Forest Fire near Slate Run

Picture taken from deck of Manor

There appears to be a forest fire on the General Store Side of Pine Creek. This picture was taken by the Manor from their deck. According to them it isn't out yet, but has gone over the mountain into the Bonner Run area. Lots of dry brush and trees down from tornado back in 2011. Hopefully, they will be able to get it out. No news as to what started the fire at this point. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

We have had rain since. And fire was contained in above occurrence near Slate Run.

Project progress

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.

Latest Project

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.

After and Before

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.

More Storm Pictures

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

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

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.

4th of July videos Part 1

Here is a little firework action from the bridge in Slate Run. Sorry it took so long to post. I have had trouble with uploading my videos. I must do this in two posts since they only let you post one at a time.

4th of July Celebration at Slate Run

This year I drove down to Slate Run to check out their fireworks. It was a clear cool night and the turn out was good. The fireworks has a major benefactor, Mitch and JoAnn. It is Mitch's birthday on the 4th and he celebrates by contributing the largest part of the donation to buy the fireworks. The rest is given by public donation and money raised at the small stand selling roasted banana splits. The banana splits have mini-chocolate chips, marshmallows, covered in whipped cream. A real diet buster.
The show started around 9:30pm and lasted about 45 minutes of a
stream of light and sound. They sang the Star-spangled banner to start it and since they were standing on the bridge at Slate Run it echoed off the mountains. It was a very unusual sound effect. I am sure there was at least a hundred cars parked around with 300-500 people watching, although it was difficult to tell since they were spread out so much. I probably took 50 pictures of the fireworks, and I am sharing a few with you here. Hope you all had a great 4th. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Journey into town

Yesterday, Thor and I went into Wellsboro and then down to Slate Run and Cedar Run. The first picture shows the narrows with our recent snow, the second picture was taken going over the bridge at Cedar Run and shows the ice break-up on the banks of Pine Creek.
Although it isn't long until Spring our recent 6 inches of snow and return to single digit overnight temperatures didn't make it feel like Spring. Today it is bright and sunny and in the 20's.
I got caught up with everyone in the Pine Creek Valley and it appears there has been a poaching rash. So far as many as nine deer(that they know of) have been shot illegally around the area.
The fresh snow makes it easy to see the activity of dragging out a fresh kill. This isn't something new to the area, but you have to wonder if the economy slump will make it even more common.
Thor is being trained as a Therapy Dog and is shown in the last picture with one of the residents of Country Terrace, Ester, who is the mother of a friend of mine. He enjoys the attention and the residents seem to love him. On his first trip he wasn't too sure about the walkers, but now is quite comfortable with them. In fact, he is so comfortable with them he noticed some of them had tennis balls on the bottoms of them. I had to let him know he could not play with those balls.
Most people barely notice he is missing a rear leg, but when they do want to know his story. When he is sitting it isn't at all noticeable, but when he walks he has a little hop step. At this point his basic obedience is good. I think I am going to have to come up with a few tricks he can do to entertain people as he adapts well to his challenges.
Right now going up and down more than 3 or 4 stairs is his most difficult challenge. He has to land that rear leg just right when coming down the stairs. Today we will walk down to Leetonia and do a little work. Mountain girl, Paula, logging out.

Christmas in the Valley

The SlateRun general store has a wonderful little Christmas Window I wish I could have taken a picture showing the whole thing but the glare on the window made it so I had to be close for a picture. The Santa looks like half the mountain men up here showing off their white beards. There is a cute cabin as well and many neat things in the store. Not many people were up yesterday and we had a nice chat with Tom and Deb Finkbinder the owners of the store. There is something special about the quiet slow nature of things this time of year that many of the locals look forward to.















I also took a great picture of Charlotte Dudkins tree at Cedar Run Inn. She does most of her decorating on Thanksgiving weekend and warns visitors not to eat the candy canes on the tree. She says they are at least four years old and probably wouldn't taste too good. She strings popcorn and cranberries as well, but says the cranberries look more like raisins when they dry out. Stanley was out working on the plow, which he says always runs in July and decides to come to a halt at the first snowflake. We are getting snow today with a combination sleet snow as of 2:30pm we had about 4 inches not near the storm they predicted. Of course locally it is considered a no storm the more it is talked about. It is the ones you don't hear much about that catch you waist deep in the white stuff. Have a wonderful Leetonia day. Mountain girl, Paula, logging off.

Slate Run Bear Rescue

Thanks to Shar at Slate Run for sending me these pictures of the baby bear rescue taken by Steve Dawson. There are two cubs total one looks a little brown. As I reported the mother and two cubs took a tumble over a steep embankment. The mother got out but the cubs couldn't make the climb without help. Wise onlookers called the DNR guys to give them a lift out.



Even though they look cuddly the DNR guy has leather gloves on for a reason. Soon they will grow and weigh a couple hundred pounds and be picking on Tom's dumpster..

Down the Creek...Pine Creek that is!

If you jump in Buck Run by our house and float down a mile to Cedar Run and then float down 8 miles to Pine Creek then down 5 miles you will be at Slate Run. Better wear a dry suit though the water still has a few ice cubes floating in it.

The First picture is Slate Run General Store and Orvis Dealer. For the non-fishing person, "Fishing Supply Shop." On our visit today we saw Cozette Stoltzfus, second picture, who works part-time for Tom and Deb Finkbinder, owners of the store. Tom was getting his eyes fixed so neither of them were around for pictures.

The fort was being held down well by their hard-working employee, Shar Bohnert. She was doing it all today, selling gas, groceries, gifts, making sandwiches, answering phone calls mostly asking about Tom's eye surgery.

This store is another great gem of our woods. Last week I called about getting some kerosine, since they closed at 5 pm and it was already 4pm. I knew it would be close. Lee and I jumped on the snowmobile for 8 miles, I jogged to the car the last mile, and shot down the creek 5 miles as fast as possible. I looked at the time it was 5:03PM, of course anywhere else you would have been out of luck. I reached for the first door locked, my heart sank, had I missed the cut-off? Then I saw Tom's car still parked in front, I went to the front door, still open.
Upon seeing me walk in, Shar said, "I told Tom you were coming and he said, leave the door open I will wait for her." Can you imagine any stores near you still being open three minutes after the closing time. I was very greatful desperately needing the kerosine for a heater at a camp.

The last two pictures show the tackle shop and the fanciest fly tying table I ever saw. Today at Slate Run, the animal talk centered around a mother bear and two cubs, apparently all of them fell over a steep embankment near the creek and much to onlookers dismay only the mother could climb out. Wisely, none of the onlookers attempted to rescue the cubs for fear of a non appreciative response from the mother.

The DNR was called and they scooped the cubs up into cages and brought them up to the mother. You've got to love a happy ending. Wish I had some pictures of that for the blog.

It got up to 80 degrees yesterday, and that was quite a shock from 30 degrees in the morning. The birds are busy making noise and the peepers were croaking loudly. It is easy to forget how quiet things are in the winter and how fast it changes with some warm weather.

The roads are clear but extremely muddy. If you don't like your vehicle dirty don't drive back the forest roads right now. Looks good for anyone wanting to see their camp this weekend.

Mountain Girl Road Update: Muddy and slippery and full of pot holes. Your car will need a bath after a visit back here.