M
CORNELL BOTANICAL GARDENS • SUMMERTIME LAKE FUN • GOLFING • BICYCLING
The Magazine for People Who Love New York State’s Wine Region
Since
2001
A G A ZI N
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LIFE IN THE FINGER LAKES
Visit Cornell Botanic Gardens p. 42 • Golfing pp. 73
July/August 2017
Summertime Jumping
Boating Swimming Floating page 52
JULY/AUGUST 2017 • VOL. 17, NO. 4
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The Good Life in the heart of the
Finger Lakes
“I always tell people, if you really love to do housework, Ferris Hills probably isn’t for you.They really take care of you here.”
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Since
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Volume 17, Number 4 • July/August 2017
F E A T U R E S
38
The Great Outdoors
42
The Art of the Garden
52
Summertime in the Finger Lakes
58
A “Round” of Golf
64
It’s a Sham
The Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium offers many outdoor activities and events. by Nancy E. McCarthy
Cornell Botanic Gardens is one of the five largest in the United States. MORE PHOTOS by Derek Doeffinger LIFL APP EXTRA!
Bill Banaszewski’s pictorial illustrates summer fun at the lake.
Disc golf is a fun, inexpensive sport and can be enjoyed by both young and old. by Cindy Ruggieri
A photographer’s summer spent “shooting” on Civil War-era battlefields MORE PHOTOS by Roger Bailey LIFL APP EXTRA!
Cover: Playing “catch the frisbee” at Keuka Lake is a part of summertime fun for the young and young at heart. Photo by Bill Banaszewski
Cover, small photo: Flowers abound at Cornell Botanic Gardens. Photo by Derek Doeffinger This page: A spectacular view of Honeoye Lake can be had at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area. Photo by Bill Banaszewski
F/eeAcb uure gug a y oJvan e mubae Jrruuy/ll/D yy mu u br sse t t r To Subscribe, visit LifeintheFingerLakes.com or callN800-344-0559
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Since
2001
A G A ZI N
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THE RE
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D E P A R T M E N T S
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My Own Words
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Letters
thoughts from the editor
reader feedback
6
Finger Lakes Map
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Happenings
76 Off the Easel
creating art Printmaker James Skvarch
78 Cultured
the better things in life VoteTilla comes to town
areas of interest in this issue
news and events
14 Nooks & Crannies
a little bit of everything Live theatre in Montour Falls
18 Day Trip
exploring the Finger Lakes Hiking with kids
84
22 Day Trip
80 Fruit of the Vine
26 Food
82 Music
exploring the Finger Lakes Tanglewood Nature Center
good eats Glorious Garlic Festival
28 Outdoors
in the open air Montezuma’s bald eagle sculpture LIFL APP EXTRA!
34 Offbeat
fresh and unique Skaneateles Lake’s mailboat
69 Sports
fun and games The popularity of bicycling
73 Sports
LIFL
APP EXTRA!
wine, spirits and brews Hornell’s Wild Brute Winery
strike the right note Handmade music
84 History
narrative of the past Seneca Fall’s sculpture “When Anthony Met Stanton”
87 Home Showcase living the dream A Vine Valley gem
103 Index of Advertisers 104 Road Stoppers APP EXTRA! LIFL
get a better look Meet Mr. Burma Shave
fun and games Miles of fairways for golf lovers
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My Own Words
thoughts from the editor
An Embarrassment
of Riches
H
aving lived in the Finger Lakes Region since 1993, I think I have a good idea of the activities offered throughout the entire year. Yes, the winter and early spring months may have weather that’s not conducive to a lot of outdoor playtime, but there are still many things to do, both indoor and out. Once May and June start getting into full swing, there is definitely an up-tick in how many people I see out and about. July and August roll around and watch out – everyone is intent on getting their summer fun packed into two months. I can’t blame them. The weather is beautiful most of the time, and the warm waters of the lakes beckon us to splash and play in them. There is almost too much going on in the Finger Lakes during the summer. I say almost – but not quite. The options for musical entertainment are endless and varied. Runners, bicyclists, golfers and hikers enjoy the warm temperatures and clear skies. Festivals and events are off the charts. There are probably four or five major events almost every weekend during the summer within reasonable driving distance. I’m almost giddy just trying to decide what to do. I only wish I had more
time to participate in more events. This issue presents a good cross section of many things to do that are offered in the region during the summer – hiking the many trails on numerous public lands (pages 18 and 22); viewing sculptures at a wildlife refuge (page 28); enjoying world class gardens (page 42); visiting historical communities such as Seneca Falls(page 84); paddling at the Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium (page 38); observing Civil War-era battles (page 64); trying out a new sport such as disc golf (page 58); and getting your garlic fix at a festival (page 26). And then there is live theater in Montour Falls (page 14); getting a ride on the Skaneateles mailboat (page 34); visiting a new winery in Hornell (page 80); and seeing an artist’s exquisite and detailed work (page 76). Let’s not forget a bit of flair from yesteryear. If you’re out and about in the Bloomfield area, don’t forget to look around at roadside signs, reminiscent of the old Burma Shave signs that used to line the roads years ago. Have a safe and happy summer! mark@lifeinthefingerlakes.com
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ou have probably noticed an increase in what Life in the Finger Lakes magazine has to offer readers. I want to point out that the print magazine is still the best way to enjoy the great articles and beautiful photos that highlight this unique region. At the same time, we realize that readers are also adjusting the ways they consume information. That is why we offer: • an app for mobile devices that has exclusive articles every week not available in the print magazine, • a weekly e-newsletter that showcases new information and events, • a website with fresh blogs from talented and insightful writers. We strive to continually bring to you the best that the Finger Lakes has to offer. Visit lifeinthefingerlakes.com to get these products.
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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Please direct your responses to mark@lifeinthefingerlakes.com reader feedback
I
n the article about Rushville in the May/June 2017 issue, there is a mention of the Prince Nez tribes which inhabited the area called Oregon when the Whitmans arrived there. I believe the author is speaking of the Nez Perce tribe. A tribe of Nez Perce along with tribes of Cayuse were there during that time. They were called Nez Perce by the French because of their custom of piercing their noses. Occasionally they were also called Nez Pierce. I so enjoy reading Life in the Finger Lakes. I read it cover to cover. It was especially fun reading about Kari Ganoung Ruiz (May/June 2017 issue). I knew her when I was a teacher at South Seneca and she was a student. I also know her mother. I’m a member of the South Seneca school board and I’m going to make sure that Fran Copp sees her mention in the article. Teachers don’t hear often enough about the influence they’ve had on their students. — Mary Louise Church
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ust wanted to let you know that the Native American tribe associated with Marcus Whitman is the Nez Perce, not Prince Nez. Also, the remains of the Whitman canon is located at Camp Whitman, on Seneca Lake. Love your magazine. — Amy Leonard
Letters
T
he May/June 2017 issue is outstanding, and I think you have outdone yourself with this one. You keep improving, but this is the best one I have read since you launched the magazine. Every article was of great interest. I have long been a fan of Keuka Spring Vineyards, and “The Show on The Road” was fascinating and educational. Believe it or not I have never been to Ithaca, but it is now on my list. We go through Rushville each year several times on drives to Keuka Lake. It’s so interesting to learn more of its history. We also love the dandelion wine from Chateau Renaissance. Capping it off is the outstanding photography, which helps highlight our great Finger Lakes Region. I have been a subscriber since the magazine began in 2001. — Mark Sweetland
T
he whole May/June 2017 issue was, in my opinion, outstanding but I especially enjoyed the piece on walking sticks. Having had a paralyzed left arm from birth. I discovered the value of a “third leg” very early. I made and purchased dozens of sticks and found them to be a requirement for hiking, especially in fens and swamps and backpacking. — Bard V. Prentiss
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Finger Lakes Regional Map 1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8
Bath (p.60) Bloomfield (p.104) Branchport (p.38) Canandaigua (p.73)
areas of interest in this issue
9 Ithaca (p.20, 42) 10 Mount Morris (p. 66) 11 Mumford (p.68) 12 Penn Yan (p.26)
Canisteo (p. 67) Corning (p.58) Elmira (p.22) Hornell (p.80)
13 Rochester (p.70, 79) 14 Seneca Falls (p.28, 84) 15 Skaneateles (p.34) 16 Syracuse (p.76)
17 Victor (p. 62) 18 Vine Valley (p.87) 19 Watkins Glen (p.19)
From Oswego
Lake Ontario
Hilton
104
Webster
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Brockport
13
Spencerport
104
Sodus
Baldwinsville
Fairport
Macedon
Avon
Lima
Victor
90
2
Clifton Springs Phelps
Canandaigua 20
5
ONTARIO
4
20
Finger Lakes Geneseo 20A 1 Conesus Mt. 2 Hemlock 1 10 Morris 3 Canadice LIVINGSTON 4 Honeoye 2 5 Canandaigua 390 6 Keuka Nunda 7 Seneca Dansville 8 Cayuga 9 Owasco 10 Skaneateles 11 Otisco
Waterloo
Seneca Falls
20
Cayuga
7
Honeoye
5
Skaneateles 20
Auburn
Union Springs
15
81 20
10
ONONDAGA
11
20
11
9
Aurora Moravia
4 5
12
Homer
Interlaken
Branchport
Cortland Groton
3
Wayland
CAYUGA
Ovid
Penn Yan
YATES
Naples
Dundee
Prattsburgh 390
Waneta Lake
6
Canisteo
5
Burdett
Watkins Glen
1
8
9
Lamoka Lake
Bath
SCHUYLER
McGraw 81
Lansing
Hammondsport
CORTLAND
11
Trumansburg
Cohocton
Hornell
Dryden
Cayuga Heights
Ithaca
Marathon
19
From Binghamton
Montour Cayuta Lake Falls TOMPKINS Odessa
STEUBEN
17
Painted Post
6 Rexville
Candor
Spencer 86
Elmira C H E M U N G Heights
7
Elmira
Addison
TIOGA
Waverly
Editorial & Production Editor......................................................................Mark Stash ......................................... mark@lifeinthefingerlakes.com Senior Graphic Artist...........................Jennifer Srmack Graphic Artists.........................................Maia VanOrman Associate Editor..............................................Tina Manzer Assistant Editors........................................ Jenn Bergin .............................................................................. J. Kevin Fahy ............................................................................Carol C. Stash
Newark Valley
Van Etten
Horseheads
Corning
Owego
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Contributors....................................................Roger Bailey .......................................................................Bill Banaszewski ........................................................................... Anne C. Coon .....................................................................Kevin Cummings .............................................................Ruth E. Thaler-Carter ..................................................................... Derek Doeffinger ................................................................................ Tim Fenster ............................................................................Jason Feulner ......................................................................Amanda K. Jaros ..................................................................... James P. Hughes .................................................................Nancy E. McCarthy ..........................................................................Cindy Ruggieri ..................................................................James E. Schwartz ..........................................................................Christen Smith .....................................................................Laurel C. Wemett
Life in the Finger Lakes is published by Fahy-Williams Publishing, Inc. and owned by Eleven Lakes Publishing, Inc. Co-owners: Mark S. Stash; Timothy J. Braden. Copyright© 2017 by Eleven Lakes Publishing, Inc. No part of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from the publisher. TO SUBSCRIBE, RENEW OR CHANGE ADDRESS: write to Life in the Finger Lakes, P.O. Box 1080, Geneva, NY 14456, or call 315789-0458. Subscription rates: $16 for one year. Canada add $15 per year. Outside North America, add $35 per year. For renewal or change of address, include the address label from your most recent issue of Life in the Finger Lakes. For gift subscriptions, include your own name and address as well as those of gift recipients.
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Fayetteville Manlius
8
18
3
5
14
SENECA
20A
Avoca
The Finger Lakes Region of New York State
16
690
Syracuse 481
Geneva
5
86 17
From Jamestown
Solvay
Weedsport Marcellus
Bloomfield
Livonia Hemlock
90
Newark
From Utica
481 90
Jordan
17
Honeoye Falls
390
5
Clyde
Lyons
Palmyra
90
11
North 11 Syracuse
WAYNE
490 90
Oneida Lake
81
Rochester
490
490
Caledonia
From Watertown
Wolcott
104
104
E. Rochester
F From Buffalo
Sodus Bay
Sodus Point
MONROE
86
17
From Binghamton
Editorial Office..............................................315-789-0458 Director of Advertising................................ Tim Braden ............................................. tim@lifeinthefingerlakes.com
For Advertising Inquiries - 800-344-0559 Rhonda Trainor........rhonda@lifeinthefingerlakes.com Della Mancuso................ della@lifeinthefingerlakes.com 315-585-6111 • Cell 917-751-2962
Marketing Assistant Amy Colburn............................................. amy@fwpi.com
For Subscriptions Tricia McKenna.............................................315-789-0458 ................................subscribe@lifeinthefingerlakes.com Business Office............315-789-0458, 800-344-0559 Business Fax...................................................315-789-4263 Life in the Finger Lakes 171 Reed St. • P.O. Box 1080 • Geneva, NY 14456 LifeintheFingerLakes.com Serving the 14 counties of the Finger Lakes Region
Three
~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Belhurst Castle takes you away to a place filled with rich history, beauty, and breathtaking views. Allow yourself to experience the rest and relaxation Belhurst provides with mouth-watering dining experiences, soothing spa treatments, award-winning wines and truly unique accommodations. Find out why Belhurst Castle is a premier attraction in the Finger Lakes. Call 315.781.0201 or visit www.belhurst.com to book your stay.
VISIT
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Happenings
news and events
New illustrated biography explores the work of American wildlife artist Arthur Singer Singer’s sons Paul and Alan chronicle his journey from a top-secret WWII unit to his work as a renowned bird artist
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ne of the world’s finest painters of birds, Arthur Singer (1917-1990), redefined the concept of the bird guide with his 1966 release, The Golden Field Guide to Birds of North America. Millions have enjoyed Singer’s work published in books, magazines, prints and commemorative stamps and now a new book documents the artist’s life and work. The biography, Arthur Singer: the Wildlife Art of an American Master, written by his sons Paul and Alan Singer, illustrated profusely with color images, is published by RIT Press, the scholarly publishing enterprise at Rochester Institute of Technology. “For years, my father had been in the field drawing and photographing birds, and knowing their behavior, he felt they should be shown naturalistically”, said Alan Singer. “He added light and shadow and developed paintings in his bird guides that show the environment where birds are often seen.” Born in New York City in 1917, Singer began illustrating wildlife as a young teenager after admiring the work of John James Audobon and taking family trips to the Bronx Zoo and the American Museum of Natural History. Singer loved jazz music and in the 1930s, he befriended jazz greats including Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway, earning early commercial success drawing caricatures of the artists that would be published in local newspapers and jazz magazines across the country. After receiving an art degree from the Cooper Union, Singer joined the army following the U.S. entry into World War II. Singer was transferred to the top-secret Company C of the 603rd Camouflage Engineers, where he spent three years creating camouflage and other forms of visual deception to mislead German intelligence. The story of this group of artists, dubbed “The Ghost Army,” was chronicled in a 2014 PBS documentary by the same name. Arthur Singer Following the war’s conclusion and a brief stint in the advertising industry, Singer found his calling as a full-time illustrator and artist depicting wildlife, most notably birds. Singer produced some of his most popular works in the 1950s and 60s, including Birds of the World, and his guide to Birds of North America, which is still in print after selling millions of A companion exhibition at the RIT copies. University Gallery will display a life Millions saw Singer’s illustrations in 1982 when the U.S. spanning selection of illustrations by Postal Service issued a set of 50 official state bird and Singer from August 7 to October flower stamps illustrated by Singer and his son and co28. A public reception will be held author of the biography, Alan Singer. September 8 from 5-7 p.m. The Singer brothers worked on the book to commemorate the 25th anniversary of their father’s passing, poring over letters, never-before-seen illustrations and other mementos from the artist’s personal collection. Arthur Singer: the Wildlife Art of an American Master is available to preorder in hardcover for $60 at the RIT Press website or by calling RIT Press at 585-475-6766.
July Through July 31…Bangles & Bottles Love wine and love jewelry? Get both on the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail. For just $65 (plus tax and s&h), take the months of June and July to collect all 16 unique charm bracelets, one from each winery. Every location has a different design. Visit all 16 wineries by the end of July and mail your stamped ticket along with your contact information to the CLWT office [PO Box 123 Fayette, NY 13065] to be eligible for a grand prize! Ticket includes: 16 Charm Bangles, one from each winery; 1 “Winemakers Pick” sample at each winery; Additional 5% discount on wine purchases. After June 1, tickets will be available for purchase online and at Knapp Winery only. Cayuga Lake Wine Trail 800-684-5217 cayugawinetrail.com July 3…Ithaca Rotary Fireworks Ithaca Rotary club is the lead on this year’s Community fireworks, which will be held at Stewart Park from 6 to 11 p.m. The fireworks have a long tradition and Rotary is excited to work with City of Ithaca and the community to present a spectacular show this year. July 7, 8, 9…2nd Annual Seneca Falls Canal Fest Three days of fun with amusement rides, fireworks, duck races, live music, vendors, arts & crafts, food, craft beverages, boating, the Aquacade Watercraft Parade, Corning Museum of Glass’ GlassBarge, and more on both sides of the Seneca Falls Canal Harbor. All day. Free admission. senecafalls.com/canalfest July 8…Wood Library 5K Race, Fun Run and Story Walk A fun family-friendly race event that supports Wood Library’s summer youth programs. Pre-race warm-ups, post-race refreshments, entertainment, raffle, and Family Story Walk. woodlibrary.org/5K July 8-9…The 10th Finger Lakes Lavender Festival 2017 Located at Lockwood Lavender Farm, this free admission two-day event will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Event includes U-Pick Lavender Bouquets; culinary delights and the work of local artists and hand-crafters; shopping at the lavender market. 1682 West Lake Road Skaneateles, NY 13152 fingerlakeslavenderfestival.blogspot.com
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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Happenings
Finger Lakes Tram Enjoying God’s Creation
We build elegant and rugged tram systems to provide years of enjoyment on your lake property
2052 O’Neil Road • Macedon, NY 14502 315-986-1937 www.fingerlakestram.com
“Hope Floats” Kayak and Canoe World Record Attempt Set for August Fundraiser to be held on Seneca Lake in Geneva
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he Hope Floats Kayak Challenge, an attempt to break the current world record of largest raft and kayaks free-floating for at least 30 seconds, will be held Saturday, August 19, 2017, on Seneca Lake in Geneva. The current world record is held by “One Mile Square Mile of Hope,” established on September 13, 2014, on Fourth Lake in Inlet, New York, where 3,150 canoes, kayaks and guideboats joined together to shatter a Guinness World Record. The boats, held together only by hands, fulfilled a Guinness rule by free-floating for at least 30 seconds. This year the Hope Floats Kayak Challenge hopes to break the amazing 2014 record. That record would require 3,151 participants. “The Lakefront Park in Geneva situated in the beautiful Finger Lakes region of New York at the north end of Seneca Lake has been selected as the location of our 2017 attempt,” said Event Organizer Chuck Little. “Geneva is one of my favorite areas – it’s beautiful there. Between the wineries, the breweries, and the restaurant, it’s just a great atmosphere.” The Hope Floats committee has partnered with UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute, the Finger Lakes Region’s leader for cancer care and research, as well as Thrive to Survive, a nonprofit group supporting adults with cancer. “This is not just a world-record attempt, but we’re raising some money for amazing local organizations,” said Little. “So if you don’t kayak, please consider donating.” Registration is $30 per person and can be completed online by visiting Seneca5CK.com. Volunteers are also needed. Learn more by visiting the group’s Facebook page at HopeFloatsKayakChallenge.
