here). It looked like he was making a big pot of soup.

He was actually cleaning the pool of bacterial debris, which had accumulated in the water pipes. The water was a brown swirling mass of gooey debris. Ugh. The employee, Mr. D, said there were fish in there. We waited for the water to clear, and then we saw them. BIG MONSTER fish!

I tried to take a picture of the one who kept coming close to the surface. The photo is not so hot, but maybe you can see the fish better if you enlarge the photo.

Their mouths were large white traps, snapping open and closed as they swam. As they swam, they reminded me of the movements a shark makes as it swims in the deep. Some were allowing the swirling current to drag them backwards. Others were quite aggressive, bonking the slower fish out of the way. I’d say the fish were a good ten to twelve pounds, and maybe a yard long. Some had very bright pink sides. You could see the beautiful color even through the murky water. They looked delicious.

We talked with Mr. D who was more than happy to tell us everything we wanted to know about the fish.

The Van Hornesville hatchery raise these trout to distribute them into lakes and streams, local and even as far away as Long Island. The employees do become familiar the fish they have raised, sometimes becoming attached to them and giving them names. They also take delight in surprising unsuspecting local fisherman by dumping these monster trout into local ponds. A fisherman might just be out fishing for sunfish or perch, and snag a whopper trout instead! He told us that he once caught one of these Rainbows when fishing in Canadarago Lake and was shocked to measure it at 44 inches.

Mr. D told us one story about encountering a fisherman who had just pulled an enormous trout from a local pond. The fisherman lifted the great fish from his bucket to show him the prize. Mr. D promptly recognized this fish that he’d cared for since a fry. Mr. D yelled, “That’s ole Leatherback!” taking the fisherman completely aback. In the local diner that night, the fish find was the talk of the town.

It was a nice visit, even for a fish hatchery! Certainly this was no fanciful outing, but it was so good to be outside again and to drive on clear roads with the sun shining! From the hatchery, we ventured on to a few other places. But these narratives will have to wait, because I am going to get to bed in a timely fashion tonight! More to come.

Sodus Lighthouse, Sodus Point, NY

We drove to the other side of New York to visit Lake Ontario again. This time we saw the lighthouse at Sodus Point, New York. There is a museum here, a nice park, and a refreshing jaunt down to the water’s edge.

Very few places are open during the winter, and the lighthouse museum is no exception. But we love the lake, and having seen it in the summer, we wanted to see it in the winter, too. We got the added benefit of experiencing lake effect snow firsthand, too (without having to wait for the snow to blow across the state to Central NY, where we live).

Sodus Point is in Wayne County, and the place has a lot of history. The town was formed in 1789. It is said that the name “Sodus” comes from an Indian word “gleam in the water.” I didn’t see too much gleam (due to the thick clouds and snowfall), but I did see an overwhelming multitude of apple orchards. I have never seen so many apple farms and orchards as I have in this location in New York State.

Sodus Point has a lovely, natural harbor, and became a central port in New York State for trading along the Lake. As it’s importance grew during the early 1800s, and as America and Britain were clashing over sea trade agreement, it is no surprise that Sodus Point became a target. The village of Sodus was burned and destroyed by the British in 1813, during the War of 1812. After the war, it was rebuilt again. Sodus Point is now a popular vacation resort.

The lighthouse on the premises was built in 1871. It replaced one that had been built in 1824. The lighthouse no longer functions as a lighthouse; it closed in 1901, and is now a museum.

The grounds are very nice, but sparse. There are benches. A worn path lead us to an ivy-covered arbor. Beyond the arbor is a stone with a plaque, commemorating the old lighthouse.

From here, we wandered to the lake. Great thick sheets ice covered the sandy beach. Waves crashed into the ice, producing sprays of icicles that sometimes went airborne. Our feet crunched on top of the ice. The edges of the ice looked like the baleen of whales. Underneath these “teeth,” the water rolled, causing the ice to emit crackling and groaning sounds. We dared not move too close to the edge of the ice.

The kids collected seashells (even in the snow!) and did their usual exploring. The snow was beginning to fall heavily. We decided to trudge our way back up the hill and drive around the lake edge.

Sodus is a little town. I think the population is about 1,000 or so. Many of the houses looked weary. Then again, it was winter and the clouds were thick and gray and overcast everything with their gloom. The falling snow made the scene cheerier.

This cute tree caught my eye. It’s a Christmas tree, fully decorated, hanging on a crane! Funny!

And this little red tugboat looked so perky, despite being beached for the winter.

This section of the lake (the marina) was frozen over. I wish I had been able to take a photo of what we saw next– people atop these little sailboat-like boats scouring the ice. The sails were white but the boat was bright yellow. There must have been skis or something like it. The wind was blowing and the skiffs were shooting across the ice very quickly. It looked like such fun! I was driving when we saw them and couldn’t take their picture. Sorry. It was so neat to see them!

We got a few pictures of the boats. They were covered with bright blue tarp, but looked sad underneath. I guess I’d be sad, too, if I had to sit out winter on the ice, waiting for spring to be free again.

We did see large areas of open water. Signs spelled it out for anyone who didn’t notice: “DANGER. Open water!” We saw people all over the ice. Some folks seemed to be out for a stroll on the lake; others were fishing.

Brrr. It’s looking blustery on the lake by now.

I don’t know if Lake Ontario freezes over during the winter. Anyone have any ideas? My kids say it doesn’t, because the lake is so active. This winter has so far been rather mild (with only a few days below zero so far), so this year’s weather may have changed the outlook. Does Lake Ontario freeze over?

The weather was turning more threatening, and the skies were growing dark, so our travel here had to end. We will return in the summer and explore this end of the lake a little more next time. Life by such a large and influential lake is so unique. An entire subculture grows around it, I’m sure. I’d love to visit during a fishing event or when cargo barges come in. I’ll bet there’d be a lot of action then!

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

If you are a fanatic traveler, do you need to find the best RV Camping?  No matter where you travel to, our website will put you in touch with the best RV parks, RV rentals and RV Supplies!  No matter what type of RV you own, we will find an RV camp to accommodate!  You can even buy an RV online!