Happy Thursday!
This past week in a nutshell… Mostly COLD!!! Down in the 20s by day teens at night. Ford Hill white with frosty-tips. The Oswegatchie River Froze way up above the footbridge! River-rapids starting to freeze up above the carbridge too. Saw some fresh FISHER prints up there, rambling along the river's edge. Enough snow this past Tuesday/Wednesday to warrant a SNOWPLOW AND SAND. Perhaps a couple inches or so of the fresh stuff. Just enough, but not TOO much to dust the forest-floor moss looking like a pale green carpet. GEESE FLYING OVER! Some flying south, some flying north. Ducks quacking in the distance. Freaking LOUD long rumble of C130 jets, too – like, all day the other day. WEAR ORANGE IN THE WOODS… Regular hunting season began Oct 24th and continues through most of December. Also, the St. Lawrence County Public Transportation Bus will not be running until January 4th! Reason? Lack of drivers... Clifton-Fine central schools is ALWAYS looking for school bus drivers, too!
Upcoming… Weather forecast says… Going to get WARM AGAIN. Up into the 40s though the weekend. EW! Maybe some rain/wet snow Saturday and Sunday. Temperature drops back into the 20s by day teens by night at the beginning of next week. This weather forecast is brought to you by Wanakena’s own PATTIJACKNAN weather team – a Wanakener garage-pole-mounted weather station and crew. THANKS, TEAM! This weather station can be found at: https://www.wunderground.com/weather/us/ny/wanakena/KNYWANAK8 - Also, always beautiful photography at the Wanakena Tracks facebook page.
Bridgework continues… AS OF 11/25/20 THE NEW WANAKENA CAR BRIDGE IS OPEN FOR PUBLIC USE!!!! Bridge done, but the crew was RIGHT BACK AT IT! As reported last week... the next step is to get that temporary bridge OUT OF THERE!!! The crew was DIGGIN’ IT OUT!!!! Scraping it right down and scoopin' it up. THE TEMP-BRIDGE DECKING IS GONE! The roller are out and rolling! AND WHAT DO YOU KNOW..... THE TEMP BRIDGE HAS BEEN MOVED... it's coming down. IT'S COMING DOWN!!!!! ****here’s a link to WW # 15 where we featured the temp-bridge getting craned out and OVER the river. http://www.ottosabode.org/2020/05/wanakena-weekly-15-051420-052020.html - Spring-time flashback in Wanakena! And as they’ve been saying around Wanakena: WE’LL BE DRIVING OVER THAT NEW BRIDGE IN NO TIME!!!!! And ALAS! WE DO! Now that the bridge is WIDE OPEN, watch out for speedsters!!!
RIVER FREEZE! Yes, that's right! It has been cold enough to start the beautiful phenomenon of the Oswegatchie River freezing-up. You'll notice all sorts of ways the rushing water turns to solid ice. A tree falls over the river, and branches dangle... THEY FREEZE. When water pools up and is still behind boulders... IT FREEZES! When river foam collects around backs of bends and such... IT FREEZES!
COVID BAD! SPIKE in Tupper Lake. Numbers UP all around! TOWN OF FINE HAS TWO NEW CASES! That brings the total to TWO cases in Clifton and FOUR cases in Fine. The St. Lawrence County Public health director Dana McGuire said "residents should assume if they are out in public, a COVID-19 exposure is likely.” YIKES!!!! https://www.stlawco.org/covid-19-daily-update-center
Are you ever bored, surfing the internet and just GOOGLE stuff? A lot of people out there are thinking to themselves "Wait... there's more to the internet than Facebook?!?!" ... YES, YES THERE IS!! This past week we GOOGLED: “WANEKANA ADIRONDACK LIFE” and two interesting articles popped-up! One article is a nice write-up about paddling on Cranberry Lake in Autumn. ( http://www.adirondacklifemag.com/blogs/2015/08/19/northwest-passage/ ) And the other one is about Timothy Leary's LSD bunkhouse on Cranberry Lake! ( http://www.adirondacklifemag.com/blogs/2013/10/21/archives-far/ )
DOWN AT THE ABODE! Minding the store... We got the Christmas lights UP and GLOWING! GIFT CERTIFICATES!!!...... Perhaps you can purchase a gift certificate! If you don’t want to, or can’t stop-in in-person to purchase a gift certificate let us know and we’ll mail one out to you! If you ARE around in-person and happen to pop-in to check-out whats going on… cool! We’re being careful with COVID.... as careful as you can be, 'suppose... The coffee bar remains open and has – thus-far – proved to be an enjoyable experiment with positive results! There’s LOTS MORE to look at; art, maps, historical displays, and MORE! Perhaps you’ll go home with something you did not realize you needed. Perhaps you’d find a perfect gift for someone. Perhaps you’ll go home with ingredients for a DELICIOUS dinner – or desert! Or snack! Or coffee! Your purchases down here at Otto’s Abode help keep us open and going all-year-long. Take some time out of your day, to go out of the way. Support local year-round businesses! Why wouldn’t you want to purchase healthy, organic ingredients for delicious *stop-in and see* and at the same time support a local, year-round business that showcases EVER-ROTATING art/history/interest exhibitions, creations by local artists and musicians , trail goods and local information, books, maps, groceries, DANG FINE COFFEE and LOTS MORE! Come see why we call ourselves an ART-CENTRIC ADIRODNACK TRAVEL AGENCY AND INCONVENICNE STORE! Curbside pickup available. Whatever you want – let’s do it.
