5/22/11: A long weekend here, and fairly rainy. Late opening this year. Heading back to vermont on a foggy day.
Adam, Teco, Seera

5-30-11: It’s never occured to me to take the log book down to the dock and read and write in it while my feet dangle in the remarkably warm water – but it’s a great idea! (so long as I don’t drop anything…) I’ve had a lot of ups and down since Labor Day but as always Shunk is a place where I can sit and let peace soak into my heart. I saw a snake & lots of birds (geese, mallards, blue heron, red tailed hawk, something that looked kinda like a sandpiper!) , signs of beaver: toothmarked blueberry bushes and big splashes. As usual I’m grateful for this good food & conversation. Thanks so much for the hospitality!

5/31/11: Oops — wrote in 2010 — see last entry on opposite page!
Allison Ford

5/30/11: Another fun weekend & much needed rest. The lake gets prettier each year & the company as always is perfect. thanks for your hospitality! Definitely “winning”! A’ndrea V.

5/30/11: Another great weekend with my husband and his friends!
Abby

5/30/11: It was in this Shunk-trip that I learned that any Emily Dickenson poem can be sung to the tune of “The Yelow Rose of Texas”. Try it.
“Because I would stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me,
The carriage held but just ourselves
And immortality…
See what I mean
Daniel J. ___

5/31/11: My first trip to Shunk – what a pleasure. Many thanks to the hosts & all present. What a special place – my gratitude for sharing it! Especially enjoyed time on the lake searching for that sneaky beaver. Also enjoyed the birds, baby robin especially, and relaxing evenings of food, games and chat.
With gratitude, Allison Ford
(of the West Coast Fords!)

5/30/2011: So glad to have visited again after more than a year since the last visit! Fun canoeing & new (for me) games – yay! Thanks to all for the great company!
–Diane Chan

5/30/2011: Thank you for a well-needed break from the same old ___ ___. Very good time, as usual, with great people.
– Sean Blinn

5/30/2011: Steven walked on the trail between the two houses for the first time. I’ve been walking that trail for 40 years, so it was great to see Steven out there!

7-10-11: Masha Spektor
Came from summer cottage in Sharon Springs, NY for an overnight here. Back to NYC today.

7/15/2011: Paul, Casey, Matthew Watsin & Lakota
Arrived Sunday, departed Friday. Too short a visit. Bike rides (100 miles), Knoebel’s, fishing, emergency room visits (Matthew had a fish hook in his heel), campfire & s’mores, pot luck with Lucy, Hendersons & Wilkens, to 5 kids played well together — Isaiah, Ben, Zach, Casey & Matthew. Many snakes and salamanders observed and caught. Beautiful sunny clear and warm all week.

7/20/2011: I had a lot of fun in only ten days. I found 20 Red-Spotted Newts, 5 Dusky Salamanders, 7 Redback Salamanders, 3 Checkered Garter Snakes, 1 Baby Red-belly Snake, and 7 leopard frogs. I would like to stay longer next year.
Isaiah

7/20/11: Naima and I came for a quick trip to pick up Isaiah. Only a two-day visit — too short! All is beautiful here. Now back to Providence, then off to Woods Hole for 3 weeks.
Nina

7/24: I was here for 2 days as part of a 3 week East tour (which also includes Nina in Woods Hole and Adam in VT). Amazingly hot. –Ian

7/24/2011: I was having sooooo much fun on the week and I want to stay forever!
If it weren’t for the bugs, it would be perfect.
I went on so many good hikes and did some cool things but my fave was the boating I also liked swimming, bouncing and building a fairy house I had so much fun
Sined, ~Polly

7/24/11: I got to share my mother’s 75th birthday along with having chocolate milk tea and canoeing. We couldn’t have had a more wonderful time – Thank you, Joanne & Ken! You have a truly idyllic home.
– Catherine

7/18–7/26/11: I had a wonderful stay – so very relaxing! The food was superb, and the atmosphere warm with love and ___. Thank you for yielding your kitchen and sharing your home. I depart slowly, happy and calm. Thank you for your hospitality, and it’s been a joy getting to know you!
– Liz Fritz

7/26/11: What a beautiful place with beautiful people! I can’t express enough thanks for the wonderful hospitality and love I’ve recieved while here at the lake. I will never forget the wonderful experience here; I know people before and after me for many years can attest to the same! I’m very grateful.
with love, Flor Serna

7/26/11: Another year at the lake. I feel like I’ve been coming for 15 years straight now. I brought my girlfriend Flor and Charlie and I overlapped for the first time in a few years. I had a lot of fun!
–Thomas

7/26/11: Fun week here in my first trip as a college graduate. It was great spending time with Thomas and his gf Flor; I also brought my gf Liz. We did the usual things– swimming (it was hot!), boating, games, I won a lot of games. Liz dethroned me in Monopoly tho. Can’t wait to be back next summer!
Charlie (22)

7/27/11: My always wonderful days at Shunk reached an amazing height this year because Joanne and my daughter, Catherine, conspired to have her and her granddaughter Polly, 7, come from Toronto to attend a surprise 75th birthday party for me on the 24th! Charlie and Thomas, with their friends Liz and Flor cooked a delicious birthday meal, while Ken and Joanne distracted me with “tea” at the tree house until Catherine and Polly came.

continued –
I was so unsuspecting that I didn’t even recognize them at first. Then we packed in a flurry of activity — hugging, laughing, canoeing, paddleboating and kay-yaking for Polly, short hikes, more delicious meals, Scrabble — The terrible heat broke with a spectacular thunderstorm. I even got to help with removing trees and branches growing into the driveway. Best of all, as always, was spending leisurely time with good friends. Thanks Joanne and Ken.
Love, Donna

8/22/11: Abby and Steven and I up for a long weekend. We bought cemetary plate in Shunk. Great weather, great company!
Jason

What a wonderful time we had – visiting with all the relative especially Ken and Joanne!
Love, Abby

A great visit again after a few years. Hopefully I earned my keep and will be invited back soon. Thanks for all the hospitality, good food, & radio poetry.
DON

5 Sep 2011: I didn’t manage to get up to Shunk last year, but how it was all overgrown – The weather was a bit warm and muggy, but watching the thunderstorm roll in last night was very cool. It’s a beautiful place, thanks for a great weekend.
Rebecca Nielsen

9/5/11: Excellent time, as always. Wish I didn’t have to leave! Thank you again for your gracious hospitality.
Sean Blinn

Best Shunk trip ever
Jason and Abby

10-4-11: Up to close down the house and survey the damage left by Hurricane Lee. Both docks gone and about half of the foot bridges are off their foundations.
Steve Blondy and i split a lot of wood but other than that, i didn’t have much time to do anything else. Time to hit the road back to VT (around some closed roads)…
Adam, Teco, Seera

10-4-11: We planned to close house one week after Labor Day, but rains from Hurricane Lee left many roads & bridges thoroughly damaged — and I couldn’t get here from Philly & Adam couldn’t get here from vermont. A bonus: a new sculpture! A huge stump floated on to the lawn in almost the right place. We can view it from the window.

Progress report: the recessed lights in the great room are in place. The leaky chimney has been fixed. Adam & Don built a new bridge. And, just now a generous supply of new split cherry logs stacked against the wall. Some color in the woods, but subdued.
Joanne