The Best Laid Plans

Hurricane Irene may be off the major news broadcasts, but her effects are lingering still.  Because of flooding, the New York State Thruway, aka I-90, aka our route to the east, was closed for 100 miles between Syracuse and Amsterdam until 11:00 PM on Tuesday.  (That significant piece of information did not seem to make the national news.)   Well, traffic was in havoc around here for the duration, being rerouted either along 2-lane country roads or to other interstates 75 miles out of the way.  As we did not want to venture into the chaos, we elected to stay put and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of Herkimer County.  Our plans were again delayed . . . we had originally intended just to be here for 2 or 3 days during Hurricane Irene, but we are now short-term members of the seasonal RV community at the Ilion Marina and RV Park.

On Tuesday we went to the Remington Firearms Museum and Store.  We were hoping to take in the factory tour, but it had been discontinued in the spring.  The museum was small, but interesting.  We also picked up some hunting gear for Frank and a t-shirt for Linda.

After that, we drove up to the Herkimer Diamond Mine.  Herkimer diamonds are faceted quartz crystals that are found only in Herkimer County, NY.  They are lovely.  You can look them up on the internet.  The mine charges $10 a day for prospecting on the property, and people can keep all the "diamonds" they find.  We did not do any prospecting, limiting our visit to the gift shop and short interviews of people as they came off the prospecting field.  We decided that when we come back next year, we will probably prospect ourselves
... actually, Linda will probably prospect while Frank visits a nearby driving range.

The Erie Canal is at a dead stop today.  It looks like a lake, not a river.  Irene's debris is still being cleaned out downstream, and it will be a few days before the water flows again.  We watch the news about the Vermont flooding with sadness.  It is such a lovely state, and we are grateful to have seen much of its beauty before the storm hit.  We will always have a place in our hearts for Vermont, even though we only spent 4 days there.