Finishing off year 46 in the ADK -- happy birthday to me (and Aunt Mary)

As I drove to the Adirondacks on Monday August 4th to start a four night adventure with my nine year old wing man/son Will (or maybe I'm his wing man), I got a text from my cousin Jim (I should say I got the text while at a rest stop on the NYS Thruway).

Sometimes Jim uses me as a real life Siri/google and was looking for our Aunt Mary's address to send her a gift.  It occurred to me Aunt Mary's birthday was the fourth which is probably why Jim wanted her address, so en route I asked Jen to put out the Irish flag and take a picture.  One of the traditions I've taken over for my late father is flying the Irish flag on our relatives' birthdays. 

I figured it was a modest ask of Jen who had gotten Will and me packed up for a combo two-night camping and two night hotel/waterpark trip and was now getting a short respite from the adoring men in her life.  After snaking down the Thruway, we hung a right at Utica to head North on Rts. 12 and 28 toward the Adirondacks, or as I refer to them, the ADK.  We made the obligatory stop in Alder Creek for some ice cream at the Kayuta Drive in though for some reason our family still calls the place the Chippewa. 

A couple stops for provisions in Old Forge and Eagle Bay and we arrived at Brown Tract Pond (BTP) state park http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/24456.html  near Raquette Lake about 4 pm to catch up with my sister Ellen, brother-in-law Mike and the youngest four of their five daughters.

After setting up camp, we checked out the beach, a short stroll from our lakeside campsites with Ellen's youngest two, the twins, Nicole and Lauren.

At dinner I mentioned the flag tribute for Aunt Mary to Ellen, who informed me Aunt Mary's birthday is November 4th -- at least I had the day of the month right!

After dinner we had the first in a two night doubleheader of smores, which from the photo you can see Will and Nicole enjoyed.   Though I'm sure purists might object, we introduced the Adamses to our alternative version where we use Reeses or white chocolate.  Around the campfire we sang some songs while sitting on each others' laps and Will offered to tell a scary story.  "I assume it's an appropriate story?" I asked Will.  "Well it has a lot of dead animals," Will replied.  We decided to pass on the story.

Brown Tract Pond isn't easy to get to, but it's worth the effort -- it's quiet (no motorized watercraft) and pristine.  We had adjoining campsites, with Ellen and her family on the bluff with their pop-up camper with Will and I below in our tent, only steps from the water.

This is the third summer Will and I have gone camping, though the first joining forces with anyone, and one of our traditions is the early morning "polar bear" swim (I know those same smores purists might contend it needs to be winter to count as "polar bear").

The early morning plunge (which substitutes as a shower, as there are none at BTP), definitely helps you work up an appetite for a hearty camp breakfast (thanks to Jen for the pour and cook pancakes which I made on the camp stove I received for Father's Day)

After breakfast clean up (you can't leave food around as it attracts the bears!) it was time for a hike around the lake, a tradition of the Adamses, wiley BTP veterans (although we have have visited them there before, we've never camped with them).  BTP attracts an interesting array of campers and I couldn't help but take a photo of one of the more interesting creatures as we began our hike.

Of course no hike is complete without snacks (isn't that the point?)!  And the Adamses have a great rest spot on a rock that juts into the lake about halfway through the hike where we took a lot of photos including one of my nieces Becca and Jessie smiling.  "Mom, take a picture of me and Jessie smiling," Becca suggested strongly (demanded).

After the hike it was time for lunch and an early afternoon swim.  

There was actually some down time that afternoon and then it was time for one of the highlights of any trip to BTP -- jumping off the big rock on the island.  We loaded up the canoes (Will and I had rented one) and paddled out to the small island in BTP to jump off the rock.  I risked rinsing my iPhone in order to document the trip.