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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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July 8-9…Corn Hill Arts Festival Come and enjoy the 49th Annual Corn Hill Arts Festival, Rochester’s premier summertime event. Experience the works of more than 375 juried artists, four stages of live music, the 8th Annual Emerging Artists Expo, two beer and wine gardens, delicious food and beverages and activities for children of all ages including the 5th Annual Fairy Houses Tour. Saturday, July 8, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, July 9, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. cornhillartsfestival.com. July 8-9…51st Annual Keuka Lake Art Show “Oldest outdoor art show in the Finger Lakes.” The 51st Annual KLAA Art Show takes place under the shade of the trees in the village square in Hammondsport and features fine art by local artists in the mediums of watercolor, oils and
acrylics, drawing and graphics, pottery, jewelry, sculpture and photography. Local high school and college students also exhibit their work. Live music each day. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 607-569-3564 or 607-776-7774 keukalakeartassociation.com
A SUMMER OF ADVENTURE
WELCOME TO NAPLES,NY
July 13-23…Crimes of the Heart at Bristol Valley Theater In this warm-hearted and zany comedy written by Beth Henley, three southern sisters reunite under shaky circumstances: Babe, the youngest, has shot her hotshot politico husband because “she didn’t like his looks.” The sisters navigate their very different personalities, dark family secrets, and their current troubles, which are grave and yet somehow hilarious. Pulitzer Prize winner. 151 S. Main Street Naples, NY 14512 585-374-6318 bvtnaples.org
The Naples Valley offers the best in summer ventures. Enjoy three wineries, gift shops, diverse eateries, an art gallery, Grimes Glen, golf, theater, natural beauty and more
July 14-16…Convention Days 2017 Festival Join Women’s Rights National Historical Park for Convention Days 2017. This year’s theme is “We Are the Ones We’ve Been Waiting For.” The keynote speaker will be Elizabeth Nyamayaro, executive director of the #HeForShe movement and the senior advisor to the Under-Secretary-General UN Women. This event commemorates the First U.S. Women’s Rights Convention held in 1848. This three-day event will be filled with exciting speakers, workshops, historical actors Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Frederick Douglass, theater performances, live music, film screenings, children’s activities, art exhibits, and more. conventiondays.com July 27-29… Remember the Big 6 Picnic, County Fair, Youth Fair Held at the Ward W. O’Hara Agricultural Museum, the event includes 4-H youth projects and exhibits; Open Dairy Show and 4-H Dairy Cattle Showmanship; (Continued on page 12)
Visit our website today to make your daytrip itinerary!
www.NaplesValleyNY.com
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Happenings 4-H dog show; Tours of Ward W. O’Hara Agricultural Museum; antique tractors on display as well as an antique tractor competition and more. 6880 E Lake Rd Auburn, NY 13021 315-252-7644 July 28… Cortland Main Street Music Series JazzHappensBand + The Charlie Bertini & Ronnie Leigh Allstars Gates open at 5:30 p.m. Music starts at 6 p.m. Bring your lawn chairs. Dancing encouraged. No coolers or outside liquor, please. Onsite sales of assorted wine Cortland Beer Company draft beer, and water support the event. Hot dogs, hamburgers, soda sold at VFW side. A free concert for all; donations graciously accepted. 5:30 to 10 p.m.
August Through August 20… Circular Abstractions: Bull’s Eye Quilts Circular Abstractions is a special summer exhibit at the Schweinfurth Art Center. Curator Nancy Crow challenged the participating artists to create a unique design based upon the Bull’s Eye pattern: four circles comprised of concentric rings (the iconic target symbol), set in a grid of four blocks, or quadrants. The quilts have been conceived in improvisation, in building upon or breaking down an established pattern into something new and individually expressive. 205 Genesee Street, Auburn, NY 13021 315-255-1553 myartcenter-org August 5-6…Classic Motorcycle Weekend at the Glenn Curtiss Museum A two-day celebration of classic and vintage motorcycles from around the world. There will be motorcycles of all types, colors and nationalities. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 8419 State Route 54 Hammondsport, NY 14840 glennhcurtissmuseum.org August 9-13…Walnut Hill Farm Driving Competition Join our Grand Celebration of Horse & Carriage. Come experience the elegance and thrill of 19th-century horsepower and sporting tradition. 397 West Bloomfield Road Pittsford, NY 14534 585-746-1080 walnuthillfarm.org
Post and Beam Homes Locally crafted in our South Bristol New York shop 5557 Rt. 64, Canandaigua, NY 14424 585-374-6405 www.timberframesinc.com Building the Finger Lakes since 1977
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August 11-12…Wine Glass Crafting Class at Miles Wine Cellars Unleash your inner creative side. Even without any experience you will leave with an authentic piece of artwork all created from a wine glass. Included are one glass of wine to enjoy while you create your masterpiece along with light appetizers. Step-by-step instructions are given by Lauren Harrison (Flower City Bitties Creative Consultants). $30 per guest. Space is limited 168 Randall Crossing Road Himrod, NY 14842 mileswinecellars.com August 11, 13…Finger Lakes Opera Presents Tosca A fiery prima donna is forced to play a role she never imagined when she becomes trapped between her allegiance to her rebel lover and the scheming of a treacherous police chief who will stop at nothing in his lust for her. Friday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, August 13 at 2 p.m. Finger Lakes Opera at Canandaigua Academy 435 East Street, Canandaigua, NY 14424 (enter at East Street entrance) 585-532-2711 • fingerlakesopera.org
~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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August 13… Summer Concert Series at the Lighthouse – Dan Elliott and the Monterays 2 to 4 p.m. Central New York’s number one oldies band has been playing early classic rock and pop since 1962, covering music from the 1940s through today. FREE. Outdoors on the Sodus Bay Lighthouse Museum lawn,. Bring your own chair. Free shuttle bus from Newark, Lyons, Sodus, and Sodus Point. Refreshments are available at the Lighthouse Concession Stand. 7606 North Ontario Street Sodus Point, NY 14555 315-483-4936
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August 15… Studio Faculty Presentations – Rob Stern, Heike Brachlow Free & open to the public at the Corning Museum of Glass Studio Lecture Room. Hear from some of the best-known glassmakers in the world through free, informal public lectures by Studio faculty, Tuesday nights throughout the summer class sessions. 7:30 to 9 p.m. 1 Museum Way Corning, NY 14830 cmog.org August 24…Tree Phenology Walk Series Join the Cayuga Nature Center from 10:30 to 11 a.m. for a series of weekly citizen science walks to observe and collect data on seasonal changes in trees. Rain or shine, we will monitor when buds break, leaves emerge, flowers bloom, fruits ripen, and when leaves change color and fall. The data we will collect will be sent to the USA National Phenology Network, which makes it available to researchers.Weekly walks may be subject to schedule changes. Questions? Contact Ingrid at zabel@priweb.org. Every Thursday through November 2, 2017. 1420 Taughannock Blvd Ithaca, NY 14850 priweb.org August 26… Historic Ghost Walk and Hunt around the Village Take a stroll through the Village to the Palmyra Historical Museum and Phelps General Store. Watch for spirits of the museums. There will be 1 hr of ghost hunting and 1 hr walk. Cost is $10/person, groups welcome. (Rain or shine, 2 hr ghost hunt if rain). 9 to 11 p.m. Begin at Historical Museum (132 Market St., Palmyra). historicpalmyrany.com Events can be posted anytime, FREE, at LifeintheFingerLakes.com. Events posted to the website are considered for inclusion in the weekly e-newsletter and bimonthly printed magazine.
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Nooks & Crannies
a little bit of everything
Montour Falls Meets
Melodrama
Dastardly Deeds…Damsels in Distress… Daring Defenders at The Old
Havana Courthouse Theatre
Story and photos by James P. Hughes
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n quiet summer evenings, spirited sounds emanate from the cozy theater on the second floor of the Montour Falls Village Hall. Boos! Hisses! Cheers! Applause! Piano music rings out, from emotionally intense to gently melodic, depending on the action unfolding on stage. These raucous sounds ring in another season of magnificent melodrama presented at the Old Havana Courthouse Theatre. Since 2011, the Courthouse Theatre has presented four lively melodramas each summer, all familyfriendly and filled with music, emoting actors, over-the-top plots and a generous dash of slapstick. There is little subtlety here. Shows have
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jaunty titles, indicating fun is ahead: Grievous Goings-on at the Glen Springs Sanitarium; D. K. Molar, the Devious Dentist; and “Have Gun – Will Murder,” She Wrote. Characters sport whimsical monikers like Mortimer Whiplash, Rollinia Rhubarb, Tobias Twillaby and Jezebel Filcher. The theater is one of a very few of its kind in the Northeast. Its company
MONTOUR FALLS
408 West Main Street
Top: A scene from “Have Gun – Will Murder,” She Wrote. Above: Bill Christoffels on Main Street prior to a show. The signboard in front of the OHCT announces “Show Today.”
promises “all the fun of 1901,” and guarantees that each show delivers. As with melodrama performances of the late-19th and early-20th centuries, audience interaction is prompted (and encouraged) with hand-printed signs and actors’ “asides,” spurring the audience to robustly applaud
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Bill and Donna Christoffels are the founders and driving force behind the Old Havana Courthouse Theatre.
virtuous heroines, cheer courageous heroes, and boo vile villains. The creative forces behind the Courthouse Theatre’s antics are Bill and Donna Christoffel, and about three dozen energetic folks from Montour Falls and nearby towns, who contribute their writing and acting skills to the popular productions. The Christoffels met – and trained – at the esteemed Manhattan School of Music in New York City. Bill majored in voice, Donna focused on the piano. They married, settled in New Jersey and started a family. “I could sing, but couldn’t play a lick on the piano,” says Bill, with a chuckle. “So I married my piano player.” Looking for a calmer family environment outside the clamor and congestion of metropolitan New York, Bill and Donna moved upstate in 1985, eventually settling in Montour Falls in 1992. Over the years, professionally and voluntarily, their careers have remained intertwined with their musical interests.
A Theater is Born The Montour Falls Village Hall occupies the first level of a classic 1855 Greek-Revival structure, once used as the Schuyler County Courthouse. Bill visited in 2010, and was surprised to discover an upstairs auditorium sitting relatively unused. Over the years, the space had functioned as everything from a movie theater to a roller skating rink to excess storage. Bill called Donna, they gave it the onceover, and creative juices began to flow. The auditorium was already outfitted with a set of pews from a former church and had intriguing possibilities. Live theater, they wondered? The Christoffels acquired a lease from the village, recruited a group of like-minded people with artistic flair – and the Old Havana Courthouse Theatre was born. Sound and light systems were added and a stage was prepared. A struggle ensued to get an
The Old Havana Courthouse Theatre (408 W. Main Street, Montour Falls) will present its four shows on summer weekends during the months of July and August. For dates, times, and specific show information check the website: oldhavanatheatre.com J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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Nooks & Crannies
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Random scenes from the evening’s melodrama presentation: “Have Gun – Will Murder,” She Wrote
1895 upright piano (donated by village Mayor John King) hoisted to the second floor. Not wanting to compete with other local theater groups, the Christoffels searched for “something different.” A script was chosen, followed by auditions and rehearsals, and in 2011, the theater debuted its first melodrama, Run to the Roundhouse Nellie! (He Can’t Corner You There!).
The Vision Continues As the theater company enters its seventh season, enthusiasm for the venture continues. “We’ve had some bumps and bruises along the way,” Bill says. “But they’re overridden by the fun we’ve all had in the process.” Members have come and gone over time, but the group remains a loyal family. Much of the writing and directing has fallen to the talents of Jeff Hetzel and Joe Edkin, each a capable actor as well. Donna “tickles the ivories” of the antique piano, eliciting just the right emotions to match the onstage action. Bill designs sets, gathers props, and is often seen on Main Street prior to show time, waving at passersby while sporting a sandwich board touting the production. Chosen from the troupe, the cast changes from show to show, in addition to executing all other essential tasks: selling tickets, handing out programs, tending the snack bar, running the chair lift, etc. When asked to reflect on his notable memories, there are many, Bill says. “Joe jumped off a desk in one show, wrenching his back in the process. He rallied and finished the performance in a wheelchair … all of it taken in stride by the audience.” On another occasion, an actress playing “Granny” got cold feet just before a performance and couldn’t go on. Panic ensued! Bill donned a fluffy wig at the last minute and played the role, trying to learn and keep up with his lines between scenes. “In the end,” he says, “It’s all about fun … fun for the cast, fun for the family, and fun for the community. That’s what keeps us going.”
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Daytrip
exploring the finger lakes
Up Close and Personal Hiking with Kids
Photo by Amanda K. Jaros
by Amanda K. Jaros
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Cayuta Lake
he Finger Lakes Region radiates scenic beauty. Adults may bask in views of rolling hills sloping into sparkling lakes, and revel under open skies alive with color, but kids see their world in an entirely different light. When we go hiking, rarely does my 11-year-old son comment on the vast landscape in front of him. Instead, he searches rocks underfoot for fossils, listens for rushing brooks, and points out every toad and chipmunk we scare up along the way. Kids live in the here and now, and when they get up close and personal with nature they learn about themselves, build confidence and gain a deeper understanding of their environment. It’s not always easy to escape our daily routines and find time to head to the woods, but it’s a great Connecticut Hill State N opportunity to learn – and Game Management W E bond – with our children. Over Area S the years, I’ve discovered a few things that help make these adventures successful.
Hike at a kid’s pace
Watkins Glen
Hiking is a great way to have fun and discover something new. When hiking with kids, they also love to get a
14 miles
Courtesy alltrails.com
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The author’s son at the Abbott Trail overlook in Danby. Photo by Amanda K. Jaros
little dirty – and water is a sure way for them to do that! My family enjoys the Finger Lakes Trail (FLT), particularly a delightful mile south of Mecklenburg which offers many places to stop and play in the stream. About a mile into this stream walk, a moderately-sized waterfall slips into a small pool and runs under a wooden bridge toward the main stream. It’s an excellent place to pause, skip rocks, build dams and enjoy a snack (Ours always includes something chocolate!) The trail gently rises and falls along the flow of waters exiting Cayuta Lake, and finally climbs steeply uphill into Connecticut Hill State Game Management Area. Taking kids outside often means letting go of our adult expectations. When I hike alone, I move at a quick pace and rarely stop, eager to cover more ground. When I’m with my family, priorities shift; a good hike together means pausing often to throw rocks in the water and dig through damp seeps trickling down from the hillside. This trail, like many others in the Finger Lakes, is an easy, generally flat walk. When my son was younger, I limited the elevation gain, pace and mileage of our hikes based on his ability. Now that he’s 11, we’re able to comfortably cover a few miles with medium-sized hills. I don’t want to push him too hard, but I also don’t want to underestimate him. If we’re feeling energetic, we’ll climb one of the steep Ithaca gorges we love. But no matter where or how far we walk, I make sure there are places for him to get in touch with the water and earth surrounding us.
Spark some wonder The Finger Lakes National Forest, located on a north-south ridge between Seneca and Cayuga Lakes, is the only National Forest in New York State. Its 16,000 acres contains one of my family’s favorite hikes: from the Blueberry Patch campground to Foster Pond. In spring, the just over a milelong trail is lined with fascinating fungi of all shapes and colors. In fall, there
Other kid-friendly hikes in the Finger Lakes: The Finger Lakes Trail is a 950-mile network of trails, and a part of the North Country Scenic Trail, which stretches from Allegheny State Park to the Catskills Mountains. The FLT crosses the southern tier of the Finger Lakes and offers miles of hikes for all experience levels. Find information and maps at fltconference.org. State Parks such as Watkins Glen, Buttermilk Falls, and Filmore Glen all offer many beautiful trails. However, many climb the steep gorges which characterize this glacier-formed region of New York. When walking in these parks be prepared for more challenging hikes. Check out all of NY’s parks at parks.ny.gov. The Finger Lakes Land Trust’s latest website – gofingerlakes.org – offers a free public service to help residents and visitors discover the best locations in the region for hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, canoeing, cross-country skiing and other outdoor recreation activities. It features over 55 locations and 650 miles of trails.
are dozens of frogs and toads. And it’s a perfect cross-country ski trail in winter. The problem some kids face when hiking is boredom, so I often bring my camera and encourage my son to bring his. We zoom in on tree bark, fern leaves or tiny orange newts. He takes aim at clouds, stick piles or the mud puddles we trek over. The photos serve as great memories and reminders to search for more information when we get home, but even more important, having a camera allows him to add his own personal perspective to the hike.
Finger Lakes National Forest
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Seneca Lake
Cayuga Lake
He gets to take charge of this aspect of the hike, and for him, there’s nothing boring about it. Choosing an enticing destination is also important. Foster Pond – large enough for swimming or fishing in summer, and encircled with wide grassy areas for picnicking and soaking in the sun – is a great motivator. It’s a fun place for kids and adults to hang out – when my son and I hike this trail, we always find it’s worth the effort to get there. Setting a reasonable goal, one that children can definitely achieve, goes far in boosting their confidence in the woods. When we’re walking and my son asks the names of trees or birds, sometimes I know the answers, but often I don’t. Occasionally I bring a plant or bird identification book with me and we may look up some things, but I’ve realized that I don’t have to be an expert. Though we’re interested, knowing the names of things isn’t crucial – rather it’s the experience of being out there and looking closely, asking questions, and making discoveries together. I’ve found that it’s
Courtesy alltrails.com LIFL
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Outdoors
Open 7 Days A Week!
Courtesy alltrails.com
ITHACA my love of nature and all its intricate details, more than the facts I can tell him, which sparks my son’s wonder.
9.6 miles
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One of my favorite hikes in the Finger Lakes is a 1-1/2-mile segment of the FLT in the Danby State Forest. There is a slight elevation gain as the trail climbs through some stately red and white pine forests before reaching a large grove of tamarack pines. A small lean-to is tucked beneath the tamaracks, and it’s an ideal place to spend some time. There are a handful of these log-cabin-like, three-sided structures along the FLT and in some of the state parks where backpackers can stop for the night. Resting inside, we read the lean-to log book to find names and comments of other hikers who have passed through, and imagine out loud what it would be like to sleep there. My son thinks it’s almost like having a home in the forest. The thing I love about this lean-to home is that there are no screens. My family enjoys our computers, video games, and TV shows like everyone else, but when I leave my phone in the car and we separate ourselves from technology, we step into a place where there are no distractions. With
Danby State Forest screens in every aspect of our lives, including my son’s school, I appreciate those unplugged hours. It’s just us moving at our own pace, under our own power. I recommend hiking each of these trails several times, for each adventure offers the chance for a different experience: the weather alters the feel of the trail, sometimes we bring one of my son’s friends along, or we discover something we completely missed the last time. On various treks to the tamarack lean-to, we’ve made a fire in the fire pit to roast marshmallows, scouted trees to climb, and huddled under the dry roof to get out of a summer rain shower. Whether I’m pointing out scenic vistas, or my son is getting me to build rock towers in icy streams, the days of his childhood that I especially want to hold on to are the ones when we’re enjoying the natural world together.
Three books to inspire your outdoor endeavors
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The Sense of Wonder by Rachel Carson (Rachel Carson, 1965). Carson’s short poetic essay is a beautiful meditation on time spent aimlessly exploring the Maine coast with her nephew, and the deep love of nature that both she and her young charge discover. Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv (Algonquin Books, 2005). In this ground-breaking book, Louv shares studies and science behind his newly-coined term “nature-deficit disorder.” He argues that just as they need clean water, good food, and familial love, children also need time to explore and play in the natural world. Companions in Wonder edited by Julie Dunlop and Stephen Kellert (MIT Press, 2012). This collection of essays from a variety of naturalists, writers, and parents offers many perspectives on the joy, education-value, and bonding that we find when we spend time in nature with our families.
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Daytrip
Tanglewood Nature Center
exploring the finger lakes
Into the
Woods by Kevin Cummings
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he stillness is calming, with only bird calls or rummaging squirrels to capture my attention. Occasionally, I catch sight of a deer as it stands motionless, watching me warily from a safe distance before disappearing quickly into the underbrush. I’m on the Bluebird Trail at Tanglewood Nature Center; 600 acres of serene wilderness located a mere 10 minutes from the city of Elmira. On any given day, I might hike for an hour or more without human contact,
maybe seeing another hiker far off in the distance. Or I may run into a group of children pointing out birds and chasing butterflies. It’s all good – a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Looking at the rolling, forested hills now, one would never know that this was once farmland. Known collectively as Tanglewood Farms, several farms dotted this area. In the 1920s, a reforestation project was undertaken to correct erosion brought on by decades of planting and harvesting. In
1928 alone, an estimated 27,000 trees were planted. As those trees matured, a logging operation was started that captured the attention of school children eager to see the process. Eventually, it was determined that the land should be preserved and Tanglewood Community Nature Center was created in 1973. Take in the museum A visit to Tanglewood requires mentally shifting into a lower gear. After parking your car, take the time to appreciate the view. The gentle hills
Tanglewood summer camps combine learning and fun.
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Photos courtesy Tanglewood Nature Center
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!alnut Hi" Farm Driving Compe##on stretch into the distance without a break. Keep an eye out for grazing deer in the field beyond the parking lot. The main building, or nature center, houses offices, a museum, a library and more. Strolling through the museum is a treat in itself. A collection of live animals – birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles – can be found alongside mounted animals. A sulcata tortoise named Bernice is a longtime resident and a visitor favorite. She makes her home in the main hallway of the nature center, so be sure to say hello as you walk by. During your museum visit, don’t neglect any of the rooms. The animals are spread throughout the building. Activities abound for children, including games, books, and stations where kids can make their own nature discoveries. Adults can relax on the spacious deck overlooking Rotary Pond. Behind the museum are enclosures that house two owls, two hawks, a falcon and smaller birds. “I encourage all of our visitors to see the animals while they are here,” says Tanglewood Executive Director Elaine Spacher. “Our raptors are especially popular.” Occasionally, you might find a handler with a bird outside the cage. Questions are always welcome.
