Cooperstown NY

The drive from Watkins Glen to Cooperstown was beautiful. Even though we were mostly on the interstate, it was countryside with a gorgeous view. I did not realize that there were so many areas in New York state that were unpopulated. Our camping information book identified many campgrounds in the area, so I did not worry about finding a place to stay. As we got closer, I read the fine print. Most of the campgrounds do not open for at least another week. Oops. I tried calling a few in case there really was someone there. No answer and no response to voice messages. The only one that the book said was open was the KOA. But when we got there the sign on the door said that they were closed and would not be back for several hours. The campground was completely empty. I tried calling. This time - success. The owner had to run errands and left because the campground was empty and they had no reservations. He sent us to a nice campsite and we took care of the money later. Apparently this weekend if you stay at a KOA on Friday, then Saturday is free. So we are staying here for four days.

We are about 10 miles from Cooperstown in an area that is very rural with many farms. The weather here has been even worse than we had seen before. Apparently they had several inches of snow last weekend on Mother's Day. It rained pretty hard last night, but this morning it was just foggy and misty. I went for a good walk this morning along the country roads. It was very peaceful, but a little eerie because I could not see more than a few feet ahead of me for the entire walk. But it did feel good and I felt safe.

Today we went into Cooperstown and went to the baseball hall of fame. It is another museum that is very well done. We stopped in the middle and had a great lunch at a restaurant that had been recommended by one of the owners of the wineries in Watkins Glen. The food was GREAT. But I am eating too well and have to back off and get back to eating just enough. It is hard when the food is so good.

Tonight we are really taking it easy. I think Bob has a little bit of a temperature and I want him to stay warm and dry. We may just stay here tomorrow and do nothing if he continues to feel a little off. Hopefully nothing is really wrong. I can't help but worry. If he is feeling good then there are two other museums in Cooperstown (who knew?) One is the Farm Museum - a museum of American farms. The other is the Fenimore (as in James Fenimore Cooper) Art Museum. There is also a revolutionary war battle site and a diamond mine. Wow.

I have decided that my standard for whether we do or do not do something is whether or not I will regret not having done it when we return to Portland. For example, if we are trying to decide whether to go several hundred miles out of our way to see Lake Placid, the question is - will I regret it if I don't do it. In this case, probably. So we will probably go way out of our way when we leave here.