Will after a successful jump

Nicole showing her diving form

Took a couple attempts, but here is documentation of the group jump with everyone (except me)

Will and I totally showing off for a Mountain Dew moment as my friend Tom Cooney suggested after Jen posted it on Facebook

Getting ready to head back to camp with a smile that says, "I conquered the rock"

After paddling back it was time for another camp dinner.  We combined forces between the two campsites for the meal.  I took the following two photos without moving position (yes, the hill was steep).

Uncle Thomas' Mac and Cheese was a hit

Another night of smores followed.  The next morning, Will and I did a polar bear plunge right outside our tent and though the water was a little shallow and mucky, we made the best of it.  After camp breakfast part two and clean up, we were taking a bunch of photos, so I had to hustle to pack up the campsite and get out of there by 11.  Will was busy doing some improvisational scene studies with the twins, but he was a good helper bringing gear up the hill.  

Me and big sis, Ellen

Even though we had to be out of the site by 11, Ellen and her crew had their site for the next evening, though they too were planning to leave that afternoon so we had lunch at their campsite as Mike Adams and I battled to empty out our coolers (hot dogs anyone?).  Will and the twins took another swim and then we played some frisbee (as Will can attest the frisbee has been omnipresent this summer) before departing.  

Though we all agreed about two days of camping was adequate (and we were highly fortunate with excellent ADK weather) it was a great couple days with Ellen and her family.  

The bonus for us is that we still had another two days in the ADK -- with family to boot, as we were meeting my sister Mary and her team down in Old Forge.  Somehow I managed to get most of our gear back in the roof bag and the car as at one point in the morning the car had a yard sale as Will foraged for water in the back.  

We drove South on 28 to Old Forge, timing it about right for 3 pm check in at the Water's Edge Inn before an afternoon session at the waterpark right across the street, Water Safari, http://www.watersafari.com/ If you enter the park after 3 pm, you get a free admission which we planned to use the next day.  We timed leaving BTP just about right as it allowed time to stop in Inlet, NY for ice cream at Northern Lights.  Growing up and for most of the last 9 years since we moved back East, Inlet has almost always been home base when in the ADK, so it was strange spending most of a week without being there.  A stop at the Lights took the edge off not being in Inlet.  

So Mary, my brother-in-law Dick and their daughters Sara and Marie were meeting us that afternoon for the waterpark.  They'd arrived just before us and we ran into them at the front desk.

As we changed into our swim gear in the room, first we had a quick check in via face time with Jen as we'd been incommunicado for two days -- no coverage at BTP.  In fact on Monday night before dinner, we took an ad hoc canoe trip to the middle of BTP to try and get cell service so I could let Jen know we'd arrived.  That didn't work so I borrowed Becca's car and drove just outside the BTP entrance toward Raquette Lake on the Uncas Road (which is dirt) to some high ground where there's a rock painted like an Indian and allegedly, cell service.  No luck again.  In for a penny in for a pound, I drove the two miles into the tiny town of Raquette Lake where I found just enough signal to get Jen a text that said we'd arrived, but that we'd be out of touch for a couple of days.   

At the waterpark, we usually start in the front with a warm up on Ragin' Rapids (bumpy single person tube ride, not too crazy or fast, a good warm up), a couple trips down the Shadow (fast single person twisting ride in a tube (not on one)) and then the Curse of the Silverback (a steep plunge before swirling down a funnel, usually on a two-person tube) before moving to the back of the park for Rondaxe Run and the Black River Falls (twin fast twisting rides, again, usually on a two person tube, known for hard splash downs at the bottom) There are other ones we sometimes mix in, but that's the usual program which we followed for a couple hours before Will and some of the others got the munchies at 5:30 for a pre-dinner snack -- the fries at WS are really good, but took the edge off the water rides, so we left soon thereafter.  

Not often that a nine year old boy's first request is a shower, but Will and I were both looking forward to one at Water's Edge before heading out to dinner.  Though 12 miles away, we backtracked to another Inlet favorite, Screamen' Eagle, which has good pizza and an astounding selection of beers on tap (I had the 21st amendment which was great).  

