Karen explains

     The Thorps, Houses and the Bakers (and any extra people who are willing to trek in any kind of weather), go on a October day trip to Olcott NY every year. We start the trip at a fruit and vegetable market, where we get our apples, pumpkins and cider. Then we move on to our favorite hot dog stand, Reeds, in Lockport NY. Then we travel north to a Lake Ontario beach, in Olcott NY. Once there we wander around the park looking for chestnuts for Susie to take home to her squirrels (none this year). Then we make our way down to the beach, were we look for beach glass and other treasures. Jamie, Sherrie and I, have been making this yearly trek for about 22 years, then my sister Sue started to come with us a year or 2 later. Then she and Robbie joined me. When I married Rich, he started coming along too. About 14 years ago Mike and his family started to come and Sue had a great idea about hiding a note in a jar on the beach and then trying to find the jar each year. After a rocky few years, (forgetting paper, ziplock bags, and pens) We have finally settled into a routine. We have left a new penny for each year we have been doing the jar, and we have been able, (knock on wood) to find our jar each and every year. This year Zavier was the one to retrieve the jar from it's hiding place, and Sue has the honors of reading all the notes from the previous years. On the notes we list all who came, Orrah and Bob came for many years, Mike and Celeste brought a foreign exchange student from Germany once. And various boyfriend and girlfriends have come and gone over the years. There are a few shops and boutiques that we go through after the beach, but if we go to late in October a lot of them are closed for the winter. Olcott was once a bustling beach community in the early 1900's. But it has seen a major decline over the years. Lake Ontario pollution ended their beach swimming. The little amusement park closed in the late 70's or early 80's, and it looked like a ghost town. This year we made a wonderful discovery, some of the Olcott businesses got together and purchased 6 old amusement rides from the 30's, 40's and 50's. plus an old carousel (they only charge 25 cent a ride). So there we were, 12 adults watching Zavier go around and around. To finish the day we stopped at a popcorn stand and get fresh popped caramel corn (with cashews) or plain popcorn, then head down to Gordy's Bazar to look through indoor craft booths. It's a wonderful family tradition, and I hope we will continue to do it the rest of our lives.