Along The Shores Of The Unpredictable Cat

New York isn't all about the east coast, you know. And New York City isn't its only attraction. There are so many beautiful places in my home state, and even I have yet to see them all. This weekend we were in Western New York, in a town that sits on the shore of Lake Erie.  

Our first stop was Westfield, located in America's Grape Country, the oldest and largest grape growing region in the United States outside of California, and the largest Concord grape growing region in the world.

You're familiar with Concord grapes - they're the ones used in Welch's Grape Juice and Welch's Grape Jelly - two staples of any American kid's childhood.  The peanut butter and jelly sandwiches of my youth were made only with this brand and flavor of jelly, and it's still my choice today.

Overlooking Portland Harbor is the Barcelona Lighthouse.  It was built in 1829 to help guide sailors on Lake Erie. It has the distinction of being the first natural gas powered lighthouse in the world.  

Directly behind the lighthouse is Lake Erie, the fourth largest of the five Great Lakes of North America. It's said to have gotten its name from the Iroquoian tribe that lived in the area but there's also some speculation that its the other way around, and that the tribe got its name from the lake. Either way, they called it Erige - which means cat - because of the lake's unpredictable and sometimes violent nature.  

That may have been the way the Native Americans saw it, but the only cat I saw was a serene beauty, basking under the gorgeous June sky.   

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2014: I Think I Saw A Nimbostratus
2013: Ed Breaking Bad In The Lap Pool
2012: View From The Bridge
2011: Small Place, Big Flavor
2010: La Vita è Bella
2009: He Looks Much Better Here Than On The Penny
2008: One Of The Few Places In Iowa NOT Under Water
2007: We Need A Manager On Register Three Please!
2006: Mobile Misses
2005: Idaho?? YOU Da Ho!!