Corning New York and the Ives Run Corps of Engineers Park (COE) in Tioga, PA

We moved from the Kutztown, PA area to a new park in the north central part of Pennsylvania.  The park/campground is near Tioga, PA and was built by the Corps of Engineers as a flood control reservoir.  This 200 campsite park is built on the shores of Hammond Lake with tons of green space and boating/kayaking opportunities.  We had a level full hook up site, so life is good!  We were only able to stay 5 days because they were full at the weekends due to others having booked it up some 6 months in advance.

It was a beautiful area with clean facilities.  We enjoyed chatting with one of the volunteer work-camper ladies who worked in the visitors center.  She explained how the work-camper system works and was very enthusiastic about her work and the free campsite provided.  This may be something that we check into at some point.  They only require you to work 12 hours per week, 24 hours per couple, for the provided campsite.  The work is office type or outdoor tasks.

One of the nice perks with this park is being able to use the National Parks Senior Pass.  This provides a 50% discount on camping fees (from $40 per night to $20).   Woohoo!  This will help to average out some of the higher priced locations where we have stayed.

One of the completely unknown to us things to do was a visit to Corning NY, across the border, to visit the Corning Museum.  This is the home of the Corning Glass company and they have built an incredible museum all about glass.  From the beginnings of glass making to fiber optic cable. They even have live demonstrations of glass blowing.  This is a must see if in the area.

After a day in the museum, we took the free bus to the historic downtown area, had a good meal at a brew pub and walked around the town enjoying a coffee after dinner.  A very walk-able town with many businesses, nice landscaping, and many restaurants and things to do.

Here are some photos from our stay in this area.

our new camp chairs! Very comfortable
Also a new Weber Q-1200 grill. This is a small portable, but very well made.
Hammond Lake next to our campground
the Corning Museum with a glass blowing demo
some of the antique glass pieces in the museum

Above: some incredible stained glass, many from the Tiffany Studios.

Pat and I next to one of the stained glass displays
Glass flowers in the back of this antique truck.
Beer list from the Brick House Brewery. I tried the Wheelhouse IPA and Pat had the Blackberry. Both very good.

While sitting in the welcome center, I had a feeling of being watched!

Scenes from the town of Corning, NY

We are currently visiting family just south of Cleveland for 11 days.  Have a great day!

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