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Hike the trails Twelve routes take hikers across fields, past ponds, and through forests. They are well-marked but vary in length and difficulty so pick up a map before you start, and wear sturdy shoes. The children’s trail, nearest to the museum, features reading stops along the way, as well as places to play and explore. The Twain Trail is the longest, about three miles, but the view of the Chemung River from the trail’s furthest point is well
Tanglewood Nature Center
N Map data ©2017 Google
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Take a stroll in the forest or an elevated walk on the wild side.
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worth the trek. Pause for a few minutes to rest and take advantage of the photo opportunity. Trails are open 365 days a year from dawn to dusk; snow shoes can be rented in the winter. As the saying goes, take only pictures and leave only footprints. It’s free! One of the best things about a visit to Tanglewood is the cost. There isn’t one. You can spend the entire day touring the museum, eating a picnic lunch, and hiking to your heart’s content and it won’t cost a thing. However, Tanglewood is a nonprofit entity that relies greatly on volunteer workers and financial generosity, so donations are gratefully accepted. Family and corporate annual memberships are encouraged. Please consider helping out any way you can. Be sure to visit the gift shop at the back of the nature center, where you will find a variety of nature-related items for children and adults. Get married there The summer months at the nature center are busy, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying the facility. Tanglewood hosts a variety of programs and camps for children and families. Some have no cost. Ten weeks of camps for children from pre-K through grade 5 are scheduled each summer, and adults get their turn as well. “We have many options for adults and children,” says Spacher. “There are bird hikes and naturalist walks. We’ve even held a wilderness survival class. Each year we host two trail runs, and those are always fun.” Non-camp events this summer include outings to learn about creek
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Lucy, the barred owl, keeps an eye on things.
ecology and conservation, moths and dragonflies. Check the calendar on tanglewoodnaturecenter.com to see what’s coming up. Tanglewood staff members offer programs for public schools, scout meetings and other groups. Guided walks are provided at parks and other sites in the area as a way of creating a deeper awareness and appreciation of the environment. “We educate 20,000 children a year,” says Spacher. “And then we have probably another 10- to 15-thousand people who visit the nature center and lodge. Some people come here just to hike the trails.” The lodge, completed in 2015, is a multipurpose venue. Weddings, receptions, birthday parties, corporate meetings and baby showers can all be accommodated in the rustic postand-beam building. “It is completely solar powered,” says Spacher. “Thirty-six panels provide the electricity, and some of that power is even sent to the main building.” The rest of the power for the Nature Center is clean geothermal – a testament to the environmental awareness of those involved in Tanglewood’s development. From its inception, these folks have had a vision to create a place where children and adults can not only enjoy nature, but also learn to preserve it for future generations. In the hills just outside of Elmira, they have done just that.
Tanglewood Nature Center is open Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Closed Sunday and Monday. For more information, please check tanglewoodnaturecenter.com.
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Food
good eats
A Festival Favorite Celebrate the Glories of Garlic by Tim Fenster
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his summer, Fox Run Vineyards celebrates the 25th anniversary of its annual Glorious Garlic Festival on August 5 and 6. The muchloved event celebrates the harvest of garlic with vendors and chefs from across the region, live music, food and wine. Last summer, over 12,000 visitors enjoyed the two-day event in the middle of the vineyards of Fox Run. The festival is now an iconic Finger Lakes summer event – but it had a much more humble beginning. Twenty-five years ago, Larry and Adele Wildrick, then owners of Fox Run Vineyards, began a small food festival on their 50-acre winery overlooking Seneca Lake in Penn Yan. It was inspired by the long-running Gilroy Garlic Festival in northern California – the “Garlic Capital of the World.” The plan was to feature vendors whose offerings would pair well with their wines. The event was modest but well-received – a crowd of around 100 people and a couple vendors attended, estimates Fox Run Vineyard’s current
Above, top: Chef Brud Holland from Fox Run hosts a cooking demonstration at the 2015 Garlic Festival. Each year, local chefs dish out their favorite recipes, tips and tricks for cooking with garlic. Above: Duane Keogh from The Town Pants performs at the festival. In addition live music all weekend, The Town Pants will kick-off the festival with a show on Thursday night.
Garlic Facts Garlic is a highly-versatile plant – it’s easy to grow and does particularly well in mild climates year-round. The Finger Lakes is not exactly known for garlic production; however, the region does boast at least a dozen garlic farms. The vast majority of garlic produced in the U.S. is grown in California, Oregon and Nevada. But most garlic is not grown in the U.S. at all. China produces 80 percent of the world’s garlic, followed by India, South Korea, Egypt and Russia, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The plant is thought to have originated in central Asia, and records also show its use as a spice in ancient Greece and Rome. It slowly gained popularity in the United States, largely as a smelly, foreign curiosity.
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Photos courtesy Fox Run Vineyards
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3907 West Lake Rd. Canandaigua, NY President and CEO Scott Osborn. When he and his wife, Ruth, took over the winery in the mid-’90s, they took the festival to another level. “We started marketing it,” Scott explains. “We wanted to make it bigger.” That they did. Year after year, they steadily brought in more vendors and the public responded in kind. The Glorious Garlic Festival is now the winery’s “busiest day, by a pretty substantial amount,” says Ross Kircher, Fox Run’s assistant tasting room manager. The festival is so popular that there is a vendor wait-list and restaurants, craftsmen, artists, cheeseproducers and farmers come from as far away as eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey. This year, 34 vendors – including local garlic growers Jake’s Garlic, A & L Garlic and Mele Garlic Farm – will showcase their harvests and homemade goods. Garlic lovers will have more than 15 varieties to choose from, seeds ready to plant to fullygrown garlic ready to cook. Local chefs will host cooking demonstrations featuring recipes and garlic-infused dishes, from soups to hummus to French fries. Seneca Farms has been known to infuse garlic into ice cream. “It is a bit of an oddity,” Kircher says.“People like to talk about it.” There will also be live entertainment from local bands including Blue-Eyed Soul, Rebecca Colleen and The Chore Lads, Meg Gehman and The Influence, and Duane and Dave of The Town Pants. Because there are relatively few garlic farmers in the area, the festival is an excellent opportunity to try the best of what the Finger Lakes Region has to offer. “Garlic lovers are able to stock up on local garlic and enjoy it in a relaxed atmosphere,” Scott says. “Garlic lovers are passionate. They’re foodies.” The 25th annual Glorious Garlic Festival runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free, and shuttle service is available. For more information, visit foxrunvineyards.com.
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Outdoors
in the open air
Montezuma’s
Winged Wonder The next time you’re on the New York State Thruway between exits 40 and 41, look for the bald eagle. You can’t miss it – its majestic wings span nearly 20 feet, and it’s 21 feet tall. by Christen Smith
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Photo by Laurie Dirkx
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Outdoors
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he massive bird was installed at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge in Seneca Falls last October to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Montezuma’s Bald Eagle Restoration Program. “This is the largest piece I’ve ever done,” says artist James (“Jay”) Seaman of his sculpture. “It’s a real headturner. “The body is mild steel,” he explains. “The head and tail are stainless steel, to give it the look of a bald eagle, but I also used stone and wood. I used a combination of a lot of things to join the different materials together, which was a challenge. I also used a lot of glass, which is fun. The eagle has special glass eyes, made in Pennsylvania, that look very, very real.”
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Psychology and the art of carpentry Seaman graduated from college with a degree in psychology, but soon gave it up and started working as a carpenter to make ends meet. He’s largely self-taught. “A lot of things happen because you’ve got to pay your bills,” he says with a laugh. “That’s the way life works.” He took any job that was presented to him, from roofs to docks, and honed his carpentry skills. The finish work and wood carving interested him the most. “I was always playing around with designs in furniture, and then with carpentry,” Seaman told me. “When I was a kid I was surrounded by projects, but I really got into the finish carpentry and carving back in my 20s. “This was 30 years ago, way back when we still had cord phones, way before the internet,” he jokes, explaining that he would look in books for pictures of birds to carve. At first, his sculptures were crafted through trial and error as
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The Resurgence of the Bald Eagle at Montezuma
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potting a bald eagle at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge today is a typical occurrence. There are upwards of 80 bald eagles at any given time there. But 40 years ago, there were no actively nesting eagles in New York State, says Refuge Manager Tom Jasikoff, so the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation put a plan together to bring them back. In 1976, they retrieved young eaglets from natural nest sites in Wisconsin and Alaska and flew them back to Montezuma. Jasikoff was part of that team. They deposited the eaglets into “hack sites” – plywood boxes with cages placed high up on telephone poles to keep them safe from predators. “Someone would climb up the ladder throughout the day to put food in front of the eaglet for them to eat,” he says. But to teach them to become independent, food would be kept from them so they would head out and hunt on their own. They would often come back hungry because they didn’t know how to hunt. In those cases, there would be food waiting in the hack site for them. “I compare it to sending your kids to college,” jokes Jasikoff. “They’re old enough to be adults, but they still come home for food, clean laundry and money.” After long months of work, some of the eaglets went out and became independent and didn’t come back. Others set up their homes at Montezuma. “Five years after we started this program we had our first successful nesting at Montezuma. A male and a female mated and bred, laid eggs and had young,” says Jasikoff. Today, there are more than 200 nests throughout New York and six nests at Montezuma. “This is a real success story. We love seeing the eagles. We tried something that worked, and we’re really proud of it.”
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Artist Jay Seaman poses here with the eagle sculpture at his studio near Taughannock Falls in Ithaca a few months before completion and installation. Photo by Christen Smith
he experimented with different tools. Seaman started crafting big birds out of wood, but then shifted into making bird sculptures from stainless steel. “Birds are great – there are so many different kinds and they’re so beautiful, especially herons,” says Seaman. “A heron can put itself into positions that are just fantastic. They can bend their bodies all over the place. You can’t deny it – it is just
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fantastic to look at them in nature. I see pictures and I think, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve got to sculpt that.’” Seaman’s passion for his art came through loud and clear when Tom Jasikoff, manager of the Montezuma refuge, happened upon one of his eagle sculptures at a winery on the Cayuga Scenic Byway. Jasikoff had been looking for an artist for a special project at the refuge; a project that
would remind people about the amazing work being done there. “I called Jay and we really hit it off,” Jasikoff says. “He is not only an artist, he’s a conservationist. He and I developed a great friendship.” Jasikoff predicts that Seaman’s eagle will become an icon of wildlife in Central New York for many generations to come. “People who are yet to be born and children who travel in cars with their parents will see the eagle and say ‘Wow.’ Then they’ll come back years later, and take advantage of all the great things that we do here.” Right on I-90 Jasikoff is in his 41st year with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; he has been the manager at Montezuma for 20 of them. He had worked all over the country before he came to our area and fell in love with the refuge. When he arrived, its 3.5-mile Wildlife Drive
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Outdoors near the thruway consisted of “a sea of cattail in this aging marsh on the left, and on the right, tractor trailers whizzing by at 70 miles per hour,” he says. The refuge existed 20 years before the thruway was installed. They built the road through the marsh after they dug the muck out, which created some environmental issues, explains Jasikoff. “It created a situation where the wetland was aging much faster than normal. All wetlands age … they eventually turn into dry marsh. But the process was happening at a much-accelerated pace because the hydrology – the flow of water underneath – was interrupted.” To fix it he came up with a plan to elevate the Wildlife Drive. It required removing 200,000 cubic yards of muck, which also created open water areas and interspersion. “They went in and broke up the cattail so there is now a mix of open water and emergent vegetation. It makes for a good wildlife habitat,” said Tom. It also helps the 20 million travelers who go through the refuge on the thruway every year see how beautiful it really is. “We’re essentially situated on Main Street, New York, so why not take advantage of it?” he says. “We thought, ‘Why not make a memorial to all we do here to promote wildlife conservation, at one of the premier wildlife refuges in our nation?’”
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The memorial is the eagle sculpture, and Seaman was the perfect partner to create it. “I am much more comfortable doing big, big pieces,” he says. “They’re striking, but it’s a tough market. Not everyone can fit a giant bird in their living room. “You wouldn’t believe how many people say, ‘Can you do something smaller Jay?’ but that’s not what I do,” he continues. “I love the fact that it’s pushing the envelope. That’s always appealing to me. Doing something bigger and better, always being challenged, always wanting to do something that I’m not quite sure of, getting that feeling of excitement. If you don’t take risks in life, you’re just stuck in the mud.” Seaman splits his time between his home and studio in Rochester and his other studio near Taughannock Falls in Ithaca, where he grew up. “It’s the best park in the Finger Lakes, hands down, and I can walk to it in five minutes.” He sells his sculptures all over the country, and as far away as India and Ireland. To learn more about his work, visit jamesseaman.com, or call 607-351-8190 to make an appointment to visit his Taughannock Falls studio. “I’m so happy to be able to do this for a living,” he says. “I get to meet all kinds of interesting people. Working as an artist is just a gift. It’s a great feeling.”
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Offbeat
fresh and unique
Special
Delivery
story by Derek Doeffinger photos by Derek Doeffinger and Gary Whelpley
“N
othing can really compare to being paid to be on a boat on one of the nicest lakes in the world,” says crewman John Parsons, then adds, “Delivering mail by boat is a really cool thing.” Just about everybody involved agrees: kids who get to steer it; dockside dogs who get treats added to their owners’ mail, and young campers who tear open delivered cookie packages. Now it’s not zipline cool, but it is Americana cool. You don’t have to work John’s job to enjoy the experience yourself. The Barbara S. Wiles, a sleek wooden beauty, simultaneously delivers the mail and offers a
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narrated tour of the lake, with box lunch available. Named after the late mother of several of its current owners, the Barbara sails with the fleet of Mid-Lakes Navigation tour boats (some available for rental). She’s 48 feet long, 12 feet wide and weighs about 9 tons. The Barbara was built in 1937; the Wiles family acquired it in 1981. Made of cypress with a mahogany interior, she’s powered by two new Yanmar diesel engines. “She is inspected every year by the New York State Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, and is currently licensed to carry up to 36 passengers,” notes Sarah Wiles, one of her owners. Sarah fondly recalls that until they
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Top, left: Captain Rusty regales passengers with tales about the lake as he navigates the mailboat. Top, right: Although a matriarch of wooden boats, the Barbara S. Wiles sports two new diesel engines. Middle, right: As the captain edges the boat to the dock, John Parsons stretches out to hand off the daily mail to long-time customer Harriet Higgins. Bottom, right: Under the watchful eye of the captain, kids like Eden get a chance to take the wheel.
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Offbeat
The high-kicking camp counselors at Camp Lourdes celebrate the arrival of the mailboat.
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modified their first mail/tour boat, the Pat II, “We had to hire short high-school girls to serve food under the low ceiling.” In 2018, her family will celebrate its 50th anniversary as the Skaneateles lake-mail carrier. “One of the best parts of having the mail contract is that it keeps us – as a business and as a family – in touch with our community.” It’s one of only a handful or two of mailboats still making dock-to-dock delivery in the United States, and a source of pride for Sarah’s family. The voice of Harriet Higgins fades just a tad as she recalls her favorite childhood adventure on the lake. “I water-skied behind the Pat II,” she proudly exclaims. A successful and sophisticated international businesswoman, she seems puzzled that I would ask her why she uses the mailboat service, which costs about a buck a day. “We’ve been using it for generations,” she replies. Like the change of seasons, the mailboat is in the DNA of many lake residents. Delivery on the water is a bit of a balancing act. As the boat approaches a dockside mailbox, the postal crewmember, who also has other duties, clutches the day’s mail while crouching on the prow. The position changes to kneeling as the boat nears the dock. The
crew member gradually edges forward to the boat’s very tip. Then, bracing himself with his left hand, the crew member stretches out his right hand to slip the delivery into the mailbox – or hand it off to the waiting recipient. Contributing to the entertainment are the occasional antics of the mail recipients. Like Pavlov’s dogs, they and their visitors, neighbors and pets come running when the blast of the boat horn signals its approach. Each stop includes treats for the pups and Tootsie Rolls for the kids. The best treat for one recipient, Ken Hearst, is his relationship with the crew. “We plan our days around the 11 o’clock delivery,” he says. “It’s the highlight of our morning. We have great camaraderie with the crew, since we see them every day and swap 30-second stories.” When Ken married Barbara Littlehale a “few” years ago, he married into the family cottage and the mailboat tradition – a boat has brought mail to the Littlehale cottage since 1976. Until his father-in-law built the mailbox, they used to stand at the end of the dock with a fishnet. The Lourdes summer camp for kids on the southeast end of the lake celebrates the arrival of the mailboat with a theatrical performance. When the boat horn sounds its arrival, the kids
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John Parsons stows mail bags for the day’s delivery.
flock to the dock. The boat carefully weaves its way between kayakers and slide-equipped swim rafts crowded with waving and leaping kids. The blast of youthful energy is palpable. Then a group of counselors line up on the dock. When the boat gets into the performers’ predetermined range, they launch into a Rockettelike leg-swinging performance known as the Mailboat Dance. But when the bags and relief packages from home are hefted out of the boat, the dancers quickly disband to haul them to shore for distribution. In between stops, the captain points out landmarks, and regales passengers with stories about the local history and anecdotes about past residents. Visit midlakesnav.com for more information.
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THE
Great Outdoors Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium by Nancy E. McCarthy
Second Annual Paddle Keuka 5k: Race for the Museum! August 5, 2017 Join the excitement while raising money for the Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium (FLM&A). Hosted by FLM&A and Finger Lakes Racing & Events, this timed race across Keuka Lake and back includes single and double canoe, kayak or standup paddleboard options, plus a non-timed Family Fun Paddle event on the water. Pre-registration is required, visit fingerlakesmuseum.org and click on Programs & Events.
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Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium, 3369 Guyanoga Road, Branchport, NY
6/5/17 8:16 AM
T
he Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium’s waterfront campus in Branchport is a vibrant and engaging natural space. It is host to many programs that embody the museum’s mission of “inspiring appreciation and stewardship of the cultural heritage and ecological evolution of the vast Finger Lakes Region.” This summer, the museum will offer numerous water-based kayak and canoe events, guided wetland walks, a timber framing workshop, plus a weekly community Farmers Market. It all takes place on the expansive 29-acre property with shorelines touching Sugar Creek and Keuka Lake. While raising the necessary funds to transform a former school building into a top notch museum, the idea to work from the outside-in began in 2015 when Natalie Payne became the museum’s executive director. Payne’s first major project was the creation of the Creekside Center – a two-story kayak and canoe livery near Sugar Creek,
Above: Executive Director Natalie Payne enjoys paddling with her family. Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium offers numerous water-based programs on Sugar Creek and Keuka Lake.
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Top: New interpretative signs, created by Finger Lakes artist Mark Stash, illustrate the museum’s commitment to green, sustainable construction practices. Bottom left: Creekside Center kayak and canoe livery Bottom right: Sugar Creek connects the museum’s campus with Keuka Lake.
an artery of Keuka Lake. With the addition of an ADA-compliant launch at the creek, the center has become the linchpin for abundant water-based treks and adventures. Some offerings, such as Community Paddle days, are free to the public. Others, including a Moonlight Paddle, Endurance Paddling and even Paddle & Yoga are offered at a nominal cost. Programs will appeal to both experienced and novice “paddlers.” There is something for everyone! Nearby, the museum’s Grady-Townsend Wildlife Preserve is utilized as an outside classroom for educational programs such as birdwatcher walks, wildlife photography workshops and plein air (outdoor) painting classes. The 16-acre preserve, located across the road, is an extension of the main museum campus. Comprised of protected wetlands, its edge hugs Keuka Lake and is home to blue herons, turtles, various duck and song bird species, otters, beavers and muskrats. Creating pathways, installing boardwalks and interpretive signage, and building a lakeside pavilion are ongoing efforts. It was wildlife photographer and writer John Adamski who initially proposed the idea of a Finger Lakes museum in 2008. Payne, an outdoor enthusiast who lives in Canandaigua Visit fingerlakesmuseum.org with her family, has been with the museum for more information or to project in various capacities since its inception, make a donation.
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Get Out. Get Wet. Get Exploring!
