August 1999 - The Margush Family New England Adventure

New York's I-81 took us through Syracuse by Wednesday afternoon. At Watertown we took to some side roads (Rte. 12) so we could drive along the shore of Lake Ontario. This road led to the lighthouse at Cape Vincent which held a strange attraction for me, being located right at the junction of the Saint Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. It also was a free site to visit, so was high on my list of potential stopovers!

We took a small detour into Lake Ontario, to Long Point State Park, thinking it might be a good place to camp. The park is located on a peninsula that wraps around a portion of the lake. Its unique and remote location had stimulated my curiosity. This turned out to be quite a long detour, and when we finally arrived at the camp we realized it was a pretty dull place- basically a parking pad for RV's. We turned around and headed back along the twisting 2-lane road that wound past miles of depressing scenery, then resumed our trek for the point.

Cape Vincent is a pleasant small town and we drove out to the point to visit the lighthouse. Although we were unable to go inside and climb to the top to see the actual light, we did visit the museum and listen to a recording of the fog horn that was used to warn ships away from the rocks. Route 12 turns East here to follow the Saint Lawrence river, and that is the direction we headed next. Cedar Point State Park, just a few miles up the road, turned out to be our destination. It had a small beach and shaded tent sites. This became our home for the next two nights.

The beach was the main attraction on Thursday. The water was cold, but the sand provided several hours of enjoyment. Sarah designed a Sand Family, using rocks, sticks, and feathers gathered from the area to enhance the facial features. Kayla and David enjoyed digging, building, and stomping. Kayla hated getting her hands dirty in the sand, so she made many trips to the edge of the water to wash them off. David enjoyed his newfound ability to swim (his hands easily reached the sandy bottom - if he stayed the right distance from the shore) and constantly called to us to watch him.

A nearby swingset called the children from the beach, but the beach quickly called them back. It was clear that they would all sleep well that night. All except Anna who used the opportunity to catch a few winks while the others played. She enjoyed staying up later to read by flashlight and listen to books on tape.

Thursday night the camp offered a sing-a-long. A local guitarist/singer came to the pavilion by the river to sing some songs. We arrived late as the swings along the way held the kids in chains for a little while, but it turned out for the best as no one sang along and the music was not very good anyway. We walked in darkness back to the tent to bring another day to an end.

Friday morning we packed up once more and headed for Alexandria Bay where there was supposed to be a Pirate Festival, complete with "Tall Ships." This turned out to be a disappointment as the festival must not have started till evening, so we had to continue on our way without partaking in the fun.

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