Waking To Duck Hunters Booms

Hiking Allegheny Forest

7:32

7:33

Well, much of this morning has been punctuated by gunshots, up, down, and across the lake.  I was up way too early, at 5:30 and by 6:30, I could see the lights of the hunter's boats as they motored by in the dark, setting up their blinds.  I did kayak for forty minutes, talked with one hunter, out in his rowboat; he was set up a camouflaged tent, just below Chestnut Hill.  And ran into another hunter, standing in the water by Sandy Bottom.

Kayak Morning

Duck Hunter

Yesterday was a perfect December day, mostly because of the sunshine, blue skies, and a hike along the Christian Hollow Trail in the Allegheny State Forest, a forty-mile drive to get in a three-plus mile walk,  It was worth it.  So we were up earlier than usual.  I got in a paddle and we finished the blog just as we were about to leave.  Evie made her favorite grade school sandwiches, scrambled eggs, and baloney sandwiches. With water and cookies, we were set for our hike.  We left about 10:15, arriving at the parking area just after 11:00.  

Hiking In A December Wonderland

A Beautiful Day

We had made up our mind to walk the Christian Hollow Trail because it had a great vista of the Salamanca Valley. We were surprised by the snow on and along the trail because most of it has melted her at the lake.  We had hiked this trail a few years ago but forgot how hilly it was, as we always seemed to be walking up a hill, down the trail.  

Vista From Trail

Silhouettes

Horseshoe Inn Outdoor Pavillion

The vista was worth the hike although the photographs may not accurately picture the colors, all muted by the fall season.  The trail is basically a circle, starting and ending on the main trail.  We had our lunch at the junction of both Sweetwater and Christian Hollow, the same place we had lunch a couple of weeks ago.  It took us close to two hours to walk it and it was a good choice for the day.  We left, exiting the park, in the eastern entrance, just east of Salamanca on RT 219.  

Salamanca

Instead of taking the highway home, we went on the backroads, even stopping at the Horseshoe Inn, hoping to get an order of fries and beer and sit outside. Unfortunately, having a beer outdoors is illegal in Cattaraugus County, so we skipped it.  We were shocked to pass a woman on the side of the road, having taken off her shirt on the side of the road, either changing clothes or washing up.  We decided to turn around, see if we could help her by giving her food and money.  By the time we got back, she had already been picked up by a truck that passed us earlier.  We just hope she is safe. 

We were home by 3:30, both tired from our hike and drive, ready to relax on the couch, either reading or napping.  Around 6:00, Evie started dinner, roasting Brussels sprouts, sauteeing mushrooms, making a salad, and grilling a couple of New York Strip steaks.  Everything was great and we loved our steaks and sprouts, with maple syrup and hot sauce.  Yum. We watched a Colbert, then a couple of episodes of a series recommended by a Turkish friend called Tokyo Diner.  It's a half-hour show featuring various characters who come to the diner after midnight.  It's fresh and real.  We then watched another episode of Little Fires Everywhere and are becoming increasingly disenchanted with the cliches and drama.  Comparing it to Tokyo Diner would be like comparing a painting from the Holiday Inn to a Japanese print. Too big of a stretch?  Maybe.