THE
Great Outdoors
Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium
starting with a simple brainstorming session about the concept. In 2010, after a highly-publicized site selection process, Keuka Lake State Park was chosen as the future location. Early fundraising produced $1 million through grassroots efforts. However, the daunting $10 million endowment figure that the state’s Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation required before the museum could be built delayed the ability to raise money toward actual construction. Along the way, the fledgling project caught the attention of Finger Lakes Regional Economic Council. It characterized the museum as one of the region’s transformative priority projects under its “tourism and the arts” category. As a result, the museum has since been awarded several state agency grants. The museum’s board voted to pull out of the Keuka State Park deal in 2014 and moved the site to the former Branchport Elementary School, where the existing building could eventually be renovated into a museum. Since then, much progress has been made but to finish the building’s new footprint and install exhibits and learning space will necessitate a comprehensive fundraising campaign – in the planning stages now. A freshwater aquarium showcasing native Finger Lakes species will be a signature attraction, but it will be the last installation with a separate fundraising campaign. “Opening the museum’s doors in 2020 is an attainable goal,” says Payne, who patiently steers the multi-milliondollar project, along with a dedicated Board of Directors, a cadre of devoted volunteers and some part-time staffers. In the meantime, supporters, nature lovers and water enthusiasts are enjoying the Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium’s myriad of outdoor programming and events. Those who appreciate the abundant natural spaces our beautiful Finger Lakes Region provides will relish these offerings and learning opportunities.
Join us on Saturday, August 5th, for the second annual Keuka Paddle 5K. Kayak, canoe, and stand up paddling (SUP) enthusiasts are welcome to compete in a fun 3.1 mile race on Keuka Lake. Proceeds will benefit the Finger Lakes Museum & Aquarium. July 1 Eco-Paddle. Led by NYS Guide, Keith Tidball of Canoga Creek Outfitters. 8 Wetland Walk. Led by Terry Schmitz, General Manager of Broccolo Tree and Lawn Care 15 Community Paddle Day 21 Sunset/ S’More Paddle. Led by NYS Guide, Pat Atkinson 22 Paddle & Yoga. In partnership with Yates Community Center 24–28 Timber Frame Workshop. Taught by Rob Hughes, owner of Big Beams Timber Frames 29 Woodworking Demo Day. Featuring a variety of area woodworkers.
August 5 Second Annual Keuka Paddle 5k 12 Wetland Walk. Led by Terry Schmitz 12 Community Paddle Day 19 Eco-Paddle. Led by NYS Guide, Keith Tidball 26 Endurance Paddle. Led by Mike Piela, Founder & Lead Guide of Gray Fox Guiding
Photos by Matt Kelly
For additional program information, locations, pricing, and to register,
visit www.FingerLakesMuseum.org, or call 315.595.2200.
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CORNELL BOTANIC GARDENS J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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he Cornell Botanic Gardens may be the bestkept secret in the Finger Lakes Region. I’m convinced its gardeners have channeled Monet, Cezanne, Renoir, O’Keefe and van Gogh – because here, the art of the garden comes to life. And by summer, it’s bursting with color. You don’t have to be an artist to appreciate these gardens. As you enter, it’s easy to fall under their spell. Watch as daises and dianthuses bounce provocatively in the breeze and tease you with come-hither gazes. Then look closely to catch calendulas, coneflowers, and coral bells fluttering their petals and wafting seductive fragrances that draw you and the bees to their beds. From every corner and cranny the gardens beckon. Can you resist? Do you want to? Of course you don’t. If you love flowers, trees, gardens, mysterious fragrances, stone walls, split-rail fences, ponds, walks through beautiful and open parkland, and inspiration for your own garden, this is the place for you. Formerly known as the Cornell Plantations, Cornell Botanic Gardens are part of the Cornell University campus in Ithaca. One of the five largest gardens in the United States, it features 25 acres of botanical gardens and the 150-acre F.R. Newman Arboretum. Since the gardens are part of the university, they offer courses and programs for students but open to the community are lectures, classes, events, and guided tours and walks. Part of the mission of the Botanic Gardens is to educate and encourage good environmental practices, sustainability and the cultural heritage of gardening. It’s fair to assume that its gardeners – associated with an esteemed research university with a prominent agricultural program – would be technically and scientifically expert in their craft. And they are.
With an abundance of gardens, an expansive arboretum, and many trails to choose from, you should allow yourself at least a few hours to explore the gardens.
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CORNELL BOTANIC GARDENS Their artfulness is an added bonus. Gardener Pam Shade, who maintains the Herb Garden, explains, “When arranging plants in a garden, I try to visually achieve balance and a sense of rhythm with color, texture, height, shape and line, similar to other art forms.” You may think she’s describing three-dimensional art, but it’s really five-dimensional. The fourth-dimension is time, because a wide variety of plants need to come together aesthetically simultaneously. The fifth-dimension is the most subtle – fragrance. The Gardens To begin your visit, stop at the beautiful Nevin Welcome Center to figure out what you want to see and how to get around the large arboretum, the many gardens and other attractions. You will learn that the gardens fall into two geographical (and aesthetic) areas: fairly-compact traditional gardens and the expansive arboretum. Many of the 12 traditional gardens are located nearby including the Herb, Flower, Hillside, Rock and Winter Gardens. Several run continuously in a 25- by 110-yard rectangle. The Herb Garden features 17 themed beds including Herbs of the Ancients, Bee Herbs, Culinary Herbs, Dye Herbs, Edible Flowers, Herbs in Literature, Medicinal Herbs and Herbs of Native Americans. In all, you’ll find over 500 herbs, each labeled with its identity and use. As you stroll through the gardens, retrace your steps. You’ll also find specialty gardens for herbs, groundcovers, ornamental grasses, and more. From left to right are Chinese fountain grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘caudatum’), blue star (Amsonia ‘Seaford Skies’) and bronze fennel (Foeniculum vulgare ‘Purpurascens’).
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In doing so, you will learn in one visit what took me several to understand – the gardens are a living and ever-changing art gallery. You will begin to process and perceive how the plants – layered in foreground, mid-ground and background arrangements – reveal a variety of visual interactions that emerge and coalesce in different designs of blossoms, colors, seed heads, leaves and stems, depending on where you stand and where you look. Here are some of my favorite garden walks. • From the back of the Lewis Building, walk along the outside of the wall to the back-corner catalpa trunk, where a bell hangs in a tree-trunk portal. Go up the steps and stand behind the water garden. Turn and look back at the Lewis Building for a full view of several gardens, walls, fences and arbor. • Go to the Winter Garden and try to imagine it five months from now, under a few inches of snow. • Upon your return to the parking lot, take another look at the Rock Garden in front of the Welcome Center, paying close attention to the densely planted area in what seems to be a creek bed. It’s the latest innovation to replace expensive and often intrusive storm sewers, and naturally control runoff from a parking lot. Called a bioswale, it uses a wide variety of moisture loving (and mostly native) plants strategically positioned in a specially prepared swale to absorb and clean storm water runoff from the parking lot.
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CORNELL BOTANIC GARDENS A rim trail offers several high viewpoints of the Botanic Gardens. This view is from the Newman Overlook.
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nnovation doesn’t stop there. Across the street from the Winter Garden, the Climate Change Demonstration Garden shows how plant ecology – your garden – could change under the different environmental conditions predicted with climate change, like rising temperatures, heat waves, heavy downpours, and droughts.
The Arboretum Lovely as the gardens are, they are dwarfed in acreage and plant size by the F.R. Newman Arboretum. Many people love the grandeur of large trees and the massive bounty of flowering trees. Director of Horticulture Rhoda Mauer admits that given a choice between garden flowers and trees, she’ll take trees. They intrigue her. “There’s something about the presence of trees and how they transform through the seasons that really appeals to me.” But what really gets
her talking is the overall Arboretum space. “The variety of topography, the microclimates, and the genetic variety is what makes it so wonderful.” Like many of the beautiful public parks in the Finger Lakes, the arboretum can trace at least part of its ancestry back to the Great Depression and the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). For six years in the 1930s, the
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Visiting Details CCC cleared and improved the land and planted thousands of trees. But it wasn’t an arboretum yet. Floyd Newman provided the funding for that in 1981. Building on the work of the CCC, the arboretum was completed and dedicated in 1982. To best appreciate the arboretum, stroll along its paved walkways or meander through the path cut into the waist-high summer meadow. You will find collections of crab apple, dogwood, maple, conifer and nut trees; ponds with geese; cattails and wild iris; and paved pathways leading you to many of the arboretum’s delights. A playful sculpture area and (my favorite) the shrub garden complete the arboretum at the lower end. The flowering tree collection at the lower end is best seen in late April. With its walls, benches, gong, and above all, a panoramic view of the arboretum, the Newman Overlook is
a great picnic spot or place to relax. You may see Rhoda having lunch there, although she thinks there’s a better time to visit. “Evening is amazing,” she says. “The way the light falls on the landscape and trees is absolutely beautiful.” If you perch on the overlook wall, you can almost feel yourself soaring over the ponds and majestic trees spread below. (Or you can puzzle over why the bluestone used to construct the overlook area is called llenroc.) But don’t leave the overlook without swinging the hammer against the gong! It’s hard to appreciate these vast gardens in just one trip or season, or even at one time of day. But now that you know your way around, you can really enjoy your next visit.
The Cornell Botanic Gardens are located at 124 Comstock Knoll Drive in Ithaca. Admission is free. Grounds are open dawn to dusk, year round. The Nevin Welcome Center opens daily at 9 a.m. and has a gift shop, restrooms, drinks and snacks, and classrooms. For more information, contact the visitor information desk at 607- 255-2400.
N Cornell Botanic Gardens
For more information, visit cornellbotanicgardens.org Map data ©2017 Google
Exclusive stores Luxury brands More than 170 specialty shops Athleta L.L. Bean Madewell TUMI Von Maur
Route 96, Victor www.eastviewmall.com (585) 223-4420 J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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TASTE wine that’s earned over 6,000 national and international medals SEE breathtaking views of Cayuga Lake, Taughannock Falls, and rolling vineyards
WelcomingVisitors
VISIT wineries, cideries, distilleries, a meadery, and a taproom—all along America’s first wine trail
CayugaWineTrail.com 800.684.5217 Montezuma Winery & Hidden Marsh Distillery We are proud to serve you award winning fruit, honey and grape wines since 2001. With over 30 wines, ranging from dry to sweet, there is something to suit everyone’s palate. Hidden Marsh Distillery, winner of NYS Best Spirit, for their Corn Whiskey, has premium liquors, brandy, whiskey, bourbon and vodka. Enjoy our extensive gift shop, homemade fudge, picnic area and more. Visit our website, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to learn about our upcoming events.
Goose Watch Winery Celebrating our 20th year, Goose Watch produces nationally recognized innovative wines that can be sampled from our winery’s picturesque setting overlooking beautiful Cayuga Lake. From hard to find highly acclaimed premium wines such as Viognier, Traminette, Aromella, Chambourcin and Lemberger, to traditional favorites Pinot Grigio, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir Brut Rosé (sparkling), visitors will find wines for most every occasion as well as palate. Accessible by car, bus and boat. Open year-round.
Swedish Hill Winery Swedish Hill Winery is consistently one of the region’s most awarded wineries, with three Governor’s Cups awards in addition to five ‘Winery of the Year’ honors since 2012. Experience over 30 different wines ranging from classically produced Rieslings and Cabernet Francs to delicious blends that showcase the flavors of the region. Enjoy a winery tour from Memorial Day through October, picnic facilities, and meet our pet miniature donkey, Doobie! Open year-round!
Buttonwood Grove Winery Experience Buttonwood Grove! Come explore our beautifully landscaped grounds and lake view while tasting some of our many award winning wines. Live music and BBQ all summer—check our website for dates, times, and entertainers. A renowned venue for weddings, we also have on-site cabins for overnight lodging. Our friendly staff and Melody, our Scottish Highland Cow, can’t wait to meet you!
Varick Winery & Vineyard At Varick Winery, experience wines paired with complimentary fare. Sample over 100 complimentary food items at the country store. Enjoy scenic views of the vineyard, cherry orchard and Cayuga Lake. At Varick Inn, relax and rejuvenate at an 1833 historic home. Stay includes breakfast, afternoon tea and cookies, evening cocktails with hors d’oeuvres, a gift basket and discounts at the winery. Event rentals. Open year-round. www.VarickWinery.com.
Toro Run Winery Toro Run Winery sits on 64 acres 530 feet atop a glacier-carved hillside overlooking Cayuga Lake. We serve World Class Finger Lakes wines, including our Signature Estate Grown Grüner Veltliner. Toro Run Winery offers all the beauty of the Finger Lakes with a Spanish flair—“where the good life demands grape views.”
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Hosmer Winery Founded on the principle that great wine starts in the vineyard, the first vines Hosmer were planted on the family farm in 1972. Cameron and Maren Hosmer established their winery in 1985 and were among pioneers in the blossoming industry. Today, 70 acres of vineyards are producing some of the finest fruit in the Finger Lakes, used to make 100% estate grown, award winning Hosmer wine. J
— ESTATE WINERY —
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Lucas Vineyards Three generations of the fun-loving Lucas family invite you to experience Cayuga Lake’s oldest winery. Four decades of grape growing, fine wine making and laughter have built a reputation of friendliness, and good times since 1980. The famous, nauticallyinspired “Tug Boat,” “Nautie” and Sangria wines sport colorful bottles and spectacular labels, completing a diverse collection of estate-grown vinifera, method-champenoise sparkling, and Iced wines. Engaging wine tastings, beautiful gardens and one of the area’s most unique gift shops are just a few of the happenings at Lucas. Wine slushies that can’t be beat! 800–682–WINE(9463). K
Six Mile Creek Vineyard Nestled on the southwest slope of one of Ithaca’s most picturesque settings, Six Mile Creek Vineyard is a boutique winery and distillery specializing in the production of premium Finger Lakes wines and spirits. The Dutch reform barn offers a comfortable venue to taste memorable wines styles to suit all preferences. Panoramic valley views capture the beauty of the vineyard, pond, and gardens, perfect for a walk after tasting or a picnic with wine and cheese from the shop. Such a lovely spot so close to town makes this an ideal choice to host a wedding or special event. N
Treleaven Wines Thirty-years in the making, Treleaven invites you to a wine and event destination on the east side of Cayuga Lake! Experience fun, family-friendly events under our premier event and music venue, The Hangtime. Enjoy a wine or craft beer tasting with our friendly and knowledgeable tasting room staff. Browse our extensive gift shop featuring wine accessories, locally made products, home décor and more. Whether you’re visiting to drink Finger Lakes wine and enjoy live music or are coming for a wedding or a corporate event, you’re sure to have a relaxing and memorable time at Treleaven! O
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RESTAURANTS
Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge
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See a full list of the outstanding restaurants along our Trail at www.cayugawinetrail.com/along-trail
Auburn Seneca Falls
Cayuga
Waterloo
Cayuga Lake State Park
Union Springs
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Ogden Rd.
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Cayuga Lake
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Did you know you are only 15 minutes from the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail from here?
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Long Point State Park
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Montezuma Winery
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Swedish Hill Vineyard
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Varick Winery & Vineyard
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Knapp Winery & Vineyard Restaurant
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Goose Watch Winery
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Buttonwood Grove Winery
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Toro Run Winery
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Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery
Hours: April–November 11am–5pm daily The Copper Oven at Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery Wood-fired pizzas at the copper oven are a mouthwatering delight. Our pies cook next to a crackling wood fire at 750 degrees in two minutes. Winner of the 2012 Finger Lakes Foodie award for best main course, the 2013 Nature Conservancy’s Nature’s Plate award also a 2013 Trip Advisor Excellence award! Check our website for up to-the-day menu planning and special events throughout the 2017 season. Call (607) 220–8794 or visit www.SlowFoodOnTheGo.com for restaurant hours. H
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Thirsty Owl Wine Co.
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Hosmer Winery
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Lucas Vineyards
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Bellwether Hard Cider & Wine Cellars
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Americana Vineyards & Crystal Lake Café
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Six Mile Creek Vineyard
Trumansburg
Treleaven by King Ferry Winery
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Long Point Winery
Stewart Park
Alan Treman State Marine Park
Enfield
Watkins Glen
Bistro at Thirsty Owl Wine Company The Thirsty Owl Winery and Bistro, with its own 41 acres of vineyards overlooking Cayuga Lake offers indoor, outdoor and private seating for larger groups. Enjoy our award-winning wines and delicious local fare. Live music on Saturdays from June to September. Boat access is available. Please call for restaurant hours, as they vary in April, November and December. For reservations and information call (866) 869-5805. I
Taughannock Falls State Park
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D Knapp Vineyard Restaurant A visit to Knapp Vineyard Restaurant is a must. Sit inside or on our vineyard trellised patio overlooking our landscaped gardens and vineyards. Our hearty dishes include classic burgers with unique flavors, alongside special entrées using regional products. Combine this setting with Knapp’s premium wine for an authentic Finger Lakes experience. Five-course wine dinners featured monthly. Available for private parties, weddings, receptions and business functions. Call for reservations (607) 930-3495.
Ithaca Cornell University
Cass Park
Robert Treman State Park
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Ithaca College
Lunch Hours: April-December 11:30am – 5pm daily Dinner Hours: July-August 5-7pm Friday and Saturday
Park
Download our free app Make planning your trip even easier. Get the most out of your Cayuga Lake Wine Trail experience. Access winery details, transportation and accommodation information and a list of winery events when you use our mobile application to navigate the Trail. Available on
Crystal Lake Café at Americana Vineyards The Crystal Lake Café offers fresh, locally-sourced, from-scratch gourmet comfort food in a laid-back casual atmosphere year-round—inside, or out when the weather’s nice. Enjoy lunch, dinner, their Friday Nite Pizza Party, Saturday Date Night, and a Sunday brunch that’s not to be missed! www.AmericanaVineyards.com. (607) 387-6804 M
May–October Hours: Monday–Wednesday 12–6pm Thursday–Saturday 12–8pm Sunday Brunch 11am–3pm Sunday Dinner 4pm–8pm
Mardi Gras Beads, coins and a scavenger hunt February 25 & 26
Bacon on the Lakein The perfect event for bacon lovers March 18 & 19
Wine & Herb Festival Potted herbs and veggie plants April 28-30 and May 5-7
Holiday Shopping Spree Wreath, ornaments and shopper’s card November 17-19 and December 1-3
November–April Hours: Thursday-Saturday 12–8pm Sunday Brunch 11am–3pm Sunday Dinner 4–8pm
Tra n sport ation a n d a cco m modation pa ck a g e s a re a va ila ble i n It h a ca, A u bu rn a n d Se n e ca Fa lls for a ll fou r eve nts
Purchase tickets at CayugaWineTrail.com or by calling 800.684.5217
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§Summer ummerTTime ime in the Finger Lakes story and photos by Bill Banaszewski
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“I could never in 100 summers get tired of this!”
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uthor Susan Branch captures my sentiments perfectly. For as long as I can remember, water has drawn me to it like a magnet. From July through Labor Day people of all ages and from all walks of life feel the same way – there is nothing quite like being on the Finger Lakes in summer time. Some come to the lakes just to sit on a dock and read a book, or head out onto the water to kayak, sail or go fishing for lake trout. A short interlude from the lake might include a stop at a few wineries and then dinner at one of the many lakeside restaurants here. My wife Michele and I enjoy all seasons on Keuka Lake, but the real fun occurs from July through August when the lakes come alive with visits from family, friends, and – best of all – kids of all ages.
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e feel a great sense of pleasure just watching youngsters enjoy the lake – their wide smiles and constant laughter while catching fish, paddling around, tubing, competing in “king of the raft” and, of course, making new friends. We became grandparents 12 years ago. From her very first years, our granddaughter Summer Mae would come from Colorado to spend a part of her summer on Keuka Lake. We always hoped that our Colorado Mountain Girl
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would become a Keuka Lake Girl, sharing our love for every experience the Finger Lakes offers, and collecting endless fond memories of summertime on the water. Indeed after all her years visiting “Papa’s Lake” – one of her favorite places in the world – she’s now a genuine Lake Girl. So what is it that makes summertime on the Finger Lakes so special? It’s quite simple, really. Put on your suit and flip-flops and head to the dock.
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ou can come to the lakes to get away from it all, or to get together with friends and family.
Choose your watercraft. Catch your first fish or brag about the big one you caught or the bigger one that got away. Take countless photos of your little girl’s first swim or plunge off the dock. Splash! Adventure, excitement, games and discovery. Fool around and be king of the raft. Race with dad. Just watch and listen, everybody’s having a ball, wide smiles and infectious laughter. Sit on the dock with Dad, watch the wood duck family and the boats drift by. At the end of the day, relax and enjoy a campfire. Although we might recall one particularly magical summer in our lives, ultimately it’s the collection of memories from many summers and across the generations that draws us back to the lakes and enriches our lives.
