Lost in Leetonia

Road and weather conditions as of 1-19-12

2012-01-19T11:58:00.000-08:00

CAUTION!!!! Today Paula drove down Leetonia Road to RT 414 in the Subaru with cable chains. She called me from Slate Run to let me know that she would not be going back that way. The roads are ice covered in most places. Paula said you would have to have ice cleats and nerve's of steel to maneuver on the ice. Maybe a bulldozer would suffice.

It is snowing as of this writing but we are only expecting an inch or so today. Late Friday night a snow system is supposed to be moving in with some (????) accumulation of snow. The snow will help with the layer of ice but it will still be tricky.

Make sure you are prepared if you decide to venture up this weekend. The road is maintained on Leetonia Road from Cedar Mountain Road to Elk Run Road heading towards Route 6. There is also ice on that part of Leetonia Road even with the cinders so take extra care.

The other mountain girl (Lee) signing off.

Project progress

2012-01-11T07:15:00.000-08:00

If any of you ever decide to put cedar shingles on a building be aware it is a long slow tedious process. The small amount of shingles shown on this addition took me a week to finish(there is about 8 foot of wall not visible) and the ones you see here cost $600. I must admit they look nice when they are done. The shingles will need a coat of preservative in the Spring.
The inside is getting finished up as well. I installed handicap rails next to toilet. The curved one folds up against the wall, which is nice when you need access to toilet.
Paneling in bedroom should go up fast. But we added another project, putting in a beam between the kitchen and dining area to open it up. I will be finishing that next week due to an unexpected trip to New Jersey today to see my Great Aunt, 96, who is in hospital.
As you can tell from the pictures we have NO SNOW! Also the roads have very little ice on them coming up to Leetonia. So we have been lucky to as far as doing this project so far. A eagle visited me almost every day I did the siding. There are times I complain about the hard work, the aches and pains, but not many jobs come with your own eagle to keep you company. This property has a pretty drastic cliff that drops down to the creek and Scooter loves sitting at the top in the warm sun keeping track of all that goes up and down the creek. It is another sunny day today and this mountain girl is off to the big city, which I don't care for at all. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Wellsboro ER Open House

2012-01-08T13:46:00.000-08:00

Wellsboro Soldiers and Sailors hospital had a open house of their new emergency room today so Lee and I went. We figured since we were such frequent visitors we wanted to see the new area without an emergency involved. There was a lot of interest as you can see from the line outside the building. The room is scheduled to open at 4 am this Tuesday. I guess that is an low emergency hour. In fact, they said their busiest time is between 3 pm and 11pm daily. So plan your emergencies around that if you don't want company.
It is such an upgrade from the old room; 16 beds, and a division between the trauma patients brought in by ambulance and the walk-ins. A large office space in middle of rooms, which circle the area. A tube transport system for blood and other tests that goes directly to lab. They have all sorts of big screen information boards all over the place so it is very 21st century. It looks like you can pretty much lay in one bed and be examined for just about anything. I can tell you it is much more fun to look at the equipment when you aren't hurt. I am hoping by going there in one piece this counts as my annual emergency visit.

On a sadder note. Longtime resident of Slate Run, Dottie Weber, passed on a couple days ago. She was 89. Her and her husband Bob Weber lived in an non-electric camp in the middle of the mountain far from the regular road. Bob is a retired Forest Ranger and I believe that is why they let him stay at the leased camp. Usually, it is forbidden to make a leased State camp a permanent resident. They couple is well known in Slate Run, I am sure Bob will miss Dottie's company, but no one expects him to leave his piece of heaven soon.

Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Mountain Man Mick Freed

2012-01-03T05:37:00.000-08:00

Longtime resident of Leetonia Mick Freed passed away on New Years Eve. Mick was the true Mountain Man in Leetonia and honorary Mayor. He loved this woods and everything in it. Mick’s favorite snack was always ice cream before bed at 8pm. In fact, it was the one thing he would drive through a blizzard to get. I think much of his freezer held this precious commodity he bought on sale during 2 for 1 special.

Winter was one of Mick’s favorite times. Before the road got plowed other than snowmobilers few people came back here. It was time he could take a break from mowing lawns and taking care of cabins to catch up on reading, mostly his westerns. His favorite actor, was John Wayne, whom he had a large poster of on the wall in his cabin.

Mick was a master of being alone in the woods. His wood stacked with care on his porch in such a fashion he could tell you what day of winter it was by looking at what he had used. He snowmobiled in and out dragging a transport sled behind his snowmoble to get groceries. No fancy snowmobile outfit for Mick he wore brown overalls and a winter coat and his helmet or should I say leather cap looked like an old leather football cap. The only time I heard him complain was when his eggs had all broken because of the rough ride.

He helped us a lot the first few years getting to know our way around. After our first winter here, I saw Mick driving down the road.

He yelled at me, “Time’s wasting better start getting firewood!”

After ten years, I realize how right he was. There are two seasons up here: firewood burning season and firewood gathering season and no time in between.

One time when Lee was gone for several weeks and I was alone up here, I thought I would go visit Mick. I snowmobiled down to his house hoping for a conversation. Mick always had his place cooking with a hot fire and something on top the stove cooking. Well, ended up I was the only person talking. All of his answers were one word usually nope or yep. So soon I drove my snowmobile back home and realized he was much better at this hermit stuff than I would ever be.

During the summer months Micky was busy fixing things at cabins and mowing grass. The grass mowing could be an almost constant job if it rained a lot. Mick drove his John Deere lawn mower to most his jobs. It wasn’t uncommon to have to give a little tap on the horn to get around him driving his lawn mower through Leetonia.

As we drove home tonight with the snow falling, I thought of Micky loving this time of year at his cabin reading, sitting by the fire, eating ice cream. We all will miss you Mick, you were one of a kind. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

2012 Comes to Leetonia

2012-01-02T07:56:00.000-08:00

Well, we went to Charlotte's New Year's Eve festivities at the Cedar Run Inn this year. We have about a 50/50 chance of making it downstream as the roads can be icy this time of year. But it was amazingly warm New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Reaching almost 50 degrees on New Year's Day and the sun coming out to visit until the rain started in the afternoon.
Charlotte gave a try to hula hooping and I got stuck wearing the 2012 glasses. We are all hoping for a more prosperous year for the valley in 2012. So many people just scraping by and most businesses hitting new all time lows.
I worked both days getting some outside work done while the weather cooperated. Today the temperature has plummeted to the twenties and snow is on the way. So looks like we aren't going to be able to stave off winter much longer.
While working my job on over the weekend near Slate Run. I had a visitor. Each day an eagle flew up and down the
creek and sat on a tree not far from me looking for fish.
Pine creek is running full with all the rain we have had lately and it looked like the eagle was hoping for a fish or two to make a wrong turn. If no fish, there is always the occasional duck that volunteers for dinner.
It is snowing now and the promise is for a small amount of snow today. However, you never know until it comes what we will end up with. I am enjoying today off as not many of the local lumber yards are open and it seems a nice cold day to stay in and read a book. Have a great Leetonia year to all our friends far and near! Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Narrows Finished!

2011-12-15T16:29:00.000-08:00

The narrows project on 414 is finally done. They opened the road yesterday only six weeks past the time they had estimated. I had guessed Dec 1st back in October so I was a bit closer.
It is a far cry from the half falling off road we are used to.
I did notice it makes other parts of the road coming up to this one look much worse. Since it took 20 years for them to really fix this part I am not holding my breathe on anything else getting done.
It got to 51 degrees today in the middle of December. I am not complaining as I am still working on the job at Slate Run, which is only 13 miles from me when the road is open. But once the snow closes the road it will be over 50 miles to go around.

Things are quiet up here as they get once the hunters and tourists go. It is easy to get used to the quiet and not want to be around anyone even in a small city like Wellsboro. But with Lee being gone for over five weeks, I will admit I am looking forward to someone to talk to again. She is coming home this weekend, and I have already been warned that she is not up to working on the first day back. I guess watching a two-year old for 5 weeks tends to wear you out a bit.

So Saturday I have to make the house look like I haven't been living in it alone for five weeks. That will be an all day job...plus the dogs have to all be bathed. No one will escape the cleanup. Lost power this morning for a few hours a tree decided to fall randomly. When trees fall in the woods and you don't hear them; they still knock out the power.

I got the grand kids presents sent, which other than some things I made for Lee is all I am doing this year. It is funny how once you get older the things you want either so small you get them along the way or so big you can't afford them. Course the one thing I wanted the most is Lee to be home for Christmas and it looks like I am getting my wish. After all the holidays are about sharing time with your family, friends and the ones you love. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Deer Season in full swing

2011-12-05T18:06:00.000-08:00

Saturday, Donald Robblee, walked up to my camp with a big smile on his face. He told me he had just shot a large buck up Misner Trail behind Hook's Cabin and drug it down to their place. The problem was his truck was on the other side of the mountain.
So I drove around and picked up his truck and helped him put this buck in the back. It was all we could do for both of us to lift it. He estimated in weighed about 140lbs and figured it to be pretty old as it ears had been torn up from past fights and its eyes didn't seem good.
The interesting part is the deer only had 5 points three on one side and two on the other, but the spread was over 17.5". So this deer proved that points don't necessary predict age or size.
I got a free dinner out for picking up his truck and with Lee Anne still gone helping her sister it was nice having food that wasn't out of a can or a box. Robblee also shot a coyote while deer hunting. Seems to be quite a few of them out as well. Didn't see too many others with deer so far but thought you would enjoy this.

Leetonia Logger readies for big Turkey

2011-11-23T19:22:00.000-08:00

This logger in Leetonia is sharpening his saw to get ready to kill the Thanksgiving day turkey. We have big turkeys in Leetonia so only the largest of saws will work.

The biggest problem with our turkeys is they won't fit in a stove so you have to cut them into pieces and spread them around or start a big bonfire to cook it whole.

Don't you wish you lived in Leetonia? Have a great Thanksgiving wherever you live. Mountain girl, Paula, getting ready for one big turkey.

Latest Project

2011-11-21T14:44:00.000-08:00

The weather has been unseasonably warm and bear season is in full swing. Lots of hunters in the woods, but I haven't seen a dead bear yet.

Just finished roughing in a small addition close to Slate Run. The owners are coming up for hunting season and my brother is coming up for Thanksgiving, so this is the last day I will be working for a week. Wow, can't think of the last time I had a week off. Of course that means I get to do work around the house that I have been ignoring and cook for my brother and his girlfriend. My brother is bringing his dog up with him, so that will be four dogs in the small place. Hopefully, none of my dogs will eat his dog for Thanksgiving. They aren't always too accepting of a new face right away.
Lee is still gone to Rockford, Illinois to help her sister with taking care of a 2 year-old, while her sister watches over her son in intensive care up in Madison, Wisconsin. Her son, Neal, 19, has leukemia, which has reoccurred at they are all on needles and pins. It is tough seeing a young person be so sick. So say an extra prayer for them this Thanksgiving.

After Thanksgiving is deer season so the boys will be up to chase the deer and the beer. Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and spend time with the ones you love. I will be missing my dad this year for the first time and I know many of you have loved ones not at the table...so cherish the ones you have while they are here. Even if some of them are pains in the b..., Mountain girl, logging out, and cleaning house.

Maynard School and Election

2011-11-09T18:03:00.000-08:00

Well, Tuesday, was election day and I finished the outside painting of School house buildings (outhouse included) just in time. I added a little color to the porch by painting the top and bottom rail dark green and the spindles white. The door is also green to match. It made a huge difference over the green-treated wood look.
I took these pictures as the sun was setting so they are a bit dark. The sun is setting earlier thanks to the time change. We can now count on it being dark by 5:30 pm.
We have had absolutely beautiful weather for nearly a week. No rain and temperatures way above normal in 60's and 70 one day. I have to say it spoiled me a bit. I know when it goes back to normal temperatures for November I will be complaining.
All the "girls" plus Bill Merkle manned the ballot machines from 7am to 8pm. With only 32 voters registered in the township, it makes for a lot of free time. Time they use up by snacking and playing a township version of Skip Bo that I can't quite get used to.
I worked on an addition I needed to get under roof before we get too much bad weather and stopped in at the end of the day to munch on some of the goodies. Who said there isn't such a thing as a free lunch? They haven't lived in our township. Voting time is definitely a time of catching up on local news and a time to see all the voting members of the township. I think they
ended up with somewhere around 26 voters by the end of the day. Well all that is left to do in the school house is a few more repairs on furniture, which I will do as I have time between jobs. One day soon I hope to set up all the school desks and get a nice picture of the building as it might of looked when school was in session. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.
P.S. Thanks to all who stop when they see me and say hi. Makes me realize how many people read and enjoy this little part of heaven in Elk Township.

Vandals in Leetonia

2011-10-30T17:54:00.001-07:00

Well over the weekend Melvins place got hit by vandals and thieves. They stole some scaffolding and pulled the posts down holding a roof over his camper. They also pushed his outhouse down the hill. This kind of behavior is inexcusable no matter how you feel about someone you don't do this kind of damage.

This isn't the first time Melvin's place has had damage, but it has been a long time since the last incident. Anyone with any information about the person or person's involved in this should call the State Police.

When you are up keep an eye out for anyone not where they are supposed to be. Mountain girl,
Paula, logging out.

We dodged the Oct snow bullet

2011-10-30T06:07:00.000-07:00

Crispy start to the morning at 25 degrees, but very little snow. We are just North of the line of heavy snow that hit others and I am not at all upset about that. Our temps will go above freezing today and I am guessing the small amount of snow we have will go with it.

Since I am digging a footing tomorrow for a frost wall I am perfectly happy to see we are looking at decent temperatures and a little drier weather for next week.