ON VIEW AT OTTO’S ABODE 11/25/20 – 01/31/21: Northern Vermont in Late November, Oil Paintings by Judy James, Keene Valley, NY… Friends and Neighbors, Wanakena was once again adorned by a hiker- and happily, she paused here. In November we were visited by through-hiker Judy James. Who stumbled in here to Otto’s Abode for plenty of snacks, talk about Indians, the Path, and such. Soon she was back, crossing our suspension bridge with some paintings… The focus is scenes of Northern Vermont in late November. Judy feels that Wanakena people appreciate these late November colors: dusky reds; purples; spotted with melting snow over shades of brown leaves; low light on blue hills; plus, late-in-the-year river and lake scenes. Embraced within the dense air, feeling part of the environment- even the air has a texture to it. It is like through-hiking, all-around, being enveloped by nature. You are already in it. Look out from there. The “Hogback Road” painting may seem like a painting of “nothing” -- the barn is pushed over to the side and the viewer simply looks out with some periphery. It is a painting of being in the environment, late November. The outlook is from there. Enjoy this time of year.
WANAKENA’S BLACKWATERS CAFÉ AND TRADING POST HAS ANNOUNCED: Due to appointments and lack of business, we are starting our normal December break early. WE WILL STILL BE DOING FRI & SAT EVENING TAKE-OUT 4-7PM PICKUPS. AND WE WILL STILL MAKE TIME TO OPEN FOR YOUR SHOPPING NEEDS - WHETHER GIFTS OR GROCERIES! We will resume inside dining and normal days on JANUARY 1st!! ((This week’s Fri special is Spaghetti with Giant Meatball & Homemade Garlic Bread - online orders here: https://black-waters-cafe-and-trading-post.square.site/))
RANGER SCHOOL!!! As of 10/25 the Ranger School Class of 2021 completed their in-person learning for the fall semester. We’ll wait and see and update about campus reopening to the public while students are gone. Previously: RANGER SCHOOL IS IN SESSION FOR THE 2020/21 SCHOOL YEAR, BUT THE CAMPUS IS CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC!!! That means no hunting. Here’s a message from the Ranger School: The Ranger School's James F. Dubuar Memorial Forest will be closed to the public for an indefinite amount of time beginning Saturday, August 15, 2020. The Cranberry Lake 50 trail, which passes in front of the school, will remain open. This action is necessary to protect students and staff as they begin a new academic year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, but it is a critical precaution as we work to ensure the health and success of the Class of 2021. Thank you for your cooperation. Here’s a story about it all: https://www.nny360.com/news/stlawrencecounty/property-sales/article_eeec3094-901a-531a-8a18-ab1b991b3a79.html
WANAKENA HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION is hard at work actualizing the WANAKENA HISTORY CENTER. Here is a message from their website: Five equal partners (made up of groups of families and friends) are forming an LLC (Limited Liability Corporation) each pledging $25,000 for a total of $125,000 to own, renovate and restore one of the original Rich Lumber Company houses at 21 Second Street to its original facade. Their dream and intent are to provide a location for a Wanakena History Center where the WHA can continue its mission to encourage greater knowledge of the history and to display and make available for study: artifacts, relics, books, manuscripts, papers, photographs, and other records and materials relating to the history of the State of New York and particularly of Wanakena and the surrounding area.
