Adventures in the Berkshires and Southern Vermont
From Wilco to Woodstock … The summer music festivals you need to know about
Woodstock memories An adults-only summer camp Solid Sound Fest returns
Mass MoCA turns 20 The UpCountry Golf Guide Everything you need to know about (legally) buying weed Plus: An inn where the outdoors is designed to outshine the interior Sleep in the house where Rudyard Kipling wrote ‘The Jungle Book’ Where a legendary poet found inspiration The best roadside eats
MAY/JUNE 2019
TABLE OF CONTENTS
19 28 37 64
The UpCo Golf Guide
Our annual directory of clubs and courses in the Berkshires and Southern Vermont
Woodstock at 50 Memories from UpCountry residents who were there
An adults-only summer camp
Rudyard Kipling slept here
Welcome Campers curates music and nostalgia
Stay where ‘The Jungle Book’ was created
Mass MoCA turns 20 The original plans did not include beer, barbecue or performing arts
7 From the editor 33
Every other summer A look at Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival over the years
10 Roadside Eats 40
Cannabis: A Buyer’s Guide How and where to (legally) buy weed in the Berkshires
Weed flavors change as the industry evolves
60 Ready, set, paddle! 54
Where a legendary poet found inspiration The Robert Frost Stone House Museum puts literary history on display
5 roadside eateries to stop at
51 Changing tastes 47
An inn where the outdoors is designed to outshine the interior The design of Tourists inn (inside and out)
8 Contributors
Canoe and kayak races in So. Vermont
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FROM THE EDITOR
We’ve been creating this bimonthly magazine for a little more than two years now, and it’s a labor of love for all involved. Hardly a day goes by when someone mentions to me how much they enjoy reading and looking at UpCountry Magazine. That is so heartening. Hearing from you helps keep us on track. It lets us know we’re doing a decent job entertaining, informing and enlightening you. Of course, all the credit goes to the fine staff here who do all the heavy lifting and all the correspondents who contribute brilliant articles and fabulous photography. To that end, let’s keep hearing from you. We love to hear your ideas about what and who you’d like us to feature in UpCountry Magazine. Tell us what it is that makes UpCountry enjoyable to you. What would make it more enjoyable? More relevant? Is there an area we’re not getting to that we should be taking a look at. Please, share your thoughts with me. The easiest way to reach me is via email at kmoran@berkshireeagle.com. Oh, and by the way, enjoy this issue of UpCountry! Kevin Moran, Executive Editor kmoran@berkshireeagle.com
Publisher Fredric D. Rutberg
frutberg@berkshireeagle.com
Vice President Jordan Brechenser
jbrechenser@berkshireeagle.com
Executive Editor Kevin Moran
kmoran@berkshireeagle.com
Editor Jennifer L. Huberdeau
jhuberdeau@berkshireeagle.com
Proofreaders Dave Coffey
dcoffey@berkshireeagle.com
Lindsey Hollenbaugh
lhollenbaugh@berkshireeagle.com
Tim Jamiolkowski
tjamiolkowski@berkshireeagle.com
Jimmy Nesbitt
jnesbitt@berkshireeagle.com
Art Director Kimberly Kirchner
kkirchner@berkshireeagle.com
Layout Casey Albert Rob Langsdale Dan Whitee Regional Advertising Managers Berkshire County, Mass.: Kate Teutsch kteutsch@berkshireeagle.com
Bennington County, Vt.: Susan Plaisance
splaisance@manchesterjournal.com
On the Cover:
Lax ticket-taking saved these four original Woodstock tickets, ordered through the mail by concert attendee and New England Newspapers publisher Fredric Rutberg. Photo: Ben Garver. Story, page 28
Windham County, Vt.: Jonathan Stafford jstafford@reformer.com
UpCountry Magazine is a publication of New England Newspapers Inc.
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CONTRIBUTORS Felix Carroll [“Memories of Woodstock,” page 28] is a freelance writer who makes his home with his family in the Berkshires.
Benjamin Cassidy [“Tourists’ design beckons the wild,” page 54] is the arts and entertainment reporter for The Berkshire Eagle. A graduate of Columbia Journalism School and the University of Michigan, Benjamin now lives in Dalton, Mass.
Jennifer Huberdeau [“Summer campe was never this fun as a kid,” page 37] is editor of UpCountry magazine. She also pens the column “The Cottager” for Berkshires Week and The Shires of Vermont.
Telly Halkias [“The Robert Frost Stone House Museum puts literary history on display,” page 70] is a national award-winning, independent journalist. He lives and writes from his homes in Southern Vermont and coastal Maine.
Kevin O’Connor [“The New England Canoe and Kayak Racing Association finds a place to compete in landlocked Vermont,” page 60] is a Vermont native and Brattleboro Reformer contributor.
Kristin Palpini [“A buyer’s guide for purchasing legal marijuana in the Berkshires” page 47] Is a Western Massachusetts journalist with more than 15 years experience. She was the editor of the Valley Advocate before coming to The Berkshire Eagle in 2017. Palpini loves to travel, say “ya’ll” more than any MA-native should, and research. 8 | UPCOUNTRY MAGAZINE | May/June 2019
ROADSIDE EATS
A New England staple, these roadside eateries are worth the trip
A sure sign of spring in New England? The return of the roadside dairy bar. Forget about the return of seasonal birds or trees budding; hearty New Englanders know that spring has returned (and summer isn’t far off ) when their favorite roadside haunt has set up its picnic tables and fired up the grill. And there are plenty of roadside eats to choose from in the UpCountry. We took a trip through the Berkshires, and Bennington and Windham counties, to visit a few of our favorites. Be prepared to wait in line and get a little messy. (We assure you, these places are worth it.)
The Bistro Box in Great Barrington, Mass. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
Pedrin’s Dairy Bar 1360 Curran Highway, North Adams, Mass. 413-664-9540, facebook.com/pedrinsdairybar
The menu at Pedrin’s Dairy Bar, family-owned and operated for over five decades, still boasts the original offerings, like the fish fry — a delicious piece of the finest North Atlantic haddock delicately fried and served a roll, and homemade onion rings, deep fried to crispy perfection. While dishes like those and a few others — the clam boat and sausage grinder — have kept customers coming back for generations, Pedrin’s doesn’t shy away from expanding its offerings, adding new items each season. In addition, Pedrin’s serves ice cream, both scooped and soft serve, with all sorts of delicious toppings to choose from.
At Pedrin’s Dairy Bar, the fish fry and onion rings have been customer favorites and a menu staple for over five decades. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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The Bistro Box 937 S. Main St., Great Barrington, Mass. 413-717-5958, thebistrobox.rocks
The Bistro Box, opened in 2014, offers a mix of classic “shack favorites” and cafe fare made with fresh, quality ingredients. The menu includes a variety of sandwiches, burgers and hot dogs, as well as salads, chili and a daily handmade soup. Fried dill pickles and hand-cut fries with a variety of toppings, from toasted garlic and herbs to chili cheese, round out the menu. And, for dessert, The Bistro Box offers ice cream cones, shakes and ice cream floats.
The ‘BOX Burger’ with Parmesan truffle fries and strawberry lemonade are among the most popular items at The Bistro Box Berkshire Eagle File Photo.
Top of the Hill Grill 632 Putney Road, Brattleboro, Vt. 802-258-9178, topofthehillgrill.com
At the Top of the Hill Grill, the menu is filled with mouthwatering barbecue and smoked treats: hickory-smoked beef brisket, pulled pork and ribs and smoked turkey, as well as grilled chicken and fresh ground burgers. In addition, the menu is stocked with Mexican and Cajun specialties — chili, gumbo, jambalaya, fajitas and quesadillas. For vegetarians, there are tempeh wraps and burgers, as well as a variety of fresh salads and sides. The “Kids Menu” includes mac and cheese, hot dogs, sloppy Joes, burgers and chicken. Fish tacos from Top of the Hill Grill. Brattleboro Reformer File Photo
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Billy T’s Northside Dairy Bar 217 Northside Drive, Bennington, Vt. 802-442-5644 facebook.com/BillyTs-Northside-DairyBar-124833334252160
Celebrating its 25th season, Billy T’s Northside Dairy Bar is a family-owned and operated eatery offering typical roadside diner food and then some. The menu includes French fries, fish fry, burgers and hot dogs, as well as fried dough or pickles and a variety of seafood-filled rolls —seafood salad, clam (strip and whole), scallop and lobster. Over 50 flavors of softserve ice cream and a great selection of hard ice cream are also available. Among Billy T’s Northside Dairy Bar’s bestsellers are Bill’s cheeseburger, homemade onion rings, and a Captain Eli’s root beer. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
Snow’s Arlington Dairy Bar 3158 Vt. Route 7A, Arlington, Vt. 802-375-2546, facebook. com/ArlingtonDairyBar
Snow’s, with its roadside food stand painted red and styled like a classic New England barn, is a favorite stop for locals and travelers along Route 7A. If you’re looking for an old-fashioned dairy bar with a delicious menu, this is the place. Enjoy burgers, fish fry and thin, crisp, golden fries. Bring the whole family for lunch or dinner, but don’t forget to end with some softserve ice cream. If you’re feeling adventurous, ask for the chocolate dip! •
The bestseller at Snow’s Arlington Dairy Bar is the Barn Burger. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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The UpCountry Golf Guide 2019 Waubeeka Golf Links in Williamstown, Mass. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
The Berkshires’ 18-hole courses All rates are subject to change.
Bas Ridge Golf Course LOCATION: 151 Plunkett Ave., Hinsdale TYPE: Public, with memberships available PHONE: 413-655-2605 WEBSITE: basridge.com PAR: 70 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 5,051, 4,369 COURSE RATING: 65.8 (m), 65.9 (w) SLOPE: 111 (m), 113 (w) GREENS FEES: Weekdays are $16 for 18 holes, $13 for 9. Seniors (over 60) are $13 for 18, $11 for 9. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays are $21 for 18 holes, $16 for 9. Any evening after 4 p.m. is $11. CART FEES: $12 for 18 holes and $6 for 9. RANGE: No TEE TIME POLICY: Call the pro shop COURSE DESCRIPTION: As the shortest regulation course in the county, this pretty layout is a favorite for recreational golfers — especially seniors — although there are plenty of holes that will challenge any level of player.
Cranwell Spa & Golf Resort LOCATION: 55 Lee Road, Lenox TYPE: Resort, open to the public with memberships available PHONE: 413-637-1364 WEBSITE: cranwell.com PAR: 69 (m), 71 (w) YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,039, 4906 COURSE RATING: 70 (m), 72.1 (w) SLOPE: 125 (m), 127 (w) GREENS FEES: Rates through June 30 and after Sept.: Monday-Thursday, $39 for 18 holes, $31 for 9, $29 after 2 p.m. and 50 percent discount for juniors under 16. Friday-Sunday and holidays, $59 for 18 holes, $45 for 9, $39 after 2
p.m. Rates for July through September: Monday-Thursday are $59 for 18 holes and $39 after 3 p.m. From Friday-Sunday during summer, it’s $79 for 18 holes, $49 after 3 p.m. CART FEES: Cart fees are additional and optional in spring and fall seasons plus twilight hours. Cart rental is required on weekends and holidays in July and August prior to twilight hours. Carts are $20 for 18 holes and $14 for 9 holes and twilight. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Call pro shop, during peak season, times can be made a week in advance COURSE DESCRIPTION: With narrow fairways and well-guarded greens, accuracy off the tee is far more important than distance. Some of the greens, especially on the back nine, slope dramatically from back to front. The course was built by Wayne Stiles and John Van Kleek in 1926.
