by Richard L. Weaver IIWe were driving through the small village of Sodus Point, New York, after visiting the old lighthouse and museum and Chimney Bluff State Park, when I saw a small sign set out near the main road through town. It simply read “Pizza,” and after a quick discussion of dinner plans, we turned around and ordered a large for $11.99. After a wait of about 30 minutes, while we strolled the harbor, we took the pizza back to our Brennan Beach campsite. Talk about traveling “by guess and by gosh,” it was the best pizza we have ever had.
What was interesting about this “best pizza” experience was that when we were at the old lighthouse in Sodus Point, two ladies we asked about getting pizza said, very clearly and assertively, that there was no place in Sodus Point to get good pizza. Maybe they thought Sodus Point only had excellent pizza!
From a campsite overlooking Lake Ontario at Sodus Point we drove just 30 miles to Cheerful Valley Campground. Our “by guess and by gosh” opportunity occurred when we visited the National Women’s Right Park and Museum, in Seneca Falls, NY. It was a wonderful and inspiring collection of photographs, stories, and papers (books, letters, and pamphlets) about the life and times of Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Jane Hunt, Frederick Douglass, Mary Ann McClintock and the McClintock family and all the others who hosted the First Women's Rights Convention at Seneca Falls in 1848. Here were representative objects from the Women's Rights Movement of the 19th and 20th centuries particularly as they relate to the Declaration of Sentiments and the first Women’s Rights Convention.
An even more impressive “by guess and by gosh” moment took place as a result of talking with the owner of Cheerful Valley Campground. He pointed out that “Canal Days," was taking place in Palmyra, NY, and because we had expressed an interest in seeing the Erie Canal, he suggested we go. The main part of downtown Palmyra was closed off because of the parade route and all the tents, so we parked at the Palmyra fairgrounds and were shuttled to main street by school bus.
Just as we got off the bus in downtown Palmyra, there was a loudspeaker announcement that an historic walking tour of the Erie Canal would be taking place, and all those interested should gather at the main information booth. Just our luck! We met our tour guide and then the five other people taking the tour with us. Our guide showed us the old stores that serviced the canal, the hotels and storage sheds, and some of the old homes. He pointed out, too, how the bed of the canal had changed three times as it had been widened and deepened. He told us that in the time of the canal, traffic was constant day and night, but now most all canal traffic is recreational boats and tourist excursions. All the locks remain in working condition.
As we were getting on the bus to return to the fairgrounds, we asked a couple we saw how to get to the Joseph Smith Farm. We had not noticed that both people were wearing name tags indicating they were Mormon. They gave us specific directions out of the parking area, and we drove directly to the farm. In entering the parking lot, we noticed that the person in the welcome center of the farm waved to us, and later we discovered the couple from whom we asked directions had phoned ahead to let them know we were coming.
After a short talk by two missionary women from Australia, who were clearly proselytizing on behalf of their faith, we decided not to take the tour of the farm and Sacred Grove but, instead, drive directly to Hill Cumorah. In the small town (population 8,000) of Palmyra, NY, is where the Mormon faith was born. It was the home of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, known as the Mormon Church. At Hill Cumorah we climbed to the golden statue of the angel Moroni just as Joseph Smith had visited the Hill Cumorah at Moroni’s prompting and dug up the golden plates on which the Book of Mormon was written. We did not look for any forgotten golden plates, nor did we receive any prodding from Moroni, but our trip was instructive and interesting just the same.
Our next excursion from the Cheerful Valley Campground was to the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge. Driving through the entire Refuge, there was little wildlife to be seen since the fall migration had not begun, but in the souvenir shop of the welcome center, we found some beautiful ballpoint pens in the shape of animals that we purchased (nine of them) for stocking presents for our grandchildren.
Because we were in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, we drove along Cayuga Lake, stopped at an Amish Market, visited Geneva (at the tip of Seneca Lake), and drove through several state parks.
The Finger Lakes, according to Wikipedia, “mainly are linear in shape, each lake oriented on a north-south axis. The two longest, Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake, are among the deepest in America. Both are close to 40 miles from end to end, but never more than 3.5 miles wide.” Again, quoting Wikipedia, “The Finger Lakes area is New York's largest wine producing region. Over 100 wineries and vineyards are centered around Seneca, Cayuga, Canandaigua, and Keuka Lakes. Because of the lakes' great depth, they provide a lake effect to the lush vineyards that flank their shores.”
From Cheerful Valley in Phelps, NY, we drove 202 miles to Chautauqua Campground on Chautauqua Lake. This was our final campsite, and because we stayed four days, it gave us time to relax, drive around the lake, and visit two outstanding gift shops in Bemus Point, NY. We had outstanding trips to Long Point State Park, Jamestown, and the Chautauqua Institute. as well.
We started this “by guess and by gosh” vacation with no reservations and no travel plans. It was simply a 3 ½ week visit to upstate New York. What we discovered at many points was startling. There were so many outstanding, unplanned for, and extraordinary experiences that this is an adventure we would recommend to anyone seeking a new and exciting get-away.
Although we dropped directly south from the Seaway Trail before it reached Rochester, NY, at this site there is a map of the entire trail. We traveled it from Massena, but you can follow it farther west from Rochester directly along Lake Erie.
The “I Love New York," website has a number of picture icons that will guide you to most of the areas we visited. It is worthwhile place to start planning an upstate New York trip.
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