For vacation this year, we visited Potter County. Specifically, we stayed in the town of Austin, which is near Cherry Springs State Park. The park is known for its dark skies–due to its remote location–and is ideal for star gazing. While we didn’t go to the park, we had our own star gazing field at the cabin. And, the sky was spectacular. Thank goodness for clear weather!
Brian, Jake, Jake’s friend (Tanner), Esme, and I all went on the trip. The boys mostly hung out in their hammocks and slept. Connectivity was sparse, so it was a mostly electronics-free affair. It’s always good to disconnect. We went from Thursday to Tuesday to lessen the amount of days out of the office, which is always a concern when we can’t check in via telephone/internet.
I did a lot of knitting and reading. And, I mean a lot. There wasn’t much to do up that way, but we did visit the Austin Dam Memorial Park and Sinnemahoning State Park one day. Given that we’re from Johnstown, home of the floods, the dam was interesting to see. Unfortunately, we visited the wildlife watching area in the afternoon so there wasn’t anything to see (dawn and dusk are the best times for wildlife viewing), but it still made for a nice walk. Another day, we drove up to Coudersport and visited the Potter County Artisan Center. There, Brian and I picked up some pottery–coffee mugs for each of us and a tea light holder for the living room.
We did the usual campfires and such, but that was really about it. Entertaining Esme took up a lot of time as well, but she was so good–you could just let her out and not have to worry about her running off the property. She got plenty of exercise, but still was not tired by the time we got home. Her store of energy is boundless.