After dinner, we retired to the common room at Water's Edge to try out one my gamemaster niece Sara's games.  We settled on Encore (competitors think of songs with particular lyrics) and Sara and Will won the godparent-godchild showdown against me and my goddaughter, Marie.  

We didn't rush out to the park the next morning (they served a decent breakfast at Water's Edge) as Will and Sara talked Magic Cards over breakfast.  Will and I donned our suits ready for action, but we started with the dry rides, though not before getting the obligatory photo in front of Paul Bunyan.  While I was eager to hit the water rides while the lines were short, there was a reason they were short.  It was a pleasant enough ADK morning but not exactly jump in the water weather.  

On the dry rides, Sara was brave enough to go on Round Up with Will (though she didn't make the photo) and Will Sara and Marie went on Scrambler and Tilt-o-whirl.  We also had a rousing session of bumper cars (not shown).  

Round 'em up

Marie Will and Sara ready to go on Tilt O Whirl

Ill advisedly (probably) I  took this photo from the adjacent Tilt O whirl car

This one too

Ready to blast off on the scrambler -- taken from behind the ropes

Getting scrambled

More scramblization

After lunch at the Whistle Punk cafe, it was time for the water slides and we followed our usual routine starting at the front of the park with the Raging Rapids.  At this point we had one of the few rough weather patches for the week as it started raining pretty hard and people scurried about for cover, ironically many of them already wet in their bathing suits.

Will finishing the ride on the Raging Rapids in the pouring rain, as I ran over to catch a photo

The rain passed quickly enough so after a short break we hit the circuit, starting with the Shadow, one of my few chances to an action photo -- when you're an active participant at a waterpark it's tough to get many photos.  

The final turn on the Shadow

So after taming Curse of the Silverback and some time in the wave pool, Marie, Sara Will and I rode the Amazon, a big group tube ride (unheated water) and then we did a number of runs on the Rondaxe Run and Black River and mixed in one ride on Cascade Falls, another big tube ride that's got some game.

It was getting to about 4 pm and at this point the Militanos were getting ready to head back to Scotia (they weren't staying the night), and Will and I were hitting the wall -- while the downhill portion of the waterslides aren't too taxing, hauling the tubes up the walkways and stairs wears you out.  

We said good-bye to the Militanos -- it was great having partners in crime for our waterpark adventures and Will I returned to our room (bonus that it was directly across the street).  We warmed up in the showers and hung out in the room for a while before dinner.  Will watched a show on my iPad while I watched some of the PGA Championship on the TV with my eyes closed.  We walked in to Old Forge for dinner at Tony's Too -- it was a lovely evening and we ate outdoors and then had ice cream at the Pied Piper, right next to the Water's Edge.  We probably should have could have turned in early but instead we stayed up a bit and watched the Lego movie.  A clever movie, but one I may need to see again as I also watched portions of the movie with my eyes closed.

We didn't leave at the crack of dawn but we didn't exactly sleep in -- sleeping in not really part of Will's program.  I was actually fiddling around on the iPad after I'd gotten up and Will fell back to sleep, but after breakfast and jamming everything back into the roofbag and car hit the road by about 9:30 and were home by mid-afternoon.

It was a great trip and as it was Friday afternoon, we still had the weekend to celebrate my birthday (Sunday) and a whole three months to get ready for Aunt Mary's.

Oldfield -- a shark in sheep's clothing (or vice versa)

Returning to the 20th hole's golfing roots, I had the chance to play an excellent Greg Norman designed golf course called Oldfield on our recent family trip to South Carolina.

In South Carolina I always have a golfing partner in crime, my father-in-law Jack Baggette.  Jack's usual track is the Legends at Parris Island (yes, the Marine Corps' Parris Island), a fine low country test in its own right.  

Jack recently joined Oldfield, a gated community between Beaufort, SC, and Savannah near Hilton Head.  Situated on the Okatie River, Oldfield's course winds through the marshes and forests, and the community has a spacious feel with large lots and ample open space.   