It is always a push to get the last few things done before "real winter" hits and the ground is frozen hard. So for anyone worried about their camp, never fear, the woods are clear. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Top of Maynard School

2011-10-28T17:34:00.000-07:00

My mother will scream when she sees this post, she is afraid of heights. However, mom notice I do have my safety harness on! For the rest of you we finished painting the outside of Maynard School and by the looks of the weather just in time. The last part to be painted was the bell tower. I had hoped to get a picture of the bell, but without removing wood panels it was impossible to see much of the bell. On the very top of the bell tower was a wood pillar. I am sure something was on top of it at sometime. I am guessing either a weather vane or lightening rod, the first seeming the most likely.

Our power went off in the middle of the night and I had to get up before it got light of course lately that just means before 7am. I had a kerosine lite bowl of oatmeal to start the day. Fortunately the power out was solved by 7:30am so Lee didn't have to deal without power all day. It appears the problem was somewhere in the Cedar Run area.

We are under a winter storm warning for tomorrow. Estimates ranging from 1" to 10" are floating around. In looking at the weather map it appears we may be on the edge. So I am hoping for the closer to 1" amount. I still have a foundation and small addition to get up and under cover before the big stuff comes. I will let you know if we get anything of significance tomorrow. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Snaggle Nose LIVES!

2011-10-25T14:20:00.000-07:00

Snaggle Nose was first injured in June of 2009. None of us thought he would make it past the first hunting season and yet here he is over two years later. Dutch one of the township road workers took this picture during this summer of the bear right in our front yard. Snaggle Nose was in pursuit of a female bear at the time and didn't seem to care that the men watched him. Somehow he must be able to smell in order to track a female and keep from being shot. Unlike humans who might feel a bit intimidated if half their face was torn off old Snaggle Nose still makes other smaller bears flee in fright at the sight of him. And appears to be quite the lady's man.

I often wondered what the other bear looked like that Snaggle Nose tangled with. He is truly one amazing animal to have not only survived but prospered after an incredibly hard fight. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Cedar Crest Finished

2011-10-21T07:28:00.000-07:00

First picture is fireplace(creates atmosphere), second picture wood burning stove(creates heat), third picture wood shed, and last picture Cedar Crest.

From 1991 log:

July 4^th

Ken, Arlon, Butch and Low put in side windows was rainingall day, had crab cakes, fried potatoes, pepper cabbage. Showered went to FrankBering camp to sleep.

July 5th All 6 guys started cementing between logs got sidetowards Cedar Run finished about 7:30. Ate supper took our baths at Lee Pines.We pitched horsehoes and went to bed darn tired.

My summary of the rest of building:

By the end of July all the chinking(cement between logs wasdone). In August they concentrated on finishing work inside cabin. Slate floorswere done. Bunk beds assembled. Appliances installed and the wood stoveinstalled. On Labor day weekend the first shower was taken inside the camp.They declared the camp complete on Sept 8^th and got back to doingwhat they have always done at camp, fishing, hunting, and telling stories.

Hopefully, in the future I will get some of the in process pictures. But this is truly a story of taking a bad circumstance and turning it around into a special memory to share with generations to come of the summer Cedar Crest came back from the ashes. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Spring hopes eternal for Cedar Crest work continues

2011-10-20T06:04:00.000-07:00

4th Blog in series about Cedar Crest

As typical with weather in the Spring here in Leetonia, Cedar Crest had the onand off again battle with rain hindering progress. I decided to compress thework during the month of April as much was repetitive.

April 7^th-April29^th. Chimney work started. A lot of rock moving, rain and itappears a few people not feeling too well. Most of this time spent gettingwalls up and preparing logs for floor joists.

May 5^th-May 31^st.

Stone work continues on stairway and back side of cabin.During the month the floor joists are put on and the decking finished. Thecabin second floor is framed up and logs put between sections. By the end ofMay they are now battle with black flies and humidity.

June 8,1991 Actual log:

Ron, BJ & Bob Gotin about 1:00am Arlon and Josh in after 3am up at 8 am.

Unloaded both trucks of Aspenite then started cuttingrafters and setting Joists got rafters set by 1:00 PM ate Lunch and back towork. First, filled Gables with aspenite and pulled roof level. Put Braces onthen finish gables with rough Pine boards. Took down boom and pine tree thatheld it. Bob, BJ & Ron finished around 9:00pm…..—Arlon—

*My understanding is that the pine tree that held the boombecame part of the ridge pole for the building.

Cedar Crest gets a roof.

June 16^th, 1991

Guys rallied and worked hard getting ¾ of roof on cabinlooks real good. Filled in logs in the top front and back.

June 17^th, 1991 finished all the roof today alsodid the floor up stairs and started the front porch roof.

June 18^th, 1991

Finished porch roof with boards. Will put roll roofing on atend of week. Put log strips over 2x4 plates. Started filling in behind old chimneyand started putting up new chimney. Sanded some on aspenite floor. Dug up pumpand took it to Germania to be checked. Put in2 more stair steps(Their stairs are all stone so each step took a quite a bitof time).

The rest of June they got the chimney fixed, the pumpworking, put in a shower, finished railing on stairs. By the end of June thingswere definitely getting tightened up and weather-proofed.

All things considered they did a great job getting this work done only on weekends. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Cedar Crest rebuild continues weekend 2

2011-10-18T19:01:00.000-07:00

Third blog in series about Cedar Crest

For anyone who dreams of building a log cabin, I am betting none of your dreams have rain and mud in them.

Friday March 22 1991

Second Weekend Clean up (It rain all weekend)

Bob B.J Ron Ken

Left my house about 2:30PM Friday afternoon. Stopped inAllenwood for gas arrived at Lee Pines Camp at about 6:30. Had trouble withcook stove finding the damper. So the cabin got filled with smoke after 1 ½hours the smoke cleared and Ron started his world famous chile. The cookingtakes very little time (Ha Ha) only 3 hours. After eating Kenny went to bed Ronand Bob took all of B.J.'s money.

The next Day everyone was up and working on the final cleanup of the cabin. Ron saw 2 big Jake Turkeys on the way over to out camp. Haveone large load before breakfast. Got back and had a great breakfast took a nap.Went back and loaded up the final load of scrap. Bob and Kenny took the loadover while Ron & B.J. dug a trench to put up the new staircase wall…… Mud,Mud, Mud , Mud. ----Ken---

Weekend of March 28^th – 30^th (condensed)

Butch, Ken, Dennis, Ron, Bj, Paul, Paul Jr. Dave, and Arlow.All stayed at Lee Pines while working that weekend.

Friday, March 29^th 1991 Went to work on CedarCrest at 8:00 am. Put temp service polein set up cribs and started masonry. Got most of wall on east side of camp laidup and part of back wall. Put plates in the front wall to start logs. Hauledrocks to face block but still need more. Weather held but they want 100% chanceof rain tonight and temp to drop to 20’s. Ken La Gree let us eat breakfast at 2PM.We had lunch at 8:30PM the men decided to just skip the 4:00am supper.—Arlon—

Saturday March 30,1991 Arlon got up abt 1am to go tobathroom and saw Wallies place on fire. Arlon, Paul Mogel, and Sons had fireunder control til fire dept arrived. The body got up late Sat morn. ABT 9:00 amate Late Breakfast and late start. Got down to camp ABT10:30 am finished back wall masonry---Dennis---

Sun March 31, 1991Up at 7:30am ate breakfast then off towork. Dennis, Paul and Butch cleaned camp Ken go measurements fo 1^stlogs then started figuring out for windows and getting tools together. The restwent to set logs. Arlon measured, Ron cut and the coolies(B.J., Paul Jr &Dave) loaded. All in all, great weekend. Got lots done. ---Arlon---

Cedar Crest Reconstructing

2011-10-16T19:01:00.000-07:00

Second blog in series about Cedar Crest

I am leaving words and grammar alone as much as possible tomaintain the authenticity of this log.

March 9,1991

Sat March 9, 1991

The roads finally thawed enough to allow entry to camp. Noone has been there since Dennis and Linda were up Christmas Day. Although,someone made it in far enough to steal our lawnmower.

We talked with Don Harris in Marshlands about the logs forcamp: Cost $325 per truck load. We then went to see Bravo Buttons to get abuilding permit. He lives about 3 miles from Don. The permit cost $7.50. It was$5.00 for first thousand and .50 for each additional thousand and we valuedconstruction at $6000. We then went to see Jack House of Morris who owns asawmill. He already had the lumber cut that Daddy ordered. We couldn’t havegotten a nicer lumber for twice the money and he was cheaper than any mill I’veseen down home. He also helped us by letting us get rid of the junk and debrisfrom camp.

-Amber & Ken

Day One March 16^th, 1991

Left house at 7:00 am on Sat. 16^th of March toclean up ruble from burned camp. Ron and B.J. went in Ron’s Jeep. Bob andmyself went in 67 Chev Truck.

Stopped to eat in Jersey Shore; arrived at Campabout noon. What a mess loaded the large junk in the truck, Bob and I took thejunk to Jack House’s sawmill. Paid Jack for lumber and unloaded the junk. Webrought some lumber alone back to camp.

Went to Lebo Camp to spend the night. Heated up the beansoup went to bed in a feather bag. 10degrees when we got up at 6am. Had baconand eggs, that Bob made. Went back to camp filled the truck with more junk. Ronand BJ had everything clean in front of foundation. Bob Overholtier was thefirst man to drive thru the driveway(So what) We all went to unload it at thesawmill. We got gas in Morris. Unloaded the truck and loaded some scrap wood.Stopped at Morris Hotel for hamburger wentback to camp. Put up cables at driveway. Made deer steaks over fire. Packed upleft about 5:00pm Sun. March 17^th for home. ---Ken—

And the fun is just beginning. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

From the ashes Cedar Crest

2011-10-16T11:35:00.000-07:00

The picture is not Cedar Crest is a stock picture of burnt cabin. In the late 1980's- 1990, Leetonia was plagued by a series of theft and arson. This is the story of one camp's journey in their own words back from the ashes.

Epitaph

Although most logs start at the beginning, it is with sorrowthat this log shall begin at the end:

On December 23, 1990 the crazies, who were on the loose forseveral weeks in Leetonia pillaging the camp, climaxed by burning Cedar Crestand six other camps in the area.

Although they destroyed thousands of dollars worth ofproperty, they accomplished little for there was more to Cedar Crest than thebuilding where we slept. The spirit of the camp can not be destroyed by fire,or flood, or the crazies themselves, so long as we have our memories.

Some day I will be telling my grand children how my grandpadied on Fahneystock Mt. and how my fathertook me fishing at Rattlesnake Rock, and Joe Benardo’s son Tony will be tellinghis kids how he shot his first buck in the dam hollow across from camp.

But now is the time for change, and like the legendaryPheonix, Cedar Crest shall rise from the ashes. No Cedar Crest has not beendestroyed it’s just gone through some major changes and this is the story of thosechanges and the memories not yet made.

(Signed) A.R.S.

I will continue to post this journey each day as recorded by Cedar Crest members. I remember the fear these few drug crazy people introduced into our town and am glad its time is past. Hope you enjoy this as much as I do. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Commuting to work Leetonia style

2011-09-29T13:12:00.000-07:00

Picture one shows you the vehicle must have to make my commute. When it rains like it has all this week it is covered in mud. When its dry dust is inside and out. When it snows...well you get the picture. You also have to carry at least one tool a nice fold-up pruning saw(shown in second picture). This saw will cut up to a 6" limb easily maybe 12" if you are desperate. After a windstorm I take my chainsaw, but don't like smelling all the fumes daily so this little saw works great. In fact, this morning, I sawed a 4" limb that crossed the road completely at 4 foot above the road. Now you may say, why didn't I just move it. Well the four inch part continued another 30' to a much larger limb impossible to move by hand. Once trimmed it easily moved it off the road.

We are having torrential rains this week, Pine Creek bounced off 6.2 this morning. The rain makes the fall leaves drop and the dirt roads more slippery than you expect. The last picture is the last road I had to travel to reach the non-electric camp I was working on. The road is not flat where you see that water it dips down about 3' and is half full of water from the storm. Splish, splash, and a mud bath. Thank goodness for 27" water clearance with this Cruiser.

Most of you have stop lights, traffic, noise and pollution and might welcome my commute. When Ido this every day, I have to remind myself of how lucky I am. My vehicle repair costs are twice what they are in the city. Ten-ply tires are required here to withstand the rocks and cost over $200 a piece. So if you want to trade commutes; you don't care if your car is clean; you like high vehicle maintenance costs, and you don't need to make a lot of money. Leetonia is the place for you to live.

Still some crazy part of me loves every bit of it. Not hard to figure out if you hear the mountain calling you. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off and scraping the mud from my boots.

Simple Remembering

2011-09-27T18:17:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it's something simple that takes you back 40 years in a flash. This knife on it's own is meaningless to anyone but me. My mother just gave it to me when she found it in some of my grandfathers old stuff. My grandfather bought this farmhouse in the middle of the woods back in the 1940's and always wore it when he was up here.

This knife scaled fish, gutted deer and probably opened more than its fair share of cans when a can opener couldn't be found. This was a mountain knife. It was never worn at home in the city only when he came here. This knife transformed my grandfather into a mountain man. It made he feel like a pioneer providing for his family in the middle of no where; no electric, no phone just him and the woods.

The knife is a bit rusty, the sheath a bit worn, but it is still sharp as sharp as memories of seeing him wear it as a kid following him in the mountains of Pa. I did not know as a child I would come to live on this ground and share his passion for this very special place. This post is for my Grandfather, a strong, stubborn, Irish man, who worked hard all his life and loved this place. By the way Grandpa we not only have a phone now...we got internet! Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Progress on Narrows Construction

2011-09-24T22:33:00.000-07:00

1st picture from North side of Narrows project looking South

2nd picture at bottom South side of Narrows project looking North

3rd picture South of Retaining wall forms looking North

4th picture North side of Narrows looking at finished part of retaining wall looking South

* This project is larger than it appears in these pictures!

