Tuesday 8/29/17 - Bluegrass, Rallies and more Rallies, Our Trip South

It is always bitter sweet, when you leave family … We departed Cohocton, New York this morning. Charlie’s brother’s house has been our home base while we visited family and friends in New York. We also spent time camping at our second home … the Conesus Lake Sportsman’s Club in Lakeville, New York! There will be separate blogs later on all our adventures in New York State!

We headed south on Route 415 into the town of Cohocton. Cohocton is best known for its fall foliage festival the first weekend in October for many years! Cohocton's annual Fall Foliage Festival, which was named one of our nation's "Elite Festivals" by National Geographic. Back in the day, it also was once visited by Journalist Charles Kuralt. 

The community event in which the residents of Cohocton and neighboring communities, gather to celebrate the magnificent surrounding hills in all of its colorful splendor. There are many arts, crafts, flea market, antique and food vendors. In 2017, they are holding their first ever "Fall Classic Antique & Vintage Snowmobile Show" along with their "Fall Classic Car Show."

The biggest draw used to be the Tree Sitting contest, but sadly in 2010 it came to an end. The reason why the tree sitting contest has permanently ended is due to the age and condition of the tree limbs. The more than 60-year-old sugar maples that grace the Cohocton Elementary School grounds have become too brittle to safely hold the weight of contestants for the duration of the festival. According to the rules, the one who spent the longest time in the trees (bathroom time counted against contestants) and had the least amount of carry-on weight with them was the winner, barring anything that would have gotten them disqualified such as dropping items or having had something handed to them. 

Tree-sitting began in 1968. During that time, none of the competitors had been injured despite participants climbing the trees at night and one who fell from a tree in the late ’70s after having the bright lights that were used to film “On the Road with Charles Kuralt” shining in the trees during the wee hours of the morning.

We stopped in Bath New York, at a local grocery store that also sells gas. Tops Markets, is the place I shop while we are in New York. They offer great deals and BOGO items. Plus, you earn gas points … I had saved up fifty cents reduction in price per gallon. So, we purchased the cheapest gas we might see … 25 gallons for $1.82 per gallon!

When driving south on Route 15 in Campbell, New York you can see the distinctive logo of the Polly-O brand on the stacks at the plant! Kraft Heinz said, in February of 2017, it would close the Steuben County facility this year, if it could not find a buyer. H.J. Heinz Co bought Kraft Foods Group Inc. in 2015, creating the third largest food and beverage company in North America. Soon after, it announced it would close Kraft's Campbell plant in late 2015, but it later agreed to postpone the shutdown for one to two years while it, along with state officials, looked for a buyer. The plant produces Polly-O'String cheese, mozzarella cheese and other Italian cheese varieties. Upstate Niagara, a dairy farmer cooperative, has bought the struggling Kraft-Heinz facility in the Southern Tier and has pledged to keep at least 150 of the 330 workers who were set to lose their jobs with the plant's imminent closure.

In Gang Mills, New York we saw the signs that Route 15 is now I-99. Since we don’t travel interstates … looks like we won’t be taking this nice direct route to family and friends in New York anymore! It is sad, when the old road sits almost empty right next to the new multi-lane highway. It breaks my heart to think of all the businesses that used to thrive on this Route and now, if you are not in a town with an exit ramp, you won’t see much business. Sad, very sad! An interesting fact about the numbering of this interstate. Unlike most Interstate Highway numbers, which were assigned by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) to fit into a grid. I-99's number was written into Section 332 of the National Highway System Designation Act of 1995 by Bud Shuster, the bill's sponsor, and the representative of the district through which the highway runs. I-99 violates the AASHTO numbering convention associated with Interstate Highways, since it lies east of I-79 but west of I-81.

We crossed into Pennsylvania from New York and we came to the first rest area in PA. The Tioga Reservoir overlook and the PA welcome center. The Upper Tioga River Watershed, which encompasses 280 square miles in northcentral Pennsylvania, is part of the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds.