Egremont Country Club LOCATION: 685 S. Egremont Road, Great Barrington TYPE: Public, with memberships available PHONE: 413-528-4222 WEBSITE: egremontcountryclub.com PAR: 71 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,036, 4,894 COURSE RATING: 67.7 (m), 68.1 (w) SLOPE: 121 (m), 119 (w) GREENS FEES: Weekdays are $30 for 18 holes from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., $20 for 9 anytime and $18 twilight fee (after 4 p.m.). It’s $21 for seniors (65 and over Monday-Thursday). It’s $20 for 18 holes and $18 for 9 for juniors (14 and under).
Weekends and holidays are $45 for 18 holes until 1 p.m., $30 after 1 p.m. and $20 after 5 p.m. It’s $35 for Berkshire County residents until 1 p.m, $20 for juniors. Weekend and holiday 9 holes are $32 until 1 p.m., $25 from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. and $18 for juniors (14 and under). CART FEES: $20 for a single rider or $44 for a full cart for 18 holes. $11/single rider or $22 for a full cart for 9 holes. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Seven days in advance GENERAL MANAGER: Frank Mazzarelli. COURSE DESCRIPTION: Egremont has two distinctly different nines with the easier par-34 front featuring smaller greens than the final nine holes while the par-37 back is 694 yards longer and includes a challenging finish.
Pontoosuc Lake Country Club LOCATION: 38 Kirkwood Drive, Pittsfield TYPE: Public with memberships available PHONE: 413-445-4217 WEBSITE: plcc.biz PAR: 70 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,207, 5,240 COURSE RATING: 69.2 (m), 68.9 (w) SLOPE: 122 (m), 111 (w) GREENS FEES: $10 for nine holes and $18 for 18 on weekdays. Seniors (62 and over) and juniors (18 and under) play for $15. $12 for nine holes and $20 for 18 on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Twilight fees (after 5 p.m.) are $14 on weekdays and $16 on weekends. (No credit cards. ATM available.) CART FEES: $8/single or $16/double for 9 holes; $12/single or $20/double for 18 holes.
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RANGE: No TEE TIME POLICY: Starting times on Friday-Sunday. For Monday-Thursday, it’s first-come, first-serve. COURSE DESCRIPTION: The course, which dates back to 1927 and underwent a full redesign under the guidance of Wayne Stiles in 1939, has tree-lined fairways that give it a true New England feel while at the same time featuring some fairways that have the look of a seaside links.
Skyline Country Club LOCATION: Route 7, Lanesborough PAR: 71 TYPE: Public, with memberships available PHONE: 413-445-5584 WEBSITE: skyline-cc.com
YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,110, 4,708 COURSE RATING: 67.3 (m), 66.9 (w) SLOPE: 117 (m), 118 (w) GREENS FEES: Weekdays: Prices range from $14-15 walking and $20-$22 with cart depending on starting time for nine holes; prices range from $19-$22 walking and $25-$34 with cart for 18 holes depending on starting time. On weekends, prices range from $15-$17 depending on starting time walking and $20-24 riding for 9 holes. Prices range from $20-$23 walking and $30-39 riding for 18 holes. CART FEES: Reflected in prices above RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: One week in advance COURSE DESCRIPTION: The Lanesborough layout offers plenty of elevation changes to challenge golfers — playing with a member can really help first-time
Country Club of Pittsfield in Pittsfield, Mass. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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visitors — and features gorgeous views of Pontoosuc Lake from atop the course. .
Taconic Golf Club LOCATION: 19 Meacham St., Williamstown TYPE: Semi-private, with memberships available PHONE: 413-458-3997 WEBSITE: taconicgolf.com PAR: 71 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,800, 5,143 COURSE RATING: 73.5 (m), 80.1 (w) SLOPE: 134 (m), 141 (w) GREENS FEES: $160, first time only, for unaccompanied guest and $60 for unaccompanied guest restart. $100 Tuesday and Thursday special (10 a.m.-noon) It’s $95 for Williams College alumnus/ spouse, $110 for guest of alumnus, $70
guest with member, $95 for college employee/spouse, $110 for employee guest; $45 for 9 holes employee. It’s $20 for Williams students, $110 for student guests, $95 for a student’s parent, $110 for guest of a student’s parent. CART FEES: Greens fees include cart RANGE: No TEE TIME POLICY: One week in advance COURSE DESCRIPTION: Considered Wayne Stiles’ best work and recognized as one of the best courses in New England and top college courses in the nation, Taconic tests all facets of a golfer’s game while building to a spectacular climax with a string of great finishing holes.
Wahconah Country Club LOCATION: 20 Orchard Road, Dalton TYPE: Public with memberships available. PHONE: 413-684-1333 WEBSITE: wahconahcc.com PAR: 71 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,558, 5,431 COURSE RATING: 72.5 (m), 75.1 (w) SLOPE: 135 (m), 128 (w) GREENS FEES: Shoulder season (opening to Friday before Memorial Day and Oct. 1 to close): Monday to Friday, $60 for 18 holes, $40 for nine holes for public guests. Weekend and holiday rates for public guests are $65 for 18 holes and $40 for 9 holes. In-season rates ( Memorial Day Weekend until Oct. 1). Monday to Friday, $75 for 18 holes and $50 for nine holes for public guests; weekends and holidays, it’s $85 for 18 holes and $55 for 9 holes. CART FEES: $45 per person for 18 holes, $30 for 9 holes. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Call pro shop COURSE DESCRIPTION: The site of the final competitive tournament round played by the legendary Bobby Jones in 1948, Wahconah is a beautiful layout and features some of the county’s most challenging holes. The terrace overlooking the par-5 18th green offers a perfect setting annually for Wahconah’s popular Little Brown Jug best-ball tournament.
Waubeeka Golf Links LOCATION: 137 New Ashford Road, Williamstown TYPE: Public, with memberships available WEBSITE: waubeeka.com PHONE: 413-458-8355 PAR: 71 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 403, 4,875 COURSE RATING: 71 (m), 68.1 (w) SLOPE: 124 (m), 112 ( m) GREENS FEES: Non-member rates: $49 walking, $70 with cart for 18 holes, Monday-Friday, 9 holes is $39 walking,
$56 with cart. Saturday and Sunday: $59 walking and $80 with cart for 18 holes; 9 holes is $39 for 18 holes and $51 with cart. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Seven days in advance for public, eight days for members COURSE DESCRIPTION: Blessed with spectacular views of Mount Greylock and also one of the county’s best-conditioned public layouts, Waubeeka received rave reviews from some of the state’s best amateur golfers when it hosted 2016’s Massachusetts Public Links Championship.
TEE TIME POLICY: First come, first serve GENERAL MANAGER: John-Michael Bradbury SUPERINTENDENT: June Blaje COURSE DESCRIPTION: Located at the base of Mount Greylock and founded in 1900, the Forest Park layout —an Alexander Lindley design — is relatively short course with rolling fairways that create plenty of uneven lies and small greens that will test anyone’s chipping and putting ability.
The Berkshires 9-hole courses
LOCATION: 303 Crane Ave., Pittsfield TYPE: Open to public with memberships available PHONE: 413-443-5746 PAR: 36 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,205 for 18 holes, 5,274 COURSE RATING: 71 (m), 69.6 (w) SLOPE: 113 (m), 109 (w) GREENS FEES: Rates for 2018 were not available prior to publishing. RANGE: No TEE TIME POLICY: Call pro shop to set times COURSE DESCRIPTION: Built in the 1930s for General Electric employees and executives, the course features some elevation changes — the steeply downhill second shot on the par-4 second hole is a prime example — and while all of the par 4s measure less than 400 yards, the 560-yard sixth hole is one of the county’s toughest par 5s.
Donnybrook Country Club LOCATION: 775 Williamstown Road, Lanesborough TYPE: Open to public with memberships available PHONE: 413-499-7888 WEBSITE: donnybrookgolf.com PAR: 36 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,676 for 18 holes, 4,852 COURSE RATING: 72.4 (m), 72.2 (w) SLOPE: 139 (m), 126 (w) GREENS FEES: Weekdays: Before 8 a.m. and at twilight, it’s $20 for 9 or 18 holes. Daytime primetime is $25 for 9 holes, $30 for 18. For weekends and holidays, before 7 a.m. and at twilight it’s $25 for 9 or 18 holes. In daytime primetime, it’s $30 for 9 holes and $35 for 18. Seniors (65+) get 10 percent off while juniors (15 and under) are 20 percent off. CART FEES: 9 holes: $10, 18 holes: $15 RANGE: No TEE TIME POLICY: Call pro shop to set times COURSE DESCRIPTION: A fun course with elevation changes and beautiful scenery — check out the view from the back tee on the par-5 fifth hole — that offer golfers no shortage of playing options with huge teeing areas on most of the holes.
Forest Park Country Club LOCATION: 41 Forest Park Ave., Adams TYPE: Open to public with memberships available PHONE: 413-743-3311 WEBSITE: forestparkadams.com PAR: 34 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 5,110 for 18 holes, 4,216 COURSE RATING: 65.2 (m), 67.3 (w) SLOPE: 118 (m); 115 (w) GREENS FEES: $15 for 9 holes, $20 for 18 CART FEES: $15 for 9 holes, $27 for 18 RANGE: No
General Electric Athletic Association
Greenock Country Club LOCATION: 220 W. Park St., Lee TYPE: Open to public with memberships available PHONE: 413-243-3323 WEBSITE: greenockcc.com PAR: 35 (m), 37 (w) YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,230 for 18 holes, 5,258 COURSE RATING: 70 (m), 72.7 (w) SLOPE: 123 (m), 126 (w) GREENS FEES: Rates for 2019 were not available prior to publishing. CART FEES: Included in above pricing. COURSE DESCRIPTION: Designed by the legendary Donald Ross, Greenock offers traditional old-school charm while challenging golfers with elevation changes on approach shots and challenging putting surfaces.
Worthington Golf Club LOCATION: 113 Ridge Road, Worthington TYPE: Open to public with memberships available PHONE: 413-238-4464 WEBSITE: worthingtongolfclub.net
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PAR: 35 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 5,579 for 18 holes, 5,165 COURSE RATING: 67.3 (m), 68.5 (w) SLOPE: 120(m), 123 (w) GREENS FEES: Weekdays: $26 for 18 holes; $16 for 9 holes. Juniors under 18 play for free. Weekends: $32 for 18 holes, $20 for 9. CART FEES: $23 per rider for 18 holes, $53 per rider for 9. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Call pro shop to set times COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is home to the highest hole in Massachusetts at an elevation of 1,700 feet.
