Dunkirk NY | The Beauty Around Us

A Saturday Drive

I wasn’t going to publish a blog post about yesterday’s activities, as I had posted pictures and video on Facebook. I have several blog followers, though, who are not on Facebook or not my friend on Facebook. So, I decided to publish a blog post after all.

We decided to go for a drive late yesterday morning.

I wanted to go to Chadwick Bay in Dunkirk NY. I had hoped to see some waterfowl. I didn’t see any waterfowl and only a couple seagulls. The waterfowl and seagulls were probably taking cover somewhere, as the wind was howling.

Lake Erie was churning from windy conditions.
I took this video from inside our car.
If I stepped outside, I would have gotten wet!

From Dunkirk we drove to Gowanda NY because I wanted to find the waterfall that a friend had apprised me of in October. In October I shared a photograph of Buttermilk Falls in Ithaca NY on Facebook, and my friend commented that she “got a pic of this [waterfall] in Sept. Its beautiful.” She realized a short time later that “this isnt the falls I was thinking of, we stopped at the one very near the Gowanda Harley shop and there are no sign[s] or picnic tables but Harley staff told us it was called Buttermilk Falls.” We found the waterfall!

According to this article, this waterfall is known by several names in addition to Buttermilk Falls. The waterfall has been called Buttermilk Cascade, Waterman Cascade and Schoolmarm Falls. The waterfall is estimated to be 70 ft. tall. When there is a high flow, the waterfall can widen significantly and become pretty frothy. This is probably why the waterfall has been called Buttermilk Falls or Buttermilk Cascade. The Waterman Falls name most likely comes from the fact that a small tributary to Waterman Brook is the source of water for the waterfall. The Schoolmarm Falls name comes from the legend that a child, trapped atop the falls, was rescued by a schoolmarm, at the cost of her own life. No credible source can be found for this story.

Leaving the waterfall, we returned to Gowanda and ate lunch at a bar called “The Wicked Glen”. Bob ordered an 8 oz burger with tavern chips.

I ordered a tuna melt with macaroni salad.

The service was good, and both meals were delicious. We would definitely return to The Wicked Glen to eat.

We were back home by 4:00 pm. It felt so good to see something other than the four walls of our house.

A Sunday Drive

We went for a drive this past Sunday. We drove to Point Gratiot Park in Dunkirk, NY. From our home in Warren, PA it is an approximate 75-minute drive to the park. Upon arriving, we parked in the unpaved parking lot near the beach area. We went for a walk from the parking lot to the Dunkirk Light and back.

We walked a total of 1.33 miles round trip, making several stops along the way.

This is the beach. I read that the beach is an excellent place to find beach glass. Before the beach is open for swimming I believe that the sand dunes will be raked onto the beach. Those sand dunes, at present, are covered in some snow, leftover from winter storms. We did not walk on the beach. Instead we walked along the tree line, on a cliff above the beach.

In front of and below the benches is the beach.

We passed by steps leading down to the beach (photo by Bob).

The cliff was steep in places, especially as we got closer to the lighthouse.

The lighthouse is closed for the season. It reopens on May 1st.

From Dunkirk we drove to Barcelona Harbor in Westfield, NY where I photographed bufflehead and merganser ducks and the moon.

Three Birds of Dunkirk

We went for a drive yesterday, to Dunkirk NY and back home. We noticed some road changes en route Dunkirk since the last time we made this drive. A second lane (passing lane?) had been added for a short distance on NY Route 60 north of Sinclairville. That second lane had been added to both sides of the road. A roundabout had been added in Fredonia at Routes 60 and 20.

We stopped at Dunkirk Pier to check out photo opportunities. I captured a couple pictures of cormorants.

Cormorant in Lake Erie at Dunkirk Pier

Cormorants in Lake Erie at Dunkirk Pier

Since our last visit, enhancements had been made to the pier. Next time we visit, I will try to remember to take pictures of the pier. Until then, please click on the word “enhancements” and see the pier by watching the video in the article I shared.