WANAKENA CHURCH CLOSED FOR WINTER! WESTERN ADIRONDACK PRESBATYRIAN CHUCH zoom-zooms every Sunday at 10:45 using meeting #6663654813 and every morning at 9am for a Morning Prayer. WANAKENA CEMETERY ASSOCIATION announced that Cremation Remains burial has gone up from $150 to $250. Also, there is no longer a backhoe charge for cremation burial because they don’t use a backhoe for cremation burials any longer.
DOCK AND PUBLIC RESTROOM CLOSED FOR THE SEASON MID NOVEMBER… REASON: FREEZIN’!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, that’s right folks you heard it here! The dock at Wanakena’s public beach has been unhooked from it’s summer resting place. Where many a family and friend basked in the sun, picnicked and swam. This summer was particularly interesting considering the fact that the local Wanakena population was downright floored at the sheer number of out-of-towners day-tripping at the Wanakena Beach. The public restroom saw RECORD NUMBER OF DEPOSITS this summer as well. Folks were out and about during the pandemic and Bo’s State Park was packed to the gills all the season though! Many a joyous experience this past warm-weather season via the Wanakena Public Dock and Wanakena Public Restroom. Cheers to many more years!!!
From the other end of CRANBERRY LAKE: Stone Manor Diner and Motel is OPEN! The Clifton Community Library will return to curbside service on WEDNESDAY'S ONLY. This is in response to the state of emergency declared in St. Lawrence County, as well as conditions in neighboring counties, due to the Covid 19 virus. Order online, or call or email your order in and our staff will get your books and arrange a time for pick up. News from the Clifton Community Library: Announced via Facebook is the release of the Page Turner Publication. Visit their facebook to find a link to the PDF. There is lots of information about the goings-on at the Library. We’ve got a printed version here at Otto’s Abode, also. We also have a house-copy of the Bargain Hunter which has an ad that reads: The Clifton Community Library is currently accepting resumes and seeing qualified applicants for the position of LIBRARY DIRECTOR. Information on how to apply follows. Tooley Pond Duck Decoy Showroom in Cranberry Lake is OPEN!!!!!!! LAKESIDE GENERAL STORE IN CRANBERRY LAKE IS CLOSED FOR THE LONG WINTER SEASON. Check out the Cranberry Lake Boat Club and The North Shore Hub on Facebook.
OUT WEST: Coffee Fever, Todd Hardware, Adirondack Pharmacy and Circle K in Star Lake are open! Community Bank in Star Lake re-covid-closed-up the lobby for in-person banking; ATM or night depots ONLY! Mountain Gate Redemption near Benson Mines is open FOR PORCH SERVICE ONLY. Hillside Diner, UB’s, and Adirondack Rustics in Oswegatchie are open! Both Twin Lakes and SOS in Star Lake got a fresh paint job but remain temporarily closed since March 2020. Word on the street is Twin Lakes is re-opening SOON! Harrisville Lanes and Lounge open, munchin’, rollin’ and strikin’ at 50% capacity. The following is copy-pasted from the Fine Town Board Meeting hours from Wednesday 11/11/2020: Jeremy wanted the board to be aware that the Dollar General is looking into putting a store at the former Great American site. This would not be required to go to site plan review since it is not a change of use.
Kim’s Lost Dog Report: As of today, there are NO lost dogs in Wanakena.
All for now!
Any questions, comments, concerns, trail condition inquiries, legends, jokes, animal sightings, etc… Feel free to email otto@ottosabode.org or call 3158483008 or pop-in the shop! Wanakena Weekly archive here: http://www.ottosabode.org/p/wanakena-weekly.html Also, we probably wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to publish your submission!
"Reading and conversation are to winter what the flowers are to the spring and fruits are to autumn. They are the boast of the season. Superior to vernal joys, these permanent pleasures of the intellect are in vigor when those are faded and no more." - R.B. Thomas (1795)
ONLY **8*** WANAKENA WEEKLYS LEFT UNTIL WW #52 (that would be a whole year’s worth of WANAKENA WEEKLY).