The Berkshires’ private golf clubs Berkshire Hills Country Club LOCATION: 500 Benedict Road, Pittsfield TYPE: 18 holes, private membership PHONE: 413-447-9429 WEBSITE: berkshirehillscc.com PAR: 72 (m), 73 (w) YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,780, 5,458 COURSE RATING: 72.7 (m), 73.6 (w) SLOPE: 135 (m), 132 (w) GUEST POLICY: With a member, $35 for 18 holes on weekdays, $25 for 9, $45 for 18 holes on weekend. An unaccompanied guest can play for $90. RANGE: Yes COURSE DESCRIPTION: A challenging course that features a non-tradtional
mix of holes for a par-72 layout — eight par-4 holes, five par 3s and five par 5s Berkshire Hills is the only course in the state totally designed by A.W. Tillinghast, whose masterpieces include U.S. Open venues Winged Foot and Bethpage Black.
Country Club of Pittsfield LOCATION: 639 South St., Pittsfield TYPE: 18 holes, private PHONE: 413-447-8500 WEBSITE: ccpittsfield.org PAR: 71 YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,395, 4,987 COURSE RATING: 71.2 (m), 71.8 (w) SLOPE: 132 (m), 120 (w) GUEST POLICY: Guests playing 18 holes with members can play for $70 (cart not included). RANGE: Yes COURSE DESCRIPTION: Originally designed by Donald Ross in 1917 but now considered a Wayne Stiles course after his redesign work in the 1920s, the well-manicured layout features some major elevation changes and a golfer’s success will depend more on his accuracy and short game than how far he or she can hit it off the tee.
Stockbridge Golf Club LOCATION: 6A Main St., Stockbridge TYPE: 18 holes, private PHONE: 413-298-3423 WEBSITE: stockbridgegc.com PAR: 71: (m), 73 (w) YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,567, 5,344
COURSE RATING: 72.7 (m), 71.9 (w) SLOPE: 129 (m) 122 (w). GUEST POLICY: Guests must play with a member, although the club has an arrangement that allows play by those staying at some Stockbridge-area inns. RANGE: Small practice area COURSE DESCRIPTION: With smallish greens, relatively narrow fairways and the ever-present Housatonic River looming, Stockbridge isn’t overly long but has proven time and again to be an excellent test of golf. The course dates to 1895 and its Men’s InvItational — a four-ball event — is believed to be the longest continuous invitational team tournament in the nation.
Wyantenuck Country Club LOCATION: 46 West Sheffield Road, Great Barrington TYPE: 18 holes, private PAR: 70 (m), 72 (w) PHONE: 413-528-3229 WEBSITE: wyantenuck.org YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,056, 5,254 COURSE RATING: 71.2 (m), 71.6 (w) SLOPE: 128 (m), 123(w) GUEST POLICY: Guests must play with member RANGE: Limited practice area COURSE DESCRIPTION: Highly praised by golfers who competed in the 2011 Massachusetts Amateur Championship, this Great Barrington gem isn’t long and offers generous driving areas but its undulating greens create difficult chips and confounding putts to those new to the course.
Southern Vermont’s 18-hole courses All rates are subject to change.
Bellows Falls Country Club LOCATION: 12 Country Club Road, Bellows Falls PAR: 35 (m), 36 (w) TYPE: Nine-hole public course with memberships available PHONE: 802-463-9809 WEBSITE: bellowsfallscountryclub.com YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,014 for 18 holes, 5,200 COURSE RATING: 68.6 (m), 75.1 (w) SLOPE: 117 (m), 125 (w) GREENS FEES: $30 for 18 holes and $18 for nine for adults on weekdays; $22 for 18 holes and $16 for nine for juniors (16 and under) and seniors (65 and over). $33 for 18 holes and $22 for nine on weekends; $28 for 18 and $19 for nine for juniors and seniors. Only members and their guests can tee off before 10 a.m. on
Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. CART FEES: $18 for 18 holes for non-members and $15 for members; $12 for non-member and $10 for members for nine holes. RANGE: No TEE TIME POLICY: Reserved tee times are not required COURSE DESCRIPTION: An excellent course for seniors and recreational golfers with all of the par-4 holes measuring less than 400 yards.
YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,534, 5.050 COURSE RATING: 71.6 (m), 128 (w) SLOPE: 128 (m), 120 (w) GREENS FEES: Must play with a member. RANGE: Yes COURSE DESCRIPTION: Dating back to 1900, this Walter Travis and John Duncan Dunn-designed course isn’t long but it is very challenging, especially around and on the demanding putting surfaces. Named by Golf Digest as Vermont’s best course.
Ekwanok Country Club
The Golf Club at Equinox
LOCATION: 3262 Main St., Manchester PAR: 70 TYPE: Private PHONE: (802) 362-1774 WEBSITE: ekwanok.com
LOCATION: 108 Union St., Manchester Village PAR: 71 TYPE: Resort with memberships available
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Brattleboro County Club in Brattleboro, Vt. Brattleboro Reformer File Photo.
PHONE: 802-362-7880 WEBSITE: playequinox.com YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,423, 5,082 COURSE RATING: 70.7 (m), 70.6 (w) SLOPE: 128 (m), 129 (w) GREENS FEES: From opening day until May 24 and from Oct. 9 until closing rates on Monday through Thursday range from $59 to $89 and on Friday-Sunday from $89 to $109. Twilight fees (after 2 p.m.) range from $39 to $59 Monday-Thursday and $59 to $79 Friday-Sunday. Family golf (after 4 p.m.) ranges from $109-$119. From May 25-Oct. 8, Monday-Thursday rates range from $79 and $119 and Friday-Sunday from $99 to $149. Twilight rates (after 3 p.m.) range from $59 to $89 Monday-Thursday and $69-$89 Friday-Sunday. Family golf (after 4 p.m.) is $119 Monday-Thursday and $129 Friday-Sunday. CART FEES: Reflected in prices above RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Can be made online or by calling the pro shop COURSE DESCRIPTION: Ranked as a top10 course in Vermont open to the public by several publications, Equinox mixes beautiful views with classic mountain
golf, which means plenty of elevation changes and undulating greens.
Manchester Country Club LOCATION: 229 Beech St., Manchester Village PAR: 72 TYPE: Private PHONE: 802-362-2233 WEBSITE: mccvt.com YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,829, 5,130 COURSE RATING: 73.0 (m), 71l0 (w) SLOPE: 136 (m), 126 (w) GREENS FEES: Not available. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Guests at area inns can get starting times through the inns. COURSE DESCRIPTION: Designed by Geoffrey Cornish in 1967 and renovated by Cornish and Steve Durkee in 2003, the course will test all aspects of your game and features an especially strong set of par-3 holes.
Mount Anthony Country Club LOCATION: 180 Country Club Drive, Bennington PAR: 71
TYPE: Public, with memberships available PHONE: 802-442-7079 WEBSITE: mtanthonycc.com YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,284, 4,901 COURSE RATING: 72.4 (m), 67.8 (w) SLOPE: 125 (m), 117 (w) GREENS FEES: $75 plus tax Monday-Thursday for 18 holes, $50 plus tax for nine holes. $95 plus tax Friday-Sunday and holidays, $65 for nine holes. CART FEES: Reflected in prices above RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Call pro shop or book online on the club’s website. COURSE DESCRIPTION: Established in 1897, the course has recently undergone a renovation under the guidance of A. John Harvey that takes advantage of the club’s location in the Green Mountains.
Stamford Valley Golf Course LOCATION: 194 The Lane, Stamford PAR: 36 TYPE: Nine-hole public course. PHONE: 802-691-9144 WEBSITE: stamfordvalleygolf.com YARDAGE (back tees): 2,995 for 9 holes COURSE RATING: 68.2 (m), 64.5 (w) for 18 holes
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Brattleboro County Club in Brattleboro, Vt. Brattleboro Reformer File Photo.
SLOPE: 110 (m), 87 (w) GREENS FEES: DAILY: $22 for 18 holes, $16 for nine. CART FEES: $16 per person for 18 holes, $8 for nine. RANGE: No. TEE TIME POLICY: Reservations are recommended but not required. Times can be made seven days in advance by calling the pro shop. COURSE DESCRIPTION: A short course that features several driveable par-4 holes for the longer hitters. A great walking course and a fun course for seniors.
day-Thursday, $64; Friday-Sunday, $79; From June 14 until Sept. 15, $74 and $99. CART FEES: Reflected in prices above RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Call 1-800-787-2886 to reserve times. COURSE DESCRIPTION: The 27-hole facility, which has hosted six LPGA tournaments, is a classic mountain course offers plenty of variety with three distinct nines that are aptly named Lake, Mountain and Forest.
Stratton Mountain
LOCATION: 58 Senator Gannett Drive, 348 Upper Dummerston Road, Brattleboro PAR: 71 TYPE: Public with memberships available PHONE: 802-257-7380 WEBSITE: brattleborocountryclub.com YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,533, 5,051 COURSE RATING: 71.8 (m), 70.0 (w) SLOPE: 127 (m), 115 (w) GREENS FEES: Monday-Thursday: $45 for non-member for 18 holes, $30 for nine. Friday-Sunday: $55 for non-member for 18 holes, $36 for nine. CART FEES: $20 for non-member for 18 holes, $12 for nine. Brattleboro also offers GolfBoards, a one-person skateboard-style cart for $25 for 18 holes and $15 for nine.
LOCATION: 5 Village Lodge Road, Stratton Mountain PAR: 71 TYPE: 27-hole resort course, open to public with memberships available PHONE: 1-800-787-2886 WEBSITE: stratton.com YARDAGE (back/front tees): Forest/Lake nines COURSE RATING: Forest/Lake, 71.3 (m), 71.7 (w); Lake/Mountain, 71.9 (m), 72.2 (w); Mountain-Forest, 71.8 (m), 71.5 (w) SLOPE: Forest/Lake, 130 (m), 133 (w); Lake/Mountain 125 (m), 130 (w); Mountain-Forest, 127 (m), 129 (w). GREENS FEES: From May 11 until June 13 and from Sept. 16 to Oct. 20, Mon-
Brattleboro Country Club
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RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: One week in advance COURSE DESCRIPTION: Winding around and through dense forests, Brattleboro is a challenging course with plenty of elevation changes to keep the golfer guessing.
