Camping 2018

Mrs SnoBunSki has been wanting to do a Niagara Falls trip for years so after getting  some ideas in the Holiday Valley thread we headed up for the long weekend leading up to the 4th.

I packed up the camper, bikes and boats and set off for Allegany state Park, just south of Ellicottville NY. We made a lunch stop in Corning NY at Market Street Brewing to kick off the trip, decent food and brews. Allegany is a huge park with two camping areas, each with a lake, lots of paved bike trails, hiking trails and a xc ski/bike trail network. We stayed in the Red Hill  area.

My Typical camping MO is to set out early morning  for some MTB and be back for breakfast and spend the day with the family, in this case it was just my wife and I. Sunday  morning I set off to explore the ASP bike trails. After a long road climb I hit the Art Roscoe ski center and rode the Sweetwater and Ridge loops , rolling double track/fire road type trails that connected recently built singletrack loop, Thunder Road. Not too technical with some nice flow sections in the middle. I descended back down to camp through an old  alpine ski area on the  Bova trail for ta total of 16 mi / 1700 + vert.  http://www.nelsap.org/ny/bova.html



I got back to camp around 9:30 or so to have breakfast with Mrs SnoBunSki before packing up some lunch and beers for an afternoon kayak. We headed down the the Lake at the Quaker area and enjoyed a hot sunny paddle for a few hours, finding a nice shady spot for a picnic.



Since were out and about we headed about a half hour North to check out  Ellicottville. Picturesque town, found Ellicottville Brewing and did a flight and a pint. Solid beers, Keepin it Peel Citus IPA was perfect for a hot summer day.



Monday we headed off to Niagara Falls CAN early to beat the crowds and heat.



On the way back we stopped in  Buffalo to do a little sightseeing by bike and parked near the zoo.  Feeling the heat we made our first stop at the Darwin Martin House, one of Frank Lloyd Wright early commissions. SInce it was nice and cool inside we bagged the bike ride and did the full on house tour.



After the tour we  were pretty hungry (and thirsty) and checked out Big Ditch Brewing. Great wings beers and cool homage to Buffalo’s Erie Canal roots.



Tuesday morning I headed out to to the Ellicottville IMBA trail network off the backside of Holiday Valley Ski Area.. The air was thick and the roots were slick climbing up the Eagle trail. One I got up to the ridge the flowy trails were a lot of fun. Mostly mellow for the 13 mile ride on the  Rain, Merlin, and Dead Dog loops before descending back down Eagle.



Back to camp for more kayaking and watching a young osprey diving for his lunch. Paddling was a much better option than hiking or biking in afternoon heat.

Stoked for a steak dinner and a few brews before heading out for the  fireworks display over the lake. It was tough keeping our eyes open waiting for it to get dark.



It was a great rip and we’ll probably do it again some time with the kids. Thanks again Jonc for the beta!

Nice trip. Smart to go to the good Niagara Falls side (Canada) and EBC.

Ellicottville really is one of the best ski towns in the east (even if the ski areas next to it have a serious lack of vertical).

Great report, Gorgonzola. I’m heading out for a trip myself next week. I’m curious what kind of camper you’re pulling...

Brownski wrote

Great report, Gorgonzola. I’m heading out for a trip myself next week. I’m curious what kind of camper you’re pulling...

thanks have fun! 23' hybrid

Great trip G!

Im getting one of these next year.  Anyone have any experience?

https://tepui.com/collections/tents

What are you gonna do with your dog? I was thinking about it, but I couldn't get around that question.

Some Dogs love campers. I got mine from a guy who took his dog all over the northeast with him.

Brownski wrote

Some Dogs love campers

I was responding to Scotty's Rooftop Tent post.

Oh, got it. I think that’s a logical question then.

Carry him up the ladder.  And get the three person or four person to accommodate his giant body!

ScottyJack wrote

Carry him up the ladder.  And get the three person or four person to accommodate his giant body!

That's what I was thinking... Down might be harder, though.

ScottyJack wrote

Im getting one of these next year.  Anyone have any experience?

https://tepui.com/collections/tents

What's the draw to one of these vs. just setting up a tent like you always have.

MC2 5678F589 wrote

That's what I was thinking... Down might be harder, though.

Might have to have the wife hand him off halfway or better yet rig up some type of belay system!  Ha!

 I’ll talk with my rope expert friends and let you know what I come up with.  

Boom!

Could use the LL Bean firewood canvas carrier to haul him up and down!  

True stable genius bro!!

Those rooftop tents look cool but you could get a nice used pop-up for that kind of squila. I also need the roof space to haul bikes and boats

A few pics from last weekends camping experience at Pine Creek Gorge (Pa Grand Canyon)

Camp


Food is better when camping


30 mile rail trail ride through Pine Gorge was beautiful, will be back to do the full 60 one day








pretty country out there...


as seen from the fire tower

Looks great!

Nice Pics. I camped at Little Pine State Park a few years ago and rode the rail trail. The Pine Creek is usually much lower this time of year. Shows how much rain we've had.