Steam Train in Titusville

Switcher

Leaving Perry St. Station

So, John's a huge train enthusiast. We have an elaborate "O" gauge layout in the basement and saw the "Berkshire" Nickelplate Steam Train when it came to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Naturally, we headed to Titusville to catch this unique visit.

Steam trains stopped running in the oil region in 1953, and the two engines that were in Titusville were privately owned Switchers. They were beautiful and perfectly restored. Four runs were made on Saturday and on Sunday, and crowds came out to just take pictures. Like we did.

The elusive Ida Tarbell home.

After we saw the trains off, we took the walking tour of Titusville. This was our second shot at trying to find Ida Tarbell's (Muckraker! Hereo!) house. The first time, I thought I had the map upside down and we were in sort of a hurry. This time, we were on foot with plenty of time, and we discovered the map had no relation to time, space or reality.

This is really a surprise because most pamphlets by the Oil Region Alliance are quite superior. This make had houses on opposite sides of the grid, in no relation to other sites. Still, we saw some beautiful architecture.

Not a ride.

We made a return trip to the Drake Museum for John's birthday, and got some commemorative bottles of oil, and an oil can mug. Happy Birthday John!

Left mug is wood fired and mine.

We finished off the weekend at the Wheelhouse Pottery with Frank, and went fishing at Two Mile Run. A successful weekend.

 

Lunker.

Coming up - Oil Heritage Weekend, you know it, Pierogies!!!

Vacation! Awesomeness!




 

Jenny and Oz Naor

We spent the past week in Oil City and some friends of ours joined us Saturday. We broke down and bought a window AC since temps hit the mid-90's. Thank you GE!

Naturally, it was gorgeous in Venango County - so green! We took Jenny and Oz out to Oil Creek State Park and walked part of it till it got too steamy. They loved it.

Monday we started some serious vacation juju.




Unloading at Kennerdell. Or maybe reloading

  Kennerdell Trail has eluded us, so we took the bikes out there - but no. Kennerdell Thwarted Us Again. The trail was not a bike trail - by that I mean, I couldn't see myself navigating back UP the trail on a bike. So, we hustled over to the Sugarcreek Trail. By now it was 10:30 am and I'd call it "sweltering." We struck out toward the Allegheny and it was smooth sailing till we tried to get to the Allegheny River Trail.








Sandycreek Trail



Hello. Narrow steps under the expansion bridge? John took the bikes down - and his chain came off. I had no idea there was that much grease on a bike chain. Luckily, he's good-natured as well as clever, and we got underway in about 15 minutes.

The Allegheny was beautiful! And shady. We did about 3 miles or so and came on the Indian God Rock - a large sandstone rock with petroglyphs from Native American shamans. It's on the historic register. I tried to find a way down to the river for better pictures, but it was mighty steep. Anyway - very cool.

We rounded out the evening at "Spill the Beans" with ice cream and a walk through the southside.

Tuesday was the Jolly July 3 Celebration in Oil City, but not till the evening. The bikes were still on the Suburu, so we back to Oil Creek State Park - with the goal of going all the way to Titusville to the Drake Museum. This is an 8.5 mile trail, one way, and it follows the Oil Creek. We stopped at most of the historical markers. It's amazing what those oil field workers accomplished. Of course, the area looked devastated. We ran into a cool couple from Slippery Rock - Nature lovers! They spend some time in Ohio parks so we had a good time talking to them.

Drake Museum artifacts

As you approach the end of the trail, you hear the "pop" of the Drake Museum's engine running the drill. Can't imagine what the noise level was a hundred years ago with tons of these steam engines running day and night. Oh wait, yes I can. I just have to get around the fracking wells.

Coming out of the trailhead, we could really feel the humidity. It was pretty overcast, so we saved the museum for another trip, and turned back. Good thing, too. We got drenched as we were approaching the final half mile to the parking lot. Still, it felt good compared to the humidity.

We headed down the hill to Justus Park about 6 pm and caught the end of the Front Porch Folk concert. They were great! I want to make a Can-Jo.  The evening promised a military band and fireworks shot from the bridge over the Allegheny. We were eyeing the sky because it was getting seriously overcast and we were 1) next to the river and 2) had a serious uphill walk to get home.

The decision was made for us when the band started with their woodwind quartet, playing music designed for brass. Am I a music snob? No - but the theme from the Simpsons is not what I expect at a Fourth of July Concert. Neither was the opening piece - a march written for the Canadian Air Force.

Where's the Sousa?

So, we bailed and good thing. Lightening was striking like a dagger over the hills. And people kept walking to the park! We got home seconds before the deluge hit.

Our Fourth was quiet - we'd biked about 30 miles in two days. So we were ready for a new adventure on Thursday - Canoeing on the Allegheny.

How I roll.



How I steer.