Mount Snow Golf Course LOCATION: Country Club Drive, West Dover TYPE: Public, with memberships available PHONE: 802-464-4254 WEBSITE: mtsnow.com/golf/ YARDAGE (back/front tees): 6,943, 5,384 COURSE RATING: 73.7 (m), 76.4 (w) SLOPE: 129 (m), 143 (w) GREENS FEES: 2019 rates were not available. CART FEES: Reflected in greens fee pricing. RANGE: Yes TEE TIME POLICY: Call the pro shop or book online at the COURSE DESCRIPTION: The two nines offer different experiences with the front nine more open with scenic expanses while the back nine winds through wooded terrain. The rolling fairways are relatively wide and the greens large. The course is 2,000 feet above sea level. •
50 YEARS LATER
Memories of Woodstock
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By Felix Carroll
Against the backdrop of political assassinations, the Vietnam War, and the freakish slayings committed only a week before by the Manson family, Thomas Sadlowski grabbed his sleeping bag, stepped onto Route 8 in his native Adams, Mass., and stuck a thumb out. His destination? A rock concert in the Catskills, something called the “Woodstock Music & Art Fair: An Aquarian Exposition.” He had seen a poster for it and figured, why not? Wouldn’t it be better than simply sitting on a bench in front of the American Legion on Park Street contemplating how civilization seemed beyond recovery? “There was so much negativity at the time,” recalls Sadlowski. “Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. had been shot and killed. Charles Manson destroyed our childhood innocence with the brutal murders of the Tate family that August. We all just needed something positive.” For Sadlowski and many other residents of the region who live to tell about it, Woodstock delivered. Held 50 years ago, on Aug. 15-18, on Max Yasgur’s 400acre dairy farm in Bethel, N.Y., the festival attracted more than 400,000 people and 32 of some of the greatest musical acts that rock music has ever known. It didn’t take long for a car to pull over for Sadlowski that August day in 1969. A former high school classmate of his was also en route to Woodstock, along with some of her friends. “Hop in,” they said. A couple of hours later, there he was at Woodstock, an 18-year-old with no idea at the time that he was witnessing history. Among those in the crowd
In this June 14, 2018, photo, members of the Public Archaeology Facility at Binghamton University work at the site of the 1969 original Woodstock Music and Art Fair, in Bethel, N.Y. Information from the dig will help a museum plan interpretive walking routes in time for the concert’s 50th anniversary next year. Photo: The Associated Press
was Andrew McKeever, who had just graduated that spring from Mount Anthony Union High School in Bennington, Vt. He recalls piling into a Chevy Impala with three of his buddies and heading south to Bethel, having no inkling of how Woodstock would change his life. “I found out about it from reading the Village Voice,” he recalls. “I was most interested because I saw that Creedence Clearwater Revival was on the bill, and I said, ‘I’ve got to go.’ ” Future Stockbridge resident, future Southern Berkshire District Court judge and future publisher of The Eagle, Fredric Rutberg, was also there. He heard about the concert while listening to the radio in his Greenwich Village apartment. He sent money in the mail, and four tickets eventually arrived. Rutberg, who traveled to the concert from a summer rental in
Tyringham, Mass., was a longhaired Vietnam War protester at the time. His most indelible memory of Woodstock wasn’t the concert itself. Rather, it was walking the country road toward the concert site. He and three of his fellow concert attendees passed through a neighborhood of Hasidic Jews. The Hasidic men, known for their distinctive appearance with their long, dark overcoats and long, uncut sidelocks, looked at Rutberg and his scraggly cohorts like they had come from another planet. “They’re looking at us with eyes wide open,” recalls Rutberg, “the way they were used to people looking at them — like, ‘Who are these strange people walking in our neighborhood?’” Rutberg, a late arrival, staked a spot high up on the side of a hill and way in the back, while down below, prowling amid the crowd with bags of
camera equipment, was Benno Friedman, of Sheffield, Mass., on assignment for Playboy and Seventeen magazines. Playboy wanted photos of the bands. Seventeen wanted photos of the kids in the crowd. Friedman, in retrospect, wished he could have cloned himself. The gig proved stressful and grueling but remains his most favorite photo assignment in a long and distinguished photo career. “I had no sense of the enormity of it all before I got there,” Friedman recalls, “and certainly I didn’t realize the impact of the festival on the culture going forward. I was just psyched about the assignment, of having an ‘in’ to this mega concert.” Indeed, it was mega. The concert was intended for a crowd half the size The attendees from the Berkshires and Vermont each noted a great advantage they had from the
PREVIOUS PAGE: Thousands of rock music fans are packed around the stage in a field near Bethel, N.Y. on Aug. 16, 1969. A throng estimated at 300,000 persons converged on the area creating a gigantic jam of traffic and humanity over many miles and threatening the safety of many of them. Land transportation was impossible and an airlift of food and medical supplies has been rushed into operation. Photo: The Associated Press
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Benno Friedman, of Sheffield, Mass., photographed Woodstock 50 years ago and came away with his photo of Jimi Hendrix on the cover of the Woodstock Live album. Photo: Ben Garver NEXT PAGE: Concert-goers sit on the roof of a Volkswagen bus at the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair at Bethel, N.Y., in mid-August 1969. The three-day concert attracted hundreds of thousands of people, and became a landmark cultural event of the late ’60s. Photo: The Associated Press
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outset. Because they were coming from the north, they avoided that infamous 10-mile-long traffic jam on the northbound lanes of the New York Thruway reported to have lasted the entire festival. “We slipped right in and found parking about a halfmile away from the show,” says McKeever. While Woodstock would, indeed, prove a pivot point against the violence and disorder of the times, in the moment, it all seemed like something much simpler. “It was a bunch of kids who got together and just wanted to hear some music,” says Sadlowski, now a retired social worker for the commonwealth of Massachusetts. Still, Sadlowski notes, something special seemed afoot. He said he spent much of the festival walking around, people-watching. What did he see? “A lot of friendship, goodwill, sharing — an idyllic atmosphere,” says Sadlowski, who would soon begin his sophomore year at Bridgewater State University that September. “There was just a lot of camaraderie. We became a family.” He ate lentils for the first time. A stranger invited him to sit out Saturday’s epic rainstorm in a car in order to remain dry. For McKeever, Woodstock made it official for him: He was no longer part of mainstream America. He was a searcher in a world gone wrong — and clearly, he wasn’t alone. “Going to Woodstock and seeing all these other young people was like, ‘Oh, there’s this whole other world out there beyond the confines of Bennington, Vt.’ ” says McKeever, who lives in Sunderland, Vt., and works as the news director of GNAT-TV. “It broadened my outlook on a lot of things. I guess the fact that there were a lot of people like me — that they actually existed — many of them further along the spectrum than I was, it all felt reassuring, reinforcing.” For a time after the concert,
McKeever refused to wash the jeans he wore that were caked in sacred Woodstock mud. He wishes he still had those jeans today as a memento. Rutberg has his momentos — his Woodstock tickets themselves, since concert organizers never got around to collecting them. He keeps them with his other valuables — his passport and car title — in a locked cabinet. Yet memories of the music itself still serve as the most cherished monument for most Woodstock attendees. Think about it: Richie Havens, Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez, Santana, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, Sly & the Family Stone, The Who, Jefferson Airplane, The Band — just to name a few. For Friedman, whose photos wound up gracing the official Woodstock live album that was released in 1970, the highlight was the closing act: the nearly two-hour-long Monday morning set by Jimi Hendrix, including his rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” By that time, the crowd had begun leaving. The field was a wreck. “People were bleary-eyed,” says Friedman, who made his way to the stage as he heard Hendrix’s guitar. “The garbage, the soaked clothing — it had the feeling of something extraordinary having happened there, like a war or something. And here was this extraordinary music coming across the field. It was the equivalent of someone playing an organ in a giant cathedral full of people who had taken refuge there and had nothing.” The Hendrix set is the one thing McKeever would rather not discuss. He missed it. Because he had to get to work on Monday morning, he and his buddies left Sunday morning, after Jefferson Airplane’s set. “My main regret was that I didn’t think to just call in sick for Monday,” he says. “We were all too responsible. I’ve been kicking myself. Aye Yaii Yai.” •
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MASS MOCA TURNS 20
Original plans did not include beer, barbecue or performing arts By Joseph C. Thompson
With the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art’s 20th anniversary a few weeks away (on May 25, we’ll be celebrating with a free block party, free admission to a full slate of new exhibitions, a benefit concert by Annie Lennox, and a rollicking dance concert with Tank and the Bangas), here are some reflections from the mill. As we first contemplated Mass MoCA in 1986, I would have never imagined a beer hall and a barbecue joint at our front door, and it couldn’t be more felicitous: picnic tables, red-and-white gingham tablecloths, people hanging out, making music, eating ice cream — all in our front courtyard. Someone once asked whom we should commission to design those tables. I felt the standard model from our local Shed Man would do just fine: Picnic tables are a familiar and universally welcoming signal. David Byrne once wrote a song for a work of theater he was developing in residence at Mass MoCA, and it says, “God draws straight, but with crooked lines.” I love that lyric. The original idea for Mass MoCA was monumental (but included no barbecue or performing arts). The idea was to use vast, industrial spaces for oversized works of art that required neither perfect climate control nor exquisitely detailed white-walled galleries. This was to be a largely fixed-in-place depot for American minimal art, with spaces resonant of the lofts in which much of that work was originally conceived and fabricated. That Mass MoCA version 1.0 idea got built, and beau-
tifully, but just not in North Adams. It is called Dia:Beacon and was realized in 2003 by Michael Govan (now director of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art) who, along with me, Zelda Stern and Rod Faulds, comprised the small staff at Williams College Museum of Art, when our boss, Tom Krens, first suggested utilizing empty mill space in North Adams for large-scale sculpture. Tom’s original and brilliant notion, inspired by his visit to documenta and Schaffhausen (but also influenced by Gehry’s The Temporary Contemporary, in Los Angeles, and the Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh), was to renovate 30,000 square feet of space in a nearby empty mill, on the other side of North Adams. W hen then-mayor of North Adams, John Barrett III caught wind that deep-pocketed Williams College was poking around for adjunct gallery space in his city, he suggested that we look instead at the recently-vacated Sprague Electric Co., which had just announced — in 1986 — that it was shuttering all operations in its 800,000-square-foot, 26-building downtown mill complex. What an utterly absurd idea. But then local attorney John DeRosa informed us that the city had just drafted a community redevelopment plan at the behest of Gov. Michael Dukakis, in which local leaders had decided that putting North Adams on the same Berkshire map of destination cultural attractions that included Tanglewood, The Clark, Williamstown Theater Festival, Williams and Jacob’s Pillow could be a vital element within
Joseph C. Thompson, founding director of Mass MoCA, points out the central light well in Building 6 of the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, during a tour. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
a comprehensive, postindustrial, redevelopment plan. In that context, DeRosa thought the governor might be intrigued by this “Berkshire Museum of Contemporary Art.” He proved to be correct. The governor liked the idea, local legislators and community leaders went to work, and we suddenly found ourselves — or so it seemed — the winners of a $35 million state grant for construction. But then everything went to hell in a handbasket. Dukakis lost his presidential bid. The state economy entered a dismal tailspin. Tom and Michael were off to run the Guggenheim in New York City. And it turned out that the new governor, Bill Weld, was not an immediate
fan of the idea “of putting contemporary art, of all things, in North Adams, of all places.” I stayed behind to try to put Humpty Dumpty back together … during which time the entire program changed. Although the period from 19891996 was difficult, and at the time I thought Bill Weld and his administrative chief, Charlie Baker, were the Darths Sidious and Vader, in retrospect, the fact that they sent the project back to the drawing board ultimately saved it. I am perhaps the world’s biggest fan of Dia:Beacon. But I thank our lucky stars that we failed to realize that version 1.0 idea in North Adams because it never would have survived here. (Dia’s quasi-permanent collection is UpCountryOnline.com | 33
Joseph Thompson of the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art explains the history of the Sprague complex to Lt. Gov. Paul Celucci and state Sen. Jane Swift on May 2, 1992.
