Buffalo Trip - Day 5

With my Installation Trip to Buffalo completed, it was almost time to resume my Nomad Life.  Today was a transitional day, with some telework to complete and some driving to do.  I was up at 0600 (before alarm) and started teleworking immediately.  At 0745, I took a break for breakfast in Lobby of Holiday Inn Express (Cheektowaga). After my meal (0800), I went to the Fitness Center to workout.  First, I rode the stationary bike for 40 minutes (9 miles) and then I walked on the treadmill for 35 minutes (2 miles).  Returning to my room (1005), I changed into swim gear and then went to the pool, where I swam laps for 30 minutes (0.5 miles).  By 1040, I'd completed my active time and returned to my room to resume teleworking.  Fortunately, the hotel had graciously promised that I could stay until 1300 so I took advantage of that fact.  Meanwhile, outside, it started snowing and didn't let up.  By the time I realized how much had fallen, it was clear I'd be dealing with the weather all the way to my next hotel.  One good thing about the overall situation was that the rest of my work day involved driving (I'd been given hours to complete the travel for this trip).  This meant that I didn't have to stay inside (or even online) to complete my work week!  After packing up my car (1315), I departed the area near the Buffalo Niagara Airport and drove towards the northeast.  By this point, the temps were in the low 30s and it was still snowing.  This meant that the roads were messy; fortunately, they were also drivable.  After using some surface streets, I got on NY-5 and followed it (along with additional back roads to NY-77).  Since there were some birding areas along my route (Orleans County), I started exploring in the vicinity of the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge.  The roads in that area (including West Shelby Road) were not very good but I was able to find some interesting bird species in Shelby (Middleport Township) at around 1350.  After driving through lots of snow and across windswept farm fields, I reached Saltworks Road - from there, I drove carefully through the NWR until I reached NY-77 again (Genesee County).  Immediately after that, I encountered even more birds, including tundra swans and buffleheads (1400).  Next, I continued east and then got on NY-63, which I followed for quite a while.  Along the way, I passed through the town of Batavia (1420).  Right around that time, the snow turned into rain.  A bit later, the sun actually came out for a short time!  During this time, I kept thinking about what my friend, Dave S, had said about the many seasons of Western New York that one can experience in a single day...  Before long (1445), I passed into Wyoming County (Covington Township) and, about five minutes later, I found myself in Livingston County (York Township).  By this point, the precipitation turned to snow flurries again but there wasn't much accumulation on the ground.  At 1500, I reached the town of Geneseo but decided not to tarry long because I wasn't getting closer to my hotel. It was at this point that I realized I'd actually skipped lunch - oh well...  Next, I got on US-20A and drove to where I could access I-390.  After so many miles on back roads, it felt strange to be on the Interstate!  Google Maps wasn't in the mood to keep me there very long, however, and soon directed me on to US-20.  From there, I weaved my way on both sides of I-90 (flowing towards the Northeast).  One really good thing about this travel on back roads was that the precipitation completely stopped.  By the time I started following a highway with clear signage, I realized I was on NY-96 - I used it reach NY-21.  By 1610, I arrived at my hotel, a Best Western on the southern outskirts of Palmyra.  Fortunately, I was able to check in pretty quickly and I thought this would help me get online again quickly.  In the end, though, this was not possible - they had some kind of problem with their WiFi and I had to use my iPhone as a hot spot.  Even with this small obstacle, I still wrapped up my work week (with some email) and turned off my electronic devices.  During this window, I also made dinner for myself in the hotel room microwave - this has been a rare activity over the last several weeks...  While looking on the map for breweries nearby, I suddenly became aware that this town and, in fact, the immediate area near the hotel, were closely connected with the Church of Latter Day Saints - there were all kinds of landmarks, historic for the Mormons, within about 10 miles of Palmyra.  One of the places was called the "Sacred Grove" and was located less than a mile to the west; another site, the Joseph Smith Sr. Farm, was also nearby.  Since the weather had improved by then, I left the hotel and drove over there to explore.  When I arrived, I found it was already closed.  However, the parking lot was open and the grounds seemed to be accessible.  Hoping to avoid a return trip in the morning, I wandered around on the trails in the Sacred Grove. where Joseph Smith Jr. claimed to have had a vision that directed him to re-found the Church.  Stayed in this wooded area for a little while and read several interpretive signs about the events purported to have occurred in the late 1820s.  I also got to see Smith's boyhood log cabin.  The sites didn't have much in the way of security (gates or signs) so I felt pretty good about wandering nearby.  Having never thought about visiting this town, I found it interesting to have stumbled across another Mormon site - in addition to my recent visit to Salt Lake City, I'd previously been (with Nicky in the mid 1990s) to the Joseph Smith Birthplace in (Stafford) Vermont.  Next, I drove north to Palmyra, hoping to visit a place called the Drumlins Brewery.  When I arrived, I saw more LDS sites of interest and check them out before stopping for a beer.  First, though, I checked out part of the Erie Canal Heritage Trail, a Towpath which is also part of the Empire State Trail.  I walked for a short distance on it (the trail converted to road in order to cross the Canal at that point).  After moving my car closer to the downtown area, I wandered around near the Grandin Print Shop, where the Book of Mormon was first printed.  It wasn't open but I saw lots of LDS book stores and gift shops nearby.  Sadly, I also passed the Brewery and found it was closed (for renovations ?).  Since the time was approaching 1800, I thought about trying to find a Lenten Fish Fry at a Catholic Church - unfortunately, I didn't locate a Parish with such an event in the immediate vicinity.  Instead, I drove south on NY-21 until I reached a place called Hill Cumorah, where the LDS Church has built a golden statue to the Angel Moroni on the highest point for miles around.  Again, the buildings were closed but I hiked on the trails anyway.  With minimal effort, I reached the summit and got some good views of the surrounding countryside.  Along the way, there was lots of signage and historical context.  It was in this exact location where Joseph Smith Jr. claimed he was given golden plates (by the Angel Moroni) that revealed the text which was the basis for the Book of Mormon.  The whole concept and fervent belief of the LDS Church members was intriguing and I must admit that I'm glad that I visited this interesting part of the country.  I was done exploring at 1820 and returned to my hotel.  For the rest of the evening, I tried to work on my blog.  This was not easy, because the Internet still sucked.  I gave up on the blog and then tried to do some entries of eBird.  That was more successful (I was able to do basic text-related things.  Because I wanted to catch up on some new episodes on my streaming services, I used my iPhone as a "hotspot" again.  The shows were entertaining but then I turned my attention to Duolingo and reading.  Bed time was at 2245 and I quickly fell asleep.  It's been a great few weeks of traveling for work but I'm glad to have a break for a little while.  More exploring tomorrow!