Rural Elmer Road, Town Of Lawrence NY

One morning I was in the mood for a driving tour, so I grabbed my camera, got into the car and headed to Elmer Road, where I knew I could find much rural beauty. The first farm I passed was this classic pair of barns, with a silo and hay bale elevator:

Farm equipment, a red barn and baleage stacked up for the winter:

In my mind, Elmer Road should be called "Elbow Road" because of the sharp turn it makes - and right at the turn is this log home:

They had two horses in the field, though I only managed to get one of them in the photo:

Two outbuildings, one apparently in use and the other not:

I have photographed this woodsy home before, set back in the pines like a forest hideaway. This, however, may be the first time I've seen it in the winter. It still looked woodsy and welcoming:

A series of outbuildings, apparently leading to someone's home, mostly hidden by trees:

I came to this ambitious and prosperous looking Amish farm, with its twin barns and twin silos:

I got a closer view of the silos and one of the barns as I passed by:

Another barn, this one with a traditional buggy parked outside:

The same Amish farm had a roadside stand and another barn beside the house:

And the house had laundry drying on the porch, a tree swing and a children's sled:

Still the same farm, I passed this workshop and windmill:

They also had a busy, prosperous looking sawmill. But that was the end of Elmer Road. I then turned right on Alburg Road, but I'll post those photos tomorrow:

Tri-Town Winter Carnival Parade

Counties in New York State are divided into towns, which some other states call townships. The three adjacent towns of Brasher, Lawrence and Stockholm are so rural that they pool their resources for many things, including their annual Winter Carnival. This fire truck was from West Stockholm, a tiny, picturesque hamlet in the town of Stockholm:

The Foreign Legion Post of Winthrop, another hamlet in the town of Stockholm:

Helena is a hamlet in the town of Brasher. The parade was happening in Brasher Falls, also in the town of Brasher:

This year's Winter Carnival theme was "Olde Tyme Carnivale" and these revelers created a float which included popcorn and the games of "Hole In One" and "Ring Toss." I noticed a lot of crowns and fur-trimmed red robes, so these people must have been the King, Queen and other dignitaries:

The hamlets of Brasher Falls and Winthrop are adjacent but in two different towns. They pool their resources for many things, including a fire department:

I guess it's never too early to promote the Tri-Town Summer Festival, a much bigger event because of the much better weather:

The Tri-Town Volunteer Rescue Squad is headquartered in Brasher Falls, also the site of the regional school:

A fortune teller, in keeping with the theme of "Olde Tyme Carnivale:"

Lawrenceville is a particularly tiny hamlet in the town of Lawrence, but they have their own fire department:

Lots of costumes in keeping with theme, and riding on a truck belonging to a local business, Rick's Auto Body:

Hopkinton is a fourth town and not officially part of the Tri-Town pact, but they always support each other's events. Fort Jackson is a tiny, woodsy hamlet in the town of Hopkinton:

The local kids' hockey team, The Timberwolves (one word):

Another fire truck from the combined Brasher-Winthrop Fire Department. This was an even smaller parade than usual, but a heartwarming reminder of friendlier times, when neighbors came out to support each other and wave as their friends and children passed by in the parade. It was all over in about 15 minutes, but in north country winter weather, that was OK with me:

Peru Road, Town Of Lawrence, New York - Part 2

I was taking a driving tour of rural Peru Road (see also Part 1, posted yesterday) and stopped for a photo of this Amish sawmill. I thought the small sign on the wall might advertise lumber, but it was for sawdust, presumably to be used for animal bedding:

The boulders in this stone wall were huge, as big as Volkswagens, so I had to assume they were moved with modern power equipment and not Amish horse power:

Another Amish farm:

I snapped another photo as I pulled past the front of the house and noticed a wood furnace on the front porch. I'm not sure how they moved the air without electricity, but apparently they'd figured out a way to do it:

Just past the house, I saw the buggy parked by the small outbuilding:

This gigantic old barn in the middle of a corn field looked as if it hadn't been used in many years:

An Amish farm with a windmill and a water pump:

Another old barn which apparently hadn't been used in a very long time:

This old farm house was not Amish, and it appeared as if there was a board blocking the use of the front door. The sign on it did not say to use another door, however. Instead it just said "Eggs For Sale:"

Another long abandoned old barn. It's sad to see them falling into disrepair, but they are expensive to maintain and not many people can afford to do that:

A handsome farm house behind giant, old maple and pine trees:

My last stop on Peru Road was at the Willis H Thomas auto garage, closed many years ago. It was out of business when I passed by here the last time and the tow truck was parked in exactly the same place. It might now do well as a sort of museum, commemorating times gone by:

Peru Road, Town Of Lawrence, New York - Part 1

It was a clear, beautiful winter day in the north country, and I decided to take a driving tour on my way to Potsdam. I chose Peru Road, in the rural town of Lawrence, NY. My first stop was this woodsy home with firewood stacked up outdoors:

There were a few big, modern suburban homes, but I skipped them, searching for older places, reminiscent of country life in the past. This barn, wagon and outbuildings was just what I was looking for:

I drove right by this home, thinking it didn't look old enough, but then backed up to snap a picture when I noticed, on my way by, how scenic it was. What a lovely home in the country:

I stopped to photograph this home, but several small, furiously barking dogs sent me quickly on my way. It wasn't until I got home and looked at the photo that I saw the hanging deer carcass, the bird feeder and the big dog:

Peru Road has some prosperous looking Amish farms, and this one is perhaps the biggest and most picturesque:

This is the house which goes with the above farm:

There were corn fields and hay fields all along the road:

This honey stand stopped me in my tracks because I recognized it. I used to buy honey from this self-serve stand when it was on the highway, but then it disappeared. Apparently the bee keeper moved to Peru Road - or maybe he quit keeping bees and sold the stand:

This magnificent barn was behind the honey stand:

A field of Amish corn shocks:

Another prosperous looking Amish home:

And a beautiful Amish barn. There was more yet to see on Peru Road, and I'll post Part 2 tomorrow: