Tramp & Trail

Write-up: Mary Pat Connors
Leader: Mary Pat Connors
Co-Leader: Kathy Countryman

Nineteen Tramps attended the Summer Solstice Garden Tour & Craft Sale at Sycamore Hill Gardens in Marcellus, NY. The weather had been threatening, so many started out with umbrellas and raincoats. As luck would have it we were soon shedding our coats and enjoying a lovely warm summer day.

The grounds of Sycamore Hill are truly spectacular. It was such a pleasure to stroll the grounds seeing the beautiful sights in the many nooks and crannies. Owners Karen and George Hanford are to be commended for their vision, design and hard work.
“The nearly 40 acres of privately-owned land west of Marcellus include diverse statuary, koi ponds, stonework, a formal garden, a hedge maze and more. Recent plantings of 10,000 trees and shrubs have turned the land surrounding the garden into one of New York State’s largest privately held bird sanctuaries.” (sycamorehillgardens.com)

The hedge maze proved to be too daunting for most of us. However, Kathy Countryman reports, “Thanks to Sharon Kaelin’s excellent instructions on how to find one’s way out of a maze, Francis Roy and I managed to easily reach the “prize” at the center and still make it out before dark. The trick is to keep one hand on the hedge wall all the way in, around the center, and back out. I garnered some funny looks by doing that, but we also ended up with some grateful followers!”

 

 

Many of us purchased lunch from the “Chicken Bandit Food Truck & Eatery,” picnicked at tables with tablecloths with a musical duo to entertain us. Not our usual grub or experience on hikes.
Thank you to Deb Cantales for letting me know of this hidden gem, and for helping us find some of the not-so-obvious treasures.

The gardens are only open to the public on a very limited basis, thus far only Mother’s Day and this summer solstice day, a fundraiser for the CNY Land Trust.
This is a worthy cause as the Land Trust currently protects 2800 acres in 48 nature preserves within Onondaga and Oswego Counties.
More information, including the history of the development of the gardens, may be found at sycamorehillgardens.com. You can also be placed on a mailing list for any additional events.

Many more photos may be found in Gallery 2018: June.

Write-up: Susan Manier
Leader: Susan Manier
Co-leader: Bobbie Scarpino

Eaton Brook Reservoir is a small Y-shaped water body located in Madison County near the Hamlet of West Eaton. It is one of the numerous area reservoirs that was built to supply water to the Erie canal.20 members kayaked around on Eaton Brook Reservoir.

 After the two-hour kayak we went back to Sally and Jeff Steele’s home that overlooks the reservoir, for hotdogs and snacks. It was a beautiful sunny day and a wonderful time was had by all.

Write-up: Pam Carrier
Leader: Pam Carrier
Co-Leader: Carolyn Eastman

A great day for a hike! Five of us, including Amy DeVries on her first Tramp outing, started out from Mapledale right at 7 a.m. Before we got to Old Forge, we were stopped to wait for a moose making up its mind which way to head out of the north bound lane. The photo was taken by Carolyn Eastman through the open sunroof.

We arrived at the trailhead shortly after ten without any further excitement. The weather and bugs cooperated and we had a comfortable ascent up the nearly 1500 feet of elevation to the summit.  The scenic view was seen on the way up at a couple of outlooks.

The summit view, suggests why only those looking to complete the Saranac six hike here.  There were no crowds on Scarface.

Refreshments were at the Toboggan in Eagle Bay, followed by shopping at Mountainman in Old Forge before heading home.

Write-up: Cindy McCormack
Leader: Cindy McCormack
Co-Leader: Mary Kate Scott

Just wanted to say “THANK YOU” to the 29 people who went on my hike today (which was my first one). I believe all had a good time, we had some little muddy areas, not bad, and bugs did cooperate while we walked. Can’t wait to do another!

Write-up: Walt Pillar
Leader: Walt Pillar
Co-Leader: Sharon Kaelin

23 Tramps hiked almost 4 miles around the forests, fields and wetlands on the trails of the Clark Foundation by Clark’s Irish Tower.

Some paused for a moment to try to find a use for a large tank perched on a 10-foot stand in the middle of the woods. At the Tower, a short history of the Tower and the Clark Foundation was given. The only disappointment was that the Ommergang Brewery was still closed for renovations. So we overwhelmed the Red Shed Brewery nearby. Some then finished the day by going to the Cooperstown Library to see Bobbie’s painting exhibited there.

Write-up: Paul Fortin
Leader: Paul Fortin
Co-Leader: Tom Schenck

Tramps trimming while trekking through Carpenter Rd. trails.
We had a fun time, happy trails to you.

P.S. from Mary Pat Connors
Hats off to this crew! They did more work on trail maintenance than any I have ever witnessed!

The last two clean-ups were cancelled because of weather and attendance, so there was much
blow-down to contend with. The largest and most difficult trees were left for DEC, but I could not believe the trees that our workers were able to clear! Paul made the correct decision to keep the entire group together instead of splitting into teams. Many hands working together were what was needed on this trek.

        

More Carpenter Rd. photos may be found in Gallery June 2018.