If any of you have been as curious as me about the progress on narrows construction this is the blog post for you. I walked up to construction site today from the North side to see what they have been doing. From the creek it has been difficult to see much except some forms. Wow was I surprised.

The project is much more involved than it appeared from a distance. The first picture is taken looking the same direction the creek flows to South. They have dug down at least sixteen feet to find something to attach a footing to that was solid. At this point they poured a large footing like slab at least 16" thick and extends from the edge of the drop to creek back to the mountain. This huge slab runs the entire distance which I estimate at around 100 yards.

They formed a thick retaining wall on top the edge of this footing which you can see in next 3 pictures. This wall has the guard rail post attached to the top of it and drains on the side facing creek. After this wall is finished they will back fill the entire hole to make the to roads reconnect. If you notice how much they have dug out on the first picture you can see how much they need to fill.

Although, I am impressed with how much they have done on this project. I see a lot more wall to be made. the retaining wall appears about a third done. Hopefully, this last part of pouring this wall to meet the other side of road will go faster than it looks so we can have our road back before winter. At this point I really doubt they will be done in November as promised. Let's just hope I am wrong and the weather stays good enough through December for the job to get done. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

After and Before

2011-09-17T11:01:00.000-07:00

Well, I just finished Tom Finkbinder's repairs from the storm damage on Memorial Weekend. Insurance issues delayed a start to the project until just recently, but it is all done. The tree took out 3 roof rafters, 2 ceiling rafters and broke the double plate in the wall. the tree had amazing force hitting their house. Their bedroom is right under where the tree hit so they have been living with a lovely blue tarp ceiling for most of the summer. I know they are glad to have it done.
Unfortunately, the newly painted log siding makes the old siding cry out for its paint. I made a strong case for it but economic concerns are putting it off until next year. The tourism business has been very slow this year for the Valley. Most of the businesses are hurting. It wouldn't be too bad if it weren't for the fact this isn't the first slow year. It is hard to watch people who work so hard suffer, but we are all in the same leaky boat. Prices keep going up and earnings keep going down....it is sturdy folk for sure that don't give up.

Today started cool and cloudy, but now it has turned into a beautiful day. I am off to scrap paint and get some of my last painting jobs done. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

First Frost...First Fire

2011-09-16T15:37:00.000-07:00

Well today we got down to 31 overnight and with the second day of highs only in the mid 60's, I broke down and started a fire. It has been 62 inside and it is great when you are moving around,but a bit cold sitting and doing paperwork. It was dry today and a perfect day to get outside work done.

The race to get everything done before it starts snowing is on. It always seems that summer goes so fast and winter so slow. Still have one or two hummingbirds hanging around, but most are gone. Bears still dumping in the road and eating apples like mad.

So I will enjoy a small fire tonight, cause if I gets it too hot Lee will open all the windows. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Do bears Sh*t in the Woods?

2011-09-09T08:32:00.000-07:00

I think I have answered that question with this picture. A bear left this in front of my neighbors camp and often I see piles right in the middle of the road. There must be a half dozen piles on my lane back to pond. I start to wonder if they ever use the woods. There are lots of bears out eating everything in sight bulking up for the winter. One walked down the road in front of house last night and got all the dogs upset...even the chihuahua.

On a brighter note I saw a little sun today as you can see from second picture. At least enough to cast a shadow off the trees. Some of the leaves are starting to drop and you can see some trees getting a little yellow. Everything is so green from the rain and now I have to push mow the grass cause I snapped the belt on the riding lawn mower. Hopefully, I can get it done before it rains again. Mountain girl, logging out(and cleaning up after bears)!

No Flooding here!

2011-09-08T21:34:00.000-07:00

So many of you have been calling and emailing thought I would post conditions. We stayed just to the west of the line of storms that have caused all the flooding. Pine Creek only went to 5 yesterday and is back down below 3. I know it would have been worse had we not of been so dry for so long. The ground is now very saturated and if we get anymore big storms it will certainly drive the creek up. The worst result of rain is people cancelling their trips up and the gloomy weather makes you want to stay in bed. It isn't too bad for kayaking the creek if you can avoid some of the debri that was stirred up by the storm. I will post if things change. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Just got this link from Jan Sager now I see why everyone is calling: Flood in Pa

ElderBerries and weather change

2011-09-06T11:14:00.000-07:00

Well, today it is only 56 degrees at 2 pm quite a change from the near 90 degree weather over the weekend. We have had a lot of rain last couple days and it threatens to continue. I think we have finally reached ground saturation so Pine creek is slowly rising.

I posted this picture of a batch of Elderberries cause they always remind me of my grandmother who loved to make jelly from them. I have heard they make a nice wine as well. I wouldn't suggest eating them from the plant however, they are quite bitter. I am surprised these have lasted so long usually the bears take them down as fast as they ripen. But, we have a lot of apples this year so maybe they prefer them over the sour elderberries.

Hummingbirds have slowed to a trickle. Only putting out half gallon in three feeders instead of four gallons in 16 feeders. Soon they will all be gone until May next year.

All the work I have to finish is outside so the weather is pushing me indoors to do housework, not my favorite thing!

But without Lee here stuff doesn't stay as clean. Also decided it was a good time to sort through some old clothes and throw out some badly worn and stain work clothes.

Had steamed-Maine-clams at a friends yesterday. I think I overdid it is 50 clams too much? I felt like my ribs were being moved out of place for a few hours. I think next time I won't go over 40!

Hope you all had a great Labor Day weekend. The weather change reminded me its not long before a good frost here. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Happy Aniversary Grubes! Plus narrow work

2011-08-31T12:59:00.000-07:00

First I want to say Happy 54th anniversary to John and JoAnn Grube of the Bear Mountain Camp. They kindly shared their anniversary with me and feed me a delicious meal: roast beef, green beans, noodles, gravy and pickled beets with eggs. I will have to say the only thing better than the food was the company and conversation.

The evening reminded me so much of how my grandparents would entertain others at their home. I fear this kind of conversation and fun may be a lost art with the advent of computers, cell phones and texting. We talked about animals, hunting and weather. The three big topics here.

Most might think this is boring, but I never tire of hearing people's stories. John shared one about seeing a hawk attack a turkey while he spotted for deer through binoculars. John said the turkey got a terrible blow at the base of his neck, but turned to defend himself against the hawk and succeeded in scaring the hawk off. John watched the turkey go to roost that night badly injured. Then he saw it come off the roost in the morning to once again walk through the woods. He asked if I had seen many bears and on the way home one ran across the road in front of me as if to say off course she sees bears.

The travel to work this morning was blocked in two spots as I headed to Blackwell. The first being just after I turned on 414 headed north over the bridge at Cedar Run. They were fixing some axel breaking holes on the road and I waited. The next is the work they started on the narrows a month ago. They diverted people down the bike trail(15mph). They are pouring concrete to shore up the side as you can see in second picture. As I got closer a backhoe worked a hundred feet above me(3rd picture) and they blocked the road as rocks fell to the bike trail. The flagperson said she had seen rocks fly all the way into the creek. In the last picture you can see how steep and rocky the cliff is behind the flagger were rocks dropped as I waited. The road is limited to 7' wide which excludes my construction trailer. This makes it difficult to get materials to the Blackwell area as going around adds about 50 miles and another hour. But it will all be worth it to see the narrows fixed. They don't expect to be done any before November.

Thanks again to the Grubes for a great night, great food and great company. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Hurricane Irene

2011-08-28T15:23:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to bed wondering how much wind and rain we would get from Hurricane Irene. As I went to sleep in the silence of the forest I could hear the sound of Giants footsteps through the woods. Was the storm coming so soon? I strained to listen... Sure enough the rhythmic beat of large feet coming through the woods could be heard. My heart beat just a little faster. I could imagine the wind tearing trees down like on the memorial day storms. I could imagine water tearing through the dam and bridges like during hurricane Agnes in the 70's.
I tried to silence my own breathe to listen closer and realized my giant slept at the foot of my bed, LEO! Breathing slow low breaths that sounded like footsteps. Mystery solved I went to bed to see what morning would bring.
As the sun rose or should I say it got a bit lighter...it was raining. It rained on and off most of the morning and the wind gusted at times but never enough to drop the forest to its knees. By late afternoon the clouds disappeared and the air went cool like autumn is supposed to be. I took this picture of the apple tree in our front yard around 6pm. Although, it is difficult to see, there are many small apples on the tree. In fact, there is an abundance of apples this year, which should make the bears and deer quite happy soon.
The male hummingbirds have all left, but due to an abundance of babies this year I am still feeding quite a few of them. I did take down 3 quart feeders so now there are only 13 up. By the end of tomorrow I should know if I can take anymore down. They won't completely be gone until the end of September. Lee always keeps a few up for travelers coming through on their migration south.
Lee is still with my mom. This is the beginning of week four alone in the woods. I will have to say I will be happy when she is home so I can have someone to talk to besides the dogs. Mom's surgery went well and we will know by Thursday how soon Lee can leave. I think she is anxious to be home too. There is no place like Leetonia. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Hummingbirds still at it....

2011-08-19T15:31:00.000-07:00

Rain has eluded us for the most part, but when it does start a storm the hummingbirds go crazy. The above video is just one on the 16 feeders surrounded by anxious hummingbirds. I haven't noticed much of a drop in the amount of food they are eating. I keep expecting the males to start leaving and the amount of food to drop. The roads have been dusty and it is still hot working if you aren't in the shade. I did the corner of a storm damaged roof for Tom Finkbinder and it was not the week to be up on a roof. His house is in the direct sun. It got to 89 degrees and the roof was hot enough to burn your skin if you knelled on it or touched it with bare skin.
I keep hoping for rain, since when it rains I get a day off. So far not many days off in August. The creeks are bone dry. I happened to meet some bicyclists coming up Leetonia road and they asked me where the falls was. I had to tell them it was dried up. For some reason they thought all the snow we had would have stuck around long enough to make the falls nice for them in August...go figure.
I can hear the sound of thunder outside and it is starting to rain the plants will be very happy tonight. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Ruins Camp for sale

2011-08-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

All good things come to an end and it seems the members of the Ruins Camp are all getting older and decided to sell. This camp has three acres and at least a couple hundred feet on it are right on Cedar Run Creek.
They put a kitchen addition on a few years ago...which is very nice. The rest of the camp needs some work. The water comes from a spring and I am not sure what the septic system is.
The camp has 4 bedrooms, one of which holds to bunk bed units(one is 3 bunks high..the room is tall in bunk room).
There is an old barn on the place which had a new metal roof put on it last year. The back side near
creek needs some foundation work.
The creek view from the deck is unmatched. There is a solid rock bottom to creek that runs at least the length of the cabin and makes for great body sledding down the stream. You can always see trout swimming just outside the back door.
For someone not afraid of a little work this place has a lot of potential. They have made me in charge of showing it to people and are taking offers. Contact me at campeaglebear@yahoo.com if you are interested.
The hummingbirds are still at it strong and it seems all I do is fill feeders when I am not working. I am down to my last ten pounds of
40lbs I bought just a week ago. For such small birds they can sure eat a lot. If you are in the area come sit on our porch in the evening or morning it is quite a treat. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Hummingbirds are at their Peak

2011-08-06T10:14:00.000-07:00

The hummingbird babies have hatched and are feeding vigorously. Lee has 15 feeders around the house and while she is gone helping my mother I am in charge of keeping them full. The first day they went through 4 gallons of fluid. That is ten pounds of sugar to make the 4 gallons. Every feeder was emptied by the hungry birds. Looks like I will be running to the store for more sugar. The feeders were again half-empty this morning.
We only have a couple weeks of heavy use by the birds then the males will start leaving around the end of the month. Even with fifteen feeders you can often see 8 to 10 birds around each feeder in the evening. We truly live in a humming bird hive. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Last Day of July

2011-07-31T17:07:00.000-07:00

Last day of July today and I finished shingling a shed I am building at a leased camp in the middle of no where. Without electricity building takes a bit longer. You have to use a generator and the sound of the generator running pretty much ruins the solitude. Today however, the shingles just needed a utility knife, hammer and nails. The building is going to be vinyl sided and the soffits covered with aluminum.
Scooter goes with me most times to work when the weather isn't too hot for him. He loves watching for intruders and making sure I don't work too long past his dinner time.
We are down to three dogs now. I returned Thor our three-legger to the girl who gave him to me. It had become too much to feed and care for all three large ones. She has his sister so after his sister told him she is in charge they got along great. Funny how you can have so many and still miss one when he is gone. I keep expecting to see him laying in his favorite spot on the front porch.
Lee is going to spend some time with my mother in Iowa to help her out. Her husband passed last week after a short intense battle with cancer. Now that she is older it is harder for her to cope with the loss. 2011 has been a year of dealing with many family issues, which still find you even living in the middle of the woods of Leetonia. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Heat Continues

2011-07-20T13:24:00.000-07:00

When it gets in the 90's back here it is hot. Fortunately, this doesn't happen too much, but when it does it is hard on animal and human alike.
The rattlesnakes have been on the move in hot weather seeking the cool of the creeks.
I saw this black Timber Rattler today in front of Red Rock Camp. I saw a larger yellow one crossing Francis Leetonia road yesterday.
If you don't know what they look like you might think the black ones are sticks on the road until you look a bit closer.
Caution should be used swimming in the creeks to make sure you look out for your fellow snakes looking to cool themselves as well. Timber Rattlers aren't real aggressive but they will bite if you get too close or step on them. You are safe if you stay the length of the snake away and don't bother them. Most of the snake bites are people trying to pick them up or mess with them. Cool weather isn't in sight so keep hydrated or best yet sit in a cold stream. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Hot and humid

