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Here we are heading for the hills near Virgil, NY which is home to Greek Peak Mountain Resort , our local ski resort and soon-to-be indoor/outdoor water park. Much of the land up here that is not owned by Greek Peak is owned by the great State of New York.

This is where we come to enjoy the doughnuts and cider, and then we head out on a hike that hopefully burns off a few of those extra calories.

The road we were on led us to part of the Finger Lakes Trail, which runs for over 500 miles across New York State.

We found a marker from the 1934 National Geodetic Survey .....

and oh, what a view!




We found the top of the ski lift.....that's Hope Lake in the distance. I think they "hope" it's going to be a lake. Click the Greek Peak link above to see the plans they have for that pond!



Then home to dinner - a very light one of course 'cause there's apple pie for dessert!

Tradition, tradition...

Today was another picture perfect day - blue sky, no clouds, 75 degrees...and the boat is out of the water!!! Who knew? It's not supposed to be this nice so late into October.

So... we decided to make our annual trek to Hollenbeck's Cider Mill. This has become a tradition for us, consolation for moving back home. It is always best to visit this place on a weekend, because all the activity takes place then. (Now if I were really good at this blogging thing, I would insert a musical clip of "Tradition" from Fiddler on the Roof. I've been humming it all day!)

This is a local, family-owned cider mill that is only open late fall to early spring. They sell pumpkins, apples, squash, apples, cider, apples, cheese, apples and more.....

Did I mention they sell apples?

There is a big, old-fashioned press that makes the cider, which is bottled for you without preservatives or pasturization - a rarity these days. There is always a large crowd watching the press at work.

The main reason for visiting on weekends is that they only make the fresh doughnuts on weekends. Our tradition is to buy a half-dozen of the cinnamon sugar ones.....

And a Dutch Apple pie.....

A half-gallon of cider, and then we head for the hills!

Cooperstown

As most of you know, Cooperstown, NY is the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. It is also the home of the Farmer's Museum, and the Otesaga Resort Hotel.

Thanks to the Life Insurance Council of NY, many representatives of NY insurance companies are afforded the opportunity to gather in Cooperstown at the Otesaga for a three-day conference that brings together the industry representatives, state regulators, and state politicians. It is always a very enjoyable and informative conference.

This year was extra-special because of the wonderful weather we enjoyed. Sitting on the wide back veranda overlooking Lake Otsego was ALMOST like being on the boat! Of course, I didn't have a camera, so I am sorry there are no photos.

By day, we listen to the state legislators and regulators speak about current issues, challenges and trends in the life insurance industry, network with our peers, and swap horror stories of what the regulators have done lately to make our lives miserable, and by night we usually have at least one reference to baseball. This year one of our speakers was "Mudcat" Jim Grant, who was a major league pitcher for teams that were not the Yankees, so he wouldn't have been appreciated in my mother's household! Mudcat was one of the first black players to move from the Negro League into the white teams of major league baseball, and he spoke about his experiences. Later, at the after dessert late-night gathering, the few of us still appreciating the band around midnight were also treated to Mudcat singing the blues. It seems he turned his hand to music after leaving baseball, and has a blues band back at his home in California. Someone said he calls it "Mudcat & the Kittens". I didn't really believe that name, but I just Googled it and it's true.

One afternoon of this conference is slated as "free time" and a choice of activities is offered, although some of the conference attendees prefer to shop. The Otesaga has a very fine golf course on its grounds, so a golf tournament is traditionally offered as one of the activities. It has also become a tradition for a group of volunteers to go and work on a Habitat for Humanity building site. I have done that the past two years, but this year my boss and I invited our spouses to join us for the free afternoon and the dinner that night, so we chose to spend our afternoon exploring the Farmer's Museum. Their central display featured the history of ice cream, although we were disappointed to find they were not giving away any samples. As this museum is actually a small working village circa 1845, we saw people hard at work hand-crafting dining room chairs, weaving, (and we helped fix a broken thread on the huge loom), making brooms, and caring for the livestock among other chores. Being there in the fall on a weekday was perfect, because there were no crowds, and the artisans were happy to take the time to talk about what they were making.

Definitely a great way to mix business and pleasure.

Last Monday...

We went home. :-( I never know where to start when you do blog catch-ups- do you start with the newest news and work backwards, or go back to where you left off and move forwards?

Anyway, we were sad to leave the boat because the weather is still fantastic, but it is getting dark so early that we were heading inside by 7 PM.

We did go back and spend this past weekend at the boat, and we may squeeze in another day or two before we pull it out. stay tuned.

and oh by the way- it's 10 PM and still 72 degrees out there!!