Weekend in LV

Nicki and I spent the weekend in Little Valley. Left Oberlin Saturday morning with rain storms coming in from the west. If we had stayed in Oberlin we would have been treated later that day to a tremendous thunderstorm - finally the rain we needed and the lawns are green again). On our way we stopped at New York’s Long Point State Park on Chautauqua Lake. Water was choppy as a result of all the powerboats sharing the lake. Didn’t see much wildlife other than a few herons. The lake was very grassy and weedy for 50-60 yards from the shore which doesn’t impede the kayaks but does make the water very unclear. The kayaks run well and ride the ups and downs without feeling unstable.

Leaving the park we were greeted by a fox sitting 20-30 feet from the road’s edge. Didn’t run away - in fact it seemed to be curious about us and did a lot of rolling and scratching for our entertainment. Looked thin and a little mangy. Grabbed the camera and got many shots. We finally let it cross the road and go on its way. We didn’t get out of the car and even though Nicki was tempted she didn't toss it a granola bar.

Martha was at the Little Valley house and after I took a shower we headed over to Ellicottville to meet Jim for supper at Tips Up Cafe. Great dinner. And then we all went back to LV to work on Martha’s new computer which went very late. Nicki was to first to drift off but then she wasn’t as actively involved in the project. I even gave up round 12:30 and let Jim and Martha finish the night’s work. We had done a lot of installing and tutoring but never did get the new computer to make a dial-up connection which we all know Martha will need eventually. We also did a bit of work on Martha’s iPod - one of the coolest things was putting pictures from her new camera into the iPod which she can then view.

Sunday morning we all met Ed at Dina’s in Ellicottville for breakfast. After eating, Jim and I tested out the free wireless access in downtown Ellicottville (it’s there). So Martha can take her laptop and sit on a downtown bench and check her email. Jim headed north for Geneseo while the rest of us returned to LV. After a little inspection of the recent water work Nicki and I headed off for kayaking while Ed returned to Olean and Martha started laundries. (Photo by Jim)

We went to Quaker Lake in Allegany State Park. Fantastic weather and great paddling. Started on the west end near the spill way and went about a mile toward the other end. A little choppy due to the wind which became a factor when we turned around and started our return to the launch site. The wind and chop was a challenge - to continue to make forward progress you need to keep up a steady paddle pace and fight the wind - a real confidence builder. As expected my arms and especially my hands felt the workout the next day. Highlight was spotting a hawk chasing something into the water and then circling over our heads.

From there it was back to LV, did a little work setting up Martha’s printer to work with her computer (or tried as we didn’t have the necessary USB cable), and then started back to Oberlin. On the way we did dinner at Wegmans and then stopped at Presque Isle State Park near Erie, Pennsylvania, to scout out good spots to launch our kayaks on future trips. We found several good looking spots on the east side of the isle. The west side gets the full brunt of the Lake Erie winds - the waves were impressive - not a good spot for kayaking. We did watch a fantastic sunset before heading off again.

Back to Oberlin by 10:30 p.m. Dogs were happy to see us. It was a short weekend - Saturday morning to Sunday evening - but worth it. I highly recommend a stay at the LV homestead especially when it has water.

By the way - we did check out the Indian Powwow from a distance which was happening at the Fairgrounds but it looked too quiet and unpopulated so we didn’t actually go into the Fairgrounds. No photos there. Kayaking was more inviting. (Photo by Nicki)