2011-07-19T09:31:00.000-07:00

The last month has made up for all the rain we had early this Spring. The creek is now low and everything is turning brown. Hot and humid in the woods so much so you feel like you are in a terrarium.
The Eagle at Cedar Run had a baby who is flying and complaining a lot lately. I think the parents are teaching him to fish. He sat in a tree today just at the end of Cedar Run hoping for something to eat. I was working close to there and heard his cries going unanswered by his parents. Growing up is tough even for eagles.
The road going through the narrows will be closed probably by tomorrow and traffic diverted onto the bike path. The have limited the width down to 7', which makes it impossible to haul my utility trailer through there. Don't know how long this will take, but I am guessing we will be lucky if it is finished before winter.
Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

log time

2011-07-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

Well anyone who read the last blog noticed I was working on staining a log cabin when I discovered rotten logs.
It ended up the whole bottom log was rotten for about seven feet including the bottom plate. The log was eight inch high red pine and since I was unable to find any kiln dry pine that large, I cut one on my property to match.
You can see I then split the log in half as I built the back of the log up with treated lumber to the half way point. The first log isn't visible from the inside of house since it is under the floor or I would have needed to put in an entire log or log side both sides.
Since these logs are very green I am trying to fast dry them on the south side of my house under a plastic sheet. I figure in 2-4 weeks I can get quite a bit of the moisture out. The rest of the drying will need to take place on the cabin after they are installed. I am hoping for them to be dry enough to take on some preservative. Of course the preservative will need to be put on again toward the end of next summer when they are drier.
Once I get them in place I will post them again. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Robin transplant and log cabin

2011-07-01T15:29:00.000-07:00

Good news for this baby robin. I was working to power wash a log cabin for painting and there was a robin nest with 3 eggs in the way. I decided to see if I could move it to a bush a few feet away. I wasn't sure mother would find it. But she did and hatched at least one of the three eggs. The baby is hungry all the time and hopefully it will survive and fly.
Anyone who loves the woods loves the sight of a little log cabin nestled among the trees. Such is the cabin I am working on now a little 20 foot by 22 foot cabin with a loft. A new owner bought it and wanted it stained. While power washing it I noticed it had an infestation of powder post
beetles. You can see the holes about the size of pencil lead in the logs especially in one corner. Unfortunately, this has gone on too long. Previous owners stacked firewood and other wood under and near the cabin. The wood rotted and brought the pests. The have eaten through about 10 feet of this bottom log and as you can see eaten the plate board it was sitting on.
The log will have to be replaced along with the plate. Wood cabins must be stained every five years now with the changes in safer paint(shorter lasting paint). If you want the beauty of logs consider the work of maintaining them and never stack firewood near any wood camp during summer months when bugs are active. It will be a lot of work to fix the damage on this place. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Mountain Blanket

2011-06-21T08:51:00.000-07:00

Mountain Laurel blankets the sides of Cedar Mountain with hues of white and pink flowers. If you have never seen the mountain covered in this flower this week is the time to see it. Soon the blossoms will fall and the forest will be green until fall color season.
Last week was the Mountain Laurel festival in Wellsboro. I ended up working through the weekend and didn't get a chance to go. But I get to see the flower daily that give the festival its name.
I count myself lucky to live up here even though the work is hard. My typical drive to work through the green forest watching the animals
cross the road is never disappointing.
During the weekdays I encounter few other cars. I saw Turkey, deer, grouse, and one very large bear.
Seems to be quite a few bear in Leetonia looking for a free handout from camp owners. I had to stop feeding the birds years ago when the number of bear in my yard day or night became a problem for my dogs. I never opened the door without looking first to make sure one of the bruins wasn't walking outside. They can be hard to see in the dark and they are amazingly quiet for such large animals. Fencing an area for the dogs to go at night is keeping my dog/bear emergencies to a minimum. Living with nature is a joy but also an adaptation to how you think about daily activities. Weather plays a big role all year. Any plans you make can be quickly changed by rain, wind, ice or snow. Respect for what the weather can do is essential to living as accident free as possible. Watching the sides of the road for the sudden deer or bear appearance keeps your vehicle dent free. Surviving the gravel roads effect on your car or truck is unavoidable. Tires, suspension, paint last half as long. Three ply tires last just about as long as it takes you to change them. I changed the first one on my Cruiser I picked up a month ago. A stone the size and shape of my index finger pierced the tire beyond a plug fix. I expect by the end of summer to have four upgraded tires as they all gradually are destroyed by the roads. Knowing how to change a tire is a basic necessity as well as having a good spare. In an average summer I fix about four tires between the two vehicles. Getting help could take you most the day. But I have noticed the vehicles I am getting keep having bigger and bigger tires. Lifting these on and off the vehicle is less and less fun. Course I could live somewhere with instant cell coverage and help....no it is worth the trade. I still love it in the mountains of Leetonia and I know I always will. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Road Clarification

2011-06-17T07:48:00.000-07:00

For all you coming up this weekend from the south. There is a sign on 44 saying road is only open to Waterville...IGNORE THIS. ROAD IS OPEN ALL THE WAY THROUGH 414! It is very confusing but there are no detours to Leetonia. Happy travels. Mountain girl, Paula

Morris Rattlesnake Festival

2011-06-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

The 2011 Morris Rattlesnake festival was in full swing this weekend. It is always a treat for young and old to see a snake close up and touch it if they would like. I don't know what the longest snake brought in was at this point of the contest. They have categories for the longest yellow timber rattler and the longest black timber rattler. All snakes must be returned to the point they were captured by the hunters after they are released from judging.
People are still cleaning up from the memorial weekend storms and finding out what their insurance covers and what it does not. It is never nice to find out your coverage don't count during
tornadoes.
I noticed the Mountain Laurel is beginning to bloom on top Cedar Mountain. The Mountain Laurel festival events run in Wellsboro all next week and weekend. The blooming should be good for a couple weeks barring we don't have any more high wind storms.
The granddaughter went home Thursday so I will get back to work a bit more seriously now and try to make up for lost time due to weather and visitors. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Link to Blossburg Coal festival tornado

2011-06-01T16:38:00.000-07:00

Blossburg Coal festival This will take you to Youtube for a video posted about the festival damage.

Day 6 Power returns to Leetonia

2011-06-01T02:39:00.000-07:00

No power this morning and more thunderstorms possible. It is costly to run generator at about .5 gal of gas an hour that is close to $2/ hour or nearly $50 per day. I am beginning to reach the point at 6 days where the value of the food may not have been worth the generator cost. We did better when we could turn it off for a while during the night, but with hot weather I have not been able to do this. Maybe today will be our lucky day and the power will come back to the lines. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

P.S. Power returned to Leetonia today. Hopefully it will stay for a while.

Day 5

2011-05-31T04:48:00.001-07:00

Its the beginning of day 5 and still no power. They are saying it could be as late as Thursday for Slate Run and us. If it goes that long it will be an entire week. The sound of the generator running wears on you after a while. But the alternative, no water, showers or refrigerated food is worth the trade. There is another round of storms coming tomorrow and today we have high humidity and upper 80's for temps. This will definitely be a storm to remember. Mountain girl, logging out.

Power still out!

2011-05-30T04:57:00.000-07:00

As of this morning we are still out of power day 4. Cedar Run got power back Saturday evening, but as far as I know Slate Run is still out. Temperatures are going very hot for next few days so now the generator must run constant to keep food from rotting.

Fairy Tale in the woods

2011-05-29T08:53:00.001-07:00

Once upon a time in a big forest a crazy girl came to visit. She didn't know much about the big woods ...but was anxious to learn everything.

"What is this black thing? What is this green thing? What is this? What is that?"

Her questions never stopped.
One day she went for a walk in the big woods. She walked along an old logging trail. Everywhere she walked she looked at bugs, animals, trees and things. She thought they would make a good painting, but she would change all the colors of the trees and roads and plants to suit her.
So she kept walking and thinking and talking to herself and soon she was deep in the woods and lost. She sat down on a log and wondered how she would get back to her grandma's house.

Meanwhile her grandma noticed she was gone and got out the best search and rescue dog in the State, his name was, "Speck" and even though he was a tiny Chihuahua he had a excellent nose. So Grandma gave Speck one of Reilly's socks to smell. It was so strong he had to clear his nose before he started to track her. But now he was on the trail, head down and jumping over the grass and logs to find her.

We all followed Speck for miles and eventually found her at Gaswell's Johns on the other side of the mountain. She gave Speck a big hug and we all went home to eat Smores. THE END.

More Storm Pictures

2011-05-28T16:18:00.000-07:00

1. Cabin on 414
2. Gamble Run
3. Gamble Run
4. Blackwell shed crushed
5. 414 north of blackwell camp

Sorry for those of you seeing a blank post yesterday. I had internet just long enough to start and not finish. We have phone again today for however long so trying again. Beginning of 3rd day without electric. It is looking like we may make it through the entire memorial weekend without power.
Elmira, NY;Mansfield,Pa; and Blossburg, Pa also
heavily damaged. The worst of those being at coal festival going on at the time according to Williamsport Gazette report: " More than a dozen people were reported injured and thousands of people are without electricity after a violent storm -- perhaps a tornado -- moved through Tioga Thursday evening." They go on to say it was a miracle no one was killed. Wind lifted the portable stage off the ground. Ten huge trees fell up to 4-5 feet in diameter fell during the three minutes of the storm. One woman suffered cracked vertebrae and three teens had to be cut from their car after a tree fell on it.
Roads have been pretty much cleared of trees
but numerous telephone poles which have broken will make power restoration slow to some areas.
We are still on back up power today and I will post when we get power or any additional information.
Mountain Girl, Paula, logging out.

storm pictures

2011-05-28T11:11:00.000-07:00

1. cabin crushed on gamble run
2. cabin on 414
3. Finkbinder's house
4. looking up gamble run

Slate Run and forest heavy damage

2011-05-28T10:56:00.001-07:00

Cedar Run, Slate Run and the Leetonia area as well as Mansfield have been without power for 2 days. It is looking like at least 2 more before power is back. We have no phone or internet as I am typing this in from Galeton using a library connection. I have some great pictures and will upload them when able.
We spent yesterday sawing us out of the woods toward Cedar Run and then helped saw trees up Gamble Run,which was hit very hard. Many home are servilely damaged and some roads in State Forest still impassable. West Rim road closed as of this morning due to heavy tree damage. This is the worst storm we have had in last 9 years. Fortunately, no one has been killed that I am aware of. Several people camping had to be rescued by forestry when tree blocked their exit some landing on cars. Don't think I would have liked being in a tent. I wouldn't suggest coming unless you like living without electric or phone this weekend. Will post again when I get connection or come back to town. Mountain girl, logging out.

Primary 2011

2011-05-18T12:41:00.000-07:00

Lee Anne, Jackie O Neal, Sue Bonniger and I spent from 6:30 am to 8:30pm helping the township voters cast their ballots for the primary.
We had 24 of the 28 eligible voters show up. Pretty good for a primary and the fact it was a rainy gloomy day. After the voting ended Lee and Jackie drove the ballots to Wellsboro and Lee didn't get home until after 11pm so a long day.
The day started with the phone line being ripped out by one of the dump trucks. So Sue improvised by using a walkie talkie to reach her place and having Eldon make any phone calls we needed.
This was the first event to be held in the newly remodeled schoolhouse and most were pleased with the changes.
It takes just about everyone we have in this
township helping to make things work with so few residents. We are the least sparsely populated township in the state of Pennsylvania. Four township positions are open: one supervisor and three auditor positions all of which were write-ins making for a long process to cast your vote.
It takes 10 people writing you in to put you on the ballot for fall. As you can tell that can be a challenge with only 28 people voting and not everyone wishing to take the time to type in names one letter at a time.
All in all it was a fun day of seeing everyone and catching up on the latest. Ron Andrus said he found the Big Bull elk dead on April 17th and the DCNR is doing an autopsy to see how it died(no traumatic injuries were apparent). I guess a smaller male had died last year so that only leaves one in the area he knows about. For any of you needing to get rid of trash, spring cleanup is June 11th 8-noon at the township building. Lee is holding down the fort for a week while I am off to my dad's memorial this weekend in Wisconsin. I am hoping this rain will be done when I get back. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Maynard School inside finished

2011-05-11T16:33:00.000-07:00

The inside of the Maynard School House is finished just in time for elections next week. I took pictures without any of the furniture in building so you can see walls easier.
The original furniture to be saved will be cleaned up and made useable before it is brought back in. In some cases this will involve a bit of work.
I got the blackboard that was under the slate board back up with the names of people on it. It has been sealed so no one can erase it. We placed it in a corner next to the other board.
There is still a bit of siding work to do on outside and the entire building will be repainted outside this summer.
The very last picture shows the rope hanging down from the attic where the bell is. It can be pulled to hear the bell tolling once again. I am very pleased with this project and look forward to all the voters seeing it as they come in to vote. The township has talked about having an open house some time, if they do I will post it. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Porcupine free time over...