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Dennison Park
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Comparing a putter and a driver
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t’s Sunday morning at Dennison Park in Corning, and the Twenty Percenters disc golf league are gathering. Shoulder bags are packed full of colorful discs, teams of four assemble for a shotgun start, and their weekly round of disc golf begins. It sounds simple – throw your disc into a metal basket. But then they start, and it’s not so simple at all. Disc golf is a growing sport. The ultimate goal is to get your disc in an elevated metal basket located at each hole, in the fewest number of throws. It’s fun, it’s inexpensive, and can be enjoyed by both young and old. I recently chatted with Hank Foss, the driving force behind the Twenty Percenters league and the Dennison Park disc golf course – one of the older courses in the Finger Lakes region. “I always enjoyed throwing the traditional Frisbee, whether in a game with friends or at targets in the back yard,” he told me, and when he moved to Corning and met Paul Thomas, they found that they had a similar interest
in Frisbee and decided to give disc golf a try. But there was a learning curve. “At first we blamed the discs,” he laughed. “They just weren’t working.” But then they attended their first disc golf tournaments, one in New Jersey and then at Ellison Park in Rochester. “That was all it took, watching two tournaments, and we were hooked.” Throwing the golf discs takes a completely different technique than throwing a traditional Frisbee. Getting some advice from the experienced players at the tournaments helped
Hank’s technique and increased his desire for a course in Corning. 80 percent skill/20 percent luck Back in 1992, Hank approached the town of Corning about developing a disc golf course in Dennison Park. They started with nine holes, with Hank and Paul as the course designers. Ten years and numerous fundraisers later, the league was able to add five more. The city provided the final four and the 18-hole course was complete. The Twenty-Percenters play year-round. “Even in winter, a handful of players show up every week” says Hank. They have doubles on Wednesday nights, or on Saturdays
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Climbing Bines
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’s even an e r e ap h T
at! r th fo when the evenings are too dark. “We occasionally travel to other disc golf courses for a round of golf, to give us some variety” says Hank. The Twenty Percenters’ premier tournament is held each spring at the disc golf course at Hickory Hill Campground in Bath. This two-day event attracts players from all over. The league’s Ice Bowl tournament, now in its 17th year, is held in January as a fundraiser for the food bank. “With fewer park visitors around, we have plenty of room in the winter for this event,” explains Hank. If new players want to join, they just have to show up at Sunday league. They need to play two times to
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establish their handicap. I showed up one Sunday morning to watch a round, and the players patiently explained the ins and outs of the game to me. Like the more familiar game of “ball golf,” they start each hole at the tee – in this case, a concrete slab. Also like ball golf, there are drivers, mid-range, putters – in other words, discs in an amazing number of styles and colors. Drivers are made for distance, and are thin and sleek,
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Apple Farm Spartan course
while a putter, for shorter distances, will have a thicker edge. Keeping score is easy with the phone app UDisc, which also keeps personal stats for the players. Or, you can always use the old-fashioned way with a pencil and paper scorecard. The players must make their way around obstacles. “See that branch? It has grown and is now hanging down in the way,” explained one of the players named Thom. “But we can’t touch it. Only the course designers, or town maintenance, can modify anything on the course.” As with every sport, there are rules, course boundaries, and proper disc-golf etiquette. Since the Dennison course is in a public park, some of the guidelines are specific to this location. Roads and parking lots are out of bounds; sidewalks are not. Be careful when throwing a disc where non-golfers may be walking unaware that they are in your path. New players can check with an experienced player for clarification on the guidelines for each hole. A course near you LIFL
Get the “Life in the Finger Lakes” APP for more photos and articles!
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JUNE 3 -AUGUST 20 Curated by Nancy Crow
Sponsored by: Osborne Memorial Association New York State Council on the Arts Senator John A. DeFrancisco Arts in Cayuga Co.
ALSO ON VIEW These Numbered Days: Paintings and Cyanotypes by David Hornung Text Layer, Shape Shifter: Collage Compositions by Karen Frutiger
205 Genesee Street, Auburn, NY 13021
315.255.1553 • www.myartcenter.org
There are plenty of other disc golf courses in the Finger Lakes region, and each one is different. While Dennison Park is mostly level and through a manicured public park, others are located on some pretty unique terrain. In my travels through the region, I checked out a few other courses. The 18-hole Spartan course is located at the familyowned Apple Farm on Route 444 in Victor. It winds through the beautiful farmlands and orchard on the Bahai family’s private land. The course is hilly and lovely, and far enough from the parking lot that you will want to rent a golf cart. Yes, they’re available, and let’s be honest – they add to the fun of making your way up and down the hills and around the trees. Last fall, a second 18-hole course was added. Sadly, a recent fire destroyed the farm stand and the disc golf shop in front. Plans for rebuilding are underway with some uncertainty about when or if the shop will return. It remains an ideal disc-golf, with a choice of two courses in one location. At Climbing Bines Hop Farm and Brewery on Route 14 between Geneva and Watkins Glen, a nine-hole course will take you through farmland, between silos and along hops growing tall. “A couple of our employees were really into the sport, and thought it would be fun to have a course here,”
For information on rules, course locations and more The Twenty-Percenters:
sites.google.com/site/corningdiscgolf Professional Disc Golf Association
pdga.com
Game description, rules, course locations can be found here.
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says co-owner Chris Hansen. “They designed it, and we opened a few years ago.” Players bring their own discs or can buy one there to get started. “And they can stop by our tasting room when done” say Chris. Enjoying a local ale after a round of golf is a winning combination. There are many first class 18-hole and nine-hole courses throughout or region, including the Panther Highlands in Dryden, once a stop on the National Disc Golf Championship Tour; and the lakeside course at Emerson Park in Auburn. And because of its growing popularity, sporting goods stores have begun carrying discs, notes fingerlakes.com. “The Ithaca Outdoor Store, for instance, offers a quirky selection of inexpensive, hard-to-find discs that are a blast to try out.” For some, disc golf is a highly skilled sport. For the most serious players, membership is available in the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA), with professional leagues, sanctioned tournaments, player rankings, and more. But no matter the skill level, disc golf is fun, inexpensive, and appropriate for any age.
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It’s a Sham
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A photographer’s summer spent “shooting” on Civil War-era battlefields
Reenactors display a realistic show of emotion during a mock battle in Canisteo.
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As the smoke clears, a troop of horsemen become visible on the battlefield at the Genesee Country Village & Museum.
story and photos by Roger Bailey
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aboom! A report echoed up the gorge as fire and thick, white smoke rolled out from
the business end of a long steel barrel. As a light breeze drifted my way, I picked up the scent of sulfur carried with it.
Was it Muzzleloader season for
big game in Western New York? No. It was May in Letchworth State Park, and the report was from a Civil War-era cannon. A mock battle was about to commence!
The incredible noise from firing cannons vibrate the hills of New York’s Southern Tier during a battle of Lain’s Mill reenactment.
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It’s a Sham a “Thread Counter” or “Stitch Civil War “mock” battles or Counter.” “sham” battles have been around It was probably this attention since the Civil War itself, when to detail and subtle nuance battles were staged and reenacted that struck a chord with the as practice. They also served as photographer in me. Typically, my entertainment for civilians of that passion is photographing wildlife. era, and provided them a sense of But when I heard about the Civil what it was like to fight in the war. War reenactment at Letchworth, I Today, Civil War reenactments envisioned people in uniform, living are big business. Many reenactors in tents, the smoke, the fire, the prefer to be called “living historians,” action! I was determined to give and can spend thousands of dollars it a try. But like a Stitch Counter, I on clothing, tents, weapons and soon learned that for historicallywares. Some take on the persona accurate images, as a photographer of a citizen chosen from the 19th I had to be vigilant about what century, and do their best to A living historian at the Genesee Country Village & Museum represents the calm prior to the afternoon’s was within the frame. (I guess that replicate the manners and speech scheduled battle. makes me a “Pixel Counter.”) of the time. It’s imperative to these “historians” that the clothing and A photographer’s battle other articles used are as historically accurate as possible. I arrived before the battle at Letchworth and walked One who pays attention to these details is considered
Participants rest in the shade between battles in Canisteo
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Canisteo – and I was there, clicking through the encampment, away again. This was a better capturing some candid shots. location, from a photographer’s I quickly realized that I had perspective. The remote country to pick my shots carefully, or hills and farmland left fewer crop out unwanted objects, if unwanted objects to worry about. possible. Because behind the Sure, there were still some tire encampment a chain-link fence tracks in the field, and you could hugged the edge of the gorge, see some barbed wire. (Barbed wire and as the Confederates entered was patented nearly 10 years after the battlefield, they passed by a the Civil War.) But the closest thing modern-day playground. Behind to a playground at this site was a a line of cannons was a blacktop rope swing, which fit right in, but road, and tire tracks from a was not near the battle areas. (Not modern-day vehicle were visible authentic to the time period, but in the field. All of these modernmuch less obvious.) day markings would ruin the A soldier strikes a serious post-battle pose in Mumford. In Canisteo, they fought under authenticity of my images. Still, it the canopy of the woods, which was a fun-filled day and I captured made for some interesting images some pixels I was happy with. as smoke lingered and meandered through leafed-out trees. In June, I was ready for another shot at it. There was And the darkness of the canopy increased the luminosity more fire and smoke at the Battle of Lain’s Mill in the hills of
Enjoy the
Outdoors!!
1936 Hudson Ave. in Irondequoit 877-409-6555 • www.fireplacefashions.com J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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It’s a Sham of the orange glow spewing from the black powder weapons. I left those Southern Tier hills much happier with the images I had captured, compared to those from Letchworth. In July, me and my pixel trap headed to the Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford. Here I found some truth to the old cliché – the third time’s a charm. What better place to stage a Civil War battle than a 19thcentury replica village? The reconstructed village contains 68 historic structures on a 700-acre complex filled with artifacts including blacksmith, tinsmith and mercantile shops. To top it off, the village has its own “citizens,” dressed in threads to give them an era-appropriate vintage look. Some of this attire, as well as that worn by the Civil War reenactors, is several layers thick, creating quite a challenge when performing in July. (Some of the uniforms would keep one warm in near-freezing conditions. I give them a lot of credit – they must really love what they do.) It is often a family affair and you will see actors of all ages. It’s a great place to visit. As far as being picture perfect? Well that is nearly impossible, being over 150 years after the fact, but as a photographer, I think it’s hard to come closer than this place does. I’m no history teacher. (I have report cards from my school days to back that up.) My goal here was not to teach a history lesson. Instead, I hope my words and images inspire readers to experience a mock battle or visit the Genesee Country Village and Museum. It truly is a trip back in time.
LIFL
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MORE REENACTMENT PHOTOS!
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Sports
fun & games
Bicycling Enthusiasts applaud Finger Lakes Region for bicycling routes and destinations by Ruth E. Thaler-Carter
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hether the goal is fitness, spiritual refreshment, relaxation, support of a favorite charity, or reducing carbon footprints and pollution, the Finger Lakes region is ideal for bicycling. Who better to ask about the joys of bicycling than the owner of Rochester’s Freewheelers Bicycle Store and Repair Center? Roger Levy has been riding bikes for 60 years and running his store for 32. He sees the area in biking terms. “There are so many routes and destinations that are ideal for bikes,” he said. For Levy, bicycling is “recreation, transportation, and consolation.” “I like to stress the psychological benefits,” he says. “Bicycling is happiness. It’s like getting a pet – you slow down and notice things more. It gets you off the big, busy roads and lets you see the side streets to get a feel for various communities.” Levy likes to go out Plank Road – “it’s nice and quiet” – to Ontario Center Photo by Bill Banaszewski
Levy at his bike shop in Rochester
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Bicycling is a cause as well as an activity R-Community Bikes of Rochester distributes donated and repaired bicycles to city residents who need them to get to work, training or treatment, and will use a recent grant to provide trikes to people with disabilities. rcommunitybikes.net The Onondaga Cycling Club in Syracuse In 2016 the volunteer group distributed over 700 bikes in some of the most impoverished neighborhoods in Syracuse and they repaired hundreds more. onondagacyclingclub.org
EVENTS: Bike MS Finger Lakes Challenge (Keuka Park) July 8-9 Tour de Keuka (Hammondsport) July 22 Tour de Thompson (Canandaigua) July 29 Cayuga Lake Triathlon (Ithaca) August 6 Great Race (Auburn) August 13 AIDS Red Ribbon Ride (Finger Lakes Region) August 16-20 AIDS Ride for Life (Ithaca) September 9 Highlander (Finger Lakes Region) September 16
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Sports Road/Route 350 north to Lake Road, all the way up to Pultneyville. Lake Road out by Webster Park is another favorite, where “Whiting Road has a couple of nature preserves” that provide a peaceful, refreshing ride. Levy also likes to admire the mansions along East Avenue and between East and Elmwood avenues, especially Ambassador Drive, from his bike. He takes East toward Pittsford along Allen’s Creek and Westfall roads to loop back to Highland Park. He often goes alongside the river through Genesee Valley Park to Scottsville Road and Ballantine Road, “an old, old road that turns and goes up Hellaby Hill, a steep incline where you can see a valley on either side,” he explains. “It turns into a country road, and I go home via East River Road. I never get tired of the river.” A path on the east side of the river goes to Dinosaur Barbecue downtown. A paved path crosses a dam over the river toward the Seneca Park Zoo Klaeysen heading and Maplewood Park, along a cliff on out for a ride in Lake Road, past the cemeteries, and Canandaigua. downhill all the way to the harbor. “You can see people fishing, walking.” When Goodman Street turns into Kingshighway, it takes him up to DurandEastman Park. A little-known gravel path between the University of Rochester and the Rochester School for the Deaf is part of the Lehigh Trail North. “It takes you to Brighton-Henrietta Town Line Road so you can avoid Jefferson. Never ride your bike on Jefferson Road!” For “great views and a nice climb,” Levy recommends taking Middle Road into the town of Rush. If you need to know the difference between recumbent, supine, and the wealth of other variations on the classic bicycle, Levy is the one to ask. He provides advice on the right bike for the right person at the right time; often based on his own experience as not just an avid rider but also one who has literally cycled through health issues and can build, or rebuild, a bike from the ground up. Levy’s bike shop is part of his love for “keeping old things moving,” he said. “I enjoy older bikes. I have a 50-year-old one that still works! And a stainless steel bike made in Sweden that’s only 40 years old. Some of the other shops say I should just sell new bikes. No!” While he sells Fuji bikes, he can repair and revive almost any make. Irondequoit’s Jan Heyneman is proof that you can enjoy biking as much on three wheels as on two. She got her first grownup trike about 10 years ago and has had her second for four or five years. That first one was “a piece of junk. It fell apart,” she recalled. “This one, an ICE Inspired Cycle Engineering Adventure recumbent model, tadpole design, is a good one and should last.” It has two wheels in front and one in back; the steering mechanism moves the whole bike from the wheel assembly. Heyneman got a trike after she moved to a job she could get to without driving, and because “I never really learned to ride a regular bike,” she says. She often takes an “Irondequoit loop along the outskirts, up or down the side of the river, along Lake Ontario and Seabreeze to the pier, down to Titus Avenue on Ridge Road; about 11 miles. There are quite a few hills. It’s a challenge on a trike, so it’s good exercise. It’s also a chance to do a little thinking about my carbon footprint.”
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Riding also has social benefits. “I get a lot of smiles and thumbs-ups,” she said. “I ride down to the city a lot, and it seems to cheer people up when they see me. Some of them say, ‘What the heck is that?’” Bicycling is exercise, relaxation, and a cause for Heyneman, who has ridden her trike in the Tour de Cure of Rochester four times to raise funds for diabetes research. Dennis Wurster of Rochester, another Tour de Cure rider, believes in a bicycling version of recycling: “I like the old railbeds that have been converted into trails,” he said. “These ‘rail-trails’ are secluded from cars, mostly flat, and nicely nestled in nature. I use them to ride from my house in Henrietta all the way to Victor, then take back roads down to Canandaigua Lake.” For Howard Kravetz, the grueling (he goes the whole 100 miles) Tour de Cure is personal: on behalf of his son, he’s been riding in it for seven years, since he got into serious road biking. “I make that the only real fundraising bike ride I do,” he says, and he’s been the top fundraiser. He also does the Tour de Camp Good Days. Kravetz’s newest bike is a Giant, and it takes him on a lot of Finger Lakes rides. “I love Keuka,” he said; he rides around the lake and into Hammondsport. “Canandaigua is fun, but the hills are really hard. I did Cayuga when my daughter was at Wells College.” Among his favorite routes around Rochester are out to Honeoye Falls and from Mendon Ponds Park to Ionia, Ontario County Equestrian Park, Manchester, and Macedon. For Kravetz, bicycling “definitely clears my mind and nurtures my spirit.” He rides with a close-knit group of friends for the camaraderie; they train for the tour, but ride together all year round. His inspiration is his dad, 98, whose example encouraged him to exercise, do yoga and bike. You don’t get much more inspiring than William Bogart Klaeysen of Manchester, who will be 101 years old in August and still rides a bicycle. He rides an adult tricycle “whenever the weather is fair; otherwise, on a stationary bike indoors,” according to his daughter, Anne Klaeysen. His favorite route nowadays is around Friendly Village and the Outlet Trail in Manchester. Until he was 80, he rode a two-wheeler on country roads and along the Erie Canal towpath. “In his youth, he rode a motorcycle and longed to ride crosscountry, but then he met my mother,” says his daughter. John Udall of Ithaca, an avid outdoorsman and climber, is getting back into bicycling as an exercise that won’t strain an ankle he shattered. “I’m a bicycling enthusiast and general fitness nut,” he says. “I used to do touring when I was younger and enjoyed it, and I recently decided to do it again.” He considers himself “more an everyday rider” than an obsessed one. Most of Udall’s shorter bike rides are around Ithaca. “It’s always fun to go to Taughannock Falls on Route 89,” he says. “The road is fast and the shoulder is pretty good. There are lots of bicyclists out there.” He also likes Caroline and Gandy: “You can go off in almost any direction, south into Newfield and west toward
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Keuka College is one place for participants to camp while they ride in the Bon Ton Roulet Finger Lakes Tour.Photo by Bill Banaszewski
Watkins Glen. Moravia is another worthwhile destination, and I wouldn’t discount day trips along the Erie Canal – that’s a really nice ride. It’s a pea-gravel surface, so you have to have the right tires for it.” He also enjoys heading to Seneca Falls and Geneva, “basically paralleling the Cayuga barge trail.” Udall generally rides a vintage early 1980s Fuji bike, a heavy touring bike. “It’s been disturbing how much has changed in about 30 years since I first used a touring bike,” he notes. He also recently fired up an off-brand hybrid mountain bike.
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Wherever you live or explore in the Finger Lakes region, you can bet there’s a bike route awaiting you. Enjoy!
Ruth E. Thaler-Carter fell off a bicycle around fourth grade and never got back on one again, although she’s considering getting a recumbent bike. She dedicates this article to the memory of family friends Al Loeb and Leon Katzen, who were bicycling into their 70s and 80s, respectively.
~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Sports
Photo by Derek Doeffinger
fun & games
Golfing
The Finger Lakes Region offers miles of rolling fairways and manicured greens by Ruth E. Thaler-Carter
I
t may not have the sunshine or variety of courses that Myrtle Beach has, but the Finger Lakes is ideal for the game of golf. The terrain makes for lush, inviting courses and there are dramatic views along the lakes as the seasons change. Local devotees are out on the links early in the spring through late in the fall. The game’s low-impact nature, leisurely pace, and combination of luck and skill make it ideal for players of all ages and backgrounds. “It has been said that some of the most picturesque and challenging golf courses are scattered throughout the Finger Lakes Region,” says the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance website. “Many golf courses offer miles of rolling fairways and manicured greens.” “Golf gets you away from your normal routine and provides an environment that is very relaxing, with companions you really love,” says Gerald (“Jerry”) Stahl of Rochester. You could call Jerry “Mr. Golf.” He is a widely respected authority on the rules of the game, and has served as a rules official at more than 50 major championships, including the U.S. and British Opens, the Masters, the PGA Championships, and the Solheim Cup, a biennial tournament for professional women golfers. He has been a member of the U.S. Golf Association (USGA) Executive Committee, chair of the 1989 U.S. Open, president of Oak Hill Country Club, and chair of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Rochester event. In 2012, he was named to the Brighton Schools Alumni Association/Brighton High School Alumni Hall of Fame for his service as a volunteer in the game of golf. He is a lifelong member of Rochester’s Oak Hill and considers that course his favorite. Rochester’s golf clubs have a history of hosting important tournaments. Oak Hill Country Club, a Donald Ross design, hosted fingerlakes.org the Senior PGA Championship in holeinonegolfbook.com 2008, as well as PGA Championships fingerlakesgolftrail.com in 2013, 2003, and 1980. In 1995, it rosssociety.org hosted the 31st Ryder Cup. In 2019, it will host the 80th KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship for the second time. In 2023, the PGA Championship will be played there for a record-tying fourth time. Rochester’s Locust Hill Country Club and the Corning Country Club have also hosted major tournaments.