enjoyed by a steady stream of contemporary art-cognoscenti arriving by train direct from midtown Manhattan.) Three things happened during that desultory period, between 1988 and 1997, as we came to understand its potential as a vast open platform for creating and showing new work in all disciplines, instead of a bunch of big warehouse boxes for minimal sculpture (or to paraphrase another one of our favorite artists, Beck — something more institutionally akin to two turntables and a microphone): 1. Performing arts became absolutely integral to Mass MoCA’s mission. We now expend a full 50% of Mass MoCA’s financial resources, staff time, and emotional bandwidth on performing arts — from contemporary dance, and multimedia theater, to indie-rock, film, and multiday, multivenue festivals that range from decidedly new music (Bang on a Can), to decidedly traditional (FreshGrass) alongside events that are difficult to even try to describe. We produce many of these right here during extended artist residencies and technical
workshops, including a recent work by William Kentridge that brought some 60 South African actors, musicians and designers to the smallest city in Massachusetts for the better part of a month, prepping the show for its premiere at London’s Tate Modern before heading to New York. 2. We diversified our real estate portfolio. Mass MoCA has become home to some 35 commercial tenants who share space with us on this beautifully recycled 16-acre, 26-building factory campus, bringing jobs and activity (and lots of local real estate taxes!) to North Adams. These businesses bring about $8 million per year in economic activity, which, alongside Mass MoCA’s $42 million per year, means that this complex is the catalyst for some $50 million of economic activity every year. That figure is about twice the original economic impact forecast, by the way, which is a powerful return on the state’s original investment. That said, we know that is not yet enough: there is still much work to do to achieve full socioeconomic recovery in North Adams, as the city continues to navigate
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the challenging arc from industrial to postindustrial life. 3. We focused on temporary exhibitions. Instead of showing monumental, fixed-in-place sculpture, we shifted our thinking to focus on temporary exhibitions — most of which feature brand new work, many by midcareer and emerging artists — works that would be almost impossible to realize in space-bound, time-bound urban settings. Taryn Simon’s “A Cold Hole,” in which museum patrons are invited to navigate across an actual ice pond before plunging into a 12-foot-deep chasm of frigid (38 degrees Fahrenheit!) water, is about to make way for works by filmmaker and multimedia artist Cauleen Smith. Trenton Doyle Hancock has just opened a technicolor, character-driven theme-park of an exhibition that explodes his paintings and action-figure narratives into three dimensions. Annie Lennox is about to open a sort of material diary, embedding a large mound of dirt with objects drawn from her private collection of artifacts and personal mementos. It doesn’t all rotate every 10 months, though — Mass
MoCA’s long-term installations of Sol LeWitt, James Turrell, Jenny Holzer, Laurie Anderson and Anselm Kiefer harken back to the original Mass MoCA 1.0 model, complimenting our parade of changing exhibitions with milestone installations of art that stay put for 10, 15, 25 years at a time. Happily, these programmatic shifts aligned with the more inclusive and nonhierarchical way that people (and especially younger people) absorb art and culture today. A recent study that I think of as the “ice cream museum report” showed that for millennials, going to a museum of ice cream (which is actually an immersive experience based on visual spectacle and Instagrammable moments), or listening to a street musician play beside an ethnic food truck, carries the same sort of cultural weight as visiting a museum of art, or listening to a staged concert. While alarming in parts, that study is also exciting, highlighting the more experiential, porous, inclusionary and open-minded attitudes of younger generations. When Wilco’s ambitious drummer, Glenn Kotche, creates participatory percussive sculptures to activate our Sol LeWitt galleries, and then returns to write music for an avant-garde dance and theater piece that also happens to feature Jon Hamm, and then returns to play for 10,000 people with Wilco at the band’s sold-out Solid Sound Festival … that sort of cross-cultural mashup speaks volumes to our growing audiences. As does the beer and barbecue at the front door. Happy 20th, MASS MoCA. • Joseph C. Thompson is the founding director of Mass MoCA. This column was adapted from a similar column running in the May/June 2019 issue of Art New England.
WELCOME CAMPERS
Summer camp was never this fun as a kid Welcome Campers, a three-day curated music festival held at Camp Lenox in Otis recreates the summer camp experience for adults. Photo provided by The Wild Honey Pie
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By Jennifer Huberdeau OTIS, Mass. Have you ever wished you could go to summer camp? As an adult? Of course, it wouldn’t be the summer camp of your childhood; just the best parts — hiking, swimming, kickball, dodgeball, craft projects and roasting marshmallows over an open fire. Throw some stellar music artists in the mix and you have Welcome Campers, a threeday, two-night curated music festival held at Camp Lenox over Memorial Day weekend. The festival, being held at the Otis camp for its fourth consecutive year, is produced by The Wild Honey Pie, a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based music discovery company. “There’s something special about that camp and that lake,” Eric Weiner, founder and CEO of The Wild Honey Pie, said during a phone interview. “We’re excited to bring our very favorite artists. Welcome Campers is about breaking down the barriers between the artists and the fans; the whole purpose is to build a community.” The all-inclusive weekend includes lodging in bunkhouses, food (served buffet style), drinks and tons of activities — kickball, dodgeball, swimming, yoga, karaoke, nature hikes, dance parties, DJ sets, basketball, pingpong, kayaking, astrology readings, tye-dying and arts and crafts. (A round-trip bus ride from Brooklyn to the Berkshires can be added for $75.) And let’s not forget about the music artists. This year’s lineup of artists includes: Wet, Torres, Liza Anne, Ashe, Henry Jamison, Aisha Badru, Half Waif, Savior Adore, Daisy the Great and Plastic Picnic. “There’s some absolutely stellar talent coming. And we’re excited a majority of the lineup is female this year; most music festivals are male-dominated,” he said. “It’s an impossibly awesome weekend, where you don’t
have to worry about your wallet. Everything is taken care of. We harbor a safe environment.” To do that, The Wild Honey Pie placed the festival in an intimate location and limited the number of attendees. In total, there are about 420 people at the festival, a number that includes ticket holders, event staff and performers. “For us, it’s not just about doing something for the sake of doing something different. We’ve created a great alternative to the music festivals out there that my friends and I are tired of,” Weiner said. “We thought, let’s give more attention to detail. Let’s get to know people.” But the festival, now in its seventh year, didn’t start off as a multiday event in a summer camp setting; that came later. In 2013, it was a one-day event held at his parents’ home in Westchester, N.Y. “The Wild Honey Pie is a collective of animators, producers and creatives who have come together to curate the music we love. In 2013, we were producing a ton of original videos that we call Buzzsessions. The idea was to do a day of themed Buzzsessions on my parents’ property,” Weiner said. “The themed day of ’ summer camp’ always spoke to me as a former camper and camp counselor.” The collective brought six bands and 100 people to Westchester that year. “We had a food truck, a cooking show and performances on a boat; on the lake; in the garden and in the pool,” he said. The next year, the festival was held at Camp Lenox and in 2015, it landed in a summer camp outside Austin, Texas. It returned to the Berkshires the following year, where it has remained. “There’s a magic to it,” he said of the adult summer camp concept. “It’s made for the kid in all of us. It’s a nostalgic trip down memory lane.” With tickets at $400 for the weekend ($300 for early
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birds and $500 for last minute), it may seem impossible that there aren’t any additional costs once you arrive at the camp, but very early on in the festival’s evolution The Wild Honey Pie began to bring on partners like Squarespace to help keep costs down. This year, partners include Clif Bar, Allagash Brewing Co., Vapur, Recover, Noble Oak, White Claw Hard Seltzer and Sailor Jerry. “When we work with these companies, the partnerships
make sense. They add to the bottom line of the festival and benefit it,” Weiner said. “Clif Bar leads a nature hike. Vapur is providing reusable water bottles to every camper as we eliminate single-use plastic from the festival.” In the end, the partnerships, he said, allow The Wild Honey Pie to make Welcome Campers the festival it is: a community of like-minded people “with love in their hearts, who love music, who love the outdoors and care for the planet.” •
Summer Festivals
Welcome Campers Camp Lenox, Otis, Mass. welcomecampers.com May 25-27 General admission: $400 to $500 plus ticket service fee. Private bunk and bus tickets (round trip from/ to Brooklyn, N.Y.) available. Admission tickets include lodging, all meals and drinks, activities and music. Who: Wet, Torres, Liza Anne, Ashe, Henry Jamison, Aisha Badru, Half Waif, Savoir Adore, Daisy the Great, Plastic Picnic.
Disc Jam Music Festival Stephentown, N.Y. June 6-9 discjammusicfestival.com Tickets: General admission, $200; VIP, $450-$500; RV pass, $250; RV pass and electric hookup, $300. Who: Lotus with Barber & Friends, The Floozies, John Kadlecik & the West Philly Fadeaway, and many more.
Taste of Country Music Festival Hunter Mountain, N.Y. June 7-9 tasteofcountryfestival.com
Tickets: one-day, $109; threeday, $195, three-day and camp access, $245; Outlaw VIP packages: $530 - $1,600 Who: Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts, Brooks & Dunn, Little Big Town, Brett Young, LANCO and more.
Mountain Jam Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel, N.Y. mountainjam.com June 13-16 Tickets: four-day general admission, $179-$199; fourday VIP, $599-$649; VIP Box, $650; four-day Super VIP, $999-$1199 Who: Willie Nelson and Family; Phil Lesh and Friends; Gov’t Mule, The Avett Brothers, The Revivalists, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, Dispatch, Alison Krauss and more.
Wanderlust Village Lodge Road, Stratton, Vt. wanderlust.com/festivals/ stratton June 20-23 Tickets: three-day tickets, $376.08; Friday tickets, $146.08; Saturday ticket, $156.08; Sunday ticket, $101.08. Premium tickets from $2,160. Who: Yoga and music festival, featuring India Arie, Ziggy Alberts, MC Yogi, Abbie Galvin and more.
Solid Sound Festival Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North Adams, Mass. June 28-30 solidsoundfestival.com Tickets: Weekend pass, $189; Kids pass, ages 6 to 10, $55; Friday pass, $74; Saturday pass, $129; Sunday pass, $74. Ticket price includes access to Mass MoCA’s galleries. Price does not include service fee. Who: Wilco, Courtney Barnett, Tortoise, The Feelies, Cate Le Bon, John Hodgman’s Comedy Cabaret, Autumn Defense, Cup, Quindar, Story Pirates, DJ Funkhouser and many more.