2011-05-06T19:22:00.000-07:00

We made it a whole year without any dog/porcupine encounters! Our streak ended tonight with Leo finding one in the front yard. We pulled a couple hundred out of him. You can't even see the ones on the roof of his mouth. He will have to go to the vet in the morning and get some antibiotics as the quills carry a lot of infection. But at least he can breathe and drink again.
It is an ugly, bloody job to get rid of the quills. I use the handle of a wooden hammer to keep him from closing his mouth while we pull them out of the inside. It hurt him so much at first he was biting on objects near him trying to get them out. He never tried to bite us ....so much for the vicious Pit Bull theories.
May seems to be the month the dogs have gotten into the most porcupine problems. The one who got Leo is now dead as it was still in the apple tree next to house and I filled it with lead to even the score.
Just two nights ago the dogs barked and we heard gnawing

outside. It was raining and I took the flashlight but was unable to find the offender. The dogs heard it again later and I again went out(this time in my pajamas with a pistol, and flashlight) still no quill pig. I am afraid the same one got poor Leo so I feel bad I didn't find it first. Around 4 am that same morning, I was again awoken by dog barking that wouldn't stop this time a bear had tipped a garbage can over and taken off when the dogs barked. So it was a night of the animals. I am glad not every night is that way or I would be very tired all day.

So if you have a dog up here watch them close the porcupines are out and not afraid to smack any one who dares to disturb them. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Hummingbirds are back

2011-05-03T11:48:00.000-07:00

Well, the hummingbirds came back a couple days ago. There are only a couple right now..the males who stake out their territory ahead of the females. Lee half-filled the feeders on May 1st and by the next day one was at the feeder.
Rain continues to be the normal. In fact, people are now counting the hours it doesn't rain. It makes for good canoeing, but little else. Most the fisherman had to fish on smaller streams last week as the water in Pine Creek was too high.
My pond in the back in nicely full. It is a shame that it leeches through the soil when we don't have rain. The only ways I know to stop that is

with an expensive liner made of rubber or clay. So for now we just enjoy it when it rains so we have enjoyed it a lot this month. I took the picture of the pond during a few hours of sun one day.
Trying to get the dogs and myself a nice walk everyday has been a challenge, but I squeaked on in today between showers. Speck, the Chihuahua is 2 for 2 on walks as far as finding nasty things to roll in. He is fast about it too. So he is also 2 for 2 walks on getting a bath. A much easier job on a 10 pound dog than a 100 pound dog like Scooter.
It is funny how even though the dogs are outside when we are here...they still want you to take them on a walk.
The bears are out and getting into things so watch your garbage. Lee Stover left his in the back of his pick-up and the bear redistributed it all over the mountain. I saw a second year cub along Leetonia road coming down Cedar Mountain yesterday. The first one I have seen since winter. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Creek jumps up to 7.25 last night

2011-04-26T04:01:00.000-07:00

You can see how fast the creek can rise the line going nearly straight up at midnight last night. Each horizontal lines is about a half a foot lowest line starts at 3 foot. Rain is scheduled for every day from now until Saturday so water levels are going to stay high. This chart comes from USGS water levels measured at Cedar Run under the bridge. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Rain, rain, rain

2011-04-25T19:41:00.000-07:00

April has been so wet it is hard to get a thing done outside. The daffodils are up down at Cedar Run and I have some tulips poking through the ground up here. The bright light on the daffodils is Sun something we haven't seen a lot of this month.

Tonight it rained so hard I thought the whole mountain might come down. Lightening, thunder and wind added to the drama. I won't be able to tell much about what it looks like until daylight, but I know Pine Creek will be hitting some high levels in about three hours.

Pine Creek is already high it was up around 5.5 ft when we drove by earlier today so this rain will put a few places in the danger zone for sure. It seems like any roof that is old is leaking and it is impossible to have a car or truck that isn't covered in mud.

Today they worked on Leetonia Road down from the Cedar Crest camp to try and keep it from falling in the creek. I am wondering what the rain we had tonight will do to their work. It is supposed to be a two day project so you can expect the road to be closed again tomorrow.

I have tried to finish the outside of the schoolhouse all month and have pecked away at it one day at a time(for a total of three days). I have about one day left to get the last of the siding up around three of the windows. But when a dry day will be only God seems to know. The weather men throw in a day here or there, then at the last minute change it to rain. So if you are coming to camp bring rain gear and lots of cards. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Roads and snow

2011-04-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

Yes, the snow is today! We got about 2-3 inches on top of the mountain. It rained down below. Temperatures are supposed to be in 50's tomorrow so it won't last long.
The road from Leetonia to Cedar Run is passable. There are many potholes and a few patches of snow and ice so go slow.
The second picture is out on 414 the narrows between Cedar Run and Blackwell. The State thought they could put in a new guard rail and quickly found out the road is falling into pine creek. So for now they narrowed it even more to one lane. No word on when they might do some real work on it.
It is hard to tell from picture put the road seems to have dipped even more off to the right then it did last Fall. I think if they had drilled in guard posts the road would have just dropped into the creek. It is at least a hundred foot drop and I don't think I will try my luck at surviving that kind of drop. Hopefully, no one else tries it either. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

April Showers bring fast water

2011-04-05T14:22:00.000-07:00

Well, we got tons of rain last night and the creeks sounded like trains rolling down the mountain. The video is of Cedar Run south of Leetonia. Pine Creek is at 6.5 feet not its highest by far. I seen it at 12 feet and that is just scary. Complete trees go down the creek at about 50 mph when it is that high. If you have only been here when the creek was a babbling brook it is definitely a different experience to see it raging. It comes up fast and can catch you off guard if you aren't careful. It looks like rain, rain, rain and more rain for at least the next 10 days. It should wash the snow away, but it makes doing outside work almost impossible. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

School House Piano for sale

2011-04-04T19:45:00.000-07:00

Just a note(no pun intended) for those of you who would like a piece of history....the Marvin Player Piano in the Maynard Schoolhouse is being auctioned off in Ebay listing no: 220764950681. It would need a lot of work to get things working right so no offer will be refused. I am sure this piano is a hundred years old. Get a hold of me if you want to take a look at it. Bids close on April 14th.

Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Do you feel lucky?

2011-04-03T09:33:00.000-07:00

This white pine tree took a split for the best for the Nightengale Camp. Each one of these sections is two to three feet in diameter at the base. Two of them landed between the camp and the outhouse and one landed on the other side of the outhouse.

So these people have to be the luckiest people in Leetonia this year. I will have to say you have to plan ahead to use the outhouse.

I traveled the entire road from my house to Cedar Run today and at least sixty percent of the road is down to the dirt. The rest is anywhere from two to four inches of slushy snow and ice. So it is important to go slow and be careful. There
are a lot of potholes in the road as well.

Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

March is going out like a lion

2011-03-31T04:58:00.000-07:00

Just as soon as I could see grass in my front yard mother nature decided to cover it up. We got two inches of the white stuff last night, but it won't last long with rain and above freezing temperatures in the forecast.

Lee Stover took the grader down Leetonia Road to Mine Hole so there are no deep spots of snow to that point. He did say he hit some pretty bad spots and you should watch out for any ice that hasn't melted.

I am off to work to finish up painting my exterior siding and trim boards and work on putting up the ceiling tile. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Avery's Favorite Place

2011-03-30T18:00:00.000-07:00

My Favorite Place

By Avery Cassel

My favorite place is our cabin in Leetonia. It is my favorite place because I can do almost anything there.

As I lay in the grass during the summer, I smell a rich, piney, fragrance throughout the forest. I hear the stream gurgling as it swallows the rocks. All I see around me is luscious green grass covering the ground like a blanket. The cool green grass tickles my toes. Damp mist drenches my body. Velvety leaves rustle when the wind rushes by.

In the winter I sit on the sofa in front of the fireplace that is crackling and popping. The trees around us are covered in a white dusting of snow. The smell of burning pine needles floods the cabin as the rich hot cocoa I am drinking burns the back of my throat.

Now I think you know why our cabin is my favorite place to be.

Thought you would all enjoy this 4th grader's opinion of Leetonia. I can remember being up here at that age and crying when I had to go home. Thanks for sharing Avery. Mountain girl, Paula, Logging out.

Maynard School Progress

2011-03-28T16:11:00.000-07:00

Well things are moving along with the school house project. The walls are all done. The slate board is back up and I am putting in the suspended ceiling. It is difficult working around all the stuff in building seems I spend much of my time moving things. When ceiling is completed, I will be doing caulking and nail hole filling. I will also be starting to paint the siding boards and the exterior window trim inside as it is still too cold to paint outdoors. The high tomorrow will be 36 and the low 21, that is an upgrade from the low teens we have had for lows the last few days.

Looks like we may use an epoxy paint with

colored flakes in it for floor. There isn't many products that can withstand the changing temperatures and lay on a less than flat floor. Vinyl would have been an option except the school desks cast iron feet would tear it up.

So after the ceiling, I will probably be crawling under the school house to check supports for floor. I am sure more will need to be added. I am hoping we get some warmer weather soon as much of my next work will be outside.

The last picture is just a cool icicle on our back porch roof. It is about three foot long. I had to knock it down so it didn't kill, Speck the Chihuahua on one of his trips outside. Lee Anne would never forgive me if I killed her dog while she was gone.

Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Snow and no power again

2011-03-24T17:48:00.001-07:00

We got six inches of wet snow on the night of March 23rd. It covered the rest of the wood we were working on splitting and made running the wheelbarrow up the hill impossible. But my sister and I got a good pile of wood split. Most of the rest of the wood is buried in about 6" of ice and won't be coming out until we get warmer weather. The first picture shows split stack. The second picture is before we started yesterday. It was much colder than the day before and wet gloves and a breeze made hands and feet get cold a bit faster.

Snowmobiles have been running all day even though about half the snow melted. It doesn't
look like much of the snow will melt until next Monday as the temperatures are going to drop into the low teens at night and stay below freezing for highs during the day.

Along with the snow we lost power again. I don't remember losing power this much in the winter since we have lived up here. The generator is a God send with the four extra visitors. Having water for showers and flushing is more than a convenience. It used to be when we were out of power I would go to creek and get a bucket of water to flush. If it was real cold this meant chopping through some ice first. Now it is just a matter of starting the generator and the well
works great.

In the last picture you see my sister's van covered in snow. Fortunately, we didn't get anymore snow last night and with the road plowed she was able to get out over the mountain.

I am formally putting the groundhog on notice. YOU ARE FIRED! That early spring you promised is not here! Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Splitting Time

2011-03-22T18:49:00.001-07:00

Splitting wood is a back breaking job even with a gas powered splitter. My sister Ruth, and three of her kids, Hunter, Abby and Hailey came up during their Spring Break to help.

In two days, we have gotten about 6 cords of firewood split and stacked. The girls lasted about half the time we split wood, Hunter last for most of the time. I don't think they realized how hard it would be and I hope will go home being thankful they don't have to heat with wood like their Aunt Paula.

We have another day of splitting planned for tomorrow, but I see by the forecast, Spring is being recalled and replaced by a winter storm
warning. They are calling for 6 inches of snow. So how much we get done. My sister is ten years younger than myself, but we found us both reaching for the Ibuprofens more than once.

We did let the kids ride four wheelers around the property as they are prohibited in the State Forest as a reward for all their hard work. I wonder if they will be wanting to do this again next year? Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Spring Melt

2011-03-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

The snow is melting quick and hopefully the roads will be clear soon. As you can see from the first picture the unplowed roads on north slopes still have about 6" of hard packed ice, slush and snow on them. The warm day we had yesterday melted a lot of snow and the creeks are running full. The second picture shows Buck Run a small creek in front of our house with the water running quickly. The sound of the water running this time of year is so loud it sound like a rainstorm.

The last two pictures shows the contrast between South facing slopes with no snow and North facing slopes with as much as a foot of snow still on the
ground. In places the snow has melted on the dirt roads the ground is heaving and it is common to run over large dips that come up suddenly. The ground is also soft during the day when it is above freezing and makes for slippery driving and muddy cars.

The migrating birds are coming back as I have seen more Red Tail Hawks, blackbirds, geese and robins. Soon the vultures will return as well and some of the other songbirds. Most highs this coming week will be above freezing. I am giving the groundhog a failing grade for predicting an early Spring as we also have snow showers in the Thursday forecast.
I am hoping we don't get a late frost this year as the animals really suffered through the winter with lack of acorns and many layers of snow and ice to dig through.

Word to wise roads still tricky at best coming up from Cedar Run. I would wait for another week to make drive.

There is definitely, a feeling of Spring about in the air and it has not come a moment to soon for the mountain girls. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Back to the Mountains

2011-03-14T17:47:00.000-07:00

I am back. It always feels good to get back in the mountains. It has been a hard week for me with the loss of my father and I thank all of you who sent sympathy my way it was appreciated.

The snow did not cooperate while I was gone. Lee had several more inches of snow, two power outages, a phone outage and an internet outage. Lets face it she was out of everything last week. Fortunately, everything came back together this morning just before I got home.

The roads are still very tricky where it is not plowed and I don't suggest driving on most of them. However, it does look like warm weather for the next ten days so maybe by the weekend things will be different.

Now, I must get back into gear again and start working. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Maynard School progress

2011-03-04T13:05:00.001-08:00

Well, the walls have been painted and most of the electrical circuits are up and working. The tongue and groove boards and other pine boards for trim were delivered and I have routered the sill boards to get them ready to be varnished.

Lee will be varnishing all the boards while I am gone for a week and then I will put them up when I get back. Trimming out the 10 windows and getting all the sills to line up will take the most time. There is 900 linear feet of tongue and groove boards alone for Lee to varnish so she won't be bored while I am gone. You can see some of them in the second picture towards the bottom edge of picture.

