To commemorate Lake
Appreciation Day, Cherry
Valley-Springfield Central
School student Zachariah
O’Connor has been invited
to give a reading of his
poem, titled ``The Thoughts
of the Changing Water,’’ as
a prelude to the pot-luck
lunch beginning at noon.
O’Connor, a fifth-grader,
was a finalist in the Empire
State Poetry Connection
competition and participated
in a state-wide reading
of the poem through the
school’s distance learning
program.
He wrote the piece,
about the importance of
clean water, for Jennifer
Hanson’s fifth-grade enrichment
class.
``It’s a very thought-provoking
poem. The judges
wrote to me and recommended
that I submit it to
an environmental magazine,’’
said Hanson.
Sandra Peevers and
Bernd Neumann will also
perform as part of Lake Appreciation
Day. At 2:30
p.m., the duo will provide
lively traditional Quebecois
tunes to commemorate
Lake Otsego and the 400th
anniversary of the water
explorations of Henry Hudson
and Samuel de Champlain.
A full slate of activities
is planned for Lake Appreciation
Day, to be held on
Saturday, July 11 at Glimmerglass
State Park.
The event will kick off
with a youth trail clean-up
program, which will be followed
by a number of recreational
and educational
outdoor activities and a
pot-luck lunch. Visitors are
also invited to ``treasure
hunt’’ along the trails of the
park for a Glimmerglass
Opera water bottle with a
free pair of opera tickets
hidden inside.
Lake Appreciation Day
will include:
New York State Office
of Parks, Recreation and
Historic Preservation biologist
Tom Hughes, who will
conduct a ``show and tell’’
session on aquatic life in
Otsego Lake and/or Beaver
Pond;
Fly tying and fly casting
demonstration by members
of Trout Unlimited,
Upper Susquehanna Chapter,
offering hands-on opportunities
for both adults
and children;
`Treasure hunt’ for a
Glimmerglass Opera water
bottle with a free pair of opera
tickets hidden inside;
Reading of ôThe
Thoughts of the Changing
Waterö by Zachariah
O’Connor;
Quebecois tunes by
Sandra Peevers and Bernd
Neumann;
Nature Explorer Children’s
Program for ages 5-
12;
Youth trail clean-up of
the Sleeping Lion Trail,
made possible by the Stewart’s
Holiday Match program;
Hike of the Sleeping
Lion Trail, led by field specialist
Joseph Homburger
of the Otsego Land Trust;
Canoes provided by
Otsego County Conservation
Association;
Pot-luck lunch;
Educational exhibits
by lake-focused organizations
in the Lake View and
Beach Front enclosed pavilions.
The pot-luck lunch begins
at noon. Lake Appreciation
Day attendees are
asked to bring a dish to
pass, along with their own
table service and cups. Beverages
will be provided.
Glimmerglass State
Park, located eight miles
outside the Village of Cooperstown,
overlooks Otsego
Lake, the ``Glimmerglass’’
of James Fenimore Cooper’s
Leatherstocking Tales. The
rolling, partially-wooded
terrain is host to a wide variety
of wildlife. The Sleeping
Lion uphill trail through
the forest affords a spectacular
view of Otsego Lake
while walking through majestic
white pines, hemlocks,
and hardwoods. The
Beaver Pond and Woodland
trails are picturesque and
of interest for their variety
of wildflowers, shrubs,
ferns, and mosses. The
Hyde Hall Mansion, covered
bridge, and a selfguided
Beaver Pond Nature
Trail are within park
boundaries and open to visitors.
Other park amenities
and activities include
beach, campsites, concessions,
biking, fishing, and
playground.
The Nature Explorer
Children’s Program is new
to the park this year. Visitors
are invited to stop at
the park office to pick up a
Nature Explorer booklet to
learn more about the abundant
nature and wildlife
the park offers. Activities
in the booklet may be completed
either individually
or in a group, in one day or
over several visits. An Explorer
Pin will be awarded
to participants upon return
of the book to the park office
anytime during the
2009 park season.
On Friday evening, July
10, Friends of Glimmerglass
continues its free outdoor
movie series with a
showing of ``Marley and
Me’’ (PG). The movie will
begin at dark at the West
Shelter. Admission is free,
and the film will be shown
under cover if it is raining.
Admission to Glimmerglass
State Park is $7 per
car. The Empire Passport
will be accepted.
Boaters are encouraged
to paddle in for the day. Organizers
are still firming
up schedule and exhibitor
details.
For more information,
call (607) 547-4488.