Basin Bluegrass Festival Brandon, Vt. basinbluegrassfestival.com July 11-14 Tickets: Weekend tickets purchased by June 25, $55 at the gate, $65. Friday and Saturday tickets, $25; Sunday tickets, $15; evening tickets $15. Who: Redwood Hill, Danny Paisley & Southern Grass, Cedar Ridge, Dave Nichols & Spare Change, Seth Sawyer Band and more.
Green River Festival Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, Mass. greenriverfestival.com July 12-14 Tickets: Weekend pass, $139.99 plus fees; weekend pass with camping, $179.99 with fees; Friday day pass, $44.99, with fees; Saturday pass, $69.99 with fees; Sunday pass, $64.99 with fees. Who: First Aid Kit, Parsonsfield, The Wood Brothers, Tyler Childers, Angelique Kidjo: Remain in Light, The Devil Makes Three, The Record Company, Rhiannon Giddens, The Suffers and more.
Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival Walsh Farm, Oak Hill, N.Y. greyfoxbluegrass.com July 18-21 Tickets: Festival with camping, $225; Thursday without camping, $75; Friday without camping, $75; Saturday without camping, $75. Children younger than 12 are free with ticketed adult. Vehicle pass is $35. Who: Dry Branch Fire Squad, Billy Strings, Del McCoury Band, Leftover Salmon, Tommy Emmanuel CGP and many more.
Danby Olde Country and Bluegrass Festival Powers’ Fields, 245 Tifft Road, Danby, Vt. danbyoldecountrybluegrassfestival.wordpress.com July 25-27 Tickets: Weekend passes, $55 in advance, $65 at the gate. Thursday, $20; Friday, $30; Saturday, $30; evening tickets, $15. Kids younger than 15 are free. Who: Josh Grigsby and County Line, Monroe Crossing, Beartracks, The Atkinson Family, Nick Anderson and Shady Creek and more.
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Dodds Farm, 44 County Road 7D, Hillsdale, N.Y. falconridgefolk.com Aug. 2-4 Tickets: Early Bird tickets, three-day with camping, $160; three-day without camping, $115, if purchased by May 15. Advance tickets on sale May 16 to July 10, three-day with camping, $175; three-day without camping, $130. Prices increase after July 11. Children ages 13-18, $65-$95. Singleday passes, Thursday, $20; Friday, $50; Saturday, $60; Sunday, $45. Children younger than 12 are free. Who: Over 40 acts on four stages, TBA.
Green Mountain Bluegrass and Roots Festival Hunter Park, Manchester, Vt. greenmountainbluegrass.com Aug. 15-18 Tickets: Presale four-day pass, $135, $145 at the gate. $40 camping pass. day tickets: Thursday, $25, $30 at the gate; Friday, $50, $55 at the gate; Saturday, $50, $55 at the gate; Sunday, $30, $35 at the gate. Kids younger than 15 are free. Who: Sam Bush, Mandolin Orange, Darrell Scott, Town Mountain, Donna the Buffalo, Martha Scanlon and Jon Neufeld, Mipso, Lonesome Ace Stringband, Chatham County Line and more.
Bethel Woods’ Season of Song & Celebration: Woodstock 50th Anniversary Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel N.Y. bethelwoodscenter. org/the-museum/ woodstock50anniversary Aug. 15-18 Tickets: Aug. 15: Free; prices vary for the remaining days. Please check the website. Who: Aug. 15: Screening of “Woodstock: The Director’s Cut” on the field where Woodstock happened and a concert by Arlo Guthrie. Aug. 16: Ringo Starr and his All-Star Band, Arlo Guthrie, The Edgar Winter Band. Aug. 17: Santana and the Doobie Brothers. Aug. 18: TBA.
Woodstock 50 Watkins Glen, N.Y. woodstock.com Aug. 16-18 Tickets: TBA Who: The Killers, Miley Cyrus, Santana, The Lumineers, The Raconteurs, Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters, Dead and Company, Chance the Rapper, The Black Keys, Sturgill Simpson, Greta Van Fleet, David Crosby and Friends, Jay-Z, Imagine Dragons, Halsey and many more.
In addition to being a music festival, Welcome Campers recreates 'summer camp' experiences for adults. Among the activities is dodge ball. Photo provided by The Wild Honey Pie
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SOLID SOUND FESTIVAL
Wilco brings more than music to North Adams
Wilco performs on the main stage at the opening night of the 2015 Solid Sound Festival at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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By Jennifer Huberdeau NORTH ADAMS, Mass. A man clad in bluejeans, a long-sleeved dress shirt, a suit vest, black boots and a gray Victorian top hat sits on the pavement in one of my favorite photographs from the 2013 Solid Sound Festival. You can tell the man is listening intently, but to what or to whom, you can’t tell. He’s surrounded by festivalgoers in a variety of clothing — plaid shorts, jeans, khakis, T-shirts and button downs — but it appears none of this matters to him. He is just there, listening. I think I like this photograph because it reminds me of three days I spent at Solid Sound that year. It was the first time I had covered the actual festival. Mind you, I wasn’t there to cover the performances, but rather the people attending it. People who had come from around the country to spend three days in the state’s smallest city. Up until then, I covered Solid Sound from the outside. I wrote about the economic impact of the festival and talked to store and restaurant owners. I wrote about permits and attended planning meetings for temporary campsites. I wrote about the public safety planning meetings I attended. I wrote articles suggesting locals rent spare rooms through Airbnb. (Back then, I had to explain what Airbnb was.) I’d gone behind the scenes as the festival was being set up and was there for Wilco’s news
conferences. I’d even written a story, before the first festival in 2010, about a group then called Develop North Adams raising funds and returning benches to the city’s downtown. But 2013 was the first time I covered the Solid Sound Festival from the inside. And it was the best “people watching” experience I had ever had. I remember back in 2010, when it was first announced that Wilco planned to curate a three-day festival of music and art, that initial reaction was mixed. There were those who were excited, but there were
“
parks and benches (which had been removed to discourage undesirables from hanging out in the business district). But even those who were initially hesitant, despite their fears of unruly concert goers, quickly warmed to the idea of the festival. The reason? There was the fact that in 2008, Wilco had played at Tanglewood and sold about 10,000 tickets for a single show. When Wilco’s fans began arriving that first year, there was a sense of awe. These people weren’t dirty, vulgar drug peddlers. They were well-
This is our homeaway-from-home now. You'll have trouble getting rid of us." — Jeff Tweedy, Wilco
also those who were hesitant. There was hesitation because there were many unknown factors, the biggest being just who Wilco’s fans were. 2010 was a time of great change in North Adams. After 26 years of having the same man in City Hall’s corner office, there was a newly-elected mayor. There was a new lifeblood in the city; people who didn’t accept the status quo. Change came quickly, most visibly in the form of pocket
Joe’s Field fills up with people as Neko Case takes the stage during Solid Sound in 2013. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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dressed, polite, middle class Americans with their toddlers and teenagers in tow. If you listened carefully, you could hear a collective sigh of relief in the city. And then began the love affair with the Solid Sound Festival. The city and its residents welcomed Wilco, the festival and its attendees back with open arms the following year. And, when it was announced that 2012 would be a year without Wilco and its festival, as the band had to
tour for a new album, there was some heartbreak. But the band promised it would return in 2013, and they did. So there I was, inside the festival for the first time, people watching and shooting short videos (which have unfortunately disappeared into the ether) of the performances and the people in attendance. I remember talking to a man with a gigantic waxed moustache; families with young children who were making art in Kidspace; teenagers hanging out with their parents; groups gathered around cellphone charging stations and people with hair every color of the rainbow. I remember volunteers with pins that proclaimed, “Ask me, I’m a local.” I remember the people more than the music. I remember a man, in a gray Victorian hat, sitting on the pavement, listening intently. 2013 was the year that Wilco pledged to make Solid Sound a biennial event and filmed the documentary “Every Other Summer.” It was also the year that I heard Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy tell then-Mayor Richard J. Alcombright, “This is our homeaway-from-home now. You’ll have trouble getting rid of us.” They’ve kept both of those promises. • Jennifer Huberdeau is the editor of UpCountry Magazine. From 2005 to 2014, she covered all things North Adams as part of her beat at the North Adams Transcript.
Mad Macs Evolution “The Apple guys” adapt and thrive in the turbulent world of technology
Mad Macs is coming full circle. The proudly local company hasn’t stopped growing and adapting to the rapidly-changing needs of its customers since its founding in 1998. Originally focused exclusively on service, the company made the leap to sales in 2011 in response to rising customer demand for Apple products. Now, with retail trends shifting away from brick-andmortar shops, co-owners Scott Kirchner and Daryl Corbett are more focused than ever on the innovative service solutions that established Mad Macs as a top name in everything computers for over 20 years. Mad Macs has been providing tech support for businesses in Berkshire County from the beginning, but within the past couple of years refocused their offerings under their own co-brand, Evolution. The name works as a mission statement of sorts: technology advances constantly, and Mad Macs strives to expand and reshape their abilities to best serve the changing needs of its customers. Small and medium businesses make up the fastest-growing segment of Mad Macs’ customer base, as local companies require increasingly sophisticated technology to remain competitive. Evolution provides commercial clients with affordable tech solutions that may be otherwise unattainable for a smaller company, including cloud, network and managed services, as well as product sales, data back up and recovery, repairs and consultation. “We work with the clients to simplify their core IT needs”, says Kirchner, “by making a small investment upfront we are able to make their IT more cost effective in the long run.” They also offer professional audio/video installation and digital signage systems to round out its comprehensive portfolio of
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Sponsored Content
services. And while the name may be Mad Macs, the company is as well-versed in PCs as well. In fact 85% of the systems in their Managed Services Program are PC-based. Mad Macs is a proud authorized partner of LightSpeed POS, a cloud-based point-of-sale system and SONOS Audio System in additon to many other brands. As of 2018, Mad Macs offers both retail and restaurant versions of LightSpeed’s system, which it has implemented for clients ranging from The Showcase Boutique at Canyon Ranch Spa in Lenox, Mass. to the culanary department at Taconic High School in Pittsfield. More recently, Mad Macs has made the plunge into Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), a modern alternative to traditional phone systems. Automation looms large in the future of technology, and Mad Macs is already preparing to bring its customers automated solutions both at home and in the workplace.
New challenges, new solutions As the Berkshires’ only authorized Apple Authorized Service Providers for more than 20 years and sole Authorized iPhone repair service provider, Mad Macs is still the place to go for everything Apple-related. They have also expanded their non-Apple products and services, filling the void left by big-box electronics retailers that have closed up shop in recent years. Regardless of the platform, Mad Macs’ top focus is service. The company prides itself on being a reliable source of support for all its customers. Their many awards from Apple and here locally are proof of this. At a time when consumers spend more time shopping from a computer, face-to-face customer service is more valuable than ever, and it’s that human touch that really elevates Mad Macs above its online competition. Consultation and education are two of the company’s most important offerings. The driving force behind Mad Macs’ two decades of success is spelled out on the wall of its Pittsfield showroom, in big, bold letters: EVOLUTION. Mad Macs stands out for its ability to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing technological climate. New technology brings new challenges, and Mad Macs is eager to provide new solutions. “We are a solutions company,” Kirchner said. “We’re always looking for gaps in the market to fill that fit our customers needs.”
