Fall Days in the Finger Lakes

I haven’t been posting. There are many reasons, but let’s skip to today and my new post on a recent trip to New York.

October in upstate New York can be a riot of color as the last of the leaves change from green to yellow, orange, and red. October also lifts the curtain on winter. Warm, sunny days mix with rain, gray skies, and wind. Once or twice we could feel that cold breath of winter approaching.

A mid-month visit to my mother was the occasion of my recent short visit. I met up with my sister Paula from Portland, OR, and we spent a few days with mom who is very well for a centenarian. She’s a resident of The Nottingham, in Jamesville, NY. We chatted, ate lunch, and sat on her outdoor patio on one fine day. On a chilly afternoon, mom bundled up in her warmest coat and we took her wheelchair for a spin outdoors.

When we weren’t visiting mom, we were taking a quick look at the local scenery. There is a lot to appreciate in the region of New York State just south of Syracuse. My brother Tim and sister-in-law Margaret live on Otisco Lake, a beautiful, small lake about 30 minutes drive southwest of Syracuse.

(L) Otisco Lake in the fall; (R) View over the lake from Tim & Margaret’s house

A bit further west is Skaneateles Lake, 16 miles long and less than 1 mile wide. It’s said to be the cleanest water in the US, rivaled only by Crater Lake, OR (Wikipedia). Margaret and I drove over one afternoon. Overcast skies couldn’t spoil the view of colored leaves, and colorful small communities along the way.

We had dinner the previous evening at the Amber Inn, in Marietta, NY, a hidden gem for anyone near Otisco Lake. Our dinner companions told us about finding beach glass along Skaneateles Lake. After Jonathan and my success beach combing along the shore of Lake Erie, I was happy to look for Finger Lakes beach glass. We found some!

It was a good visit, and though short, makes me want to return another time.