Arrival
At the urging of our travel agent, Anji, we left for New York from the Colorado Springs Airport chauffeured there by our most wonderful friend, Steve Milligan.
The plane was very small, but we passed the time on our way to Chicago with our self-supplied music and reading. (“Don’t need no stinking’ in-flight movies”).
An hour+ at O’hare gave us time for another snack before climbing aboard an equally teeny plane for the final leg of the journey into White Plains Westchester Airport. We were tired, but still able to notice how “white” White Plains is. The only black people in the whole airport were the four, presumably unionized, baggage handlers who (each individually) had to handle our suitcases as they arrived on the restricted carousel. Literally, it was like a bucket brigade with each handler passing each bag to the other and ultimately to a passenger at the end of the line who claimed it!
It was late, but Meredith and Richard found us and conveyed us to their lovely home in Putnam Valley. A long day for all, but so glad to finally be together.
Next Day - Garrison
I had a quick read of the Gazette from Colorado Springs on the iPad while Cathy dialed in KRCC on her phone. Good grief!! Our morning rituals followed us all the way to New York!
We surveyed the various projects we might help with (fixing the clock I’d built, solving the split-log-to-wood-stove storage and delivery problem, refitting a sticky closet door, etc.).
Soon we were back in the Subaru motoring to Garrison.
Yup, these are the very chairs on the very porch of the very book store (https://www.antipodean.com/) where Meredith and Richard were married almost six years ago.
The house next door and the gorgeous fountain out front brought us instantly back to that beautiful ceremony in 2012.
The manhole cover grabbed my camera’s attention and was one of many reminders of just how old is this part of our country. Imagine casting sewer lids in 1828!!!
Down the street was the charming train depot from which Richard’s family and friends emerged before the wedding.
Across the Hudson from the bookstore, looking evermore like a fortress, is the West Point Army Academy.
Inside the Antipodean my camera found these two gems in between thousands of beautiful books, maps, manuscripts and other literary delights.
Cold Spring, NY
Cold Springs is another charming little Hudson Valley town. Coming out of the recession, the citizens have recreated themselves as a destination for antique hunters…23 shops along Main St.! Meredith and Richard had been looking for a pair of upholstered wooden chairs for their living room, and soon located the perfect examples, bargained for and then purchased them. No problemo except how to get them into the Subaru along with four passengers. Creative stacking to the rescue, and we were off on a short walk down to the river.
Serious period architecture.
On the way to the river we encountered this rundown shack, rotten wood, peeling paint, overgrown with recently removed ivy. Number 37 was for sale…for a mere $1,300,000! Wanna move to Cold Spring?
Ah, the mighty Hudson River.
Stonecrop Gardens
Stonecrop began as a private garden. In 1958, Garden Conservancy founder Frank Cabot and his wife, Anne, built their home on sixty hilltop acres of fields and woods outside Cold Spring. Check out the website for Stonecrop Gardens (http://www.stonecrop.org/)!
Everything is beautifully appointed. In this case, here is a bilevel greenhouse made from exotic wood and tempered glass.
Is this not picturesque? Is this not the epitome of rural America…and just an hour plus from New York City??? BTW, the horse mask and blanket is not temperature driven; it’s to prevent stress from the fly population. How very thoughtful of the Cabots!
On our guided tour through the woodlands section of the Stonecrop Gardens I took about a bazillion photos that look a lot like this representative example. Our docent started out as an intern and graduated through the botanical ranks to become the resident expert. For most of us on the tour, it was a little too academic with the heavy use of Latin terminology and botanical comparisons to other leaf patterns…yada….yada. For some, however, the tour provided an opportunity to show off their knowledge of minutiae and brag about what their gardens have yielded. Loved the tour; could have passed on the commentary. It’s a gorgeous facility. Yes, you should sign up for a tour when you’re in the neighborhood.
Very classy greenhouses full of exotic plant life from everywhere.
From around these (I’m going to call them lily pads, because I’m ignorant and don’t know the Latin name) plantings came the most alarming grunts and roars of what we later learned were bull frogs. What a symphony!
Another boring greenhouse. This is truly a fantastic facility for studying botany.
A final shot on the way out. Cathy had several conversations with docents about the different ecosystems and what we can and cannot grow in Colorado.
Finally, it was time to return to Cold Spring with a visit to Whistling Willies for what Richard swore was a glass of milk.
