Chautauqua Gorge, New York

I decided to spend another night at Chautauqua Gorge State Forest. It's over 500 Acres set aside near the Chautauqua area. I managed to seek out Jim and Pat Reno, potter's that I knew over many years while I did art shows in the area. They were only a few miles away. They weren't home when I arrived but managed to reach them by phone, and we enjoyed nearly 2 hours of deep conversation on many levels. I am now the proud owner of a Reno pot, which I will cherish, and think of them every time I use it. Even though it's been years, it's as if we never lost any time. I went back to the forest to seek out the gorge which was about a 10-minute walk straight down hill to the creek. The last 30 ft were quite challenging, as I scooted down on my rear end to get to the water. I managed to instantly find several fossils, though no crinoids stems, basically brachiopods and shells. It started to sprinkle, so I thought I would head back on a slightly different route, going up a wash. It was quite steep, but I managed to climb about halfway up before I found a treasure that I just had to have. It was about a 15" round flat slab fossil that was loaded with detail. So I managed to pull it out of the mud with one hand, and between my hiking poles and this fossil, I finished the climb to the top of this wash. I was breathing as if I had the ultimate aerobic workout. I continued up the hill with more breathing, and managed to reach the Sylver Gypsy. Fortunately, there was nobody around and I could take an unihibited shower at the back end of my RV. I felt quite accomplished with my fossil loot, and now added several more pounds to the weight of my RV. It was just an irresistible moment of being one with Mother Nature. There is still a big chunk that I left back there that I would have loved to have, except that piece probably weighed about 80 lb+. Maybe someday I can go back to see if I can find it.

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