To learn more about Mad Macs and Evolution, visit madmacs.com Sponsored Content
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THE RULES HAVE CHANGED
A buyer’s guide for purchasing legal marijuana in the Berkshires By Kristin Palpini GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. Even though recreational marijuana is legal in Massachusetts, Henry still has to stand around in a parking lot to buy his weed. On a spring morning in March, Henry, dressed in sweatpants and a T-shirt, stands outside Theory Wellness in a line of about 50 other people that snakes around the building and parking lot. He remembers that not too long ago, getting pot meant calling up a dealer, setting a meeting and hanging out in a random parking lot until he showed up with the stuff. Henry would give the guy the cash, get something green in a bag and everyone would go their separate ways. “You’d be waiting and there was always anxiety, nervousness with it,” says Henry, who is in his late 30s. “This is so, so much better.”
An employee of Theory Wellness in Great Barrington opens a jar of CBD Punch. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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Customers purchase pot products at Berkshire Roots on its first day of recreational marijuana sales. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
Nate, who is standing in line with his friend Henry, says he preferred meeting his dealer in a parking lot over going to the guy’s house, which comes with obligatory hanging out post-sale. “You’re in, you’re out and you don’t have to listen to some guy play his acoustic guitar,” Nate says. “No, I don’t want to hear the song you wrote for your girlfriend, can I just go?” (Henry and Nate, not their real names, requested anonymity before talking about how they used to buy illegal weed.) Purchasing cannabis has drastically changed in Massachusetts since legal recreational sales began in November. Though some people are still buying the old-fashioned — and illegal — way, many are enjoying pot shopping in a retail environment. Still, the experience is foreign for a lot of people new to the drug or unaccustomed with dispensaries. Now that marijuana sales have moved beyond buying whatever the dealer is selling, each purchase comes with choic-
es to make — strain, potency, to smoke or not to smoke? If you haven’t hit up one of the recently opened pot shops in the Berkshires, but it’s on your list of things to do, here are some of the things you should know before buying legal weed:
Bring cash Due to the federal ban on marijuana, many national and state-chartered banks that are federally insured (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.) don’t want to jeopardize that benefit by getting involved with federally illegal marijuana. Credit unions are insured by the Credit Union National Association, which is similar to the FDIC but provides more flexibility dealing with marijuana-related businesses and banking. Most dispensaries will accept cash and debit cards.
Preorder Theory Wellness often has a line of jolly people waiting to get inside, but people can skip the wait by preorder-
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ing through the dispensary’s website. There’s no additional charge, and the last order for the day is accepted at 5 p.m.
Know what you want What do you want to get out of your marijuana experience? There are weed strains grown to address just about anything: some promote creativity and concentration, decrease anxiety, ease muscle pain, aid sleep or jump-start the morning. It’s not all hazy happiness, though. Some strains are more prone to cause anxiety, headaches or drowsiness.
How to choose the strain Dispensary budtenders have developed a good reputation for being helpful in Massachusetts. Most are trained in how to guide customers through the buying experience and answer marijuana-related questions about dosage and effect. Decision number one is choosing between the three main types of marijuana: indica,
sativa and CBD. Indica provides a more relaxed, sleepy high, while sativa is more energetic. CBD-only strains won’t produce a high but are said to reduce inflammation and anxiety. Dispensaries sell dominant and hybrid strains of all three. After you know the effect you’re looking for, look up the dispensary’s menu online or at the shop. Read the descriptions and get whatever sounds fun and/or useful.
How to read the labels For a more in-depth selection process, you can get good at reading labels and chemical makeup. Due to state law, all marijuana items sold must have a label that says where the weed came from, the date it was sold, who tested it and the chemical makeup of the drug. The chemicals to pay attention to are THC and CBD. Most strains will contain 5% to 25% THC. A THC content of 5% is considered light, even for a first-time smoker. Marijuana
What’s open Theory Wellness
p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
394 Stockbridge Road (Route 7), Great Barrington 413-650-5527, Theorywellness.org
Payment: Cash only and debit cards through a cashless ATM system
Hours: Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday-Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Payment: Cash and debit cards through a cashless ATM system Limits: One gram to an ounce of flower (depending on strain), one pre-rolled joint, no additional limits.
Temescal Wellness 10 Callahan Drive, Pittsfield 413-464-8044, ma.temescalwellness.com Hours: Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7
Limits: One-eighth-ounce of flower, two pre-rolled joints and one vape pen or cartridge.
Berkshire Roots 501 Dalton Ave., Pittsfield 413-553-9333, berkshireroots.com Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5 pm. Payment: Cash and debit cards through a cashless ATM system. Limits: One-quarter-ounce of flower, seven pre-rolled joints and up to 3
grams of concentrate in one visit. Edibles, tinctures and vape cartridges are limited to one per transaction. Two additional recreational marijuana retailers are set to open in the Berkshires. Silver Therapeutics in Williamstown received its final retailer’s license from the Cannabis Control Commission. Canna Provisions in Lee received its provisional license in February. (Neither store had opened before going to press.) Still in Western Massachusetts, but outside the Berkshires, there are three more pot shops selling recreationally: New England Treatment Access (NETA) in Northampton; Insa in Easthampton and Patriot Care in Greenfield.
that is 25% THC and above is heady business. With CBD, the higher the concentration, the better, and anything above 15 percent CBD is a good find.
Beyond smoking Cannabis shops contain far more products than standard marijuana flowers. There are edibles, vape oils, lotions, tinctures, concentrations and pre-rolled joints, to name a few options. If you don’t like the idea of putting smoke/vapor in your lungs, there are edibles and pills containing marijuana at various concentrations, as well as topical lotions. Typically, the smallest dose in an edible is 5 milligrams of active marijuana chemicals. If you haven’t tried marijuana yet or it’s been years, eat a quarter of that, wait a half-hour and see how you’re feeling before eating more. If you want to try vaping weed, retailers have you covered. Stores typically sell vape oil disposable pens starting at $25 to $35. Simply take the pen out, put your mouth on it and inhale — there are no buttons to push or charges needed for disposables. Oil cartridges are sold in larger doses than the disposables, but require the one-time purchase of a battery,
Wynter Durant measures out an order for a medical marijuana patient at Theory Wellness in Great Barrington. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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which will cost $10 to $20 and is rechargeable. It’s oil, sure, but it can still make you cough if you hit it too hard. Vaping dry weed is fairly smooth but involves a hefty investment, with flower vapes starting around $100. Other forms of weed to buy include shatter and wax — highly concentrated forms of marijuana not suitable for people who aren’t regular tokers. Unprocessed buds and keef — chemical-rich crystals taken off the green flowers — are still popular at dispensaries, and some stores will cut customers a discount on purchasing “shake” — old, bottom-ofthe-barrel weed that features tiny buds. If you don’t see this advertised, ask the cashier.
Wait until you get home
Medicinal marijuana has priority
Cannabis cannot be consumed at the site of purchase or anywhere public. To legally enjoy marijuana, it has to be taken at a private location where the owner is cool with weed. Massachusetts has yet to establish rules for marijuana cafes where people could go to enjoy cannabis. Keep your weed in the sealed container you bought it in while in transit. According to state law, marijuana must be kept in a locked glove compartment or in the trunk of a vehicle during travel. Due to federal restrictions, the drugs cannot be taken across state lines, even if the destination state has legalized recreational cannabis.
Dispensaries reserve some of their inventory to ensure medical patients will still have access to marijuana despite the increased demand now that recreational sales are possible. The stores will also often have a separate — and shorter — line for people with their Massachusetts medical marijuana cards.
It’s going to be expensive A dime bag doesn’t cost $10 anymore, man. Until more shops open in Massachusetts, creating competition, the weed prices will
be high. Plus, the taxes on recreational weed in Massachusetts add up to 20% of the purchase price. The $50 oneeighth of an ounce of weed you buy in a store, that would cost about $40 on the street, will have another $10 in taxes tacked on to it. That’s a total of $60 for one-eighth — $20 more than what’s available on the black market. It’s a lot, but it’s more ethical — you know whom you’re buying from — legal and fun. Who doesn’t want to feel like a big kid in a funky candy store? Plus, dispensaries accept coupons and have sales — when’s the last time a dealer did that? Sign up for dispensary newsletters to get advanced notices of cannabis sales. •
Interior designer William Caligari is the creative mind behind the decor inside medical marijuana facility Berkshire Roots in Pittsfield. Berkshire Eagle File Photo
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Music fans seek shelter is a grass hut at the Woodstock Music and Art Festival in Bethel, N.Y. in this photo from Aug. 17, 1969. A sign above reads “Have a Marijuana.” Photo: The Associated Press
CHANGING TASTES
As the cannabis industry changes, so does the flavor of weed By Kristin Palpini GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. You can almost see Martin’s mouth watering as he talks about weed from back in the day. In the 1970s, marijuana was simple, he says while waiting in line outside Theory Wellness. Martin (not his real name) has been getting high for 47 years. He says there weren’t as many hybrid flowers on the black market when he first started smoking. It was mostly “land strains” — cannabis grown in its native environment that has never been crossed with another plant — that were available. All the crossing of mari-
juana varieties toward the goal of making high-potency, more appealing weed has made the flavor and effect of the plants too similar, he says. Martin pines for the days when weed strains were more distinct. “The taste has been affected, it’s not as good,” said Martin, a New York Yankees fan from upstate New York. “When you got a land-strain from Thailand, it was wow. The Maui Wowie from Hawaii, that was really something special.” But not everyone has nostalgic weed memories. Nate’s early weed-smoking experience wasn’t as tasty as Martin’s. In his late 30s, Nate has been using cannabis for 20
years. He says the marijuana he was smoking in the 1990s was the color of “motor oil.” “It was gross. You can’t get that now. No one wanted it to begin with,” he said while waiting in line outside at Theory Wellness. Today, Nate seeks out weed designed for relaxing. The cannabis is far stronger than the schwag he was smoking earlier, but as Nate notes, “so am I.” Marijuana has become wildly more potent and homogenized since the 1970s. Cannabis’ high got a shot in the arm in the 1980s when hydroponics started a growing movement in America that valued chemical density and small size. International weed
imports began to decline. In the 1990s, the demand for strong weed put pressure on the black market and marijuana’s potency began to rise at 4% to12% per year, according to a 2016 U.S. study of 38,000 marijuana samples taken from 1995 to 2014. This shift included a decrease in cannabis’ more medicinal chemical, cannabidiol or CBD, in favor of the chemical that produces a high, THC. The same study found that in 1995, the ratio of CBD to THC was 1:14 in most weed, but in 2014 the ratio was 1:80 THC. “You just use a little self-restraint,” Nate said. “You can’t always be high and you can’t always be super-high.” UpCountryOnline.com | 51
What’s happening around New England ... Massachusetts is a cannabis oasis surrounded by states that don’t sell weed to adults who just want to get stoned. Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont have all legalized medicinal marijuana and decriminalized possession of small amounts of cannabis. In Vermont, adults can grow and use weed recreationally, but there is nowhere to legally purchase weed in the state. (Keep in mind that even in states where pot is legal, rules and regulations still apply. Decriminalization means criminal charges aren’t filed against an individual, but there are still penalties for getting caught with weed. All of these states have a fee system in place for being caught with up to an ounce of weed in your possession.) Here’s what Massachusetts’ neighbors are doing with weed:
New Hampshire
In Februar y, the state House of Representatives passed a bill legalizing cannabis for adults ages 21 and older with a 5% tax on cultivation and a 9% sales tax. The bill is being taken up by the state Senate. If the state Senate approves marijuana legalization, the chamber will get together with the House to present the governor with a joint marijuana legalization bill. Gov. Chris Sununu, who has been vocal in his opposition to legalization, would then have an opportunity to sign or veto the bill. The House and Senate could override a veto with a two-thirds majority vote. New Hampshire decriminalized the possession of a
small amount of marijuana in 2017. The state legalized medicinal marijuana in 2013 but didn’t get a dispensary until 2016.