There is a Tim Hortons not far from the Dunkirk Pier. We picked up lunch at the drive-through window and ate in an unpaved parking lot between Clarion Hotel and Tim Hortons. The parking lot overlooked Lake Erie. After lunch I took a couple pictures.

Seagull in Lake Erie at Dunkirk

Nine Canada Geese Flying High Above Lake Erie in Dunkirk

From Dunkirk we drove to the Barcelona Harbor Pier in Westfield NY. We drove around the pier but saw no opportunities for bird photography.

From Westfield we drove back to our home in Warren PA.

It was a chilly and windy, overcast day. Even so, it was good to get out of the house for a few hours.

Chadwick Bay Ducks

About a month ago we spent a weekend in Niagara Falls, NY. On our way home from that trip, we stopped in Dunkirk, NY where we saw at least a dozen eagles in the trees bordering Chadwick Bay. You might remember that I didn’t have my long lens with me that day. I did capture some photographs of eagles; however, the photographs could have been better had I brought along my long lens.

This past Sunday we went on a day trip to Niagara Falls, NY. On our way home we stopped, once again, in Dunkirk. I had my long lens with me on this trip. Unfortunately, we didn’t see any eagles on this stop. We did, however, see ducks.

I tried repeatedly to capture a duck in midair, as it jumped into the water after its lunch. The best photographs that I captured of the jump are shown above. Sometimes all I got was the water splash!

I photographed four different ducks. Who can identify them for me?

Eagles!

On our way home from Niagara Falls, NY this past Sunday we stopped at Chadwick Bay in Dunkirk, NY, where we saw at least a dozen eagles hanging out in trees along the edge of the bay. Several trees were occupied by eagles. The trees had anywhere from one to three eagles in them.

I drew an arrow on the map displayed above to show you where we saw the eagles. We pulled off a few times along Lake Shore Dr W to observe the Eagles. Very deep snow piles along the highway and in Memorial Park provided a good buffer zone between the Eagles and from where we observed them.

We saw both mature and immature eagles.

Both of these photographs are heavily cropped. I could kick myself for not bringing a tripod and my long lens with me the past weekend. We were in the car and had plenty of room for my camera bag and all lenses.

In-Flight Eagle

Ride with Friends Along Lake Erie

Yesterday, Bob and I went for a ride with friends along Lake Erie in New York.

We met up with our friends at 11:00 am at our local Tim Hortons. Two other couples rode with us: our friends Susan and Dave and their friends Melinda and Ron. Before leaving Tim Hortons parking lot, we checked out Dave’s new motorcycle — a 2014 Harley Davidson — that he and Susan purchased on Saturday. It is a nice motorcycle!

Admiring the new motorcycle

Dave led our ride. The following two maps show our ride route.

Our first stop was alongside Lake Front Blvd. in Dunkirk, NY.

Lake Front Blvd.
Dunkirk, NY

Our next stop was for lunch at Castaway’s Waterfront Bar & Grill in Angola, NY. We ate lunch on the patio, with a lovely view of Lake Erie.

I had a grilled chicken sandwich and potato salad for lunch.

The food was delicious, and the service was excellent. Our waitress was very personable, and she checked on us several times to see if we needed drink refills, food accompaniments or additional food.

We made one more food stop, for dessert, at Sunset Grill in Irving, NY. Everyone, except Susan, got ice cream.

Susan took these two pictures, while we were at Sunset Grill. I liked the picnic table swings. In fact, I mentioned to Bob a couple times that we should buy a picnic table swing for our back yard. After a while it got chilly in the shade, so we moved to tables on the sunny deck.

Our next-to-last stop, on our way back home, was at Barcelona Harbor in Westfield, NY. I enjoyed watching the seagulls bobbing up and down on Lake Erie as well as flying overhead.

Seagull flying overhead at Barcelona Harbor

Off in the distance, along the beach, I spotted a waterfall.

Susan and I walked over to the waterfall and took a picture of each other at the waterfall.

Susan at Barcelona Harbor Waterfall

Our last stop was in Mayville, NY to fuel up. From Mayville we rode straight home, arriving at our house around 7:00 pm. What a wonderful day for a ride, the day made even better because we shared it with friends.