Letchworth State Park - New York State
Letchworth State Park describes itself as the Grand Canyon of the East, which is something of an overstatement because it is only one tenth the depth of the real thing. However, it is still mighty impressive, extending almost 20 miles north from Portageville in the west Finger Lakes area of the State. it should definitiely be on anyone’s shortlist of places to visit if touring upper New York State.
The 80 metre high trestle rail bridge over the Genessee River was built in 1875 to replace an earlier wooden structure destroyed by fire. It is said that construction took less than two months, although they had the original abutments to work from.
I took this photograph in 1995 while on a visit to the Finger Lakes. The bridge subsequently became a notorious bottleneck because its condition deteriorated to such an extent that trains were allowed over only at 10mph. A new bridge was constructed nearby as a replacement. The railroad company offered the old bridge to the State as a tourist attraction and a state senator sponsored a bill that failed to pass. Nobody was prepared to take responsibility for the upkeep. So it was blown up in 2018. There is a video on You Tube I believe.
Finger Lakes - New York State
The Finger Lakes region of New York State is often compared with the English Lake district. The comparison is spurious. The lakes are far bigger, the largest, Seneca Lake is 40 miles long. The surrounding hills are mainly wooded. And there are no sheep.
There are lots of ‘old’, characterful towns such as Penn Yan and Geneva, two of the best. Watkins Glen, at the southern end of Seneca Lake is notable for the narrow, 2 mile long gorge containing about 20 waterfalls and for the international raceway circuit that was the home of the US Grand Prix from 1961 to 1980.
Wine growning in the Finger Lakes region has developed significantly since the mid 1980s, before which it was mainly known for average to poor quality stuff from Concord or Reisling grapes., the type you would find in your local Piggly Wiggly with a label that simply stated, ‘Cheap White Wine’. Thirty years later, this region merits a visit for the wine alone.
Above: Keuka Lake looking north at the convergence of the two arms.
Right: Watkins Glen
Virginia - The Old Dominion
My advice is not to bother with Virginia Beach and definitely avoid Williamsburg. Think Blue Ridge Parkway, Civil War battlefields, custom cars and of course, The Norfolk and Western Railway, the last major railroad in America to use steam power, which in the 1950s was the subject of nearly 100 extraordinary black and white photographs by O Winston Link, who has pretty unassailable claims to be considered the greatest railway photographer of all time.
In the early 90s, a short drive down old US Route 1 from Ashland to Petersburg would take one past plenty of custom shops where one could stop off and admire the merchandise on display. In the summer of 1993 a friend persuaded his colleague to run us down there in the latter’s 1969 Chevvy Chevelle that he had owned from new, as I recall it was his graduation present! This is the SS396 variant, with a 6.5 litre V8. A bona fide 1960s muscle car in original condition, and a collectors item, even 30 years ago.
And this is one of the custom cars I would probably have bought had I possessed the money to do so.
A drive west one July morning in 100 degree heat took us to Lexington, a small town that is home to the Virginia Military Institute (my friend’s alma mater) and the C18 Washington and Lee University. VMI, as it is known, used to have a statue of Stonewall Jackson out front. However this has now been relegated to a local Civil War museum. As far as I am aware, the C17 french bronze cannon are still there. Less controversial.
Dating from before the American Revolution, this college renamed itself after receiving a gift from George Washington, a keen promoter of education. Shortly after the Civil War ended, the trustees of the college invited Robert E Lee to become its President. The buildings pictured date from 1825 to 1850. Close by there is a small chapel of distinctive design constructed under Lee’s direction in the late 1860s that contains his office, left exactly as it was when he occupied it. When I took the above photograph in 1989 it was possible to tour the campus and chapel. If that is still possible, it is well worth a visit.
The Blue Ridge Mountains appear blue because mostly they are forested to the summit. However, there are a few overlooks such as Humpback Rocks (pictured) near Waynesboro, and Old Rag at the north end of the Shenandoah Valley, near Luray, where incidentally there is a massive cavern system open to visitors that has an attached motor museum containing a considerable number of early American vehicles (pre 1920) including a Baker Electric from 1908 and a 1927 Mercedes Benz SS Sports Touring.
It was at Waynesboro Station in early 1955 that New Yorker O. Winston Link, at a loose end during an advertising assignment to photograph air-conditioning units, took his first night time photographs of the Norfolk and Western Railway using a 4x5 Graphic camera and parallel system, synchronised flash equipment. He was so pleased with the results that he wrote to the N & W suggesting he undertake a project to produce a series of highly-planned night photographs depicting the working of the railway. The company’s head of PR replied saying the photographs were excellent, but the company could not sanction them for publication because the locomotive pop valve was lifted, indicating a wasteful firing practice not approved by the company. Nevertheless the N & W agreed to support the proposed project, though not financially. So for the next four years, and entirely at his own expense Link documented the final days of steam on this great railroad.
Of all the photographs, my personal favourite is that showing Electrician’s Helper J W Dalhouse cleaning the headlight of a gigantic streamlined K2A ‘Mountain’ (4-8-2) locomotive at Shaffers Crossing Roundhouse, Roanoke. Link captures Dalhouse’s affection for the machine that seems almost alive, as if he was wiping the brow of his favourite draught horse.
I understand there is now a Link museum in Roanoke that I hope to visit soon.