Kennerdell Overlook

We ventured off today to pay a visit to the Rockland Cemetery where Linda’s brother & parents are buried. We wanted to put some flowers out and clean up around their stones. Cousin Bonnie went along with us as her father is also buried here. After our tasks were done we wandered a little wonderin’ how many of the people with the same last name might be related to them. Linda said some day she would like to do some research on her ancestry.
After the cemetery we drove to the Kennerdell Overlook. Linda & I had come here before but it was rainin’ so hard we didn’t get out to see it, honestly I don’t remember it. The overlook is situated on a bend in the Allegheny River south of Franklin and Cranberry, were we are stayin’. The river runs through a deep mountain valley in this region and the overlook is quite spectacular.

This is the view to the north

Cousin Bonnie & I  and the southerly view

After the overlook we continued on to Kennerdell to check out a campground in the Clear Creek State Forest. Turns out the access road to the campground is gated off and you must have to walk in. So Bonnie suggested we go down the road further cause she thought there was a campground further down. Turns out it wasn’t couple a hundred yards down the road, a cute commercial camp between two creeks.
We continued on down the road and what do I spot over in a field? An operating oil well. These wells worked on a push rod system, back & forth, running several wells from one central motor.


There are still some of these operating around here if you can find them. Linda says these where everywhere when she was growing up here and they used to ride the push rods going back & forth, as well as make torches out of cat tails soaked in the oil that collected in barrels from the wells. You’d never know today that this was the home of Quaker State, Pennzoil & Kendall Oil Companies. There’s not a clue left, no offices, the refineries are all gone. The only evidence of the once strong oil industry is the clean up efforts that have been ongoing for many years.
Well that’s all for today. Until the next time. Hope to see ya down the road as we’re;

Dancin’ on the Wind.

The Pickle Packin’ Trial

Linda has been chompin’ at the bit to make pickles with her cousin Sandy for months. On the way up north after hearin’ that Sandy wasn’t able to find the seeds she likes for makin’ those pickles we were on a seed huntin’ expedition along with the clock huntin’ & sandal huntin’. We were able to find some seeds that we sent to Sandy to plant in her garden. Ya’ll know how the clock huntin’ came out and we never found the sandals so I figure two outa’ three wasn’t bad.

Anyway the time had come for Linda’s first ‘pickling’ lesson and we left for Sandy’s house in Tionesta, PA. We’ve only been by her place once when we were out with Diane & Denny last year. I say ‘by’ her place cause we drove by, on some country road and Diane said “That’s were Sandy & Craig live”. So we had a little idea where we were goin’ but our GPS had only a rough idea, so we winged it. We drove by and Linda said I think that’s it but I had to keep goin’. After reachin’ the end of the road we backtracked to that place and sure enough that’s it.

Sandy came out and met us then took us on a tour of the property & garden, followed by a tour of her house, nice place. Then the girls went out to the garden to pick any cucumbers that Craig had missed the night before.

Then they got to makin’ the brine, warmin’ lids and preparin’ the cukes fer picklin’.

      Here’s Linda washin’ the cukes gettin’ em ready.

Then it was cuttin’ some ‘o’ that dill for each jar, garlic clove, stuff them cukes in there, toss in a grape leaf or two, fill up the jar with little cukes and throw in a piece of hot pepper before they were ready for the brine.

Here’s a jar ready for brine

When I say ‘stuff’ I mean stuff as many cukes in that jar as ya’ can, then fill any voids with smaller ones. They did up a dozen quart jars. The cukes that were to big to fit in the jar were reduced to chips or spears then packed, brined & sealed.

The finished product for today’s efforts.

Monday they are gonna’ do some more. Of coarse during all this workin’ we had to sample some of Sandy’s other pickles, beets & jams, Umm…mm Good. After we went fer’ a ride so Sandy could show us some more of their property. When we returned Craig was home from work so we visited a while then left fer’ Cousin Bonnie’s.

That’s all fer this episode, we’ll see what tomorrow brings. Hope to see ya down the road as we’re;

Dancin’ on the Wind.