It was a really beautiful day today, so far as days in early April are concerned. The sun was shining, the ground was mostly dry after a dry winter and not-too-wet spring so far, and the temperatures were expected to rise to low-60s. Austin and Victoria were still an an extended spring break and it was time to get them outside. Neither of them were eager to leave the house.
I would have been nice to take them to Sterling to walk the shore of Lake Ontario and walk through the trails there, but there wasn’t enough time to spend a useless 2 hours in the car commuting to and from, so Keith elected to try some of the trails near Cazenovia, changing it up from the usual walk around Green Lakes. In an effort to further increase their interest in leaving the house, the kids were offered a lunch from McDonalds, which seemed to grease the wheels a little bit.
Lunch was purchased and taken to the park where Keith and the kids could eat on a bench near the lake. After initially trying to eat at the shoreline, they retreated away from the still-cool winds at the lake and ate their lunch where the winds were halved and it felt as if it was 10 degrees warmer. Even so, both kids continued to wear their winter parkas while they enjoyed their meal.
After lunch, they drove to the trail system at Fairchild Hill, the property adjacent and to the east of the Lorenzo House. They explored the remnants of the railroad turntable before trying explore the trails that were too muddy for the kids footwear and forced Keith to pursue a Plan B.
Plan B was to find high ground and explore the multi-purpose Link Trail that can be accessed throughout Cazenovia. Keith parked at Roberts Rd (near Bingley) and he and the kids walked south for approximately 1.5 miles before turning back. Austin was pleasant, but mostly disengaged. Victoria was quiet, mopey, and obviously disinterested in being outdoors. They talked about school, COVID, and summer plans. Keith shared his plans to be in the outdoors more and to try some overnight trips to local campsites. Austin and Victoria were both invited to join him, but neither expressed even a slight interest.
It was quite apparent that it would take more than a fast-food lunch to coerce them into significantly more time in the outdoors.