I had planned on getting all the trim boards sanded for her as well, but yesterday my father fell and hit his head on a ceramic floor while on vacation in Florida. He suffered a fatal brain bleed, so my day has been filled with other issues. I am the oldest of five children, my father is remarried so it causes a lot of issues to deal with in arrangements. Fortunately, my fathers wishes were:NO FUNERAL! He wanted a celebration of his life, which we are planning at a time when my siblings can get together from all over the country. He was almost 82 and had been getting very frail the last few years. And though you expect to lose someone that age, I didn't realize how much it would hurt. It is like part of you is gone and there is a big hole in your chest. I am glad I got to see him in January and keep the memory of him singing: "Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ra and Irish Lullaby to me when I was young. I sat in the rocker he used to rock me and my kids to sleep singing this song last night when I realized he was moving on. I will miss my dad. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ra

March forward

2011-03-01T06:16:00.001-08:00

The last week of February was tough weather wise. We got hit with several snows. The first 12", then another 6", then another 6" rain and 4" more. We lost power twice during the period, but thankfully the power company got it back and running within about six hours using a track driven machine to get to the problem.
The first picture shows you what my back yard looks like. The snow is about 3 foot high from falling off the roof and piling up. We had thunder, lightening and rain that took quite a bit of it off yesterday, but still has a good amount to melt.
The second picture shows you how pretty the road looks right after a snow. It would be even
prettier if I could have stayed home to enjoy it instead of traveling on it. The last picture is right after the 4" snow the limbs hung heavy with snow and in the morning it gives you an icy feeling. This was taken as the sun came up and started to warm things up a bit.
There is little room to move snow around and everyone is very tired of winter. Although, we aren't through with the chance of snow, March does give hope that spring is just around the corner. According to the Groundhog, Spring is supposed to be early. So, Spring get here already! Lee is helping me with the painting at the school house as I finished the drywall. She will be varnishing all the wood to put up as wainscoting and the framing around the windows and doors. She will do most of this while I take a short run to Rockford, Illinois to help watch some grandkids for a week, while their parents are gone. It will be a rest from construction, but I can tell you keeping up with four kids is more tiring than any construction project. I have put in the order to Mother Nature to get rid of this snow while I am gone. Ha. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Melt down and more snow on the way

2011-02-20T13:04:00.000-08:00

A few people braved the roads this weekend to come to their camps in Leetonia. This is what the road looked like today past our house on the way to Leetonia. It has melted more and refroze making it a bit easier to get over.

The bad news is there is another 8 inches of snow coming tonight. After being spoiled with this early meltdown and warm weather last week..this is not welcome news. Of course the weather people have been wrong so I will know in the morning if I can make it out to work.

I do prefer the snow over the freezing rain they had talked about earlier so you all have a good week. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Maynard School progress

2011-02-17T17:39:00.000-08:00

Just thought I would post some progress pictures on Maynard School house project. I had a company come in that sprays expanding foam insulation in. You can see how tightly it filled the walls and cracks. Even without insulation in ceiling and floor there is a significant difference in the building.

I fir stipped the walls as they didn't have even spaced or sized studs trying to get the wall as flat as possible. This also allows me to put the board in vertically and have tapered seams which mud much nicer.

The lower part of the wall is going to get vertical pine with a sill running at the height of the bottom of the windows completely around the room. Just above the tops of the windows will be a drop ceiling, which will allow me to put a level ceiling in to match windows. However, there is not much that can be done with the floor that slopes off as much as two inches to one side. Leveling that isn't in the budget so we will have to settle for level windows and ceiling.

In the area of the old chalk board the pine will be lower to allow an area to place the board back up. We did some major retying of the roof rafters and ended up doing some repair on two broken ones. One had broken completely in two. I have some more holes to varmint proof in the attic before I put in the insulation, which will be 12" blown in cellouse.

The weather warmed up so much today, I worked without a coat all day and felt hot. The roads started melting and made for a slushy slide home. Roads with significant snow on them in unplowed areas are basically impassable until the weather freezes or they melt a lot more. There is as much as 12" of slushy snow on some roads. Other roads in the sunny areas may be down to the bare dirt. It can be easy to start up a road that looks good only to find yourself in a bad situation fast. So be careful if you are coming up. The tow guys charge a pretty penny to come back if you can find one that will.

On a sadder note, Bravo Button's wife Helen passed away from her battle with cancer. Helen was the election judge for our township and spent many a day in the school house I am working on counting ballets. Sadly, she won't be around to enjoy a much warmer and nicer building to work in. Our sympathies go out to Bravo and his family. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Progress on School

2011-02-12T05:01:00.000-08:00

The windows are in the Maynard school and it makes a huge difference. I am able to get the room up to a temperature I can work without gloves. The rough electric is just about done and the walls have been covered with a half inch foil covered foam board in preparation for the the expanding foam insulation to be sprayed on next Tuesday. The reason we put the board up was to keep the insulation from sticking to siding as there is siding we need to replace soon and in the future.

Once the insulation in the walls and ceiling is done working inside the school will be so much easier as I won't have to wear snowpants to do it.

Bending and moving in general with many layers of clothes on is difficult.

The outside work will be waiting until the snow and ice is gone at this point. Moving the ladders around in the ice covered snow was a bit more than difficult.
Thursday on the way to the lumber yard I saw a calf, which had been born laying in the field. Normally this would be fine but it was -4 and the calf was freezing to the ground. I stopped at the farmhouse to tell them, but no one was home. So I went to their neighbors and had them call owners. I continued onto the lumber yard, but the sight of that calf struggling and freezing stuck in my brain.

I decided if no one was there by the time I returned I would have to do something. Well, no one had come so I trudged out into the middle of the field. The calf's ear tips looked frozen much of its body was covered in ice and it could barely
move. I kept an eye on the mother as I struggled to lift the limp 80lb calf. I half lifted and half dragged the calf about 300feet through the snow with its mother watching me.

I got to the truck and shoved the limp calf up next to Scooter. He wasn't impressed. The wierd creature made him nervous at first, but then he started to lick it. I don't know if he was being kind or wanted to taste it.

I drove to a friends down the road with a barn hoping they would have somewhere warm for the calf. They didn't have anywhere so I told them I was taking it to the school house until the owners showed up. They called the Browns and let them know where I took the calf. I keep the calf in my truck with the heat running full blast until I could get the school house warmed up a bit. Then I brought the calf inside and set him on some insulation board by the heater. The calf was so weak and cold it wasn't able to lift its head. The owner arrived shortly after and retrieved the calf. I hope the little guy did okay, but it didn't look good. So I spent the rest of my day working and smelling like newborn calf. Never a dull moment in the middle of nowhere. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Cold temps and snow continues

2011-02-09T05:34:00.000-08:00

We got another 4-6 inches of snow yesterday and it is started to be hard to push it anywhere. The last snow was very wet and froze into a solid mass on the edges of my drive. Hitting it is like hitting a wall. The trees did look pretty this morning with a fresh coating of snow and it seems very quiet after a snow.

The wind brought lower temps for today. I woke up to -5 outside and 53 degrees inside. On mornings like this the first priority is getting the heat going. I got the new windows in at the school and am hoping this will let me heat the place above freezing so I can work a little easier glove free. The electric conduit needs to be complete by next Tuesday when they spray the expanding foam insulation. After the place is insulated heating it will be much easier. The dogs are cuddled up as close to the fire as possible and I am feeling a bit envious this morning. The thought of working all day in this cold is not pleasing.

A gas well worker was killed in a vehicle accident at the jobsite last week. Reminding me to be very careful on these slippery roads. The loggers take their big rigs up in the woods all winter and I marvel at their courage to take large trucks into place most of us wouldn't take much less than a snowmobile. The work around here in the woods and gas lines is very dangerous and my hat goes off to those workers willing to risk it all for a paycheck. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Winter is still here

2011-02-05T05:58:00.001-08:00

This is the time of year when I get tired of winter. It is unfortunate because we have at least 2 more months of bad weather to go. We have gotten several small snows over the last few weeks the largest one being around 6". In between snow we got freezing rain which has left a hard crust on top of the snow. Speck, the chihuahua, is loving being able to walk on top the snow without sinking. The rest of the dogs and I are intermittent with staying on top. It is not a pleasant surprise to be walking on top and then suddenly drop through the crust. This often is followed by the rest of me knelling in the snow.

The deer aren't fairing any better. Their sharp hooves let their bodies drop through and make them slow moving targets for predators or worse give them a broken leg. One such deer is laying in the middle of the road about a mile up from me. The deer is mostly eaten by predators and is providing a mid-winter feast to a few crows. I watched other deer who get in the road happy to run somewhere with no snow, but as soon as they jump off the road they are belly deep in snow and struggle to move.

I am slowly working on the school house in the cold weather. The outhouse isn't nearly as fun to use when you have multilayers of clothes to remove. Stepping off a foot high snow pile into the outhouse yesterday, caused me to misjudge my height as I entered it yesterday knocking myself in the head on the top frame of the door. As I trudge to it knee deep in snow I often think about the kids going to school here long ago doing the same thing and feel much empathy towards them.

I had two days I couldn't work this week one due to weather and one due to a dentist appointment and a broken snowmobile tow for someone. So I am making it up this weekend. Thinking of stopping into the snowmobile club for breakfast tomorrow morning before I work. All you can eat sounds good before a day in the cold. All I can say is the groundhog best be right and Spring is early...cause I am ready. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Memorabilia from Maynard School

2011-01-22T06:50:00.000-08:00

The first picture is a copy of a report on George Washington by Ida H. Hoagland written Feb 21, 1895. I found it inside a wall half chewed by mice. All I have been able to find out about Ida is she later was Silas Ripley's second wife after his first died young. The second picture shows an old honey bee hive inside one of the walls. And the last picture is a blackboard we found under the slate blackboard. This was simply boards painted black and used to write on. This is a list of kids who cleaned the school house in Nov of 1905. Hopefully, I can find out more about Ida, I still have one area to look through to see if I can find any more papers. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

FRIGID -12

2011-01-22T05:47:00.000-08:00

Well, there is only one word for the weather...COLD. The faucet is on permanent drip to keep the lines from freezing the dogs are plastered to the fire and the wood is burning fast. In below zero weather, I will easily go through two plus carts of wood. It is a struggle to keep the cabin in the 60's you must constantly put wood in the fire. We got about 6 inches of snow yesterday and then the temperatures went down fast. Thor started barking at 4 am...the fire ran low. I came down and stoked it back up and he seemed happy. Days like this make it hard to want to do anything but sit close to the fire and read a book. Looks like at least 3 days of below zero weather is upon us.

The snowmobilers are out running the new snow and I am betting wishing it wasn't quite so cold. Although the heaters in the handle bars do help. I know in weather like this you don't want to be a passenger on a snowmobile. I rode behind Lee on a -10 night coming back from Cedar Run, it was so cold my facegaurd froze over. The air is blocked for the first person, but flows up over them and hits you in the face and down the back.

For those of you that live in warm climates a word to the wise. Don't call and tell me it is a bit cold today at 65 degrees. It doesn't warm us up anymore to know that. Mountain girl, Paula, loading firewood and logging out.

Maynard School Continued

2011-01-18T19:53:00.001-08:00

I am posting some pictures of the outside of Maynard School. Also a video showing the inside before I started remodel project. So far the entire interior walls have been taken off. The slate board has been saved to be put back up when remodeling is done. I found some homework written by a student about George Washington the father of our country...it was in between the walls and is dated 1895. The mice had chewed off a corner so I couldn't see the first few sentences. I am surprised it survived inside the wall that long.

I also made another find in the wall near the front door. I saw what appeared to be a large rag stuffed in the bottom of wall. However, when I pulled it out..it was apparent my rag was a dead cat. The cat was almost mummified it was so dry. I don't know if the cat died cause it fell in there or died from other reasons. This also solves the mystery poop that fell on my head in a couple spots. I had figured it to be a cat or raccoon. Now I know it was a cat.

I started taking the old windows out today. The wood was so rotten on the windows nothing could be saved. I am reframing for new ones. You can tell from the interior the windows were added after the building had been up a while. Because whoever cut them in...just cut straight through without framing around above or below them. They just sort of floated there. The walls are 5" thick so a 2x6 has to be ripped down to match. I can tell there is some variations in the wall thickness so there will be a lot of shimming to make it look good later.

I was glad it warmed up to slightly above freezing today as I have no heat while working on the building. There is a space heater, but with the walls gone and the windows open it is a lost cause. Tomorrow more window pulling and framing...then it will be onto other structure issues and trying to figure out ways to keep out the animals. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Maynard School

2011-01-16T06:13:00.000-08:00

I started working on remodeling the Maynard School house this week. It is a one room school house built sometime in the mid 1800's. We use the building as a township meeting hall. It isn't currently being used as a school house although several of the township members went to school there.

The building is 22' wide and about 30' long. It is divided in

four parts with a wall about 6' back that contains three rooms: A middle entry area and two closets to either side. There is a view inside one of the closets in the first picture.

the building has lot of leaky windows and no insulation, which has made it hard to warm the building up for meetings and elections, which are it's primary uses.

The building still has some of the old school desks and the original slate blackboard(which we hope to put back up). As we tore the board off there was another smaller board under it which seemed to have a thin black coating on they were able to use chalk on. This board had a few people's
names on it and the date of November 1901. I assume that might be the day it was covered with the other slate.

I will continue to take pictures of the destruction of the interior walls and keep you posted on its progress. I plan on having some more details and maybe stories from people who went there to school.

Oh yeah, almost forgot. It has a school bell that works. I know cause I climbed into attic and rang it. I could almost see the kids running to school as it rang out. Not too many school bells are still hanging in their respective school buildings so this is a great find.

The old piano you can see in one of the pictures I am afraid is beyond repair at least musically. Unless someone really dedicated to spending the kind of money it would take to fix it loved doing it. It is probably not worth doing much to. So far I have mostly been covered by the dirt and animal debris falling on me as I strip the walls down to the bare frame inside. Getting this building animal proofed and structurally good will be a lot of work, but a fun job. I took a short video of it and will post that separately in next blog.

Mountain girl, logging out.

Leetonia Christmas 2010

2010-12-25T13:31:00.000-08:00

Today is Christmas in Leetonia. We had some snow flurries, but there is not much in the way of snow up here yet. It is common for us to get our heavier snows in January and February. One Christmas it rained and that really dampened the Christmas Spirit. I thought you might enjoy listening to the sounds of Buck run as you finish your Christmas celebrations.

