Lake Minnewaska: Before the Blaze

For weeks, I’d been looking forward to taking my brother from Denver for his inaugural visit to Lake Minnewaska. Over the years, he’d heard me rave about how it’s one of the most beautiful state parks I’d ever experienced, east or west.

Lake Awosting

I went on about how it’s a place where you could go biking, hiking, climbing, and swimming alongside gorgeous mountain laurel blooms in June, wild blueberries in July, and colorful foliage in autumn, and it never disappoints. Although he didn’t actually say it, I assumed that his attitude was, “yeah, but I live in Colorado, so we’ll see.” While pulling into the Peter’s Kill parking lot last week, I wondered if I’d oversold our ride.

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Riding the Ridge in 2020

This past weekend would have been the 14th consecutive Ride the Ridge bike tour, an annual charity event for the High Meadow School in Stone Ridge, NY, which has become one of the premier rides in the Hudson Valley.

reservoir

It draws hundreds of cyclists from all over the region and beyond; including a couple of my favorite cycling (and ski) buddies who drive up from NJ and Philadelphia every year to carbo-load on pierogies and beer, and crash on my couches the night before the ride.

Events this year threw a wrench into the works of many group rides this season, and RTR has been postponed to October 3rd. Normally, we would wake at sunrise to be in Stone Ridge for the 8am start of the 50 mile ride.

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They Reopened My Zone

Last year, after 30 years, we decided to choose a new house, in the same school district. For one thing, we wanted closets, and I admit it, central air. We looked around a lot, and considered many factors.

When we found a place we liked, it was in a busier area, but with close proximity to an extensive, inter-borough dirt and gravel trail network. While it certainly influenced our decision, we didn’t fully grasp the importance of the access we have to what I call “the zone.”

I know now that I underestimated my reliance on the zone. Until they closed it, for you know what. That woke me up.

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