5/20/08: Arrived from Vermont with teco and Seera. Cool and rainy. Gas is $3.90/gallon. The grass needs mowing.
Adam

5-21-08: Adam mowed, I weed-whacked. It’s good to do this early in the season. House opened, water tank repaired & functioning. Electricity went out for ~ 6 hours when I arrived. Cold!
Joanne

5/25/08: Memorial Day again in Shunk. We greatly appreciate the opportunity to enjoy you ___. Had a great time with less water activities since the lake is so low. thank you for the opportunity.
Barb & Brian

5-25ish-08: This has been a year where, like the lake, things have been at a low ebb. On the other hand, a time to discover newts foraging around the dock, the graceful lines of stumps, and the quiet and healing sunshine. I needed this. It has been just beautiful and I appreciate your hospitality more than I can say. Thank you for everything.
Damaris

5/26/08: Thank you again for a truly perfect trip. There are few things better than great scenery or good friends ___ than both in the same trip is better still.
Sean

5/26/08: Six people in Shunk this time. First reding of my play ‘Jonah Dove.’ Great weather for Memorial Day. remember the fallen.
– Jason

5/26/08: What a wonderful time with my husband and friends! Almost our second anniversary! Relaxing by the lake — nothing beats it.
Abby Ford

6/1/08: Quick weekend here to pick up my Trooper, which broke down on my way out last weekend.
Adam

06/19/09: Ken & Joanne for 3 days and meeting of General Partners. Delightfully cool weather, enjoyed fireplace.

The dawn Redwood at end of deck is dead! Alas — a most beloved tree.

7/13/08: I loved our visit!! Allthough small time — only a weekend — I had a great time!! We jumped on the trampolene, swam in the lake, went on a hike, and looked — and went in — Adam’s Tree-House!!
Love, Abbe and FAMILY!!

Dear Ken and Joanne I had a very good time! Love Issy

Dear Ken & Joanne –
We enjoyed our hikes around the lake – where entropy rules! Especially enjoyed lunch (grilled cheese & garlic parmesan fries) at the general store!
Love — Diane, Thanks for a wonderful weekend Claire

SHUNK CHEER

“S-H-U-N-K”
“Yeah that’s how you spell “SHUNK”
“Yeah that’s how you spell “SHUNK”
“With trees & bears & leaves & tears and
everything & everyone you’ve always wanted”
“Yeah that’s what “Everything is great
here, everything is perfect and everything
is everything you’ve always wanted”
“And that’s what you do at SHUNK!!

7/27/08: Up here this weekend to grab blueberries. Abby’s first time picking berries! Great time!
Jason

7/29/08: Commander Cody, this is General Kenobi. Will you transfer me to the force Fords.

___ Jedi code

There is no emotion; there is peace.
There is no ignorance; there is knowledge.
There is no passion; there is serenity.
There is no death; there is the Force.

There is no peace there is the Force
There is no knowledge there is wisdom
There is no serenity there is action
There is no Force
There are the Fords

From Colin!!!

And for a more traditional entry… many thanks for the glorious Shunk weekend full of water play, trampolining, hikes, berry picking, a marshmellow campfire & bat-calling. See you next summer! Henny

7/30/08: Time at Shunk, with the wonderful hosts and super visitors, Isaiah, Henny, Colin, and Adam, is, as always, a time of good fellowship and conversation, natural beauty and wonders.
Birds — songs of the red-eyed vireo, hermit thrush – confirmed by Isaiah and the Audobon tapes
— seen chickadee, hummingbird, great blue heron, kingfisher.
Lots of mushrooms –
Blueberries – beautiful and tasty. A few raspberries and blackberries
S’mores and singing around the fire
Good meals and conversation. Good Scrabble.
Thanks, so much, dear friends —
Donna Wilhelm

8-4-08: Nearly two weeks here, with a side-trip down to Wildwood, NJ for a beach ultimate tournament. Truck broke down (sort of) on I-80 but made it back here to get fixed.
Fixed a couple bridges, cleared and mowed paths, and built a new swing. Dogs happy.
Adam

8-9-08: Paul Colin Casey Lakota Noah Flaharty (Colin’s friend) and Cegary Seronski (our au pair). Drove overnight from Chicago, arrived 8:30 AM Monday. Busy week! Rock Run, Knoebel’s Amusement Park, Rickett’s Glen, casey caught a 16½” bass, blueberries, grandma’s cake, climbing the big spruce, repaired the flat on Bug’s mountain bike, Paul rode the Shunk–Wheelerville climb and the climb from Hogback Road to Ellenton, campfire, s’mores and songs, grilled flank steak. Everyone had a great time!

