The View From Above

At Wolf Creek

I had lived in New York State for 24 years and never ventured further west than Cooperstown. To be honest, when I visited Cooperstown I was no longer a resident. We spent last week between Rochester and Buffalo at a place recently voted the #1 state park in the country. Letchworth State Park encompasses 17 miles and 14,427 acres of pristine forest land that follows a gorge created by the Genesee River. There are 3 different waterfalls and the gorge’s rock walls rise to about 550 feet in some places. The Mount Morris Dam is another feature. This is a concrete gravity dam (a dry dam) located at the park’s north end and has been used for flood control. Unfortunately, this area of New York has been experiencing a severe drought and while the park usually boasts activities like white water rafting, kayaking and canoeing the river is so low that all of these areas are shut down.

The Mount Morris Dam

The Genesee River

This is a year round park that facilitates snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, snow tubing, sleigh rides and even hot air ballooning. It has numerous camping areas for RVs, tents and even rustic and luxury cabins. We arrived to enjoy another reunion of Don’s Navy buddies. In January we rented our primitive yet functional cabins. (Imagine living like Thoreau on Walden Pond in the cabin from Little House on the Prairie only not that romantic.) Our cabin had cold running water, a stove, fridge and microwave plus our own bathroom (sans shower/tub), a stone fireplace, 2 bedrooms, living room and a screen porch. Electrical outlets were in short supply but since we had absolutely no cell phone reception, wifi or TVs it didn’t really matter. Yup, we were pretty much off the grid for a week.

Kamp Kress

Cabin interior

Admiral Duffey’s Diggs

Wildlife was abundant. There were 4 woodchucks and a chipmunk living directly under my porch. One groundhog was so huge we named him “Stanley” and there was a large fox who would come unnervingly close to our campfire each night (and this from a girl who has bears crossing her own lawn on an almost daily basis). It was clear these animals were extremely comfortable around people. I prefer when the critters recognize that I am on top of the food chain. In fact, the Duffeys came eye to eye with a raccoon who decided to cool off by bathing in their camp sink which they had set up on the deck of the cabin. I took to slamming my screen porch door on each arrival and departure to ensure that the permanent residents knew their visitor was in camp.

Damian hanging around

There is a core group of 5 that anchor the R-Division reunions but we were shy a member this year as Dan Baker was unable to attend and he was missed by all. This left Don, John, Rick & Steve to hold down the tradition. The boys had a few excursions: they visited the Erie County Naval & Military Park in Buffalo and the National Warplane Museum in Geneseo. Damian described this outing as, “a lot of cursing and threatening”. It’s nice to see the lad indoctrinated in the old sailor’s club.

“Admiral” Steve Duffey, Don, John Kress & Rick Boyden

At “Casa de Kress”

The girls also had their bonding time. We toured a little of the local towns and did some shopping and lunch. We had some pool time and girl talk. (The sailors have nothing on us – just sayin’. We can swear and drink with the best of them.)

Me, Diane & Amy at the pool.

Here’s to the ladies who lunch.

Farmer’s market

The Depot – reclaimed train depot featuring local artisans.

On one day we all ventured out together to tour the park. We stopped at each of the falls, viewed the overlooks, visited the museum and saw the grand Glen Iris Inn where the Duffeys celebrated 10,000 days of wedded bliss. I made an important discovery on this day. A local ice cream manufacturer has a seasonal flavor called, ‘Lemon Chillo’. It tastes like lemon meringue pie that’s cold and melts on your tongue. It’s the best thing I’ve eaten all summer and trust me, I’ve eaten all summer. Simple pleasures are the best.

Train trestle above upper falls.

Perry’s Ice Cream – Lemon Chillo!!

Ice Cream!

The Middle Falls

Rick. our early riser, even took time to show Don, Damian and I the Wolf Creek section of the park. It was my favorite.

Wolf Creek

Stairs leading up from the creek bed.

Stone slab picnic benches at Wolf Creek.

On two occasions, I found myself up early and while out walking I found that there was a trail from our campsite to the lower falls. One night it rained heavily and that morning I awoke and took that path. The smell of the forest after the rain and the cool 60’s temperatures were exhilarating and when combined with being the only one at the falls it made for a totally Zen moment for me. I wanted to take a selfie of me at the falls that morning but the phone died so now I just have the memory. I think it’s better.

Memorial to the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Many of the enhancements of the park like the overlooks, trails and bridges were the result of the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps. This was a part of FDR’s New Deal and it provided employment for unmarried men from families that were receiving federal relief. These were jobs that were largely unskilled, manual labor that helped develop the natural resources in government owned land tracts. The weekend we were there was CCC Recognition weekend and there were tours of the original camps (I suspected that my cabin was one of them), lectures, photos and a ceremony for the families of CCC workers at the statue in the above picture. It was followed by a car show that had a live band. The boys made an appearance. Upon their return they undertook the big project of the weekend. An axe (firefighting equipment I assume) that was on the John F. Kennedy Aircraft Carrier had been “procured” by one of the boys. They were planning to burn the name of the ship into the wood handle then etch their names into the axe blade. Arts and crafts of the adult sort. The girls had adult coloring, bookmark making and pine cone painting sessions. Damian painted a rock to look like a turtle. As night time drew on we noticed that one of our neighbors, a family from Long Island that we interacted with, were using a hula hoop that illuminated. It made for quite a visual experience.

Our neighbor’s daughter doing cool tricks with an illuminated hula hoop.

More hula hoop hi-jinx.

At each reunion we also hold a flag burning ceremony in honor of the shipmates who have sailed over the river Styx. It’s another night time highlight. It is mesmerizing sitting around a campfire and just sharing, laughing or making s’mores, which was Damian’s job. Many of the cabins had strung lights to add a festive touch to their screen porches. I wish I would’ve received that memo because I would have ours lit up like a bordello.

The boys and their axe.

While these reunions are an opportunity for the boys to relive their youth and reconnect it has been an added bonus that the girls have forged friendships that transcend the connection to the spouses. Amy and I have attended every reunion together. Through many conversations (and drinks) I have developed a love for her and was so honored to get to meet the rest of her family this year. Diane shares so many interests with me that it is uncanny. She came to visit me one year and had tickets to the the exact show I had just seen and she also had reservations to eat in the exact same restaurant I had eaten in after the show. When you consider that these events took place in Washington D. C. that’s no coincidence. So while I enjoyed the break from technology and immersing myself in nature the clincher for me was the communion I had with my womenfolk. My life is male-centric and sometimes I lose sight of how important it is for my soul to connect with my sisters. Love to you all until we meet again.

John & Julia – his always adorable daughter who rocks my world every time I meet her.

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