Saturday, May 25, 2019

Two Lane Adventure to Ohio – Tuesday, May 21st 2019


A day to explore on our own. We ventured back to the Spillway. Beneath the Pymatuning Reservoir lies the remains of the Great Pymatuning Swamp. The Shenango River once flowed through this ancient swamp. Today, this river and its tributaries supply water for the reservoir, which was built to provide a consistent water source and flood control for communities along the Shenango and Beaver Rivers. Construction of the concrete “spillway bowl” allowed independent regulation of the 2,500-acre upper reservoir to provide optimal wildlife habitat. The flow of water over the bowl brings a constant supply of natural food into the area, providing a smorgasbord of plant material, insect larve, crayfish and other invertebrates for fish to dine upon.

I told you that I would tell you more about the Spillway and the Carp. I had to go back today and “feed the fish” some more. Their food is white bread, the animals are carp, and the venue is the Spillway on the Pymatuning Reservoir. It's known to the world as, "Where the Ducks Walk on the Fish." This attraction does not advertise, yet it draws over 300,000 hurlers a year. By the town's reckoning, the Spillway is the second most popular tourist destination in all of Pennsylvania, trailing only the Liberty Bell. The spillway is a natural food attraction for fish.

People have been coming here, as it's right on the road, since it opened in the 1930's. Throwing bread followed naturally, it was cheap, and it pulled in more fish. Things stayed pretty much unchanged until 2007, when the park built a new venue, with a parking lot and restrooms and benches. The result: people now have a lot more room to toss a lot more bread.

The ducks' role is not so clear. On a recent visit we saw geese, a few ducks, and lots of fish, and lots of bread being thrown at the fish, but no ducks walking on fish. Are the fish so thick that the ducks walk on them? Maybe. I don't know, but the ducks are in there fighting for that bread, and they're getting on top of them. Walking-on-the-fish may be a rarity, but it does visualize the mass of carp that congregate here. One can easily imagine a small animal staying dry, hopping from fish to fish, although they might not last long before the carp carpet pulled them under as another meal.

Carp are ugly and creepy. Then there are thousands of them thrashing and gaping up at you. I am glad that there is a steel guardrail between me and the water. Carp can live up to twenty years. The largest Carp caught in Pennsylvania was over 50-pounds! Wow! Carp have an amazing sense of smell, they can smell a worm through several inches of silt.

The concession stand sells a loaf of bread for a buck, but down the road at "The Bread Store" you can buy five loaves for three dollars. Does that sound like too much? A local college biology professor staked out the Spillway, and calculated that each visitor throws on average 2 pounds of bread into it. We think it's purely a matter of reward for performance; not quite as dramatic as gators leapin' for food, but those carp are smart. As soon as you are walking on the walkway, they start to appear. The surplus of baked goods in the Pymatuning Reservoir is troubling to some. A few years back the park stopped selling bread at the Spillway. But the people just brought it in anyway. Some people suggest that bread should be banned altogether, and that visitors should be content to use handfuls of crumbly food pellets at the fish. That just is not going to happen.

Amish in Ohio? Yes! It is estimated over 230,000 Amish in the nation, approximately 24% or nearly 56,000 of them live in Ohio. This ranks Ohio as the leading state in Amish population over Pennsylvania with nearly 52,000 and Indiana with nearly 39,000. There are approximately 26 counties in Ohio that have Amish communities.

In Williamsfield, a new community is taking shape. It was established a few years ago by families from western New York. The settlement is clustered around the intersection of Routes 7 and 322. There were originally five families in this settlement. You may see Amish children playing near one-room schoolhouses. You might be able to watch farmers hauling crops from the fields or manure to the field on horse-drawn wagons.

Or you could even catch the ladies of the family hanging out laundry on wash day. Prices of farmland in Geauga County reached the point where young Amish couples had difficulty affording enough land to get started farming successfully. So, it was the less expensive land that drew the first wave of Amish to Ashtabula County Ohio. They came from Middlefield in Geauga County along with another 25 or so families who make up the "Cherry Valley" settlement. This group also flows into the Denmark and Dorset areas.

Amish Settlements are spreading to many different areas of the state. As they move into a community, the Amish bring along their quiet, simple lifestyle as well as their hard work ethic and quality of workmanship. The entrepreneurial spirit thrives in all of these areas and home-based businesses abound. The roadways are dotted with signs advertising anything from Amish-made furniture to homemade baked goods or hand crafted items. Follow these signs to find hidden gems and treasures off the beaten path. You must be willing to venture away from the main highways though.

Speaking of Amish businesses, if you are in the area, check out the Cherry Valley Furniture Store. Since 1997, Cherry Valley Furniture has served the northeast Ohio/northwest Pennsylvania area by providing high quality products in a warm country setting. Owned and operated by Levi and Lizzie Miller, all of the furniture products are handmade by Amish craftsmen. In the tradition of Amish markets, they offer a large selection of bulk food products. Whether you are stocking your pantry with spices, flours, and baking items or just stopping by for a few items, the selection is overwhelming. I came to see the 100 different spices, chocolate blocks, maple syrup, honey, jams, candies, cereals, salad dressings, soup mixes and much, much more.

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