Lake Chautauqua

Chautauqua, New York, is located about 2-1/2 hours from my house in the North Hills of Pittsburgh, down 79S to 90E to I-86. Last year, I spent a weekend with my oldest son, wife, and five children, 8, 4, 3, 2, and 1.

My son’s Lake House is about 10 miles from the Chautauqua Institute. The house is within walking distance (about 8 houses) from Lake Chautauqua. There is a little park just before the lake with an area for basketball. Next to the basketball court is a small playground, which includes a jungle gym, playhouse, swings, and a slide. I pushed my granddaughter and grandson on the swing set for a while. Afterwards my son and the rest of the family arrived at the playground with their dog, Coco. We spent more time at the playground before we went back to the house to get ready to go swimming.

We drove to the Chautauqua Institute, parked the car and took out beach chairs, towels, and a huge beach bag packed with the children’s sand toys. My son, daughter-in-law and I sat on the small sandy beach and watched the kids splash around in the water, as a number of sailboats trailed out, one after another. I counted 34 in the “Saturday Sailboat Regatta” and found it a lovely, calming site. Everything was lining up just right for a perfect weekend – from the kids playing, the sailboat regatta, the light wind, the hot sun and the warm sand. The sky was a beautiful blue with white clouds moving slowly by.

We would come back to the same beach again on Sunday. Along with spending time at the beach, we checked out the local shop with clothes, books, and a very cool garden center, and some area restaurants. The man who worked in the lush garden center knew absolutely nothing about the flowering plants, making me wonder if he was growing more than flowers in the back room he had just come out of.

We ate pizza outside at a small Italian restaurant for my grandson’s 9th birthday. The pizza and wings were delicious. We followed this off with ice cream cones, where inevitably a couple of the ice cream scoops fell off and hit the warm ground. We managed to find a playground, which diverted a total meltdown. Two of the children ran around and played on the slides, while the other children sat on the swings, while we pushed them higher and higher.

I slept in my own bed but shared the room with my two little granddaughters, Bella and Anna. Between the sounds of their chatter and giggles, and the “I love you, grandma,” I fell asleep.

The next day we ate lunch at a 50s style diner. The waitresses took our orders and delivered our food promptly, on roller skates, much to the pleasure of the kids and the adults. Then we returned to the garden center and purchased a few plants to take back home with us.

New York is a pretty state. The roads are great, and the scenery is beautiful. I thoroughly enjoyed going away with my son and his family. I’m planning on returning to Chautauqua again, whenever I am invited. Plus, I plan on using my son’s Lake House to go away for a few days and write.