Golfing Resources
Courses worth trying • Bristol Harbour Golf Club (Canandaigua) • Ravenwood Golf Club (Rochester/Victor) • Reservoir Creek Golf Course (Naples) • Webster Golf Club (Webster) • Blue Heron Hills Golf Club (Macedon) • Mill Creek Golf Club (Rochester) • Hickory Hill Golf Course (Baldwinsville) • Willowcreek Golf Club (Big Flats) • Wayne Hills Country Club (Lyons) • The Links at Greystone (Walworth) • Parkview Fairways (Victor) • Indian Hills Golf Course (Painted Post) • Big Oak Golf Course (Geneva) • Bonavista State Park Golf Course (Ovid) • Churchville Golf Course (Churchville) • Dutch Hollow Country Club (Owasco) • Marcellus Golf Club (Marcellus) • Silver Creek Golf Course (Waterloo)
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Stahl’s favorite courses in the Finger Lakes include Bristol Harbour in Canandaigua. “It’s fun to play, and spectacular in the spring, when things start to bloom, and in the fall, when the leaves start to turn.” He also enjoys playing at Reservoir Creek in Naples. “It’s a hidden gem on a mountainside, with, again, glorious foliage in the fall.” The game appeals to both men and women. “I started playing when some friends from Brighton invited me to join them at CenterPointe Golf Club in Canandaigua,” Linda Eppstein Mackenzie recalls. “I had never played before, but I got hooked on it.” Her favorite course is Locust Hill, with public courses at Bristol Harbour and Sodus Bay also topping of her list. “I get a lot of exercise because I walk – I never ride golf carts,” she notes. “I get camaraderie and friendship, and I love the competition. Golf makes me strive to reach my personal best.” Being a golfer also helps Mackenzie fulfill her commitment to service. She is co-chair of a June 14 tournament hosted by the Women of Locust Hill to benefit Willow, a nonprofit organization that helps victims of domestic abuse. Even non-golfers appreciate the value of the sport, especially as a money maker. After the Rochester Business Journal announced the 2019 Senior PGA event, local business owner Lee Drake told them, “I’m not a lover of golf personally, and there are occasional short-term inconveniences for residents, but these events bring in millions of tourism dollars and expose the beauty of our region to the entire world. They provide a positive story about Rochester that makes it attractive as a business and tourism destination. That’s valuable and excellent PR for our city.”
Ruth E. Thaler-Carter doesn’t play golf, but loves the movies “Tin Cup” and “The Legend of Bagger Vance.”
BR
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Golf with a View
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Off the Easel
South Onondaga, oil painting, 9”x20”
creating art
An
Impressive Art Career Printmaker James Skvarch by Nancy E. McCarthy
S
yracuse artist James Skvarch can’t remember a time when he wasn’t creating art: first as a child drawing cartoons for the James Skvarch at work school newspaper, then in college as an oil painting major, and now as an award-winning printmaker and fine artist on the art festival circuit. “Along the way, people have encouraged me not to give up, and that has been the best advice,” says Skvarch, who was determined to have a full-time art career, but for a long time wasn’t quite sure how to get there. He is well-traveled, but Syracuse has always been the artist’s home. He and his wife Mary live there with their five rescue pets. Born in 1950 to a homemaker and small business owner, Skvarch is one of six siblings and the family’s only artist. Doodling and drawing in sketchbooks got him “lots of attention” but quickly progressed into a serious interest. At age 10, his mother enrolled Skvarch in children’s art lessons at the Everson Museum of Art in downtown Syracuse. Skvarch was mentored by his high school art teacher George Benedict, a talented fine artist in his own right, who took the young artist under his wing. Benedict, a strong proponent of realism, encouraged him to draw from life. There was no question that Skvarch would go on to study art in college. He attended the Rochester Institute of Technology for two years and spent another two years at the Maryland Institute College of Art, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1972. “After college I had no career path planned other than paint as much as I could,” says Skvarch, “especially traveling art trips.” Through the years, he’s traveled abroad to paint in Italy and Ireland. Later, in 1984 after taking up printmaking, he studied etching for six weeks at the Salzburg International Summer Academy of Fine Arts in Austria.
Left: Curiosity, an interior A portion of the artist’s home studio, with companions
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Right: The Stories Unfold Slowly for Those Who Take the Time from the Caprices Series, a fantasy series of imaginary, grand architecture
“It was like an art retreat, there were no other distractions” he recalls. But in those first, early years, his goal was to just keep painting to get better and “letting it unfold.” While Skvarch occasionally sold his work, it was odd jobs, adjunct teaching and private art lessons that paid the bills. It was 1980 when Skvarch connected the dots on how to earn a reliable income as an artist. He became interested in etching, specifically intaglio printmaking, as a way to build a larger body of work based upon his original drawings. Prints produced a marketable product for him to sell and “printmaking was a great medium to take my drawing to the next level,” says Skvarch. Concurrently, he discovered the art festival circuit and began booking up to 12 shows a year where his paintings and prints garnered numerous awards – many took First Place or Best in Show honors.
The Printmaking Process
AmeriCU Syracuse Arts & Crafts Festival July 28-30
Columbus Circle, downtown Syracuse syracuseartsandcraftsfestival.com Meet James Skvarch and see his work during this three-day outdoor juried showcase of more than 160 artists, craftspeople and entertainers from 25 states and Canada – all in one place! Visitors can shop and browse booths featuring printmaking, ceramics, fabric and fiber, glass, jewelry, leather, metal, wood, painting, graphics, drawing, sculpture, photography and more. Also enjoy live music, dance performances, food vendors and family-friendly activities.
Skvarch sits in front of a mirrored reflection of a selected work and re-draws it with an etching needle directly onto a coated copper plate. After a 30 minute dip in an acid bath, he cleans the plate, applies black ink and wipes the excess, leaving ink in the lines and crevices of the etched image. Then he pulls a “stage proof” through a printing press to see how it looks on paper. He has, in essence, drawn backwards, but the print process reverses the image back. A plate can be wiped down and ink reapplied to produce multiple prints, but each pulled impression has its own subtle, unique qualities. The collection of prints from the same etching is called an edition which he limits to 50-75 prints. Smaller editions are more valuable to art collectors but, for Skvarch, it also forces him to move on and create new works. Though the artist still paints in oil, his main focus is charcoal and graphite drawings and printmaking. His subject matter is wide-ranging but his favorites are landscapes, interiors and a fantasy series of imaginary grand architecture he calls “caprices.” These whimsical drawings are inspired by the renowned 18th-century Italian artist Giovanni Battista Piranesi’s engraved print series of elaborate imagined prisons.
Making Connections The artist has been selling his work at art festivals for 37 years. Skvarch says festivals eliminate the intimidation factor and break down the barriers that many people feel when looking at art. The venues are now familiar; he feels a sense of community with his fellow artists and art lovers. Two of Skvarch’s biggest patrons are Gil Williams and
his wife Deborah, booksellers from Binghamton. They are serious American art collectors and own about 40 of Skvarch’s paintings and etchings. “He’s a master of light and handles the darkness better than any artist I know,” Gil says, referring to Skvarch’s shadowy series of interiors which usually depict just one source of light. Gil was so intrigued by Skvarch’s work that he visited the artist at his studio and bought some of his early works from his high school days. “He was just as good then as he is now,” he says admiringly. This summer, Skvarch will sell his artwork at the 47th annual Syracuse Arts & Crafts Festival, July 28-30 (see sidebar for details). It’s a festival he has participated in for many years, and for the last two he snagged the Graphics and Printmaking Award of Distinction. “The Syracuse show is truly a celebration of the crafts movement in this country, with the widest gamut of media you could ever find in one place,” he says. Skvarch will also be at the venerable Memorial Art Gallery’s Clothesline Festival in Rochester, September 9-10. Skvarch is doing what he loves to do – there’s little left on his bucket list – but he’s always up for a new artistic adventure, especially the prospect to travel again. After drawing all the local landmarks and landscapes in and around Syracuse, he yearns for another painting trip to Italy where fresh images and new inspiration await. To view James Skvarch’s work, visit skvarch.com. Contact the artist at james@skvarch.com. J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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Cultured
the better things in life
Deborah Hughes (left) President & CEO of the National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House, and Holly Bauer-Mergen (foreground), member of the VoteTilla Steering Committee, try out the bunting for VoteTilla.
Votes Boats and
History in Motion as VoteTilla Comes to Town by Anne C. Coon
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W
hen the sun comes up on Monday, July 17, excitement will also rise as Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, and other historical figures in period dress step aboard a fleet of packet boats in Seneca Falls. From July 17 through July 21, communities and visitors along the Erie Canal will witness an amazing sight as the boats of VoteTilla move through the water at the 19th-century pace of 5 miles an hour, bringing history and celebration with them. Traveling from Seneca Falls to Rochester and stopping at towns along the way, VoteTilla is a week-long navigational celebration of the 100th anniversary of woman suffrage in New York State. (Although a contemporary writer might refer to women’s suffrage, the VoteTilla organizers are intentionally using the singular form woman suffrage, just as it was used in 1917.) Equal parts history, canal theater, and summer fun, the idea for VoteTilla came from the Collections and Education Committee of the Susan B. Anthony Museum & House. First a catchy phrase tossed out while brainstorming, “VoteTilla” rapidly captured the imagination and support of committee members and of Deborah Hughes, president and CEO of the Susan B. Anthony Museum & House. The possibility of using packet boats to focus 21st-century audiences on the incremental progress of woman suffrage – while creating opportunities for communities, historical sites, and local organizations to join in and be part of the fun – gave VoteTilla instant appeal. “More than any exhibit or event we could have planned, VoteTilla has become a powerful symbol of the cooperation and hard work required to secure the vote for women,” says Deborah Hughes, “and the canal is a natural conduit for bringing people together, sharing ideas, and building enthusiasm.” The VoteTilla fleet consists of five steel-hull packet boats. Three boats are hosted by the Susan B. Anthony Museum & House. They will be driven by volunteers and offer day trips or weeklong passage for reenactors, historians, guests and a few VIP travelers. Two other vessels will be sponsored and driven by individuals from the Women’s Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls and the Susan B. Anthony Center of the University of Rochester. Throughout the week, other private boats will join VoteTilla on route, and the Sam Patch replica of an 1800s packet boat from Rochester’s Corn Hill Navigation will jump in for the final stretch from Pittsford to Rochester. Arranging for the food, costumes and sound equipment needed for five days of travel and programming is a huge task and one that depends almost entirely on countless VoteTilla volunteers. Besides logistics, the planning also involves careful attention to content. From the beginning, the organizers were committed to providing historicallygrounded programming every day. Professor Ann Gordon, the leading authority on Susan B. Anthony and editor of the Selected Papers of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, eagerly signed on as week-long Scholar-inResidence. Other scholars and biographers will be speaking
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to audiences both on and off the boats throughout the week. Professor Gordon’s interest in VoteTilla is, first of all, historical. “VoteTilla brings together two very important elements in American history – infrastructure and equal rights,” she explains. “More particularly, the Erie Canal was the highway along which the family of Susan B. Anthony moved west to Rochester in 1845. The trip along the canal will draw attention to local activism in women’s long campaign to win equal political rights. “As a leader, Susan B. lectured and organized in the towns on this stretch of the canal again and again over half a century,” Gordon continues. “She looked for allies among the men (the voters) and for activists among the women. Eventually, men and women in these towns and others made woman suffrage a reality.” There is special appeal to VoteTilla that others will surely relate to, she adds. “On a personal note, I grew up singing ‘You’ll always know your neighbor, you’ll always know your pal, if you’ve ever navigated on the Erie Canal.’” Building a cast of reenactors was one of the first programming challenges. Reenactors of well-known historical figures, as well as reenactors of everyday people in period dress, will appear at every stop. Some will ride on the boats, and others will meet the boats at night. With period costumes and speeches taken directly from historic materials, reenactors will stage dramatic pieces written especially for VoteTilla. By connecting 19th-century reform efforts to contemporary issues and “unfinished business,” these short plays will create a conversation that moves between past and present as easily as costumed
reenactors mingle and talk with audience members. Local towns and villages have stepped up enthusiastically to welcome VoteTilla. Communities along the canal are hanging out bunting, hosting lunches and providing everything from band concerts to their own 19th-century reenactments. Partner organizations, including Bristol Valley Theater, are bringing exciting programs directly to VoteTilla sites. The benefits to communities promise to be significant when visitors linger to explore a new town or take a side trip to one of the many historical houses, museums and suffrage-related sites along the VoteTilla route.
B
ruce Schwendy, retired manufacturing engineer from General Motors, and member of the Board of Directors of the Canal Society of New York State, brings navigational and tactical expertise to VoteTilla. Dubbed the “admiral” of the VoteTilla Fleet Committee, Schwendy has planned the VoteTilla route and itinerary, calibrating the timing for departures and arrivals, and reaching out to local officials at each stop. From Schwendy’s perspective as a long-time canal supporter, using the waterway for a celebration of the centennial of woman suffrage in New York State is a perfect convergence of past and present. “These cities and towns were important historically,” he says. “Temperance, abolition, and suffrage reformers all visited these core towns in New York. They followed the route of the canal as they advanced their causes.” What is his biggest challenge, as he schedules the boats’ movement from point to point – including passage
through 12 locks on VoteTilla’s 70-mile route? There’s no question, he says, it’s predicting the unpredictable. The other traffic on the canal could affect the passage of the VoteTilla boats. As he says simply, “It’s important to arrive when you say you’ll arrive. That’s the hardest part.” On Friday, July 21, VoteTilla will arrive at Corn Hill Landing in Rochester. A grand welcome will feature an airplane flying overhead and pulling a VOTES FOR WOMEN banner, much as another plane might have done in 1917. Friday evening, the City of Rochester is hosting a special concert, and a parade on Saturday will be followed by an afternoon of period music, talks on historic figures, and a baseball game with the women’s team from the Genesee Country Village and Museum. When the sun sets on Sunday night, a very full week of VoteTilla will have drawn thousands of New York State residents and visitors to a memorable celebration of woman suffrage and to a greater understanding of the people who fought for suffrage, their words, and their continuing impact today. VoteTilla is coordinated by the National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House, in partnership with several private and non-profit organizations and agencies, and made possible by a generous grant from Empire State Development and the New York State Council on the Arts. For more information and updates to the VoteTilla itinerary, go to votetilla.org. Anne C. Coon is Professor Emeritus in the College of Liberal Arts at Rochester Institute of Technology. Her co-authored book, Thriving in Retirement: Lessons from Baby Boomer Women, is forthcoming from Praeger in September 2017.
After 100 Years - It’s Still All About the Vote! Let’s Come Together to Make Our Vote Count
The Women’s Suffrage Centennial Picnic will take place on Sunday, July 23, from 1 to 5 p.m., on the grounds of The Perkins Mansion, 494 East Avenue, Rochester, with 1917-era picnic food and drinks available for purchase. Activities will include conversations with historical figures such as Susan B. Anthony, Harriet Tubman, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage and Frederick Douglass in period dress; demonstrations by a Hurdy Gurdy musician and the ringing of the Rochester Remembrance Bell by relatives of suffragists to honor those we do not want forgotten. For information call 585-244-8890
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Fruit of the Vine
Wild
wine, spirits and brews
Brute
The Brute is located in downtown Hornell. Hours of operation are Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. until 11 p.m. The Wild Brute Winery production facility is open for visitors Memorial Day through Labor Day. Visit them on Facebook, @wildbrutewinery and @thebrutewinebar.
story and photos by Jason Feulner
T
he traditional model for the Finger Lakes wine industry is fairly straightforward: Build a tasting room and they will come. Typically, this tasting room comes with a production facility and a vineyard, although many wineries started with neither and sourced their grapes and rented production space elsewhere (a differentiation many visitors do not recognize). Regardless, the standard presentation for many years was tastingroom oriented, a standalone building somewhere near a main route and a given lake, a dot on the map, if you will, with a big sign out front. While the vast majority of Finger Lakes wineries still resemble the triedand-true, newer wine is being marketed and sold in decidedly different ways. Young, independent winemakers are selling their wine wholesale without even contemplating a tasting room. In the case of new label Wild Brute, Justin Recktenwald is selling much of
his wine in a wine bar, one that serves food and sells beer and other wine as well. And unlike most tasting rooms, this establishment is not located next to a picturesque lake, but in a storefront in downtown Hornell. The Brute, the name of the establishment founded just this past year, is a funky place filled with pictures and decorations that harken back to the glory days of flat track hill climbing, a motorcycle discipline that has long been popular in the steep hills surrounding the greater Hornell area. (Justin’s family includes some noteworthy riders.) Like many hip bars these days, it’s got both a touch of the rustic and the refined, offering a simple menu but one bursting with local fare and high-end cheese and meats. Justin and his wife Kyleigh both grew up in nearby Arkport. Justin attended Alfred and then transferred to Cornell thinking he was going to pursue animal biology. Instead, he was bitten by
the wine bug, graduating from Cornell’s viticulture and oenology program in 2012. He spent time working at Dr. Frank’s and also some time in Sonoma. It was during his brief stint in California that Justin was inspired to start his own label. “I was working with indigenous ferments, and I realized not much was going on with that in the Finger Lakes,” Justin remembers. Wild Brute refers to wild fermentation (allowed to ferment naturally with no manufactured yeast) of the wine and Brute refers to many things, among them the unfiltered and unfined nature of the finished reds. From the first limited vintage in 2013, Justin emphasized grape sorting, natural (wild) fermentation, and an attention to process over a specific varietal. Like many young winemakers, Justin is not focused solely on the type of wine that is generally successful in the region, but how the wine is made. By focusing on manageable and sorted lots,
Justin and Kyeigh Recktenwald enjoy a quiet moment in The Brute wine bar and restaurant which features their Wild Brute wine, located in downtown Hornell.
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Log Home Care for All Seasons
Tasting Notes Wild Brute is a newer winery, but the few wines that are currently available certainly impress. The 2013 off-dry Riesling has great acidity with a slate finish. The 2014 Cabernet Franc has a subtle cherry fruit with just a little spice. The “fun” wine on display was a mixture of backyard apples and Chardonnay fermented together – a weird combination that worked. People will either love it or hate it. The real standout was the 2015 Cabernet Franc, a tannic, structured red with tobacco and leather notes that is still developing in the bottle and could probably age for some time. Justin is still refining his grape sourcing and is excited about what’s in tank and barrel for future release. Wild Brute shows a lot of promise, with some good wines that have already delivered.
Justin believes that anything is possible in terms of quality. After the first vintage was made at Element winery in Arkport, Justin and Kyleigh founded their own production facility there, and they still do take visitors despite the recent opening of The Brute. However, it’s not about a fancy tasting room, and Justin and Kyleigh have created something that lets people peer into the often messy winemaking process. “It turned into a backyard tasting room in the summer,” Kyleigh says of the early years at the tasting room. “It showed us that people wanted a fun place to enjoy our wine, so we focused on opening the bar.”
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he Brute was a chance to become “part of the community,” on the leading edge of Hornell’s resurgence after years of dormancy. “We wanted to be at the beginning of the revitalization of Hornell,” Justin reflects. “We knew that people were looking for something different – you can get your staples here in terms of beer and wine but we really carry some great local wineries and breweries for people to try.” The Brute offers live music and is, after all, a bar, but Justin is a very serious winemaker who will speak at length about his knowledge and passion for the subject. Wild Brute is a wine label that mixes a lot of genres – winemaking, motorcycle racing, animal imagery – but Justin and Kyleigh seem to make it all fit together and make some sense. They pride themselves in creating an establishment that appeals to many different types and they said it’s been an eclectic mix of clientele thus far. Despite his pride as a winemaker, Justin waves off my attempt to link some of his recent positive critical scores in the major publications to potential placements in high-level New York City restaurants, the coveted accounts to which so many Finger Lakes winemakers aspire. “We are in a few good places, but the target audience for Wild Brute is not New York City,” Justin tells me. “Wild Brute is about the local scene and promoting regional wine in a unique venue. That’s what we are trying to do here.”
