There are many hiking paths, so we decided to follow the upper trail down to the base of the gorge, then hike the gorge trail back up to where our bikes were.
The upper trail is quite sedate, with the occasional lookout above the gorge and it's many waterfalls and a spot where you can cross over the suspension bridge to the opposite side. Not really sure why it is called a suspension bridge, as there is very little suspension aspects to it, at least what I can see. I guess my definition of suspension includes cables and stomach turning sway. Stuff I love...not!
The hike along the Gorge trail was much more engaging, and you sure need to be engaged to walk along here. It is most captivating, but not always in a good sense, at least to me. At times the walk is quite serene, quiet pools of water at the base of a mellow waterfall, then around the next curve of the path, the gorge plunges deep, water rushing by below as it snakes through narrow passageways. The path itself is constantly wet, with only a knee high stone ledge separating you from a chilly and eventful plummet. With all the warning signs around, there must have been a few mishaps over the years. Dogs on leashes are also forbidden...imagine taking a plunge into the depths, initiated by an excited little dog on a leash.
One area that freaked me a bit was called the Spiral Tunnel, a man made spiral staircase carved out of the rock, steel railing held together with miles of electricians tape, that emerges to a narrow bridge, that as an added bonus, takes you behind a raging waterfall to the other side. Throw in hordes of mindless tourists, floors and walls slick and wet, spectacular adventure just a stumble away...being totally honest here, I was having none of it. None! I backtracked to what was now the relative safety of the knee high stone wall. Which, relatively speaking, was no better. Of course, this was all very amusing to Dale, the Brave.
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| Damp and creepy feeling... |
Continuing along up the path, there was excitement around every corner now. Amazing what people will do to achieve that perfect selfie (with their selfie sticks) a moment of themselves, immortalized by themselves, and who better to capture, then themselves. Sorry, I digress. Posing precariously a slick wet ledge, hanging out by fingertips into a waterfall, oblivious to all trying to get around them. Pretty fascinating behaviour, albeit a tad moronic.
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Dale leads the way... |
Down in the gorge, the humidity of the morning was magnified, by the time we reached our exit, we emerged from the depths as clammy creatures.
In need of supplies, we headed into the local town of Watkins Glen in the afternoon. Explored a bit, wandered into a few shops, including a nice outdoors store, then headed over to Walmart. It, and a place called 'Tops' were the suggested spots for groceries. As Tops would most certainly not have an RV section, Walmart won the toss. Back at the site, Barley seemed quite interested in the outside, so we put on his harness and leash and walked him around a bit. He was most interested in clawing at the towering pines, once finished, he would gaze up the length of them, no doubt wondering what it would be like to climb. But that was never going to happen on our watch. He was out for the longest time, leading us all over the place by the leash.
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| He would have been up that tree in a flash...then what would we do? |
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| This guy and Barley engaged in a serious stare down...through a screen window |
Sat outside and did a little writing for the blog, a nice crisp ’Fat Tire’ Amber Ale fuelling the creative juices.
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