Cool Falls and Cold Brews

Thursday, July 28, 2022

Hi Blog!

We left Pennsylvania behind and are now working our way toward Vermont. We planned a two day stop in south central New York to visit with our friends, Ginny and Eric. We have a big day planned with them on Friday, but today we were on our own. One of our favorite places in this neck of the woods is Ommegang Brewery outside of Cooperstown. We knew there would be lunch and beer tasting in our future, so we wanted to work up a real appetite. Because of the recent extreme heat, we looked for a nice woodland hike with a waterfall. We found the Robert V. Riddell State Park perfectly situated at the exit for Cooperstown. A few miles of hiking would lead us to a picturesque waterfall.

We arrived at the trailhead just as two local women were finishing their hike. They asked if we had hiked here before and we told them it was our first time. Lucky for us, they knew there was no longer a trail sign for the turnoff to the waterfall trail, but they had placed pink tape on the trees marking the turn. We thanked them for the trail info and prepared to enter the woods.

The All Trails description of the hike mentioned that it was lightly used. Other than the two women we met at the trailhead, we had the woods to ourselves. 

The trail alternated between deeply shaded woods to bright open fields.

We are in the thick of summer. The wildflowers are in full bloom.
 

We hiked in about a mile and a half and found the side trail with the pink ribbons. Below, Kathy marks a waypoint on the GPS to make sure we find our way back out of the woods.

Not to worry, the rest of the trail was well signed. Below, at a later junction, David points the way to the waterfall.

Pictured below is the image of the waterfall from the park website. 

Rather than a raging torrent, we found a secret garden with the gentlest of rivulets trickling down the mountainside:

 

Here is a look at the trickling falls in action. While the hike to the falls was less than two miles, it was mostly uphill. Kathy enjoyed a much needed break from the heat.

 

Our grandson would be particularly disappointed if we didn't include at least one "fun guy" photo in our blog. We felt he would appreciate this specimen, although it might not be rated PG:

There is nothing sweeter than fresh, ripe berries during a hike. These little blackberries were hard to find, but when we did discover them, boy were they tasty!

One section of the trail was completely enclosed with chokecherry bushes. They look good enough to eat, but don't. The chokecherry stem, leaves and pits contain cyanide. The berry itself is pretty bitter.  That said, it is possible to pit the cherries and make a good jam. 

After finishing our hike, we drove over to Ommegang Brewery. The brewery started in 1996, when Belgian breweries Duvel, Affligem, and Scaldis joined with importers/entrepreneurs Don Feinberg and Wendy Littlefield to build an authentic Belgian-style farmstead brewery in Cooperstown, NY. They found an old 140-acre hop farm in the Susquehanna River valley of upstate New York, south of Cooperstown.  Ommegang opened in the winter of 1997 with Ommegang Abbey Dubbel, an 8.5% ABV traditional Trappist-style dark ale. Brewed with a complex array of spices and packaged in 750ml bottles, Abbey Dubbel broke the mold of the emerging American craft beer scene. 

 

It's been a number of years since we were last here, and the expanded and new buildings are impressive.

While we waited for a table on their outdoor deck, we sampled some of their more recent concoctions. From left to right, an Oak Aged Tripel, Keep It Crunchy (granola stout with pecans, cocoa and vanilla), Three Philosophers and Abbey Ale.  We both chose the Three Philosophers as our favorite -- which David was quick to point out has always been his favorite.

 

After lunch, we stopped in the bottle shop to stock up for our trip to Vermont. Don't tell Eric and Ginny, but we got some samples for them, too!