We spent a quiet Christmas at home warmed by a fire. Lee was warmed by a fever. Unfortunately, Santa brought her the flu for Christmas. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

P.s. Vote for Pine creek as best river you will have to go through descriptions of rivers to get to voting.

Leetonia missed it

2010-12-22T09:34:00.000-08:00

Well as you might have guessed I have been gone for three weeks working. I worked in Iowa and Illinois and visited relatives while there. On the way home it was a mixture of weather. The first picture was taken in Salmanca, N,Y, at a McDonalds. It doesn't seem anyone has been picnicking there. They got the lake effect and looks like at least a couple feet on the tables.

The lake effect was heavy on 86 just north of Erie until I got to Olean then it pretty much dropped off to what you see in the picture from my front yard.

A mix of bare areas to a couple inches of covering. The roads have a few icy spots under them especially near pine trees. If you are coming up to camp over the holidays have a good 4 wheel drive vehicle and the ability to put chains on when needed.

After working a week and a half in Iowa, I can tell you it is at the bottom of my list for places to live. Just wide open areas of wind blowing snow and cold at you. I managed to be there during a cold snap below zero temps and 50 mph winds. When I got up in the morning the snow packed between the storm door and the regular front door.

Scooter went with me and he was not impressed either lifting one foot at a time as they froze trying to get it warm.

The high point was when I finished in Iowa I got to visit grandkids in Illinois. Four of them can wear you out faster than any construction job. I left them pleading for me to stay just one more day or take them with. It is always hard to leave when they do that to you.

There is something about sleeping in your own bed nestled in the woods that is very comforting. Lee and I will celebrate with some good food and a day off. There is no major storms scheduled between now and Christmas so don't look like any hardships of travel will be in order.

I will post something Christmas day from the woods have a great celebration with family where ever you live. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off and loving living in Leetonia.

Rain to winter wonderland

2010-12-01T10:32:00.002-08:00

Rain has been continuous for a couple days resulting in overflowing creeks. Pine Creek at Cedar Run was at 2.5 feet yesterday and as of 2:00 PM today it is at 9.5 feet. Shortly after taking these pictures in the rain it started changing to a wintry mix and then snow. As of this writing there is an inch of wet snow on the ground. The roads seem to be good at this point.

The TV went out so I had to knock the snow off the satellite dish. Usually that does the trick so we now have reception.

Paula will be busy for the next few weeks so I will try to post for her. Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving. Maybe some of you will be able to take a break from the Christmas rush and come to Leetonia to recharge. We would like to thank all our faithful readers. The other mountain girl logging off.

Buck Run Ram Pump

2010-11-25T07:17:00.000-08:00

This Ram pump has been working at the Buck Run Camp down the road from me for 38 years. It pumps water by collecting the water upstream and compressing air inside of the bell until enough pressure builds up to release ram and pump water up to cabin. The cabin is at least 20' vertical climb above stream. The water runs continually into the sink as there is no way to turn it on and off. As you can see they keep a bucket in sink to have a reservoir to get larger amounts at once.

It is amazing to watch this pump work in person as the combination of the sound of the stream and the splish, splash of the pump is hypnotizing. Just another way leased camps who aren't allowed to have a well get fresh water free to their camp. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Dog days of winter

2010-11-21T12:17:00.000-08:00

When the nights get cold and the days a bit brisk the dogs move a bit closer to the fire. Speck the littlest one gets a bit too close sometimes and has to make a quick retreat when he starts to smolder.

Thor prefers a softer and safer location from the heat and constant loading of firewood. All the dogs get much quieter when the stove is stoked and the room is almost uncomfortably warm.

It got down to 22 last night and didn't warm up much above freezing today. I will say I have to agree with the dogs that there is nothing like a warm fire on a cold day. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

First day of bear season.

2010-11-20T05:37:00.000-08:00

November 18, 2010

The heaviest black bear ever recorded in Pennsylvania was shot and killed just north of Fernwood Resort in Pike County on Monday.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission confirmed that David Price of Barrett Township killed the 17-year-old bruin, which had an estimated live weight of 879 pounds. The bear had a field-dressed weight of 744 pounds.

Price's bear was 15 pounds heavier than a bear which was killed in 2003 weighing 864 pounds. That bear was also shot in Pike County .

“This bear could be No. 1 in the world,” said PGC Information and Education Supervisor Tim Conway.

After 60 days, the bear's skull will be measured to be determined where it will stand in the record books. The world record skull is over 23 inches, Conway said.

The above was copied from an email I received.

This is the biggest bear I have ever seen. We have had a few shot weighing in the 600lb range around here. Today is first day of bear season. The dogs are always unhappy because they can't go out front. They don't like all the noise and people associated with the bear hunt either. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Visitors to Leetonia

2010-11-14T20:28:00.000-08:00

The picture to the left is of Charles John Schwab 1887-1919 born in Leetonia, Pennsylvania. His grandson named after him contacted me through reading the blog and came to Leetonia to see where his grandfather was born and died.

Charles Schwab worked for the lumber yard and loaded the trains with logs. As he was tightening a chain on logs it broke throwing him under the wheels of the train. The train severed his left leg close to the him and severely crushed his hip. He was being hauled to Williamsport for care but died by the time they reached Cedar Run. Charles John Schwab was latter buried in the Wellsboro cemetery. Just the day before in Leetonia, Jacob Matthews a brakeman for the railroad also had a serious accident crushing his foot. He did however survive his accident. It is a reminder of how perilous working in the logging and railroad business was and still is.

I took the grandson, John, and his wife around Leetonia showing them some of what is left and pointing out where things used to be. Leetonia is a far cry from what it looked like in the days of John's grandfather. The whistle of the train has long stopped, the sound of the lumber mill silent and the smell of tanning fluid gone. But there is something about Leetonia that still stirs the imagination of things past. Sometimes it is so real you think you can hear the whistle and feel the joy and pain of the people who scraped out a living in Leetonia. One of our last stops was at the graveyard. Flags decorating the soldiers graves and a sober reminder that life didn't always make it past childhood as you look at the long line of infant graves up the side of the mountain. It is a bit of a hike up the steep slope of the cemetery and I was asked why didn't they bury people where it was flat? My only answer is flat is a premium space around here and it was generally used for building and work. I guess eternal rest was best in another space. It was also close to the school/church building that no longer exists.

Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Fall and Firewood

2010-10-31T12:50:00.000-07:00

Well I finished cutting the Tri-axle load of wood today. It will be about 10 full cords when split and stacked. Since this wood is for next year I can take my time splitting it, although I would like to have it done by late Spring so it can dry out good during the summer sun.

The wood for this year is neatly stacked under the two porches around the house to keep it out of the snow and rain. We will use up the wood by Spring and once again complete the cycle necessary to keep the house warm during the winter. We generally burn any where from 6 to
8 cords of firewood each winter.

My brother, Rob, was up over the weekend and I took him to the Leonard Harrison canyon view. You can see by the picture down the canyon that most of the leaves are gone from the trees. It was a brisk day and it is always windy at the overlook.

The smell of firewood burning in the cabins over the weekend was thick in the air. It reminds us winter is not far off.

I like my winters with snow. Snow you can ski on not ice. But so many winters we get snow and then it melts and freezes into an ice slick. The worst is freezing rain. This turns our tricky narrow roads into a nightmare. There isn't a person up here that doesn't have a story of a frightening slow trip down the mountain roads.

The slow economy gave a bit of a punch to all the businesses around here. Most aren't doing too good except for the ones who have picked up some of the gas workers business. We are all hoping next year will be the end of empty pockets. But regardless, people who leave here are used to tough times and they will make it through better than most. One thing no one can take away from us is this beautiful country we live in. On a cool day with the sun shining through the forest, breathing the scent of pine you feel rich indeed. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Turtle Camp

2010-10-16T14:10:00.000-07:00

This picture was sent to me by Jeff Keys who has a place on Painter Leetonia Rd. It was taken sometime late 60's or early 70's of the Turtle Camp also on Painter Leetonia Rd.

The turtle camp got its name from all the turtle shells hanging from the camp. The camp has fallen over since this picture and there is a trailer behind it. A little reminder nothing lasts forever.

If you have any old pics of camps feel free to email them to me I will be happy to include them in this blog.

Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Fall drive up Cedar Mountain

2010-10-13T15:10:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful day today in the woods of Pa. The day started with a hard frost and as the air warmed the vapors from the melting frost formed clouds in the valleys. Then the sun burned everything off and we were left with a beautiful blue sky background the the colorful trees.
The ladybugs haven't been too bad yet, although they have been known to come on warm October days with a vengeance. The leaves are falling fast and the bucks are moving quickly in search of mates for next year's fawns.
The bucks will burst across the road in front of you almost anytime of day searching for that special doe. The archers are out looking as well for that perfect buck. Tomorrow and Friday looks like rain and I even heard some nasty rumors of snow. But the weekend looks dry and perfect for campers looking to have some fun before winter. I will probably be cutting the rest of my logs over the weekend. With each leaf that falls its a reminder that summer is over and winter will soon be here. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

The Sun is back and so are workers

2010-10-07T05:37:00.000-07:00

Today the Sun peeked out for the first time in nearly a week. I will be able to catch up on all my outside work in the next few days.

Also the coring machine showed up in my front yard again. They are taking core samples to find out what they need for making the footings for a new bridge. The bridge work won't happen for two years. I guess according to our township supervisor from planning to building a bridge takes around five years.

Another bridge will be in the construction phase starting next May and its a big one. The steel bridge in Watrous will be impassable starting in May and probably for most of the summer. This means we will be detoured through Galeton or have to go to Cedar Run and up to get to Wellsboro all next summer. Well the fog has lifted and I am packing up to go to work. Scooter is excited he has missed going to work for 5 days. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Wet weather continues

2010-10-06T06:37:00.000-07:00

Well, we have had a streak of wet weather since last Saturday. Everything I planned on doing outside has been put on hold. It looks like tomorrow it will be dry enough to bring the electric tools back out and finish some projects. I have a porch I am putting on in Cedar Run. It will have a steel roof and it is nice to get steel done before we have any ice or snow. There is nothing slipperier than a wet or icy steel roof.

The dogs have not liked this rainy weather much and have spent most of their time sleeping on the couch. They run out for a bit and right back in. I am sure they will be glad for a sunny day too.

The deer have all changed colors to their winter brownish-gray coat. I have seen quite a few small deer moving around and a lot of turkey. I suspect the small ones are this year's fawns, freshly out of their spotted coats.

I haven't made any progress on my wood pile for the last few days either. I have about twenty full logs left to cut up into short pieces. Once they are shorter they will dry faster even if we don't get them all split before winter. Driving through the woods even in the rain is beautiful right now with all the color. I am sure it will even be nicer when the sun comes back. Looks like the weekend will be dry but cool with temps not getting much out of the 60's and mostly in the upper 50's for highs. The creek is up above 3...great for you experienced canoers, I would expect the water to drop to a nice level for most people to have a great time in the creek this weekend. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Water, wood and weather

2010-10-03T07:45:00.000-07:00

The last day of September, mother nature tried to catch up on the rain all in one day. We had four inches of rain. Pine creek started at around 1 foot high and went to 7 foot in a matter of a eight hour period. It is now back down around 2.84 nice day for a canoe trip. The first picture was taken on Oct 1st in the morning at Cedar Run.

We are busy cutting, splitting and stacking wood for the winter. It got down to 30 the other night and I awoke to a white frosty substance covering the grass. A little reminder winter isn't far away. It is hard when it goes from eighty to thirty, but the change in weather always seems to do that to us.
I am a little over half way through my tri-axle load of logs. I have about 30 left to cut. Those will be used next year as they have to dry. Although, I did notice a few dead logs that might be useable this year. The load they delivered was mostly ash and beech. Those will dry much faster than oak, but not burn as hot. The red oak we have for this winter has dried for about 3 years, which seems to be about right for that wood. It is very slow to cure, but a good burner once it does.

The trees are changing and dropping leaves, which doesn't make for long color. Spring and Fall are some of the nicest times of year here cause the bugs aren't hanging around. The color is
pretty in Fall, but, with winter around the corner, seems to put a bit of a damper on it. Spring heralds the end of snow so I lean towards liking it the best.

If anyone feels like they need a bit of extra exercise feel free to come bye and split some wood. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out and starting the chain saw.

Fall is here

2010-09-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

I took this picture off the bridge at Cedar Run looking South. It was getting a bit dark so it is a little hard to see the color changes, but they have already started. Seems like many of the trees are changing and losing their leaves quickly so I am not sure the fall color will be very good this year.
The creek is very low and you can walk across it almost everywhere. We have had a very dry summer and so far the rain we get has been light.
The second picture is something I found funny. As I was driving in to get some lumber, a flagman stopped me for some road construction. I couldn't help but laugh and the combination he wore.
The required blaze orange top to be seen, but his
pants were camouflage. Clearly, a contrasting message did he want to be seen or not? The conclusion is up to you. I did ask him about his attire and his reply was: "They only said I had to wear this top."
This one will go under my file, "Only in the Pennsylvania wilds." Lee didn't think this was as funny as I did. Guess I am easily amused. Well, its back out to cut firewood. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Storm dumps tree on Cabin

2010-09-22T15:35:00.001-07:00

Lee, I and my mom who is visiting from Iowa went to Williamsport today shopping. While we were there a bad thunderstorm hit with high winds. My thoughts always start thinking about getting back to cabin.I didn't bring the chain saw and knew if the winds hit at home as strong as Willliamsport, I might have problems getting back.