8-11-08: Thomas — Back again for another fun couple of weeks at the lake. Unfortunately the lake was very low this year and I was unable to sail, however everything else on my usual agenda of things to do at the lake was completed. Including eating a meal at the store, seeing Ann, Bob, Lucy, and Lindley, (more Baumunks if possible) go swimming, go around the lake, see the tree house, play ping-pong, eat lots of corn, and lebanon. I also went berry picking, went to the big tree, and took a long bike ride to Wheelerville and around to Thompkin’s Corner and back home. I had a nice time at Knoebel’s with Paul and company, and also at Ricket’s Glen, where I’ve never been. So all in all another great year at the lake.
Thomas Eisenhood

8/17/08: Isaiah, Naima, Nina and Mark were here for varying lengths of time. Isaiah (5 yrs) came July 25 and stayed a week with Gramma & Pop. Then Naima (16 mo.) and Nina arrived in new Toyota minivan to join him. Five days later Mark arrived fresh from the ASA and moving out of his office in Madison. Not much swimming this year because the lake was too low but lots of blueberry and blackberry picking, and bug and frog collecting. Naima charmed everyone with “hi!”, her only word. A lovely time, as usual.
Nina

8/20/08: Thank you so much for the wonderful days here with you and Masha on the lake. I enjoyed it very much, and I’m glad that Masha ___ such a good place here.
___ (___ ___ — Vienna)

Aug. 24, 2008: I spent alot of my time in the woods. I found a nice mossy spot, and built two fairy houses. I saw four snakes three rabbits, some deer, fish, geese, and a bunch of frogs and ___
Masha

8/25/08: This morning, I leave for my sophomore year at NYU. I had (as usual) a wonderful stay here in Shunk. Lots of sitting, reading, checking the political news, eating, and sitting. I ran around some too. Thank you Gramma, Pop, Nina, Mark, Isaiah, Naima, Masha, Crystal and Bug for a lovely stay. Next year I won’t eat so much ice cream.
Charlie Eisenhood (19)

8/25/08: Another quick trip down here to haul Charlie and his stuff off to NYU, then on to VT. I made some blackberry jelly and installed a new BAUMUNK-FORD sign.
—Adam

9/1/08: Well we officially measured the distance from here to W’ville (~4.0 miles round trip) which makes it seem such a virtuous walk! Much fun & game playing. The food was, again, wonderful & the company outstanding!
Abby Kay (friend of Jason’s)

9/1/08: Wow — 4,000 miles to get here! All the way from Belgium – quite a trip but worth it! Wonderful time with good friends, much fun for all.
Bi_ ___! Sean Blinn

9/1/08: My Shunk-fast has ended. Great to be here again.
Paul J ___

9/1/08: Another lovely Shunk weekend. Too bad it didn’t last longer. Beautiful.
Sharon Nielsen

9/1/08: Even the rain is beautiful here. I enjoyed walking listening to it and staying dry as the trees guzzled it all up. Thank you for preserving this small slice of heaven and allowing me to experience it.
Rebecca Nielsen

9/1/08: Finger hurt — but Shunk is great!
Jason

9/1/08: Barb & Brian once again enjoyed their time here. Thanks for everything.

9/1/08: Great time as always – Abby Ford

Oct 5, 2008: (Adam & I here)
Closing down the house on a beautiful sunny Oct. day. Glorious red & yellow leaves.
New this summer:
Baumunk-Ford sign (Adam)
Five small Blue Spruce grandchildren trees. We’ll wait until they are sure to survive before we name them
Child’s wooden bench from vermont
New swing (Adam)
Found when Adam & I arrived: 2 wooden chairs! New glasses – large! ??
Still watching the Dawn Redwood at the end of the deck. It suddenly died last year, but foliage is growing on the trunk from the bottom. (It’s a sculpture.)
The lake is very low — and has been all summer — which was not so fine for water fun.
Later on this fall, Jim ___, mason, will do major repair on the outside chimney. The cinderblocks have disintegrated.
Always reluctant to fo — Joanne

10/5/08: Last trip here for the dogs this season. They’ll be sad to leave. Just down here for the weekend, and it ws way too short.
– Adam & Teco & Seera