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In Search of Clarence - Part 2

NOVEMBER 5, 2009
Overlooking the Ashokan
On a crisp early November morning my pal Mike and I set off in search of Clarence.
I'd spent years learning bits of information about Clarence Schmidt and now I was going to
see where it all happened. We scaled down a steep slope at the top of Ohayo Mountain and began to see signs of Clarence right away. Past enormous stacked stone walls, past foundations to forgotten shrines and into the woods over looking the Ashokan reservoir.

Overgrown and tumbling down
We found grottoes, tall towers of rocks and walls that make my back ache just thinking of hauling that much stone.
It's hard to tell from the photos but these are massive and go up the side of the mountain.

"S" is for Schmidt
Then we began to see more signs of Clarence. Stuff nailed to trees,  a piece of the space shuttle and even the car he lived in after his house burned down. Wait... that's not the car... that's too small.
Mike tidied up the place
At the bottom of where his house had been we found debris all around.
But nothing like it used to be. Now it's just rock formations in disrepair and garbage strew all over.




For Rent: Rustic room w/ view
Then we found it - the Studebaker station wagon upon which he had built a 2 story “tower” with a viewing deck on top.
The view is glorious but It was a strange somber feeling to be standing where once had stood Clarence Schmidt's broken down palace. Nothing like that could ever be built now a days. Not with the newer building codes and the Woodstock Planning board having to sign off on everything. The building inspector would have a melt-down and the high property values make it impossible.


© 2024 David Goldin