The Tioga River begins as a small stream on Armenia Mountain.  It flows southwesterly until it reaches the Blossburg area where it turns north, ultimately flowing into New York State where it joins the Cohocton River to form the Chemung River.  The Chemung River crosses back into Pennsylvania and joins the Susquehanna River near Sayre.

The Tioga Hammond Dam was constructed in 1978 and put into operation in 1981 as part of a flood control project.  The unnatural blue-green color that is frequently seen in Tioga Lake is due to the precipitation of Aluminum which results when mine drainage begins to become neutralized by alkaline water.

Today, it certainly looks and feels like fall! You can even see some of the leaves are starting to change and it is only the 28^th of August!

Just off Route 15, you can see a covered bridge. It is very close to the old Route 15 roadway. It is just breathtaking. The 169 foot long bridge has low clearance, it is only 8 foot 3 inches high! Its builder is unknown, but it was built in 1898 and located on Covered Bridge Road. Very appropriate road name! It is known as the Buttonwood Bridge, also known as the Blockhouse Bridge, because it spans Blockhouse Creek.

We are traveling with Charlie’s sister and brother-in-law and they wanted to bypass Williamsport. So we headed around Williamsport on PA 220 / I-80. As we got closer to where they intersect with Route 15, there was construction and Mike & Molly’s RV was too long for the construction area. So, we had to cut back to Route 15 sooner. I found the first cut-over, PA 45, I could find and it took us over the Judge HW Cummins and Judge HM McClure Memorial Bridge. Crossing the bridge, we could see a parallel railroad bridge. I was able to capture this awesome picture.

Once we got over the bridge, we were in downtown Lewisburg. I am sure Mike & Molly were a bit nervous driving through this downtown area, because it was very narrow. It is a college town, for Bucknell University. In town I found this awesome light purple door on this brick building.

We started to head more east than south and got onto US 22 / 322 and crossed over the Susquehanna River. There was an accident in the opposite lanes of travel, man oh man was that traffic backed up! I am glad the accident was not going east! One of my favorite things in Pennsylvania is Lady Liberty on the Susquehanna, just north of Harrisburg. I have talked about her before, you can read about her in this blog. I was able to capture this picture of her on this trip!

We continued on I-81 N / US 322 to I-83 to I-283 E, through Elizabethtown and Mount Joy, PA. We moved onto Route 30. Route 30, took us right into Lancaster, PA. Lancaster is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States of America. German immigrants, known as Pennsylvania Dutch (from "Deutsch" meaning German), were the first to settle in the area in 1709. At that time it was known as "Hickory Town". The Honorable James Hamilton laid it out in building lots and out lots, and in May 10, 1729, it became the county seat. 

John Wright, a prominent citizen, gave it the name "Lancaster" after Lancaster, England where he formerly lived. The city is known as the "Red Rose City" due to its link to Lancaster, England. Lancaster became a borough in 1742, a charted city on March 10, 1818, and surrendered its ancient city charter and became a Third Class City under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on May 27, 1924. Lancaster was an important munitions center during the Revolutionary war. It was National Capital of the American colonies on September 27, 1777, when the Continental Congress was fleeing British forces (who had captured Philadelphia). From 1799 to 1812, Lancaster was the capital of Pennsylvania. What is there to do in Lancaster? Check it out here.

Are the Amish in Lancaster? Well, they're not only surviving, they're thriving! Since 1960, the Amish population in Lancaster County has almost tripled. Their separation from the rest of society actually helps to strengthen their community. The Amish trace their heritage back hundreds of years, and yet, despite all the time that has passed and the many changes that have taken place in society, they still live and work much as their forefathers did. For the Amish people, family, farm and faith are top priorities. 

The Amish are devout in their faith, believing in a literal interpretation and application of Scripture as the Word of God. They take seriously the Biblical commands to separate themselves from the things of the world. They believe worldliness can keep them from being close to God, and can introduce influences that could be destructive to their communities and to their way of life. Today there are over 25 different Amish, Mennonite, and Brethren church groups in Lancaster County, all holding to slightly different traditions and their own interpretations of the Bible. The more traditional groups are called ‘old order.’ They do not permit electricity or telephones in their homes.

We arrived at Country Acres Campground, our overnight stop.