New Skete Lane
By Brother Gregory
Many people have driven
up New Skete Lane over the years without giving much attention to the history
of this road. Our focus is mostly on where the road leads us and on the
memories that we hold from visiting New Skete. I once came across a picture of
the original New Skete Lane coming up the property and seeing it wind to the
left just below the original first building built by the monks. Brother Stavros
said recently that the monks focused early on the need to change the road, widening
it and making it direct as it came up around the mountain. These changes were
done early on, and New Skete Lane now is how most of us remember it.
For
fifty-plus years, New Skete Lane has served us well, but with extensive use by
trucks and numerous cars, and hard winter seasons, this road has needed
extensive repairs. The monks and nuns have many memories and stories of cars
and some trucks driving off the road because of ice and mud on the road. I once
had to take Brother John to the local health clinic for needed x-rays. It was
still winter, and I was driving the car with all-wheel drive. Driving down New Skete
Lane, not going fast, I could feel the car hit ice on the road, and off John
and I went down the road, out of control, until we hit a tree. We were fine,
but the car was totaled. Over the years, trees have grown up close to the road,
and their branches have completely covered New Skete Lane in some areas. Even
today the local Post Office will not make deliveries to the monastery because
of the hazardous conditions of New Skete Lane. Then there is the problem of mud.
In 1996 I would walk up and down the muddy road and could put my walking stick
into tire tracks eleven inches deep. Even last winter some staff members lost control
of their cars when the tires were locked into deep mud tire tracks, throwing the
car off the road. This happened to Brother Marc last winter.
Every
year repairs have been needed to fix the road, build up the road, and find ways
for water to leave the road. Serious safety issues had developed because of the
road conditions in winter and spring. The monks had talked about cutting the
trees back from New Skete Lane so that the sun could get on the road and dry
it, but cutting down trees was hard to imagine. Last winter was especially difficult,
with near accidents due to the road conditions, and something needed to be
done.
Brother
Luke was given the task of finding a company that would cut the trees back from
New Skete Lane and allow the sun to dry the road. Eventually work was started
on the left side of the road heading up to the monastery, and then work began the
on other side of New Skete Lane where the power lines are located. The men
worked fast, using a tree cutter that grabbed the tree trunk, sawed off the
tree from the bottom, and then ran the tree through, cutting off branches from
the trunk. It was amazing to watch.
So now New Skete Lane looks different with its new haircut,
and ready for another fifty years of service. No doubt nature will start
filling in the cleared land, and it will be up to future monks to give New
Skete Lane another haircut.
