To say New York has had an exceptional amount of rain this summer, would be an understatement. There are mushrooms and moss growing everywhere (not to mention, the unmentionable mold who’s smell permeates the air). This extraordinary amount of rain and dampness, combined with our usual humid summers and unusually cool days and nights has ruined my vegetable garden. I had a ton of cherry tomatoes but it never was warm enough to ripen them so they had no flavor. And my other tomatoes just cracked and never turned fully red. Sigh. But, looking on the bright side, which I always try to do, I have fantastic string beans and Brussels sprouts.
This past weekend (yes, mid September) we finally had a sunny, warm and dry(ish) day. Making the most of it, in the morning we walked the trail in Copake Falls to BashBish. The falls, because of the rain, were enormous, quite beautiful and exciting.
Later that afternoon, we decided to take a swim in Rudd Pond. Although there were not lifeguards on duty (and no park employees to be seen) there were a few people enjoying the beach and pond. It seems only fair, even though technically no swimming was allowed, that we finally, after almost an entire summer of terrible weather, were able to enjoy a warm afternoon at the pond.
After the pond I took a drive. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I like to do this when I have a few minutes to really get to know the area. So we headed East on Shagroy Road (which once you cross the state line, is called Belgo Road). The roads twist and turn upward and downward and the scenery is fantastic – many of the homes are quite stunning in fact. One home in particular had this fantastic stone wall. Keep in mind, there are many antique stone walls in the area. But I’ve never seen anything like this. Truly remarkable (and now on my “wish list”).
It was a very good weekend.
