The Tepee

I was in roadside attraction Nirvana recently when my dude and I hit the road to go visit his parents in Buffalo, NY. We decided to make a proper road trip of it, and gave ourselves one whole day to make the 6.5/hour journey. When I realized that our proposed route would take us right by The Tepee, I immediately added it to our must-see list.

The Tepee is located halfway between Cherry Valley and Sharon Springs, NY, right off of Route 20 (also halfway between Boston and Niagara Falls). It was built in 1950 and is currently owned by the Latella sisters, the third family to own to Tepee. It's always been a souvenir shop, filled with Native American-themed gifts—which I suppose is exactly what you should expect to find inside of a huge, metal tepee.

The site offers a panoramic view of Cherry Valley, which you can enhance via a (somewhat cloudy) "telescope for public use" by the American Lens and Photo Company. There are also snacks available at Tepee Pete's Chow Wagon, including what their website hails as his "nearly famous chili."

I'm thrilled that there are still wonderful people out there like the Latella sisters, who see the value in a weird little roadside attraction like the Tepee. I hope that people continue to slow down and pull over to check out the view, buy a pennant or pair of moccasins or just to say hello.