2011-20 Penn to New York

2011-20

Lantz Corner, PA

Bradford PA

Western New York

Campground:  Foote Rest Campground, Lantz PA.  $15 Passport America, extra for cable Tv.  Elect/water site.  Good size Rv park.  Older swimming pool, nice shaded grassy campsites, most are pull-thrus.

Campground:  Visiting friends for the month in western NY.

What an interesting drive north on hwy 219 through Pennsylvania.  About 60 miles was a super nice divided highway, but half way up the highway, huge signs indicated I needed to take an alternate route.  NO TRUCKS longer than 17ft.  Yikees.  I am towing a 35 ft camper.  So after taking the alternate route (for about 5 miles) , I get back on  the highway.  It eventually peters out going back to a two lane road and another big sign warns ALL TRUCKS weighing more than 10,000 lbs need to exit, NOW.  Well, with a 5th wheel in tow, weighing between 12 and 14,000 lbs.  I took their advice again.  Apparently the steep winding slope into a town would be too much for the ole brakes.  The alternate had a couple of runaway ramps in case ones brakes fail.

When I got to Foote Rest campground and settled in, I was surprised to see dozens of bunnies all over the place.  They tell me at times, they have up where near 300 to 400 rabbits.  But with coyote, fox and other wild critters, the population fluctuates.  Last night a couple of black bears came into the campground, attracted to a huge pile of overflowing garbage. About 20 feet from my camper…. I slept through it all.

Doug getting his Senior Park Pass

The following day, after a few tours around the area I dropped into the Alleghany National Recreation Visitor Center  to pick up my Senior Pass.  $10 for a lifetime pass that gets me into National Parks, BLM, National Forests and even TVA campground, etc.  Many of the campgrounds in these places are half off with the Senior pass.  Now that’s a Birthday gift that will continue to keep on giving  for many years.

In Bradford I visited the Zippo lighter/Case museum.  Nice to see a community that still has manufacturing of a great product.  Many people collect the various designer cases with everything from Elvis (the most popular) to the Beatles, advertising cases, to WWII collectables.  They call the Zippo lighter “pocket art”.  The town also has a large motor oil refinery.  You know Pennsylvania was the heart of the oil industry in the early days of oil and gas.  I’ve noticed oil collection tanks along the back roads, all painted green to blend in with the surrounding forests, throughout western Penn.  So there must still be some oil underground around here.

One of my side trips was to the Kinzua Bridge State Park.  The bridge rises 301 feet high, well it did before a tornado came along and demolished most of it in 2003, ending the eighth wonder of the world.  One end that remains standing is being refurbished and will have a glass floor for looking all the way down into the gorge.  Should be completed in Sept of this year.  Still kind of neat to see what remains of the bridge from a side viewing platform.

I’ve been fortunate to have reached a part of the country (western NY) that’s been getting perfect weather.  Highs in the mid 70’s to low 80’s with no humidity.  Wonderful daytime breezes and clear blue skies.  Evenings in the high 50’s.  Blanket weather.  I’m looking forward to settling in for a month and doing maybe an excursion once or twice a week to outlying areas.  If I find something interesting I’ll be sure to report on it.

I’ve already found quaint little towns with multiple churches facing a round park circle.  Antique stores so jam packed with stuff it would take days just to go through one or two of them.  Amish farms mixed in with more traditional U.S. farms on large rolling landscapes between thick forests of green.  A young Amish boy with his dark shirt, suspenders and straw hat, riding a Clydesdale horse so big it looked like a house.

western New York

So while I’m enjoying the country life, I’ll have plenty of time to read my e-mails so if you have time, drop me a line and let me know about what’s going on in your life.

extra photos on PICASA