Berkshires

Last weekend, Aviva and I finally got to get away for the weekend with two of our favorite people, Jen and Volkan, and their wonderful dog Maddie. The five of us spent the weekend ensconced in a very cute rented cottage in the Berkshires, cooking, gabbing, snowshoeing, watching Seinfeld (no cable but 5 seasons of Seinfeld on DVD) and generally relaxing ... it was a great time.

We all arrived on Friday evening, Aviva and I getting there around 6 and Jan, Volkan and Maddie arriving around 9. Aviva and I made vegetarian Bim Bim Bop (Korean Rice Bowl) for dinner, and when Jen and Volkan arrived we made Shabbat, ate and afterwards we destroyed the cookies they brought up.

Saturday we got up, made an eggy stir fry and headed off to Benedict Lake in Beartown State Forest to go snowshoeing. Except for the fact that it took us about 45 minutes to find the lake (an example of our impatience, as if we had just kept driving about 2 minutes more we would have found the correct turn), it was perfect. The lake itself was completely frozen over, and the surround deep forest was blanketed in dusty white, and gave a feeling of comfortable isolation and closeness to something wild. It was really breathtaking, and the trails around it, including a section of the AT apparently known as "the Ledges", were equally so. There were other people there, no many but we did run into another couple with a dog and some other snowshoers on the AT, but generally it was quiet and peaceful ... well, when Maddie was not running around going nuts. I think she had a blast, and we certainly had a fabulous time playing with her - as you can see on the right, she loves sticks, the bigger the better. After our expedition, we returned to the cottage and Jen made a veggie matzah ball soup for lunch while the rest of us lounged and watched Seinfeld. Lunch was delicious, and after a bit more lounging we went snowshoing around the property, returning at around 6 and heading out to dinner at the Castle street cafe in Great Barrington.

Dinner was pretty good, I think that my duck in black currant sauce with grilled fruit was the best, but it was mine so I am slightly biased. The meal was excellent (desert was a bit lacking, the chocolate mousse was very grainy) and a lot of fun, and after a very short walk around town (as it was quite cold and nothing was open), we headed back to the cottage and all fell asleep (or mostly asleep) watching a quite boring movie called Brideshead Revisited.

Sunday we had to be out by 10, which surprisingly, was not difficult. After a short trip into town to buy some organic beef at the Berkshire co-op (awesome store), a coffee for Volkan and an orchid for Jen, left the Berkshires and headed home, by way of Bash Bish falls, which is where Aviva and I had our first kiss (I strangely do not mention it in the original post, but I think I might have been afraid to jinx things ... it worked out and I am not complaining). Bash bish did not disappoint, just as beautiful as always - frozen waterfalls, if you have never seen one, tend to be absolutely spectacular - and Aviva, Jen, Volkan and Maddie all humored me while I spent a good hour taking pictures of the scenery and of us, and just kind of lapping up the beauty.



And then we were back to the cars and done, heading home. It was too quick, barely felt like we had any time there, but at the same time it was very relaxing and felt like we were away much longer than 2 days. Also, it was a blast to hang out with Jen, Volkan and Maddie, something we will hopefully get to repeat in the no to distant future :)

Snowshoeing

As you almost certainly know, January this year was rough in terms of the weather. We had the snowiest January in New York history, several big storms dropping 56 inches of snow all over the tri-state area. Most people thought it was awful, but I gotta tell you, all I wanted was another 10 inches. The snow stuck in Westchester the way it never does in the city, leaving everything blanketed in gorgeous white ... and most importantly, it left an incredible snow pack in the mountains and parks nearby. The icicles to the right are found in the ice caves up at Sam's Point preserve near the 'Gunks ... more about that later.

Snowshoeing.

So each Sunday for the last two weekends, I have been out snowshoing, first in Sam's Point (just south of the gunks) with Cheo and Jurrian, and then with Aviva at Ward Pound Ridge preserve near Katonah.

The first trip, with Cheo and Jurrian, took in a trail Cheo and I had done two winters ago out to an ice cave and then down to Verkeerder Kill Falls. Both times the we have done it, we have not been able to complete the whole trail, and this time was no different ... again we had to turn around at the waterfall. However, the trail out to the falls was much tougher this time, about 3 feet of snow obscuring most of the manzanita that lines the trail in the summer and fall. The whole day was awesome, deep snow everywhere, with massive icicles everywhere. The ice cave was just as cool as last time ... although the insides were not coated with ice the way they were last time. Still, Cheo brought his snow chains for boots, allowing us to climb up the icy staircase we had not been able to navigate two years before.

After the caves, we trekked out to the falls, only stopping for lunch once we reached the top. After lunch we were about to leave when Cheo walked a bit farther for a look at the front of the falls, and I am really glad he did, because the view was of the frozen falls was spectacular.




Cheo wanted to keep going, but it was already pretty late in the day, so we headed back towards the caves, walked out and took in the frozen Lake Maratanza and headed back to the car, stopping at an overlook on the way back to take in the magnificent views of the Hudson to the east and the Gunks and the Catskills to the north. Even though we did not get close to finishing the trail, we went about 8 miles and were exhausted, soaked and thrilled when we got back to the car.

The next weekend Aviva and I headed up to Ward Pound Ridge State Reservation, near Cross River about 35 minutes north of here. One of the things I love the most about where we live is the incredible access to so many beautiful little parks and preserves that are easy to use for a quick hike or just easy access to the outdoors. On the way into the park, the ranger recommended the brown trail along the river in the far side of the park.

Good choice.

The trail was beautiful and empty, with a gorgeous blue sky, great tempteratures and a solid snow pack it was about as perfect as a day as we could have asked for. The park has good trail markings and the trails are well used, making the trail easy to follow and fun to move on. We only saw one other person (and her wonderful dog), as well as a small group of white tailed deer. The whole trail was only about 4 miles long, which was perfect, because we got a late start (I had to work in the morning) and snowshoing is pretty rigorous, so 4 miles was plenty. We got back to the car, tired and sweaty, around 4 in the afternoon, and quickly headed home to eat the pasta calabria (with shrimp) I had made the night before, and then headed upstairs to watch the Super Bowl with Zeke and Ali.