First - Shout out to my NOLA friend Rebecca who is encouraging me to kayak. We went to O.A.R.S  in Franklin and what a great, great experience. The nicest people, too. We rented a canoe and they said it was about a 4 hour leisurely row down the river - then they pick you up and bring you back. I was leery of committing to 4 hours - you know - how often do I use my arms like that? John shamed me into it because I've been religious about my yoga practice - Thank you Dorsey for making us do forearm planks all summer.




The power behind the throne.



So this was a beautiful trip - Gorgeous scenery, dipping feet in cool water, lovely riverfront homes (want one.) And I got to see the Indian God Rock from the river. We  made it to the pick up spot in 3 hours, thanks to my Type A personality. Give me a deadline, and I'll work my tail off.

After that trip, we decided to eat out in Franklin and had past at Leonardo's - a local fav. The pasta and wine were excellent. We had our camp chairs with us, and headed over to the Franklin Band Stand for the Peter Pepke Concert. These guys (and girl) were fantastic. The concert featured Americana (Oil City I love you, but this was better), American songbook standards and some good humor. Very talented musicians and we enjoyed them immensly.

Friday, we flipped a coin. Conquer Kennerdell or ride the Oil City and Titusville Railroad. Railroad won, until we got to Titusville and discovered they didn't run on Fridays. No Problem! We headed to the Drake Musuem for the afternoon. The museum offers videos and educational information on the discovery of oil in Pennsylvania, and how that industry flourished. This is where the loud 'popping' came from. It's a great attraction and well-maintained.

Justus Lake

No trip to Venango is complete without some fishing, and that's how we wrapped up the week - at Justus Lake, Two Mile Run Park, one of my favorite spots. We fed lots of bait to the fish.

Next weekend, there's a steam engine coming to Titusville, so we'll be back up there. John hopes to get one of the fattened fish up at Two Mile, and I'm still seeking the mythical Kennerdell.

Tionesta Lake and Pithole

 We headed to Tionesta Lake on Friday. We were up for some fishing and normally hit the spillway, but veered off to check out the lake. Beautiful! We'll be back to rent a boat. It was so quiet - so peaceful. Very much worth a return visit.






John's very first foray to Venango County included a stop at Pithole. If you live in Oil City, you are laughing - because there's nothing to see there. This of course, fascinated him, and long before I ever saw Oil City, I heard about Pithole.

For the rest of you, Pithole is the classic boom town story, at warp speed. Within months of striking oil, the town's population rose to 15,000. By the following year, it was down to 2,000 and eventually what remained, burned. There were something like 50 hotels here.

Now there's open space, with mowed rows showing the street layout.

Even the PA Conservancy closed their tourist station. Pithole! I think your name cursed you. However, it's a beautiful and tranquil spot. A deer crossed our path as we were leaving - we were about 5 feet away. Even the wildlife bail.

On the closed observation deck.

Looking over the observation railing.

   

Biking! Pianos in the Park!

It was a hot weekend ("It was a hot and stormy night..." had to do it.) but it was beautiful in Venango County. The skies were clear and there was a breeze Friday and Saturday.

Even so, we got the bikes down to the Justus Trail by 10 am Saturday. They were finishing up a marathon and I got to cheer on some runners. Yay Runners! You raised $6,000. Outstanding!

We rode this trail earlier in the spring - brisk! so this time we took advantage of the mid-80's to relax on the ride over to Franklin. Yes - we made it over and back and checked out a strawberry stand for canning purposes ($4 each if you purchase 8 quarts.)

Going back we stopped at the entry to River Ridge Farm, where Woodrow Wilson wrote the "Fourteen Points" that helped end World War I. The mansion was built by Joseph Sibley, a prominent businessman and politician. You bet I'm taking the next tour they offer.

Saturday night, we went over to Franklin for "Pianos in the Park." This was exactly the reason we bought a home over here - beautiful summer night, lawn chairs in the park by the bandstand, entertainment and open art galleries. Yes, forgot the camera again.

Shout out to Mark Anderton at the pottery studio - and my bad for not double checking the name of your store. Your work is amazing and I'm coming back for mugs and possibly a teapot.

Leak Whisperer and Clarion

First, Shout Out to Mosaic Cafe and Mary Morgan! So glad we got in to see you!!! Happy 90th Brithday to your mom.

The fun part was visiting Clarion - which I 'll get to in a sec. The important part (to me) is we finally fixed the leak in our air mattress.

It's been leaking since November but really got out of hand. That being said, it took awhile to identify where the bugger was, but I had to call in the Leak Whisperer because despite many attempts to seal, it kept deflating.





But we were ultimately successful and celebrated..

Old School

We drove up to Clarion to check out the town and what a great place. First off - beautiful streetscapes and super clean. And, it smelled like pizza. Lots of places to catch a bite, including Mustard-Seed-type restaurant and a coffee shop with gelato.