The course has a similarly gracious feel to it.  For a course set within a residential community, at no point does it feel like the homes encroach on the course or that anyone's decks or backyards were in imminent danger.  

That's not to say the course doesn't have its share of trouble but in most cases there is either a place to bail out or the landing areas and targets are large enough to provide some margin for error.  The first is a good example of this with a wide fairway for the opening tee shot but also featuring a lake surrounded by tufts of marsh grass coming into play for longer drives and on the second shot.  Bunkers also guard the front and right of the green but there's a flat closely-mown chipping area behind the green.  The flat run off areas are a common theme on most of the green complexes.

The course really hits its stride with the fifth and sixth, back to back, stout par fours.  At the fifth, the fairway pinches in at a large live oak on the left before skirting a swampgrass tinged pond that guards the front right and circles its way around back.

The sixth is a shorter par four playing the opposite direction, that features a long waste area on the left and a tall tree guarding the left side of the green.  Our playing companion that day, the affable Ben from Texas, pointed out that with the large elongated greens, many holes can play very differently depending on the pin placement.  The sixth is one such hole with the pin at the back left hidden behind the tree guarding the green, it was nearly impossible to get it close on approach.

Seven is an unremarkable par 3 but typical in that it is a medium long one-shotter with a deep bunker left, but a large flat chipping area right and probably the only reason I mention it was that it marked my first par of the round and started a string of six pars in seven holes and eight of the next eleven, and anyone who's played with me in the last couple of years would know that is remarkable.

Eight is a moderate length par 5 that features a waste area running along side the entire length of the fairway which then curls in front of a bunker guarding the right front of the green.

The front nine ends with a big boy dogleg right par 4.  The hole has no bunkers or water, but it is one of the narrowest with the tree canopy encroaching on the fairway and a sloped green with one of the few steeply banked chipping areas left of the green.

While the front nine meanders through the trees, the back nine is a bit more compact laid out on a bulb of land formed by a large bend in the Okatie River.  The back nine is a little more open and a little less conventional, especially the stretch from 11 to 13.  The picturesque eleventh is par 5 that starts from an elevated tree with not a long (but not a short) carry over water to a wide fairway, which is narrowed by the bordering trees for the second shot.

The 12th is a risk reward par 4 with players facing the option of playing a straightforward mid-iron to the left, and then over water to the green, or being tempted to carry the water on the tee shot for a shorter approach to the green, which might even be reachable for long hitters.  I like this hole because "going for it" on the tee shot is not all or nothing.   The carry is not all that long, but a natural area with broomgrass hides the landing area between a waste bunker and the large trap that guards both the green and the landing area making it seem like a tougher shot than it is.

The 13th is a par 3 with water on the left and plenty of bail out room to the right which can lead to three-putts on the large green.

After a pair of solid par 4's at 14 and 15, 16th is a difficult par 3 with a long, forced carry over water, probably my least favorite hole.  While my low opinion may have had something to do with my rinsing my tee shot and barely clearing the water with my third shot which then plugged in the hazard after which it proceeded directly to my pocket (we were playing a team format), it really is the definition of a penal design.

Seventeen is another risk reward, nearly drive-able par 4 though not as interesting as 12, but the course really finishes with a bang at number 18 a double dog left (right then left) par 5 around a grove of trees with the approach to and the green itself guarded by the marsh on the left and a small inland pond (which I was surprised to fine with my second shot) on the right.  Another hole where the pin placement plays a key role in how the hole plays, the day we played, it was in its most difficult back left position on the long narrow green.

Oldfield is a very good course blending nicely with the natural landscape of marsh and forest.  There aren't a lot of elevation changes, but the course features a good variety of the low country landscape.  Though the nines have different feels to them, the contrast provides variety without feeling like you took a wrong turn at the turn.  With long waste areas, bunkers, and gator-filled water all over the place, the members can puff out their chests and point to the 130 slope from the white tees, but it also has large greens with generous chipping areas, and wide fairways that make it playable as well.

