So much
for seeing the stars. Here we are in beautiful downtown Coudersport PA and it’s
raining and the forecast calls for much more rain throughout the night. We’re
holed up in our hotel, the Crittenden, located at the traffic light in Coudersport;
you can’t miss it.
The rain
is not just wreaking havoc on the stargazing we had expected to do at Cherry
Springs State Park, a Dark Sky Park,
and perhaps the best place to see the Milky Way on the east coast, but it is also
putting a “damper” on the entire area. Word has it that flooding has gotten so
bad that Hershey Park Amusement Park has closed down for the day and a state of
emergency has been declared in several Pennsylvania towns due to flash
flooding. The rain will not abate tonight…or tomorrow. I fear there were not be
any stargazing on this trip.
Janet and
I drove the 200+ miles to Cherry Springs today at least thankful we weren’t going
this far and also have to camp in the rain. Facilities at the Park are rustic;
no hot showers, etc., so early in the planning stages of this trip we opted for a hotel. On our way to Coudersport
and our hotel we did stop at Cherry Springs and surveyed the grounds and the
night sky public viewing area and resolved to return in the future. Even tomorrow, Tuesday night, looks bad.
UNTOUCHABLE…WHO KNEW?
Turns out
the hotel we are staying at… the only hotel in Coudersport I might add… The
Crittenden…. has a unique history. Eliot Ness, of the Untouchables fame, had moved
to Coudersport in the mid-1950’s as part of a business venture and eventually
died here of a heart attack in 1957. Prior to his death he met regularly at the
Crittenden with a ghost writer to document his battles with the Chicago mob and
Al Capone. Ness died before the book was finished, but the highly
sensationalized account led to the myth of the Untouchables, the law
enforcement agents who could not be bribed or scared off by the Chicago mob.
The Ness legend endures and we are staying in room 1 at the Crittenden, the
room where Ness and his ghost writer would meet.
 |
| Hotel Crittenden |
The Crittenden
is being renovated, but the room is clean and neat and overlooks the traffic light with the county courthouse rising into the rain drenched sky. Thankfully there is a bar/restaurant
downstairs boasting a reasonable beer list and a nice menu served with large portions
and decent prices so we don't have to go hunting for food or drink. Coudersport is about 12 miles outside of Cherry Springs
State Park. There were places closer to the park to stay, but the Crittenden is a good hotel with a friendly staff.
 |
| Eliot Ness |
NESS FEST
Turns out
the 1st annual Eliot Ness Fest was held just this past weekend
honoring the town’s most famous citizen. The weekend featured walking and speakeasy
tours, a “bootleg booze convoy hijacking”, a parade and afterwards a
reenactment of the arrest of Al Capone. Also viewings of different
documentaries about Ness and the movie The Untouchables with Kevin Costner were
shown at different times at the local theater. Evidently the weekend soiree was
so well attended and unexpected that the Crittenden ran out of food on Sunday.
Hopefully the rain will clear out sometime soon.
Thanks for reading.
No comments:
Post a Comment