They get enough snow here to host a ski resort, so we hiked up to see what a Pennsylvania ski slope might look like. But the fog hid the top of the mountain and most of the chair lifts. On our drive between New York and Pennsylvania we saw several highway signs warning about the fog, so we're guessing that this is a common phenomenon in the Endless Mountains.
We were at Elk Mountain Ski Resort, that seems to have a disproportionate number of black diamond trails. We also need to point out that Mark is leaning against a fence made of the native field stone--something we have seen over and over as we drove the country roads in this area.
It seems that this flat stone is everywhere. It must be removed from the ground before any plowing or planting can be done. So stacking it into stone fences is a great use for it.
One of those country roads took us to a "you-pick" apple orchard. Mark is modeling the latest in apple-picking fashion. That bag can hold 35 pounds of apples, but we didn't need near that many. It seems that Denisa has an addiction for buying fresh apples, and we are having a hard time eating them as fast as she can buy them.
We picked three new kinds of apples today--Eastern Spy, Golden Delicious, and Granny Smith. Some of those names sound familiar, but we haven't ever tried them this fresh. We are delighted with the taste of apples that are tree-ripened and just plucked from the branch. You just can't find that at a grocery store in Oklahoma.
The apples and cider are sold out of a hundred-year-old shed. The owner was happy to tell us all about his orchard, and his love of apples.
Denisa is finding that she likes arched railroad viaducts as much as covered bridges. This day we found our third one in the Endless Mountains--the Starrucca Viaduct. Its size is just amazing, as you can barely see Denisa leaning against one of those large columns.
The Starrucca Viaduct is made of the native Pennsylvania Bluestone, blasted out of a nearby quarry. Built in 1847, it is 1,200 feet long and 110 feet high. Again, Denisa is certainly dwarfed under one of those arches.
Looking straight up at those arches over 100 feet over our heads makes for an interesting picture. The viaduct is 30 feet across at the top, and wide and strong enough to support a thundering train. We are certainly impressed with the engineering of the bridge-makers in this area!
We have been well entertained by the beauty of the Endless Mountains, but our main destination for the day is the Old Mill Village Museum. They had a blacksmith working in his shop, and a woman demonstrating how to make soap from lye and tallow. But we were here because this small community historical museum was hosting a Civil War re-enactment, and the public is invited. The Union army was smaller than we had envisioned, so we just had to imagine this as a small skirmish.
The re-enactors use the same kind of clothing and the same fire arms that were in use in the 1860's. The Union army is putting up a barrage of gun powder against the Confederates on the other side of the grassy meadow.
The Confederate army marched up the hill to face their enemies that were now re-positioned on the hill. This army includes a Father and two sons. We found that participating in these events is often a family affair.
Most of them make a weekend of a re-enactment event--camping in tents and cooking the same way that soldiers over a hundred years ago would. We had conversations with several of the re-enactors, as they explained their love of history that started this interesting hobby. One described his emotions at the Gettysburg re-enactment that included 30,000 soldiers. When we asked how re-enactors knew when they were "hit," he explained that usually happened when they ran out of gun powder. He also grinned and explained that on a hot day, most of the hits happened where the wounded soldier could lie in the shade.
Both armies were backed by the artillery corp, who readied and shot their cannons over and over. Mark caught this picture with the fire shooting out of the cannon, and the gunners covering their ears for protection from the concussion. Denisa can affirm that these shots will make your ears ring if you wander too close.
We had to ask this guy which side of the battle he was going to be on. He quickly answered that his role was as an opportunist--he would always find himself on the winning side.
Re-enactors that are too old for the rigors of war can still find a role in the music corp that adds to the ambiance of the day.
We haven't gotten as much exercise as usual, so after the Civil War, we found one of the local rails-to-trails in the Endless Mountains. On the Lackawanna River Heritage Trail we got to see some of the changing leaves in our new home further south.
We were glad to have our jackets, as the temperatures dipped in the afternoon. We can certainly tell that the days are getting shorter, as it is getting dark before we run out of things we want to do.
We were busy for the two days we had in this area. Our time wasn't endless, even though the mountains were.
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