Here is the link to the course website which provides precious little information on or pictures of the course itself.  http://oldfield1732.com/lifestyle/golf/  In reminding myself of the layout as I wrote this the best resource I came across was this one from bluegolf.com which uses actual satellite imagery to show the holes.  http://course.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/course/course/oldfieldcc/aerial.htm

Istanbul, Monday February 11th

So after our free day in Istanbul, we had to rally the troops for our last day of sessions, a day in which I was the facilitator for the proceedings.  Our first stop was a visit to the headquarters of Migros, the largest grocery store chain in Turkey.  We left early to battle the infamous Istanbul traffic as travelled across the city, including a trip across the Bosphorus to Asia.  The photos below detail our commute. 

A car ferry not too far from our hotel

A passenger ferry on the Golden Horn as seen from the Galata Bridge

A bridge over the Bosphorus in the distance

On approach to the Bosphorus

Midway across the bridge over the Bosphorus -- I'm half in Asia and Europe while taking this photo :-). 

A business center in the Eastern part of Istanbul

We got to Migros headquarters early enough that we were able to tour one of their stores, a modern grocery store with a wide selection, very similar to what you would see in the U.S including a Krispy Kreme kiosk.  The produce section was a little bigger, the meat section had a different feel (less beef, no pork) and the frozen section was much smaller, but overall was very similar. 

We were fortunate to have the chairman of Migros, Bulend Ozaydinli as our speaker.  He told us how Migros gives all its managers iPads so they can work from the store floor, not back in an office.  They use technology for online ordering (far ahead of the U.S.) and self checkout as well, and he also told us some very interesting plans of the government for a bridge across the sea of Marmara, a second channel connecting the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea and a second city given that Istanbul had outgrown itself -- other than the bridge I'm not sure of the liklihood of the other two, but the ambition of the projects ring true.  Other than very mixed signals from the Chairman, his handlers and our tour guides as to how much time we had, it was a great visit. 

Despite the crazed look in my eyes, I meant him no harm and was actually about to thank him for speaking to our group with our traditional speaker gift, Cornell maple syrup. 

After lunch in the Migros cafeteria (don't think cafeteria food) and receiving a gift (minature Migros shopping carts with evil eyes in them), we travelled West again to the European part of Istanbul to Denizbank's training center.  Denizbank was a connection I arranged through CoBank and is the largest private agricultural lender in Turkey.  (Ziraatbank, a government entity is the largest). 

Another great visit as Denizbank is aggressively pursuing the widespread ag. market and can even do an instantaneous loan approval for a 3,000 TL ($1,800) line of credit by text message.   They provided simultaneous translators for us (with ear pieces) so it felt like we were at the U.N.  At one point when I was moderating the questions I got myself confused when I forgot to remove the ear piece and was listening to my question being translated to Turkish while I was asking it. 

En route to Denizbank on the European side, Istanbul is just a massive city. 

Reviewing my notes during the presentation of Gokhan SUN (not pictured) head of agribusiness banking at Denizbank

Modelling our spiffy new tam o'shanters (I'm sure they don't call them that), a gift from Denizbank.  We also received  lime green (the Denizbank ag. group color) ties and scarves

Our group with our Denizbank hosts (the two women front row far left and the three women front row far right)

Denizbank was also kind enough to let use their facility for our speakers from the U.S. consulate

Patrick Harnish, State Dept.

Ibrahim Sirtioglu, USDA Foreign ag. service

As if on cue, passing a Denizbank branch en route back to the hotel 

Followed by a Migros location

Cranes along sıde the Golden Horn

At the restaurant that nıght

A random shot of the mırror ın my hotel room whıch had a metal border wıth an outlıne of Istanbul's skylıne

Good bye Istanbul Turkey