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Music
strike the right note
Handmade
Music in the Finger Lakes
by James E. Schwartz
P
rogressive bluegrass, mountain music, traditional music, old-timey, newgrass. Call it what you will, handmade American music can be heard ringing throughout the Finger Lakes region. Sometimes called American Roots Music, it encompasses a variety of musical genres that traces its origin to the Appalachian mountain region of our country. And the hills, gorges and rolling farmland of our region have rolled out a welcome mat to the music of the Appalachians. There are concerts, festivals, jams, and a lot of local talent just waiting to be enjoyed in our own backyards. Concerts are for listening, but festivals and jams are definitely not just spectator events. With this type of music,
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strangers often sit down together and play the traditional tunes and songs – without prior rehearsal, and usually with no expectation that they will meet again. Improvisation is encouraged, and sometimes the way a tune turns out may be the only time it is played in that exact way. Participants do not need to be great musicians to join in on the fun. The touring bands are entirely professional, however. They are dedicated and award-winning, and experts at their craft. The various musical styles that fit into this wide net all share some elements in common. They emphasize acoustic stringed instruments – guitar, mandolin, fiddle, banjo and standup bass. Songs produce a blend of rich vocal harmonies. Many are played at blistering speeds. Drums or other dedicated
~ LifeintheFingerLakes.com
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percussion instruments are almost never part of the traditional bands. The music has a sweet, subtle, homey feel, even when it is pushing traditional boundaries. In keeping with the great American tradition of innovation, today’s artists are transforming this type of music into new forms and new sounds. If you are thinking only of the music you hear on the soundtrack from the film, “O Brother Where Art Thou?” you may need to broaden your thinking. The music can range from complex instrumental solos to orchestral arrangements that include multipart vocal harmonies. The “twangy” voices that you may have heard in the past were largely a function of early microphones with low-quality technological capabilities. Traditional music today can be sweet, rich and subtle, while progressive styles can be hard-driving, loud and stunning in their impact. Fiddlers of the Genesee This group is among a variety of organizations and “organizers” that are helping to connect Finger Lakes visitors and residents to a rich music scene. The Fiddlers of the Genesee exists to promote traditional, old-time fiddling in the form of both performances and participatory events. While members focus primarily on fiddle music, they also welcome musicians who play other traditional, acoustic stringed instruments. The group hosts traditional jam sessions on Friday evenings; for information about the times and locations, visit fiddlersofthegenesee.org. The group also performs at local festivals, public venues, and nursing homes and senior care centers. Golden Link Folk Singing Society This organization describes itself as being “dedicated to presenting, promoting and preserving folk music in the Rochester area.” It hosts a weekly, informal “sing-around” on Tuesday evenings, and monthly concerts and/or
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workshops. It is also the host of the annual Turtle Hill Folk Festival each September at the Rotary Sunshine Campus in Rush. John Bernunzio The owner of Bernunzio’s Uptown Music in Rochester is one of the region’s greatest organizers and supporters of traditional music. John offers his store as a venue for old time jams, bluegrass jams, ukulele “hour,” and other events. Touring musicians have been known to offer impromptu, unannounced miniconcerts there. For a schedule, visit bernunzio.com. The Winter Village Music Festival This unique and wonderful Finger Lakes musical event is organized each year by its founder, Rick Manning, and hosted by Scott Wiggin, owner of La Tourelle Resort & Spa in Ithaca. The festival features round-the-clock jamming, and performances by highly respected touring professionals, along with workshops that focus on instruments, songwriting, and harmonizing. Winter Village began in 2011, and owes its origin partly to the friendship between Rick and Scott, who had worked together on other projects. When Rick, a musician, first proposed the idea, Scott was happy to offer La Tourelle as a home for the January event. He would need to completely dedicate his resort to the three-day festival weekend because all the hotel’s space would be needed and the jamming goes on all night. Scott saw little risk, since winter weekends in the Finger Lakes ordinarily see few tourists. He views hospitality as a business that specializes in bringing people together, and believes music is a great way to do that. “To have our house full of beautiful music is a really good vibe,” Scott says. The event has evolved since its
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debut. The most recent Winter Village Music Festival filled Scott’s “house” with music from Thursday evening to Sunday evening during the first weekend in March. Rick’s main interest is in promoting traditional and progressive bluegrass music, but he wanted a broader focus this year. He’s particularly interested in the cross-generational aspect of this evolving form of music, and finds young performers who are full of passion, energy, technical skill, and offer “an interesting approach” to their music. Rick has had been remarkably successful in presenting bands who have later gone on to become well-known, soughtafter performers. He looks for young bands who have won awards from the prestigious International Bluegrass Music Association. Other bluegrass festivals take place outdoors during the summer months. One of the longest-running in the region is Pickin’ in the Pasture each August, hosted for the past 20 years by Andy Alexander at his sheep farm in Lodi. Another annual festival, now in its ninth year, will be held at the Brantling Ski Slopes near Sodus from July 27 through 30 this year. The Turtle Hill Folk Festival in September is not bluegrass, but it has much in common with the bluegrass festivals. Whether your interests are in listening to or participating in the handmade music scene, there are many ways to pursue your passion in the Finger Lakes region!
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History
narrative of the past
A Remarkable
Meeting Recreated
story and photos by Laurel C. Wemett
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life-size bronze statue in Seneca Falls commemorates the historic moment when Amelia Bloomer introduced Susan B. Anthony to Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1851. Since 1999, “When Anthony Met Stanton” has served as a reminder of the 50year collaboration between these two influential women who significantly advanced women’s rights. Now is an ideal time to visit this public sculpture on East Bayard Street near Spring Street – as this year, New York State celebrates the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote. New York was one of the first states in the country to pass legislation
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extending the right to vote to women – three years before the passage of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution made it possible for women to vote in all states.
Tangible Reminder “When Anthony Met Stanton” is widely embraced in the town of Seneca Falls, known as the home of women’s rights. The image of the statue appears on everything from signage directing visitors to landmarks like the National Women’s Hall of Fame to brochures and souvenirs. The statue was funded and presented by the Governor’s Commission Honoring the
~ LifeintheFingerLakes.com
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Seneca Falls has adopted the statue’s image for use on signage in the community that directs the visitor to historic sites and community services.
Achievements of Women. It was unveiled and dedicated in 1999. Town of Junius resident Doris Wolf, a communityminded individual and former newspaper reporter, who is actually related to Anthony, hoped the statue would serve as a tangible reminder of Celebrate ’98, the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the first Women’s Rights Convention held in Seneca Falls in 1848. “Most people thought Anthony and Stanton met at the Convention,” she says. However, while Stanton did attend the 1848 convention, Anthony was then teaching in Canajoharie and involved in other reform movements.
From left to right are Susan B. Anthony, Amelia Bloomer and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, sculpted by A. E. Ted Aub, professor of Hobart and William Smith Colleges. This lasting tribute to the women’s rights movement in Seneca Falls is not elevated on a pedestal and has become a popular location for photographs. People feel a connection to the statue. This spring the women’s waists were encircled with purple ribbons in honor of the Relay for Life held in June in Seneca County. Beyond the figures and the Cayuga-Seneca Canal, on the left, is the First Presbyterian Church on Cayuga Street where Alice Paul first proposed the Equal Rights Amendment in 1923. The lawn of the Trinity Episcopal Church on the right was the location for an elaborate pageant that was part of the village’s 1923 75th anniversary celebration of the 1848 Women’s Rights Convention.
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History It was when Anthony visited Seneca Falls to hear an anti-slavery lecture in May 1851 that a chance encounter led to an introduction to Stanton. The exact location of the meeting is unknown, and over time the area has been altered. Given that Amelia Bloomer lived on East Bayard Street and Stanton’s home was on Washington Street, the statue’s location on the south side of the Cayuga-Seneca Canal seems fitting. “The statue of the meeting in Seneca Falls is a great addition to our cultural heritage,” says Deborah Hughes, executive director of the Susan B. Anthony Museum in Rochester. “It captures a moment when the energy of three powerful leaders of the women’s movement first came together. What brought them together was not women’s suffrage, but their passionate commitment to ending slavery in these United States. Though they did not always agree about strategies or even some particulars, they continued to feed and engage one another’s passion for social justice for the next five decades.”
Authentic Interpretation Sculptor A. E. Ted Aub, a professor of art and architecture at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, was commissioned to create the statue. Doris Wolf approached him for the project, as she had long-admired his statue on the campus of Elizabeth Blackwell – who graduated from Geneva Medical College to become the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States. “The statue interprets the moment – actually the moment before – showing the hands about to touch – suggesting that you, as the viewer, are there in the moment,” Aub explains. Amelia Bloomer, journalist and editor of The Lily, a newspaper for women, stands in the center between her two friends. Only she is shown speaking, as Anthony and Stanton lock eyes. Anthony strides toward Stanton who
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The gloveless hands of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton are shown an instant before they clasp during the introduction by Amelia Bloomer. “It draws people in,” says Doris Wolf of their hands about to touch. “You can almost see the spark which will ignite the women’s rights movement.” Doris Wolf, who reported on the celebration in 1998 of the Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls held there 150 years earlier, is credited with initiating and steering plans for the statue. It is a memorial to New York’s heritage in the women’s rights movement and was funded by a special commission established by then-Governor George Pataki.
leans in to greet her. The sculptor researched fashions and photographs from the time period for authenticity. Bloomer wears the comfortable style of pants (bloomers) for which she is wellknown. Stanton appears hatless and thinner in this mid-19th century interpretation than she does in photographs from the end of the century. She also wears “Turkish” pants under her skirt and looks less formal than the corseted Anthony. The sculpture stands near the street and low to the ground, so visitors can pose for pictures and appreciate the lessons in its imagery and text in the plaque. Aub made many symbolic choices in “When Anthony Met Stanton” to reflect on, such as the stance of each statue, and the circular figure-eight that the bend in their arms creates – a symbol of women and infinity. The book in Stanton’s hand suggests her knowledge and role as an intellectual force. Aub explains, “Stanton was the message and Anthony was the voice of the movement.” To see photos of the “When Anthony Met Stanton” dedication in 1999, Aub’s sculpture of Elizabeth Blackwell, and his other works, visit tedaub.com.
he 1851 meeting between Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton is described in Stanton’s own words and quoted in Anthony’s 1898 biography:
“Walking home with the speakers, who were my guests, we met Mrs. Bloomer with Miss Anthony on the corner of the street waiting to greet us. There she stood with her good, earnest face and genial smile, dressed in gray delaine, hat and all the same color relieved with pale-blue ribbons, the perfection of neatness and sobriety. I liked her thoroughly from the beginning.” Anthony’s biographer, Ida Husted Harper, also writes of Anthony’s “long-cherished desire of seeing Elizabeth Cady Stanton” in this excerpt from The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony, written at Anthony’s house in Rochester under her supervision.
The maquette, or small scale model of the sculpture of “When Anthony Met Stanton,” is on display at the Seneca Museum of Waterways and Industry on Fall Street. The model allowed the sculptor to test shapes and ideas without incurring the cost of a full-scale product.
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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Home Showcase
living the dream
Vine Valley
Views
T
he sleepy little area on the east side of Canandaigua Lake that is Vine Valley is known mostly to locals, and it is a beautiful gem. Vine Valley Beach enables public access to the lake. The public boat launch is available for smaller boats. There is a community center for local groups to meet, and the historic Vine Valley Church serves as a landmark and place of worship. Vine Valley residents and visitors have access to various other businesses and activities. Canandaigua is just a few miles north. Monica’s Pies, along with a host of other businesses, is nearby in Naples. This area is part of the Town of Middlesex and people enjoy the famous Middlesex Fire Department roast beef dinners the last Saturday evening of every month. Hiking is also available at Bare Hill Unique Area and Hi Tor Wildlife Management Area. Tucked along the lakeshore just south of Vine Valley is a beautiful home that has many gorgeous views of Canandaigua Lake. The architect-designed year-round property has a private waterfront that is ideal for entertaining guests. The Adirondack-style log-sided property features a two-story great room with 22-foot soaring ceilings, a stone fireplace, Brazilian cherry hardwood floors and a wall of windows with panoramic lake views. A beach house offers a convenient second kitchen and a powder room. The property has over five scenic acres and includes a private back patio, and a lakeside patio with a dock. For more information about this house, see Rich Testa’s advertisement on page 89.
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Real Estate
DON’T BUY A WATERFRONT PROPERTY WITHOUT TALKING TO
9295 KINGTOWN BEACH ROAD TRUMANSBURG, NY 14886
MARK MALCOLM II
“HE’S GOT A CORNER ON THE MARKET”
marketplace
Lake Front Custom built 5 bedroom, 4 bath Craftsman home on Cayuga Lake. See the world from your own oasis that is connected to the Intercoastal Water Way. Experience the quality & uniqueness of a Craftsman Style home. Designed and built to harmonize with nature, not to compete. Newly finished lower level with 2 bedrooms, a bath, kitchenette & large living room with walkout to patio & the lake. Must see to appreciate. There is 287’ of lake frontage and 21.8 acres. 60x30 pole barn and wood shed. Right off Route 89, Cayuga Wine Trail, minutes to Taughannock State Park & Trumansburg. Priced $1,195,000
FOR MORE INFORMATION OR AN APPOINTMENT, CONTACT
Jill Burlington, Associate Broker • 607-592-0474 Keuka Lake’s “Canoe Landing Estate & Vineyard” in the very HEART of the Finger Lakes and Keuka’s Wine Trail. Magnificent views over vineyards onto Keuka Lake and its distant shores from this 46 acre setting. A newly constructed contemporary by Lin Hough Builders features 4 bedrooms, 4 1/2 baths, soaring ceilings, geo-thermal heat & AC, library/music room, media room, 3-car garage, 30’ x 40’ pole barn with wine making facilities, 3 fireplaces, patios, balconies, 1000 bottle wine cellar, and 4200sq.ft. of sheer elegance. If not your private estate, how about a “CELEBRATION HEADQUARTERS”, or WINERY, or MICRO BREWERY, OR ALL OF THE AFOREMENTIONED. This opportunity may very well stimulate the next “BIG THING”. Priced at $1,695,000.
Warren Real Estate • 140 Seneca Way, Ithaca, NY 14850
Mark Malcolm II “KEUKA LAKE’S TOP AGENT” 315-536-6163 Direct
email: mmalcolmii@aol.com
Website: MARKMALCOLM.COM (w/mobile app)
14.9 acres for sale two miles from Watkins Glen Breathtaking panoramic view of Watkins Glen, harbor, and Seneca Lake
Off-road private drive access Beautiful site for winery, restaurant, residence, etc. 88
~ LifeintheFingerLakes.com
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Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker
CELL: (585) 739-3521 RichTesta@gmail.com
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Ultimate Keuka Lake Property with 949 level lake front • 4.5+ acres of private point and spot on view of the bluff. • 2 single family homes, 1 duplex, boathouse, 2 car attached garage and a tea room. • Woods, stream, view, gorgeous beach – one of a kind.
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• Large year round home with 5 BR and 3 full bathrooms Large and airy great room, 3 fireplaces, 2 car attached garage, 1 car detached garage, boathouse. • 1880’s Victorian cottage with 4 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, formal dining, walk in pantry, stone fireplace, wrap around porch. • Adorable duplex with each side a mirror image of 2 BR, 1 large bathroom, dining room, living room, basement. • 10851 and 10852 Bohemian Way, Hammondsport, NY 14840 • $4,250,000 for all of it Other options available
Call John and Linda Vang at VANG REAL ESTATE 607-292-3194 • 9245 CR 95, Hammondsport, NY 14840
853 Farleys Point- Union sPrings ny
Jeffrey “Jeff” Trescot, Broker Cell 315-730-1446 www.jefftrescot.com • jefflcre@aol.com landoflakesrealty.com
96 S Main St Moravia, NY 315-497-3700 113 Cayuga St Union Springs NY 315-889-2000
4861 Rockefeller Rd., Auburn
Amazing waterfront ranch on the East side of Cayuga Lake.open floor plan,2-3 BD,2 BA, public water/sewer. level lakefront and dock. Upscale lakeside community.Call for details and appt to view $267,000 We have many more lakefront properties available for sale or rent, call today for more information.
Contact Midge Fricano Broker, GRI. CRS.
cell: 315-729-0985 • email: MidgeFricano@gmail.com www.LakeCountryRealEstateNY.com
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60’ of Year Round East Side Owasco Lakefront with a fabulous 3 bedroom, 21/2 bath Ranch home. Sit back and relax in the Media Room, or on the lakeside sun porch. Formal dining room, living room and a large lakeside deck overlooking beautiful Owasco Lake. 2 sided fireplace between the 2 living room areas. Many updates over the last few years including a new roof and driveway in 2013. House sits well back from the road and boasts a large lakeside lawn. There is a 2 car garage and a shed for your tools. Extraordinary house! Call today to set up an appointment to view this Lakefront wonderland! Jeffrey Trescot, Broker 315-730-1446 $624,900
6/5/17 1:22 PM
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Shopping & Services
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N.Y.S. Largest Selection of Outdoor Poly & Rustic Hickory Furniture
Terry’s WINDOW WASHING Gutter Cleaning Pressure Washing Glass Scratch Removal Commercial & Residential Fully Insured
1611 Scottsville Rd, Rochester, NY • (585) 328-3350 161 State Rt. 28, Inlet, NY 13360 • (315) 357-3450 • JackGreco.com
607-345-4489
Terry Hamilton
4194 Dundee Himrod Rd. Dundee, NY 14837
Owner teyyet200418@yahoo.com
A Real Coin shop!
Certified and Raw Coins and Currency Gold and Silver coins and bars
BUY • SELL • TRADE Visit our store. Open 6 days a week Informal appraisals are always free!
Smitty’s Coins and Currency 80 S Main St, Canandaigua, NY 14424 585-394-3650 • www.smittyscoins.com 10 years on Main Street Canandaigua - small city friendly, big city selection!
Save Family Memories FROM PHOTOS TO DIGITAL www.pixelpreserve.net 585-820-4972 AFFORDABLE•LOCAL•REFERENCEABLE
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Lukacs Pottery Shop for unique, functional art and other fine handmade items 315-483-4357 7060 State Route 14 Sodus Point, NY 14555 lukacspottery.com
Discover...
Gifts It’s a Shopping Experience... Beyond Ordinary Open Monday - Saturday 2 West Main Street, Clifton Springs 315-548-4438
~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Cayuga Landscape Ithaca, NY
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2712 N. Triphammer Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850 www.cayugalandscape.com 607-257-3000
Recollections Antiques
Canandaigua • 585-394-7493
Chair Caning Call Chris or Paula • All types of chair re-weaving • 30 years experience
Olde Homer House Antiques & Traditional Featuring a wide selection of home decor, furnishings and gifts that changes with every season.
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(corner of Rtes 14 & 54) 315-531-5311
Just 4 miles East of Penn Yan
Hard & Soft Serve Gluten Free Non Dairy Low & No Fat Options Cholesterol Options Credit Cards Accepted
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Mon-Fri 10-6, Sat 10-5
Visit our locations. Farmington Pittsford Plaza Corner of Routes Monroe Ave. 96 & 332 (CVS Plaza) (Next to Shear Ego) 585-742-6218 585-385-0750
607-756-0750 • OldeHomerHouse.com
Strong Memorial Hospital Thompson Hospital Destiny USA Mall (Syracuse, NY)
5 South Main St., Homer, NY
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Culture & Attractions 5 muse ums, 1 desti nation
ANTIQUE WIRELESS MUSEUM
Experience Two Centuries of Communication Technology Voice of America Station, Titanic Radio Room, 1925 Radio Store, First Transistor Radio, Working Transmitters, First Cell Phone and Much, Much More!
Open: Tuesday 10am-3pm & Saturday 1-5pm
The Big Dig Camp Aug. 8-10 • 11:30 am to 3 pm
6925 State Route 5, Bloomfield, New York 14469 585-257-5119 • www.antiquewireless.org
Erie Canal Pirates Ghost Walk & Hunt Aug. 11 • 8-10 pm Pirate Weekend August 11-12 August 26th Ghost Walk & Hunt 9-11pm
Historical Museum, Wm. Phelps Store, Palmyra Print Shop and Erie Canal Depot at 132-140 Market St and Alling Coverlet at 122 William St. All open 10:30-4:30 pm Tues.-Sat. May 9 to Oct. 31. (315) 597-6981
HistoricPalmyraNY.com
Colonial Belle Cruising The Historic Erie Canal Fun for th ut e Entire s Abo s Family Ask U e Cruise m e h T Our
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585-223-9470 • colonialbelle.com
400 Packett’s Landing • Fairport, NY
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~ LifeintheFingerL akes.com
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Sodus Bay Lighthouse Museum
Open May through October 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday (and on Mondays Holidays!) FREE Outdoor Concerts Sundays from 2 to 4 p.m. July 2 through September 3
7606 North Ontario Street Sodus Point, New York (315) 483-4936 www.sodusbaylighthouse.org
Since 1982
Historic Maritime District
Come Eat With Us ADVANCE TICKET PURCHASE REQUIRED! 888-302-1880
Ward W. O’Hara Agricultural & Country Living Museum Dr. Joseph F. Karpinski Sr. Educational Center 6880 East Lake Road Rt. 38 A, Auburn, New York 13021 – At Emerson Park
May 23-Oct 31, 2017 10 A.M. till 4 P.M. Wed. July & Aug 10 A.M. till 8:30 P.M. Nov.1, 2017 thru May 22, 2018 Sat, Mon, Tue, Fri, 10 A.M. till 4 P.M. Sun 11 A.M. till 4 P.M. Closed Wed and Thu Or by appointment CayugaCounty.us/livingworking 315-252-7644 • tquill@cayugacounty.us
Revisit the 1800’s – Country Living at it’s Best
Open 10am-5pm • Monday thru Sunday
West 1st Street Pier, Oswego 315-342-0480 • www.hlwmm.org
FLFoodTours.com Call today & enjoy a leisurely cruise on the lake combined with tastings at some of the best wineries in the Finger Lakes!