As we were traveling up 414 after Waterville and just before we got to Jersey Mills we saw Mariano's log cabin holding up a couple of white pines. Since they were there I stopped and asked them about it. Mr. Mariano said he had been at a doctor's appointment when Johnny Stoltzfus saw the trees on his house and called him.

Mr Mariano's believes if his house would have been anything but full logs it would have given way to the weight of the trees. The tree trimmers were on their way to remove the trees when I took these pictures.

As we came farther North there seemed to be less debris on the road and nothing for us to remove all the way home. Ron, my step dad who had stayed at home said we had hardly gotten any rain and no wind. You never can tell even in a short distance here about the difference in weather. But I was happy to get home without a hitch. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

How Bear Mountain Camp began 1937

2010-09-13T16:06:00.000-07:00

It was around 1933 during the great depression that so many of the hunting camps got their start here in the Tioga Forest. Where else could you lease some land to build a camp on for $10 a year. Hunting provided food during the depression to many a families and cheap meat was a welcome addition to the diets of many. Of course chasing a big buck or bear through the woods and mountains did add a bit of fun and danger to getting meat for the family, which drew men and women who loved adventure.

Abe Grube was born in 1896 in Lititz, Pa. His dad owned a farm that had been handed down from a grant by William Penn. The farm life wasn’t adventurous enough for Abe and at eighteen he packed up and jumped a train to Illinois where he worked on a ranch until he was drafted for WWI. He went home so he could deploy from there. It was not to be though the war ended three weeks before he had to leave. So he went back to helping his dad on the farm.

But Abe’s adventurous spirit made him keep an ear open for new adventures. Abe loved shad and often bought it from a local Fish Peddler. The Peddler drove a model T Ford Truck with a wooden box on the back filled with ice and shad he caught in the Susquehanna River. Looking over the fish, Abe said, “You know what I like even better than shad?”

The Fish Peddler shook his head.

“Venison.” Abe said. “I’m just not happy with the area I’ve been hunting in.”

“Where’s that?” The fish Peddler asked.

“Salisburg, it’s just not wild. I like a place a little rougher.”

“If you want something rougher I can tell you where to go. As a boy I worked in a Leetonia sawmill. Now that there’s some rough country…and good huntin.”

The fish peddler had Abe’s interest.

“How do you get to this Leetonia?” Abe inquired.

“Well ya go up 287 to 414 to Cedar Run then follow the creek up Leetonia is about 7 miles up the creek, but there is a nice camping area up about three miles on the left. It has a little pavilion and water for campers.” (This area is just to the North of the intersection of Fahneystock and Leetonia Roads on the creek side of road. It was closed sometime in the 70’s or 80’s).

The seed of adventure planted; Abe, Abner and Wayne Grube make the trip up to the Leetonia area. Their truck splashed through cedar run creek as they made their way up the rough road. In the dark, Abe the camping area and waited for light to see if the Fish Peddler had been right. When light came into the canyon area he noticed a nice trout stream and two steep mountains on either side of him. Down the road a bit was a camp called Blossburg(now the Nightengale) and not strangely enough the men were from Blossburg and new the area well. They helped Abe and his brothers explore the new found area. It was rough climbing those hills to find game and well worth the effort. Bear, turkey, deer and trout abounded. Abe knew he found his place.

Abe’s brother Abner owned a garage in Rothsville. Many young men hung around the garage and they had one thing in common they loved adventure and hunting. It wasn’t long before there was band of twenty camping in tents for three years in the hollow below Fahneystock road. (First Picture) It gets cold here during hunting season and I am sure no one dared to complain or they would sounded like a weakling. Abe had noticed a pile of wood near an area up the Fahneystock Road. It looked like someone had started a camp and never finished it. So when the game warden came by Abe asked him about it.

“How come that lumber is piled up near the clearing?”

“Someone started to build a camp then quit. I think the wood is mostly rotten. Are you interested?”

“Well, what you got to do to build here?”

“It is just a $10 a year lease for 99 years and you can build a small cabin.”

This was too good to be true, Abe thought.

Then the Warden added, “You can have that spot with the wood if you want.”

Abe didn’t have to think twice and said. “Done.”

The Warden walked off a square plot of land or as near square as you can without a transit. He put up stones in the four corners drew up the permit to lease and took Abe’s ten dollars.

In the Oct of 1937 they were ready to build. Each of the twenty men chipped in $35 to buy materials. Supervised by Wayne Grube a carpenter, the project moved quickly. On the first day, twenty men had the floor and walls up before it got dark. The country was still suffering from the effects of the Depression so money was tight. The single men who didn’t have families to support were able to get a room at the Cedar Run Inn, but the married one got the second option sleep on the floor they just finished. When they awoke in the morning they had two blankets on them one was white and cold. They had one of our October snows. After a morning fire and some food the work resumed and the cabin was buttoned up with a roof.

Shortly after the building of the camp many of the young men were drafted into the Second World War. They picked up some older members to fill the roster. Most of the men had shotguns as few could afford a good gun. Abe knowing that wouldn’t do went out and bought two 30-06 Springfield rifles for $90. The guys took turns using them. In fact, the first bear was shot with one of those guns by Landis Mull. The older members are shown in the group picture of the bear sandwiched between two deer. This picture was taken down state were they would butcher the animals they shot during hunting season.

Members have changed over the years. Bear Mountain could only hold twenty members. People unable to get into Bear Mountain camp built new camps during the time leases were still being offered. So in a way one person’s dream sprung many branches in these mountains. One thing has stayed the same everyone who comes up loves these mountains, the challenge of hunting them, or just enjoying a few moments of silence. The camp now has a phone and electric, but still sports the outhouse as per regulations of leasing from the State. No septic or well can be drilled on State leased camps. Bear Mountain enjoys a spring, which like many camps gives them enough water for cooking eating and the occasional bath. Bear Mountain started as and adventure and continues to be for the adventurous at heart.

First Picture (Taken in early 30’s)

First row left to right

Wayne Grube, Milt Shob, Raymond Singer

Second row left to right

Galen Stump, Game Warden, Wayne Young, unknown, Abner Grube, Brian Grube, Abram R. Grube

Second Picture (Taken in 40’s)

Front row left to right

Jim Grube, Jake Adams, Lot Mumms, Bill Adams, Wayne Grube, Mute Frymyer, Henry Conrad, Landis Herr

Second row left to right

Wilson Grube, Bob Conrad, John Styer,Leroy Millinger, Sam Hoover, Landis Mull, Horace Keller, Abe Grube

Beagle Update!

2010-09-05T12:56:00.001-07:00

The Beagle was found by a couple lost girls who also found their way. Sam sure was happy to find the beagle. We appreciate him letting us know. Thanks.

Dog Alert

2010-09-05T05:12:00.000-07:00

Sam Miller lost his beagle dog yesterday near the Beecher Hollow area up Painter Leetonia. Its a male no tags. If you see it contact me immediately. It is tough to loose your dog up here. So many things for a dog to get into trouble with and so few people to help.

Walking bridge

2010-09-02T08:00:00.001-07:00

This is one of the pictures given to me by John Grube. He believes this is Gene Garber walking on the top rail of the bridge over the swimming hole in front of the Nightengale Camp. He wasn't sure who the other person was standing on the bridge.

This bridge disappeared right about the time of hurricane Hazel in 1954. Unfortunately, it was never rebuilt. It was originally built by the CCC in the 30's. I still think it is about time for another CCC to restore some of these treasures and improve our roads, and trails of the State Forest. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Happy Anniversary to the Grubes

2010-08-31T12:55:00.000-07:00

John and Joann Grube are up at camp today celebrating their 53rd anniversary. All I can say is they must have got married at 10 they look great.

John stopped by here earlier today and asked if I wrote this blog. He don't do computers but was told I liked information about Leetonia. I went to their place this afternoon and got some great photos and some good history, which I will be sharing later when I put it all together.

Thanks to John and his wife for sharing this special day with me. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Firewood time

2010-08-30T14:11:00.000-07:00

One advantage of living in the woods is firewood. We heat mainly with wood as the propane company will not deliver to us in the winter.

I used to run around the woods(with a permit, State don't let you just pick it up) and find wood. It can be a long, costly job, that is often hindered by weather. Then I found out the local loggers would deliver a tri-axel load which amounts to about 10 cords after you split it.

Now I can run out even if it is muddy and cut wood. It is still a big job even with the splitter, but it is part of living here.

There are two seasons up here firewood gathering season and firewood burning season. Sometimes the two overlap a bit in Spring and Fall. There is nothing like the feeling of seeing a long row of neatly split wood, stacked and ready for winter. It makes you feel rich. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out and cutting logs.

Weed or feed?

2010-08-28T09:56:00.000-07:00

A few seconds before I took this picture several finches were making a meal of this weed. They were too shy to appear. Sometimes we are so quick to get rid of weeds we find unappealing that provide food to our feathered friends. I know I am guilty of cutting way more down than I should. Then what do you do buy food to feed the birds to replace the natural food you eliminated.

The multifloria rose I hate with a passion provides cover for rabbits and nesting turkeys. It also provides a mid-winter snack of berries when food source it low. Unfortunately after the turkeys eat the berry they spread the seed inside somewhere else to grow again. Good for them...not so good for me.

The hummingbirds maxed out with new babies this last month and the males have already headed south to stake claim to a winter territory. It was 42 this morning and even though we have more warm before winter it does remind you that colder weather is on its way.

My foot is healing up well and I am able to walk on it some. Although, the doctor wanted me to stay off it 2 weeks, I will be lucky to follow his instructions. We are starting to think about wood for the winter(next years we have this years) and have been wondering when a load of logs promised over a month ago will show up. Loggers have been working in the area and I found the best way to get firewood is to have a tri-axle load dropped off so we can cut and split it here. It is much faster and easier on my truck and body then running all over the woods. I figured out the time and money I spent looking for it cost me more than the tri-axle delivered.

It is a beautiful day today and I hope to spend a little of it outside. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Another way to get hurt!

2010-08-23T14:17:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I am able to come up with so many ways to get a few days off...but this is a douse.
I have a brush cutter that looks like a saw blade on the end of a weed whacker. The blade has a guard behind it and I thought that would keep things from flying back at me.
I will admit I should have been wearing steel toe shoes, but I am not sure that would have stopped this wire or maybe it would have deflected it into some other part of my body.
I was trimming Sumac on the side of a hill near the neighbor's camp. When I heard a snap and felt what I thought was a rock hitting my left foot hard. It was like someone had taken a sledge to my foot. I turned the trimmer off and got down on my knees banging the ground with my fist. I tried to put a little weight on my foot and thought for sure it was broken. I scooted down the hill through the cut brush and when I got to stand up, I was shocked to see about 10 inches of wire coming out of the side of my foot. Every time the wire moved it gave me a nice hint we were heading to the ER. I hopped to the truck and drove the 1/4 mile home, hopped in and informed Lee of the new afternoon plans. She got the dogs put up and helped me to the car, then said, "Are you sure we can't pull it out ourselves."
"I don't know?" I said, "Put a little pressure on it and I will tell you."
She came over and unlaced my shoe and pulled the tongue back. You could see the wire was definitely in my foot. Lee grabbed a hold of it and I almost immediately said, "STOP! That thing is in there. I don't know if it is buried in my bone. I think we should get an x-ray before anyone pulls on it.
So we went on the one hour trip to the ER in Wellsboro. Every time that wire moved a little a wave of pain would go through me. I tried to think of anything else, but it was difficult. Wellsboro Soldiers and Sailors hospital is small and the good thing about small is you don't have to wait long. It was less than a half hour from the time I hopped in until they had an x-ray.
The nurse didn't say much except," Its in there pretty good. "
The last picture shows exactly the path through my foot the wire took. It came in on the top of my foot just below my little toe crossed the top, and I believe hit one of the long foot bones and went down between them an out the bottom.
Well, when the doctor came back, he didn't think it had gone all the way through. He told me he couldn't give me a local unless he got the shoe cut off and cutting the shoe off was going to hurt. I said, "Just pull it out."
As he started to pull one inch out, I was shocked to see more and more coming out. All together about two inches of wire was in my foot. He briefly looked at the bottom of my foot and proclaimed it hadn't gone through. But Lee said, "It had to go through there is blood on the bottom of the sock and the bottom of the shoe." Sure enough when he looked again there was a small hole that had stopped bleeding. "Well, I guess it did go through," he said in a tone that made us think he didn't like to be corrected.
He squeezed the wound and injected it with a local more that hurt worse than pulling it out. Of course I got the another tetanus shot, a antibiotic shot, some pain pills, and wrapped up. Lee said, I seemed a bit happier on the way home and talked a lot. We had to return a couple days later for another kind of antibiotic to stop the flaring up. However, today it is looking good and I think in a couple days, I will be able to get my shoe back on. I am sure the bruising I took will last a bit longer. Looking at that wire and how far it went into my foot, I am thankful it didn't hit some other part of my body. Mountain girl, Paula, logging, and limping off.

Gas Well expansion on Pigeon Hill Rd

2010-08-23T14:06:00.000-07:00

I am not exactly sure what all the equipment and tanks are on Pigeon Hill Rd, but it looks like an industrial zone. Bravo Button who had a lease with the gas company and has three different well sites on his property said he had no idea they would build this. It has been a year and a half since they started drilling and it looks like another six months before any kind of royalty checks will be seen by most the local participants. Lets hope the checks make up for seeing this everyday on your once open cornfield.
They have started drilling on Thompson Hollow Rd. coming into the forest. So far a few local wells that I know about have been contaminated. One in Stony Fork can lite his water. Don't think it is good to drink do you?
Our creek water tables have been very low this year and we haven't had a lot of rain, but they are also taking a lot of water for drilling. How do you know what is causing the low water in Pine Creek? Maybe both things. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.