We were there Memorial Day Sunday but practically had the town to ourselves. The city park had two huge WW I guns with their war memorials. Very impressive and made at Bethlehem Steel.

County Courthouse

Look for the mosaic Clarion Bears stationed through the town.

Clarion is a great town to visit and only about 20 minutes from Oil City. We want to bring our Israeli friends up here when they visit for the Oil City Indie Music Festival.

Vacation!

How awesome is it, to be able to spend a week in Oil City? So awesome! It was Second Saturday, so there were open studios in the Transit Building, shout out to Shon Gaworski, May Artist of the Month! I love seeing Shon - an amazing soul.

We finished painting the house. I did the ladder stuff. Who says you can't teach an old dog, new tricks? We knocked out the painting in the mornings and ran around in the afternoons.






We went to one of our favorite places, Two Mile Run Park ( aka "2 Mile Island" in Karen-speak.)  Last time we were here, it was a very warm March day and we could only imagine how the trees would look. Talk about a peaceful place.

An Ent! Carved at the trail entrance. Awesome!










Look for my later post on why you should not buy Fishing Stuff made in China.


Venango County = Fishing! and we celebrated our 25th Anniversary in Oil City. Yay, go us!  we had a fantastic lunch at Luna Restaurant in Franklin and spent some time at Oil City Antique Warehouse and walking around the Northside after dinner. Fabulous Victorian houses that I am glad I do not have to paint.


How I fish.









Is this a great place or what? We're able to walk everywhere in town, including Thorne's Market, (we kept forgetting things like bread,) the Library, Spill the Beans (Chai Latte!) and of course all the Transit activities. We missed getting to The Mosaic Cafe this trip, but now that most of the house stuff is done (thank you Freidhabers for fixing stove) we're definately on track for more social time.

Franklin May Garden Mart

Ambi-dexterous when it comes to painting.

A spectacular weekend in Oil City, thank you Mother Nature for only raining Friday evening. Last week we were only able to be in town on Friday, but we got mulching and weeding done. This weekend, we hit the exterior painting pretty hard, and it's 2/3 complete.

Check out that blue sky. This is Sunday morning. I am worshipping at the Church of Get It Done.

I am thrilled to report the tree in the front yard is actually a lilac - a personal favorite. 

 We took time off from painting to hit Franklin's May Garden Mart, aka, Crack-for-Gardeners.

 There's something about plant events that make my eyes glaze over in a fantasy of what my garden will look like.

I wanted all of them, but held off since I've killed my fair share of beauties by trusting a warm, sunny day, only to have Mother Nature betray me with a frost.

Coolest planter: the moss 'handbag' filled with violas and greenery.

I came away with a fantastic garden ornament - a colorful glass butterfly on a stake, with copper leaves and ornaments. Love it.

This is on my radar for next year.

Samuel Justus Trail

Look how smooth this trail is! Perfect.

Biked 6 miles. yay go us.

So Friday was the pick of the litter as far as weather goes. We took the bikes and caught the Samuel Justus trail in Oil City, at the Marina landing.

This is an excellent trail for biking or walking, well surfaced, and it runs along the Allegheny River.

If we'd have gone a couple more miles, we would've gotten to Franklin. Definitely doable, especially if we reward ourselves at Cafe Bossa Nova.

John is a train fanatic but also fascinated with the history of the oil-era. There are a lot of reminders of all the drilling.

We found a huge barrel right off the trail. You can judge the size compared to him. We just saw a program on coral snakes. I warned him to be careful messing with that underbrush.

In other Oil City News, we got the grass cut moments before it rained, so not a lot of other outdoor activity at Chez Phillippi.  Stay tuned, we got the exterior paint so look for money shots soon. (weather permitting.)

Oil barrel from the refinery days, John is fascinated.

Love the outdoors.

Oil Creek State Park

The last time we were at Oil Creek State Park, there was snow. This time, it was sunny and hitting the upper 60's.  As you can see, there used to be RR tracks running through here. So much of this area had extensive railroad tracks from the oil days, but many have been transformed into fantastic paths through pristine parks. If you look carefully, you can see some derricks through the bridge. For the Canton readers - the name on them is Belden and Blake.




How can you resist this? The paths are paved and great for bikes, which we'll try the next time. This time, Mr. Rhett Butler stepped out with us. John wisely read the warnings about not handling the snakes, which are not poisonous, but do bite.
As if.

There are some leftovers from the oil era, which is really pretty interesting. It's hard for me to imagine this area covered in derricks and stripped of trees. It's so incredibly beautiful. Rhett! Don't look for snakes, they bite!

Gratuitous picture of Oil Creek Park and one of me.

You can see the quality of that path - great for bikes and walking.