Hiking Trail at Croton Gorge Park

Croton Gorge Park on Route 129 in Croton-on-Hudson is open all year round from sunrise to sunset. (see previous post)
There are several trails you may want to explore if you visit the park to see the dam. Here's one. First drive to the parking lot farthest from the dam.

To get to the trail, go up the path where my daughter, Kei is standing in the picture below.

Then turn right and go over this bridge.

Now you are on the trail. If you follow this trail, you'll soon go under the high tension wires.

In another minute or two you'll come to a house and a fork in the trail. If you go left, you will see a set of stone stairs that lead up to the Aqueduct Trail. There is a large pipe under this trail that carries water all the way to New York City. If you turn left at the top of those stairs and stay straight on the trail, you will eventually come to the top of the dam. But first, let's see why Kei wants you to go the other way.  

It looks like she is pointing at something below the tree at the end of the rock wall.

Can you see him in the picture below? (Click on the picture to make it bigger.)

Let's look a little closer.

It's Sam!

Croton Gorge Park

Croton Gorge Park located on Route 129 in Croton-on-Hudson, NY about 30 minutes up the Taconic State Parkway from White Plains might be an interesting place to visit.

For directions, go to http://www.mapquest.com/ and type in "new croton dam" in the "search for" box. Then you can click on "get directions" and enter your address.

The New Croton Dam, located in the park, was completed in 1906 to create the Croton Reservoir to supply drinking water to New York City.

The park is a nice place to visit any time of year. When there's snow on the ground, the hill next to the dam is a great place to go sledding. In the warmer months, many people enjoy picnicking, Frisbee and catch on the grassy area below the dam.

From April 1 to September 30 the river is a popular spot for trout fishing. You'll need a New York State fishing license if you're over 16 years old, but you do not need the DEP watershed access permit needed to fish upstream of the dam.

Anytime of year, but especially in the fall, joggers, hikers, mountain bikers and dog walkers take advantage of the trails through the woods and along the river. Our next blog entry will show you one of those trails.

Pedestrians are allowed to walk along the top of the dam to enjoy its views. "No Vehicular Access" means cars, trucks, motorcycles, etc. are not allowed, but if you are on foot, you are welcome to cross. 

 If you didn't know what "No Vehicular Access" meant, here's what you would have missed...

The quickest and simplest way to the top of the dam is to walk up the grassy hill to the right of the dam. This is the fastest way but it's a little steep. You could also walk along the wide gravel path that begins behind the restrooms near the far parking lot. This path snakes (v. to move like a snake) it's way back and forth up to the dam. If you have a map of the area or GPS you can drive to the "No Vehicular Access" dead end by getting back onto Route 129 heading southwest to Quaker Bridge Road, then left onto Quaker Ridge Road, then left at the dead end sign onto Croton Dam Road. Going by car is probably the easiest way to get lost, but getting lost sometimes leads to new adventures. Enjoy!    

S'mores!

To go with your cozy fire, may I suggest a traditional American campfire snack called s'mores. They're called s'mores because when you try them, you'll want "some more." Actually, they may be a little too sweet to eat too many, but they are simple and fun to make.

All you need is Graham Crackers, marshmallows and Hershey's milk chocolate bars. Simply roast a marshmallow on a stick over the fire. Then sandwich (v.) the marshmallow along with a piece of chocolate between two pieces of Graham cracker and you're done. Enjoy!

Home is where the hearth is

It took me quite a while to come up with a topic for this first blog post. I wanted to find something everyone could enjoy, something meaningful, something relaxing and cozy and something that you might not be able to experience in Japan.  Most of all, I wanted it to be something that would set the mood for this blog. What I have decided on is “How to Build a Fire in a Fireplace”

 You may have heard the expression, “Home is where the heart is.” It means that it doesn’t matter so much where you live as long as you can feel connected in your heart to that place. The actual expression is “Home is where the hearth is.” And that brings us to our first new vocabulary word!

Hearth (n.)

1.) the stone or brick floor of a fireplace, often extending out into the room

2.)  the fireside as the center of family life, family life, home

I really hope that while you’re here in the States, you make lots of friends, fond memories and connections in your heart to this place. Let’s start by making a fire!

More vocabulary

Seasoned firewood- hardwood that’s been split and dried for at least nine months. When banged together, seasoned firewood will make a sharp “clink” sound while unseasoned firewood will make a dull “thud” sound.  Unseasoned wood and softwoods such as pine should not be used in your fireplace.

A cord of firewood-

Large amounts of firewood are sold by the cord. A cord of wood, when stacked will measure eight feet long, four feet wide and four feet high.  Smaller amounts of firewood are sold in bundles at many grocery stores and supermarkets. Each bundle contains enough wood for one or two fires.

Fireplace grate-

 a metal rack for holding firewood off the fireplace floor. If your fireplace does not have a grate, you can use stones or bricks to hold the wood off the floor to allow air circulation for better burn.

Fatwood-

 small pieces of wood which contain flammable resin. Fatwood is used as a natural fire starter and is sold in bundles at stores like Home Depot. Only one or two pieces should be used at a time. 

Fireplace cover-

 a metal or glass screen used to prevent sparks and embers from flying out into the room. Very important!

Kindling- Kindling is small pieces of very dry wood, twigs or sticks that burn easily and is used to start a fire.

Poker- (third from left)

 an iron rod for stirring a fire (third from left in above photo)

What to do first

For safety purposes first check with your landlord to be sure that the fireplace and chimney work properly.  It is also very important that your fireplace have a fireplace cover to prevent sparks and embers from flying out into the room. Next, you’ll want to make sure to open the chimney damper. The damper (see diagram above) is a metal flap that closes off the chimney so that air warmed by your furnace doesn’t escape up and out the chimney.

It is not uncommon, especially when you first start your fire, to have a bit smoke come into the room. This is nothing to be worried about and should stop when there is a good flow of hot air flowing up the chimney. However, if you forget to open the damper and start your fire, you’ll quickly fill the room with smoke (ask me how I know!)

After opening the damper and before lighting the kindling and firewood, it’s a good idea to check the flow of the chimney by lighting a piece of crumpled-up newspaper and holding it with a pair of tongs up near the damper to allow the heat from the burning newspaper to rise up the chimney pushing out any cold air that might be blocking the chimney flow.

The damper should be left open until your fire is completely out to prevent any build up of carbon monoxide. I always leave the damper open until the next morning.

Here’s a Youtube link to a video about how to light a fire in your fireplace. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckknKu_vRJU&feature=related

Cleanup

Ashes that no longer contain any burning embers can be scooped out and spread outside on the lawn to enrich the soil.

Next entry: S’mores! Yum!

Welcome

Welcome to the Howland Tutoring Service Blog! The purpose of this blog is to share a few things to make your stay in the U.S. a little bit easier and a little bit nicer. We’ll try to include fun things to do, interesting places to visit, helpful hints about life in America, cultural insights, maybe a recipe or two, a little humor and of course a bit of English language learning along the way.  Enjoy!