607-280-3538
10% Discount Based on Availability
The ultimate way to visit the Cayuga Lake Wineries: • Departures from Lansing, Taughannock Falls • No crowded buses or traffic
• Small groups & exclusive winery, sunset, sightseeing cruises
www.fingerlakeswinecruises.com J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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Culture & Attractions
ULYSSES HISTORICAL SOCIETY Open Fri & Sat 2-4pm, Mon 9-11am Vintage Clothing, Early Transportation Large Agriculture Exhibit Genealogy by Appointment 39 South St. • Trumansburg, NY 14886 607-387-6666 • uhs@fltg.net
Craft Beverage Expo July 29
E AS T H I L L GA L L E RY Fi Fin r La s Cra s
OPEN MAY 13-OCTOBER 22 Saturdays 11-5, Sundays 1-5 or by appt.
Open 7 Days a Week April through Dec 10am-4pm (Sunday 1-4pm) 23 East Main St, LeRoy, NY 585-768-7433 • www.jellogallery.org
Museum complex features a tavern c1796, log house c1850, school house c1878, blacksmith shop c1870, and agricultural barn.
73 W. Pulteney St., Corning, NY Open Mon-Sat 10am-4pm 607-937-5281 • heritagevillagesfl.org
1445 Upper Hill Rd., Middlesex 585-554-3539 • www.folkartguild.org
Enjoy a glass of NYS
585.394.7070 | nywcc.com 800 S. Main St. Canandaigua, NY
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Live Music Acoustic Rock Genres ‘70s,’80s,’90s,+ Schedule is on our website www.keydreamers.com For bookings call: (585)410-6714 Geneva History Museum
Rose Hill Mansion Johnston House
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FEATURING
JIMI VALERIAN JAMES RUMINSKI
July 27 29 30 Smith Opera hOuSe GENEVA NY
The Williams Family Foundation NELSON B. DELAVAN FOUNDATION
Telling Geneva’s Stories three museums ∗ tours ∗ exhibits ∗ programs ∗ events www.genevahistoricalsociety.com 315-789-5151
GenevaliGhtOpera.OrG
Schuyler County Historical Society’s
BRICK TAVERN MUSEUM
Celebrating 30 years
Historic 1828 brick ‘tavern’ with a research library and 9 rooms exhibiting Schuyler’s Hidden Treasures... artifacts, photos & stories!
Museum Hours: Tue-Fri • 10am-4pm 108 N. Catharine Street • Montour Falls, NY 14865
607-535-9741 • schuylerhistory.org
Saturdays April 29- December 9 8am - 4:30pm Memorial Day, Labor Day, July 4th www.thewindmill.com
Better than you Remember More than you can Imagine... J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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marketplace
Wine, Spirits & Brews VE
LI USIC AYS M RID F N
KI OPE TC
N EN
H
O
(585)347-6236 • KNUCKLEHEADCRAFTBREWING.COM
The winery that started a winemaking revolution in the Finger Lakes.... Open Year Round: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sun 12-5pm 9749 Middle Rd. Hammondsport www.drfrankwines.com
Get to the Point Breathtaking vistas. Award-winning wines. Experience one of the premier locations on the Cayuga Wine Trail. Enjoy our premium selections and stay for lunch at our on-site eatery, Amelia’s. Business Hours: 20 miles Winery Sun-Thurs: 10 am-5 pm south of Auburn Fri and Sat: 10 am-6 pm on scenic Route 90 Deli Fri, Sat and Sun: 11 am-4 pm Order Online: www.longpointwinery.com
1485 Lake Road • Aurora, NY 13026 (315) 364-6990 • mail@longpointwinery.com
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Camping
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1412 Rt. 14 Phelps, NY 14532 Ph: 315-781-1222 • info@cheerfulvalleycampground.com www.cheerfulvalleycampground.com
Visit Cornell
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Hejamada Campground & RV Park
Family Camping at its best! Located in the Finger Lakes Region
Come see why we’re the ideal campground for caravans, jamborees, group functions, families and individual campers.
Here are some of the EXCLUSIVE articles that have appeared only on the Life in the Finger Lakes APP
(315)776-5887 • 877-678-0647
www.hejamadacampground.com
Cornell Researches Black Bear Boom in New York
Clute Memorial Park & Campground • Full Hook Ups Including Cable & Wi/Fi
• Across From Beautiful Seneca Lake
• Walking Distance to Downtown
• Community Center & Pavilion Rentals
• Boat Launch
155 S. Clute Park Drive (Boat Launch Road) Watkins Glen, NY 14891 607-535-4438 www.watkinsglen.us
The black bear population in southern New York has grown.
Civil War prison Camp in Emira Opens to the Public
Elmira was the site of a Confederate prisoner of war camp.
At Fowler, Giving Voice to a New Syracuse
Family Fun for Everyone!
A human interest story about by Sean Kirst.
315-781-5120 Playgrounds • Pool • Kids Crafts Outdoor Games and Game Room • Themed Weekends Large 50 Amp Sites • Dog Friendly
RV Sites and Rental Cabins Available 315-781-5120 • juniuspondscabinsandcampground.com campjpcc@gmail.com
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Canandaigua
CANANDAIGUA, KEUKA & SENECA LAKE PENDANTS Canandaigua Lake Bracelet
Original Artwork Paintings, mixed media, drawings, glass, hand crafted jewelry, sculptures, ceramics, pastel
Fine Jewelry & Watches
Workshops & Classes
142 South Main Street Canandaigua, NY 14424
71 S. Main Street, Canandaigua, NY 585-394-0030 www.prrgallery.com
585-394-3115
mycrowndowntown.com
A Finger Lakes landmark for classic gifts, extraordinary accessories for home and garden, handcrafted jewelry, apparel, fine stationery and whims w h i m ses! ie s! 56 South Main St. • Downtown Canandaigua Open Daily • 585-394-6528
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Naples
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Largest open air market in the Finger Lakes • Beautiful Spring & Summer Flowers • Quality Fruits & Vegetables Picked Fresh Daily • Fresh baked pies, cookies & breads • NYS Maple Syrup, Honey, Cheddar Cheese • 100s of Jams & Jellies • Fall Brings Grape Goodies • Nancy’s Wine & Gift Shop Open May - October Daily 8:00am-7pm S. Main Street, Naples 585-374-2380
www.josephswaysidemarket.com Follow us on Facebook
Wohlschlegel’s
TOUR IT
“State of the Art” Sugarhouse. Hike the Sugarbush, Sweet view
TASTE IT
Naples Maple Farm
Garry and Bobbi Wohlschlegel
8064 Coates Road Naples, NY 14512
Maple with Moxie
Just Tap It
naplesmaple.com wohlschlegelsnaplemaplefarm@yahoo.com
Tastings of Maple Syrup. Maple Cream and More!
TAKE IT HOME
Assorted Maple Products from our Sugarhouse Store From Our Finger Lakes Forest to Your Table, Call to schedule a tour
(585) 775-7770
Today or visit LifeintheFingerLakes.com
MONICA’S PIES Famous for our Grape Pies Available Year Round
Local fruits to luscious creams we have your favorite! Call to order yours!
Six Issues a Year!
A variety of pies available daily also chicken pot pies, quiche, jams, jellies & gifts.
Open 7 days a week, 9AM-6PM 7599 Rte, 21, Naples
585-374-2139
www.monicaspies.com J u ly/A u g u s t 2 01 7 ~
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marketplace
Accommodations
Showcases over 50 B & B’s, each dedicated to exceeding expectations of the discriminating traveler.
Please visit www.flbba.com
www.GorgeousViewMotel.com || info@GorgeousViewMotel.com
Finger Lakes Mill Creek Cabins
Gorgeous View Motel A Seneca Sunrise
Clean & Comfy
2382 Parmenter Road Lodi, NY 14860
Moonbeams!
Keyless entry, WiFi, in-room frig/coffee, LED TV, online reservations, binoculars available to borrow. Open all year in Watkins Glen. Clean, comfy & the kind of customer service tripadvisor travelers (and gramma) like! 3355 State Route 14 || Watkins Glen, NY 14891 || 607.331.4276
100
GIFT CERTIFICATES are available on our website for use at participating Member Inns.
You can count on us! Hilton Garden Inn - Ithaca
130 E. Seneca St, Ithaca, NY 14850 Tel: 607-277-8900 Fax: 607-277-8910 ©2005 Hilton Hospitality , Inc.
607-582-7673 Two, fully furnished, pet friendly cabins nestled on 40 secluded acres near the national forest and wine trails. Available year round.
www.fingerlakescabins.com
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1819
Red Brick Inn
A quaint and quiet escape in the heart of the Finger Lakes
2081 Route 230, Dundee, NY • 607-243-8844 www.1819inn.com • stay@1819inn.com
Bed • Breakfast • Events Apple Country Retreat
2215 Lord’s Hill Rd • Tully, NY 13159 315-748-3977 • www.applecountryretreat.com
marketplace
Golf Best Golf In the Finger Lakes
100% Solar Powered <> Whisper Quiet Electric Carts Victor, NY <> www.PARKVIEWGC.com<> 585-657-7539
18 Hole Championship Golf Course
Open to the Public Senior Rates Monday-Friday
1959 Indian Hills Rd, Painted Post, NY 14870
(607)523-8060 • www.southerntiergolf.com
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Driving Range
Practice Green & Putting Green Full Service Bar & Restaurant Call today to schedule your Golf Tournament, Outing, Corporate Event, Wedding or Any Other Special Event.
6/5/17 3:27 PM
marketplace
Seneca Lake Wine Trail
匀 䤀倀 倀刀䔀䴀䤀唀䴀 䄀圀䄀刀䐀 圀䤀一一䤀一䜀 圀䤀一䔀 䘀刀伀䴀 伀唀刀 ─ 䠀䄀一䐀 倀䤀䌀䬀䔀䐀 Ⰰ 䔀匀吀䄀吀䔀 䜀刀伀圀一 䜀刀䄀倀䔀匀 䌀 䄀䘀준 吀 伀匀䌀䄀一䄀 匀䔀刀嘀䤀一䜀 䰀唀一䌀䠀 䐀䄀䤀䰀夀 䌀 刀䔀䄀吀䔀 䴀䔀䴀伀刀䤀䔀匀 䘀伀刀 夀伀唀刀 圀䔀䐀䐀䤀一䜀 䤀一 伀唀刀 䈀䔀䄀唀吀䤀䘀唀䰀 䰀 䄀 嘀 䤀匀吀䄀 준 䈀 䔀䰀䰀䄀 䈀䄀䰀䰀刀伀伀䴀
䰀䘀䰀
㌀㐀㐀 刀 吀 ⸀ 㤀㘀䄀 簀 䜀 䔀一䔀嘀䄀 一夀 㐀㐀㔀㘀 簀 ㌀㔀⸀㜀㤀⸀ 嘀 䔀一吀伀匀䄀 嘀 䤀一䔀夀䄀刀䐀匀 ⸀ 䌀伀䴀 倀 刀䔀匀䔀一吀 吀䠀䤀匀 䄀䐀 䘀伀刀 ㈀ 䌀 伀䴀倀䰀䤀䴀䔀一吀䄀刀夀 圀 䤀一䔀 吀 䄀匀吀䤀一䜀匀
䔀堀倀 㤀⼀㈀ 㜀
Wines that rise to
5576 State Rt. 14, Dundee, NY fulkersonwinery.com
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Index of Advertisers July/August 2017
COMPANY.................................PAGE.... PHONE........... WEBSITE / E-MAIL
COMPANY....................................PAGE.... PHONE........... WEBSITE / E-MAIL
Antique Revival.............................................29......800-780-7330....antiquerevival.com
I-Wood-Care.................................................. 81......800-721-7715.....iwoodc.com
Auburn’s Historic & Cultural Sites............... 2......800-499-9615.....tourauburnny.com
The Inn on the Lake.................................... 25......800-228-2801....theinnonthelake.com
Barry Family Cellars.....................................36......607-569-2352....barryfamilywines.com
Ithaca Farmers Market................................. 85....................................IthacaMarket.com
Belhurst Castle................................................ 7......315-781-0201......belhurst.com
Jay Seaman.................................................... 31......607-351-8190.....jamesseaman.com
Bristol Harbour............................................. 75......585-396-2200....bristolharbour.com
The Jewelbox................................................. 37......800-711-7279.....fingerlakescharm.com
Bristol Mountain Aerial Adventures......... 12......bristolmountainadventures.com
Kendal at Ithaca............................................C3......877-915-7633.....kai.kendal.org/fl
Bristol Valley Theater...................................85......585-374-6318.....bvtnaples.org
Kindred Fare...................................................16......315-787-0400.....kindredfare.com
Caprini Realtors.............................................. 4......585-330-8258....caprinirealtors.com
Lakeview Geneva LLC................................. 13......315-789-5714......lakeviewgeneva.com
Caves Kitchens..............................................24......585-478-4636....cavesmillwork.com
Larry’s Latrines.............................................. 37......607-324-5015.....larryslatrines.com
Cayuga County Tourism............................. 37......315-252-7644.....tourcayuga.com
Longview........................................................ 31......607-375-6320....ithacarelongview.com
Cayuga Lake Wine Trail......................... 50-51......800-684-5217.....cayugawinetrail.com
Morgan Marine............................................. 47......315-536-8166......morganmarine.net
Clifton Springs
Naples Visitors Association.........................11....................................naplesvalleyny.com
Chamber of Commerce..............................46......315-462-8200.....cliftonspringschamber.com
New Energy Works......................................C4......585-924-3860....newenergyworks.com
Cobtree Vacation Rentals...........................63......315-789-1144......cobtree.com
Pinnacle North................................................ 3......844-801-7808....pinnaclenorth.com
Corning Building Company.......................27......800-270-1759.....corningbuilding.com
Rasa Spa..........................................................11......607-273-1740.....rasaspa.com
Corning Museum of Glass.........................25......800-732-6845....cmog.org
Rooster Hill....................................................68......315-536-4773.....roosterhill.com
Cortland County
Rosamond Gifford Zoo............................... 30......315-435-8511......rosamondgiffordzoo.org
Convention & Visitors Bureau....................17......607-753-8463....cortlandtourism.com
Roseland Wake Park.................................... 71....................................roselandwakepark.com
Cottone Auctions.......................................... 71......585-243-1000.....cottoneauctions.com
Roseland Waterpark.................................... 63....................................roselandwaterpark.com
Crossroads Blues Festival........................... 31....................................limabluesfest.com
Route 96 Power & Paddle.......................... 15......607-659-7693....powerandpaddle.com
del LAGO Resort & Casino........................... 9....................................dellagoresort.com
Schweinfurth Art Center............................. 62......315-255-1553.....myartcenter.org
Downtown Ithaca Alliance.........................24......607-277-8679....downtownithaca.com
Seager Marine............................................... 23......585-394-1372....seagermarine.com
Eastview Mall.................................................49......585-223-4420....eastviewmall.com
Seaweed Mat Systems................................ 74......585-202-4218.....seaweedmatsystems.com
Elmira Corning Regional Airport...............48....................................ecairport.com
Seneca County Chamber........................... 32......800-732-1848....fingerlakescentral.com
Ferris Hills.......................................................C2......585-393-0410.....ferrishills.com
SignLanguage Inc......................................... 13......585-237-2620....signlanguageinc.com
Finger Lakes Cheese Festival......................10....................................flxcheese.com
Smith Boys.....................................................40....................................smithboys.com
Finger Lakes Museum................................. 41......315-595-2200.....fingerlakesmuseum.org
Timber Frames.............................................. 12......585-374-6405....timberframesinc.com
Finger Lakes National Forest.....................33......607-546-4470....fs.usda.gov/gmfl
Tioga Downs Casino..................................... 5......888-946-8464....tiogadowns.com
Finger Lakes Opera......................................72....................................fingerlakesopera.org
Toro Run Winery.......................................... 62......315-530-2663.....tororunwinery.com
Finger Lakes Tram.........................................10......315-986-8090....fingerlakestram.com
Triphammer Wines & Spirits/Ithaca..........68......607-257-2626....triphammerwines.com
Fireplace Fashions........................................ 67......877-409-6555....fireplacefashions.com
Wagner Vineyards........................................ 13......866-924-6378....wagnervineyards.com
Fort Ticonderoga.......................................... 47....................................fortticonderoga.org
Walnut Hill Farm Driving Competition.... 23......585-746-1080....walnuthillfarm.org
Fox Run Vineyards........................................16......800-636-9786....foxrunvineyards.com
Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel........................ 21......607-535-6116.....watkinsglenharborhotel.com
Gardner Construction................................. 81......315-573-1474......gardnerconstructionny.com
West End Gallery.......................................... 74......607-936-2011.....westendgallery.net
German Brothers..........................................27......585-394-4000....germanbrothers.com
Wild Birds Unlimited................................... 30......877-266-4928....sapsuckerwoods.com
Granger Homestead....................................46......585-394-1472.....grangerhomestead.org Halsey’s Restaurant......................................36......315-789-4070.....halseysgeneva.com Hangar Theatre............................................. 15......607-273-ARTS....hangartheatre.org Hilton Garden Inn Ithaca............................20......877-STAY-HGI.....ithaca.hgi.com Hotel Ithaca................................................... 29......607-272-1000.....thehotelithaca.com Humane Society of Schuyler County......... 2......607-594-2255....schuylerhumane.org
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MARKETPLACE ADVERTISING Accommodations................Pg. 100-101
Naples............................................. Pg. 99
Camping..........................................Pg. 97
Real Estate for Sale................ Pg. 88-89
Canandaigua................................. Pg. 98
Seneca Lake Wine Trail..............Pg. 102
Culture & Attractions.............. Pg. 92-95
Shopping & Services...............Pg. 90-91
Golf.................................................Pg. 101
Wine, Spirits & Brews.................. Pg. 96
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Road Stoppers
get a better look
Meet
Welcome to our new photo feature showcasing the “things” along our roads that make you put on the brakes for a better look. Maybe it’s roadside art, a quirky message, or a hobby that’s spilled out of a house. If it’s eye-catching and fun, we’ll share it here.
Mr. Burma Shave Story and photo by Derek Doeffinger
Y
ou have to drive by each sign in this sequence because the punch line is featured last. They’re the work of 86-year-old Ron Bennett, the retired farmer who has installed them along Strong Road in Bloomfield for almost 15 years. Some are corny, some are pithy, and a few are instructive, but they’re all entertaining. Just like Ron. “Derek, some of these are the words from the original signs,” he explains, “but sometimes I write my own.” He was born shortly after the first advertising messages for the brushless shaving-cream appeared along roads in Minnesota.
Traditionally there were six signs in a sequence, but Ron often uses more, especially if he wrote the saying. He changes them regularly; choosing from his stock of more than 100. They’re handmade – Ron stencils the letter outlines and then fills them in with paint and a brush. He loads them and their posts on his ATV, and heads out to assemble them on location with a shovel and pry bar. Ron has farmed since he was a kid, and became famous for garlic. His tips for garlic growing were even featured in a 1991 article in The New York Times. Now he’s known as the Burma Shave sign guy.
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83488 Kendal Dance AD for LiF
T: 8.125” x 10.875”
B: .125” all sides L: 7.625” x 10.375”
4c process
A sunset dance in the gazebo is so much more than a perfect ending to the day. It’s also the perfect place for Bayonne, a competitive dancer, to practice the smooth steps of her newest routine. The 105-acre campus of Kendal at Ithaca provides the perfect backdrop for waltzing through retirement and staying connected to the care one may need someday. Until then, Bayonne takes it one graceful step at a time. And, from here, the story just keeps getting better. Come for a visit and tell us your story. Call 1-800-253-6325 or go to kai.kendal.org to learn more.
2230 N. Triphammer Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850
A not-for-profit continuing care retirement community serving older adults in the Quaker tradition. ©2014 KENDAL
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LIFE IN THE FINGER LAKES CORNELL BOTANICAL GARDENS • SUMMERTIME LAKE FUN • GOLFING • BICYCLING
The dandelions and buttercups gild all the lawn: tops, and summer sweetens all to me. - James Russell Lowell
newenergyworks.com | Farmington, NY | 585.924.3860
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JULY/AUGUST 2017 • VOL. 17, NO. 4
the drowsy bee stumbles among the clover
T