Asbury Camp and Retreat Center, Silver Lake, NY

View from the Dining Hall across the spot where a large hotel-type building once stood

Beginning with the NOMADS project in Salem, Maine, I set out on a whirlwind series of back-to-back projects.  The second in this series was at the Asbury Camp and Retreat Center in Silver Lake, New York.  Silver Lake is outside Perry, NY.  A retreating glacier created this eight-mile finger lake some years ago.  It is one of the many finger lakes in the area.  I chose this project because it was on the way to the NOMADS Annual Meeting, to be held in Hamburg, NY, near Buffalo.

As I left Maine, I traveled through some back roads so I could see more of the beautiful country in northern New England.  At one point, I had to turn around because the route took me into Canada, something I did not want to do.  I had heard too many horror stories of the United States border guards practically tearing a trailer apart, strewing contents all over the ground, and leaving the owner to clean it up.  I was told the Canadian border guards were much nicer, but coming back into the U.S. was not a pleasant experience.

I tooled along admiring the scenery and daydreaming, something I often do to pass the time on the road, when I came over a hill and within a short distance was a railroad overpass.  This was not all that unusual except for a sign about fifty feet before it, which simple read, 13’.  Fear struck deep in my stomach at the sudden realization that my trailer measured 12’ 9” tall and here I was on a two-lane back road with no place to turn around, barely able to stop my truck and trailer, and trying to think quickly about my immediate situation.  I recall wondering how accurate was that measurement, how much had the overpass settled over time or had the road settled and increased the distance, could the Lord somehow shrink my trailer to fit just enough to make it through the small opening.  I slowed to a crawl, said a brief but desperate prayer, and waited for the sure sound of my air condition unit being scraped off the top of the trailer.  I sensed a nervous sweat on my forehead as I crept forward, windows down and listening intently.  Not a sound.  No scraping.  Nothing.  “Wow, Lord,” I said aloud.  “Thank you so very much.”  I proceeded on my way, very thankful for the grace of the Lord and His watching out for me.  I reached for my water bottle, knowing that it would not be enough to quench the burning thirst in my throat.  I also realized, oh man, did I need a bathroom!

I traveled due west across New Hampshire, Vermont, and into New York.  It may have been my imagination but it seemed that as soon as I cross the New York state line the drivers suddenly became rude and inconsiderate.  Up to this point, I thought the only people who were naturally rude and obnoxious all lived in Massachusetts.  Hmm, guess some of them migrated into New York.

View of Camp

Entrance to Camp Asbury

The northern part of New York is very beautiful, full of rolling hills and farms.  I found my way to Asbury easily.  As my team leader requested, I called when I was about five minutes out.  I quickly understood why he wanted prior notice.  Asbury is an established camp on the bank of Silver Lake, complete with rustic cabins, dining hall, play areas, and a modern Retreat Center.  It also had narrow, winding paths (I would not call them roads) throughout the facility.  The NOMADS were to park trailers and RVs in a wooded area not entirely accessible.  I wrangled my way through the woods to the small lot set aside for the NOMADS.

I enjoyed the project very much.  Perhaps, some of that is because I had friends working with me that I had worked with in Rhode Island.  Good, fine people, they are.  Most of the NOMADS are like that though, friendly and caring folks.  I met some new friends too, again good, fine people.  The work was satisfying and I learned a lot.

Path or road leading to NOMADS parking area

Home for three weeks

One of my fellow NOMADS, who was a plumber in a prior life, was gracious enough to allow me the opportunity to learn from him.  He was a nice guy and a very good friend and teacher.  He and I were installing double sinks in two bathrooms.  He would work on one as I watched and then he would let me install the other.  Very cool!  In a relatively short time I was able to unlock the eternal mysteries of installing a sink without leaks, broken pipes, or looking like something out of a sci-fi movie.

My first attempt at installing sinks, counter included

Another task, and an opportunity to work with another new NOMADS friend, involved building two canoe racks down near the lake.  I thoroughly enjoyed the time it took to figure out what we wanted to do and then do it.  We laughed, we talked, and we enjoyed the task of building the racks.  In the end, we thought that when the lake freezes over in winter someone could put a sail on one of the racks and go sailing across the ice, or perhaps someone could put a tarp over the rack and go ice fishing.  My friend and I were certain that the racks would outlive us.

Permanent yet mobile racks for six canoes each

I attended the last church service of the season held by the local community of summer residents.  The community held their final service on a dock beside the lake.  It was like just about any other church service except this one was surrounded by beautiful blessings of the Lord – wonderful weather, beautiful scenery, quiet and serene surroundings, and friendly people.

This project was also enjoyable because the team came together as a group of friends.  We enjoyed sitting together in the evening and talking about nothing in particular.  A few of us would go play miniature golf, tour an antique car show, head out for pizza, or simply take a long walk.  This was one of my favorite projects.  It was not the work I did or the things I learned, which were both very nice; it was the people I meet through NOMADS.