hash carries a monetary fine for those older than 21. For those younger than 21, punishment also includes suspension of the individual’s drivers license.
to the Marijuana Policy Project, a national pro-legalization organization.The state legalized medical marijuana in 2014.
Vermont
New York
Connecticut’s marijuana future is difficult to see. Lawmakers are working on four weed-related bills. On March 25, the state Senate’s General Law Committee approved a bill that would create a commercial market. Meanwhile, the state Senate’s Judiciary Committee is considering an act legalizing sales and erasing the records of past convictions based on small amounts of marijuana. The state House is hammering out an act concerning driving under the influence of drugs, while the state Senate is writing standards for cannabis in the workplace. The state approved medicinal marijuana in 2012 and decriminalized possession of small amounts in 2011.
Recreational cannabis is already legal in Vermont; the commercial weed market is not. In 2018, Vermont approved the possession and cultivation of marijuana by adults ages 21 and older, but didn’t establish standards for commercial cultivation, production or sales. In February, the Senate passed a bill that sets standards for a legal weed industry. Under the bill, weed sales would be taxed at 16% with a 2% local option tax. The proposal is now with the House, which could approve, reject or amend the bill. Vermont legalized medical marijuana in 2004 and decriminalized pot possession in 2013. Possession of up to an ounce of marijuana or up to 5 grams of
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office has drafted a bill to legalize recreational marijuana use, but in March, funding to legalize weed was dropped from the state budget proposal — not a good sign. Meanwhile, the Manhattan District Attorney has stopped prosecuting low-level marijuana possession, and the state has dismissed 3,000 outstanding misdemeanor marijuana-possession and smoking cases. New York was one of the first states to decriminalize possession of marijuana, adopting the policy in 1977 — sort of. There is a “public view” exception in the law that has allowed for more than 18,000 cannabis-possession arrests in 2016, according
Connecticut
Medical marijuana, like that displayed in this 2013 file photo at Venice Beach Care Center in Venice, Calif., is legal in New York, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Vermont. Photo: The Associated Press
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Tourists’ design beckons the wild An inn where the outside is designed to outshine the interior By Benjamin Cassidy NORTH ADAMS, Mass. “Well the lilies of the field They just sway all day Oh but no one Is ever dressed quite their way No not no one, not their way, not their way So you and I don’t don’t need to worry You and I don’t need to care anymore.”
‑ Jonathan Richman, “Behold the Lilies of the Field”
When developer Ben Svenson began transforming a former roadside motel in North Adams into destination resort, Jonathan Richman’s “Behold the Lilies of the Field” kept playing in his head. The song alludes to a Bible verse, but Svenson chooses to interpret the lyrics literally. “It’s all about this idea that, basically, nature is so beautiful, so unimaginably beautiful, that there’s no point in our ever
competing with it,” Svenson said by phone in late March. In designing the 48-room boutique hotel that opened in July 2018 as Tourists, Svenson and a team of developers, designers and architects let that concept guide them. When guests arrive at the parking lot along Route 2, they will notice that the motor resort’s one-story rooms don’t have windows visible from the road, just untreated white oak exteriors. Windows only occupy walls on the opposite ends of the units, the sides facing the Hoosic River, a 220-foot suspension bridge and the surrounding forest. With this setup, the hotel’s leaders aim to block out street noise and allow the natural world to take center stage. “We’re trying to have people feel like they’re in their own little oasis,” Tourists General Manager Nina Zacek Konsa said during a March tour of the property. Before guests enter that
Tourists, a 48-room boutique hotel in North Adams is seen from above. Photo: David Crosby
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A fire burns in the fireplace of The Lodge, a central gathering spot at Tourists. Photo: Gillian Jones
private serenity, they pass through a central lodge that draws from its 1962 ranch house roots. Svenson purchased the Redwood Motel in April 2015 with an investment team that initially and currently includes fellow Broder Properties leaders Eric Svenson and Dana Nielsen; Wilco bassist John Stirratt; Brooklyn Magazine founder Scott Stedman and Bright Ideas Brewing co-founder Eric Kerns. Svenson began working on the project when he learned, through Stedman, that Stirratt was interested in building a hotel. At the time, the Boston-based Svenson was toiling on a garage meant to serve Boston Logan International Airport. “I was doing something fairly soulless, and then John raised the prospect of doing something that would be really creatively rewarding,” Svenson recalled. Svenson had visited the
Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art for the first time about a decade ago and found himself captivated by the surrounding North Adams structures. “I fell in love with the building stock. I just couldn’t believe, staying at The Porches [Inn], that the building next door was available for one cent on every dollar it would take to actually build that from the ground up,” he recalled. He recommended that Stirratt consider choosing North Adams for his hotel site. The musician, who was familiar with the Northern Berkshire community that hosts Wilco’s biennial Solid Sound Festival, agreed, and they started looking at properties. “We wanted to find a building that spoke to the history of this place,” Svenson said. The old Redwood Motel property was a fit, immediately
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evoking North Adams’ midcentury Mohawk Trail motor tourism. The Lodge, and architect Hank Scollard’s work throughout the property, reflect this lineage. Its interior exposes the building’s frame. Walls were torn down, revealing the structure’s bones. Insulation was added to the exterior. “We basically put an exoskeleton on the building,” Konsa said. The Lodge is plenty rustic — and chic. On a damp March morning, a fire crackled at its far end, framed by a pair of Mario Bellini sofas. Coffee and tea were available at a bar near the entrance to the lodge, which is open to the public and serves breakfast, soup and supper daily, as well as brunch on the weekends. A nearby bookshelf included David Foster Wallace’s “Infinite Jest” and Hilton Als’ “White Girls,” among other titles. And
across the room, someone was hovering over a laptop at one of the space’s tables, deep in contemplation. Though the lodge hosts concerts on occasion, it’s primarily a place of rest and relaxation where guests can play a game, read or sip wine. “It really was just our intention for it to be quiet,” Svenson said. Initially, the project’s goal was just to renovate the Redwood’s 18 rooms. That first summer, with Stirratt in town for Solid Sound, the development team hired a carpenter and painter to quickly refurbish 10 of those units. They used plywood and “Mass MoCA white paint,” according to Svenson. “Joe Thompson gave us the mix,” he said, referring to Mass MoCA’s director. People stayed there that summer, and a funny thing happened. “We totally fell in love with
this plywood and white paint aesthetic,” Svenson said. “There was something about it that was so calming, and [it was] really about the shapes and arrangement, and how light moves across the room, and had much less to do with materiality or granite or marble or fancy material.” Interior designer Julie Pearson preserved this minimalist appearance as the project expanded to 48 rooms. They have been lived in now; since last summer’s opening, the hotel has been at full capacity nearly every weekend, according to Konsa. [As of this writing, some Friday nights in June and July were available in the $300 to $400 range.] Every room has a king-size bed and either a twin or full-size daybed located in a window nook; a rain shower head; homages to Mohawk Trail history in the form of postcards and other collectibles; private or semiprivate decks; and a radio that can be tuned to Stirratt’s playlists on a Tourists station. The musician tailored them to time of year and day, as well as the weather. “We’ve had to tweak it,” Stirratt said, noting that you can’t get “too rocking” on a Tuesday night. Named after prominent North Adams businessmen O.A. Archer and Sanford Blackinton, the Archer and Sanford Suites each offers an additional living room and larger decks typical of luxury accommodation. But it’s the normal hotel items you don’t see in Tourists’ rooms that also resonate. Televisions are covered with canvases, and there are no refrigerators. Svenson said that they looked at standard hotel room components
TOP: Visitors enjoy the pool at Tourists. Photo: David Crosby RIGHT: A 220-foot suspension bridge, crosing the Hoosic River, connects portions of Tourists' 55 acres. Photo: David Crosby
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and went about “Marie Kondo-ing them.” “Does this give me joy?” he said they considered. Once situated in their rooms, guests can embark on that tranquil exploration Svenson and his team sought to create as they gradually acquired more than 30 parcels of land totaling 55 acres. While outdoor furniture sits on decks during the warmer months, rooms are also equipped with folding chairs for guests who want to get out and explore. Walking around the five-building hotel complex, guests and locals can appreciate the sloping lawns, wooden walkways and gated pool orchestrated by Reed Hilderbrand, the Cambridge-based landscape architectural firm that
worked on the Clark Art Institute’s grounds. As venturers approach the Hoosic River, they enter a trail network that begins near The Airport Rooms, a hip bar and restaurant fashioned from an 1813 farmhouse, and continues over a wooden suspension bridge. Its builder and designer, Gerhard Komenda, worked on some of the aerial components at Ramblewild in Lanesborough. The bridge leads to several diverging paths. One takes you to the Chime Chapel, a sound sculpture created by New Orleans Airlift that looks just as it sounds. Another will bring you to the Blackinton Mill, a pillar of this North Adams neighborhood that is steeped in history. A third will wind you
to a wellness platform. The idea is to shepherd an experience that Airbnb and HomeAway can’t necessarily provide. “There’s this reconsideration of, ‘Why a hotel?’ ” Svenson said. “And, as a result, it’s a focused effort on those attributes that only a hotel can offer and maybe an additional investment in them.” Those qualities must meet the dueling desires to venture and veg. “[You can] go hike Greylock or go to Mass MoCA or go fly fishing, but we also wanted to make this space on the property really comfortable,” Konsa said, sitting on one of the lounge’s sofas. The idea is for Tourists to be both a public and private
The idea is for Tourists to be both a public and private retreat. Photo: David Crosby
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Tourists 915 State Road, Route 2, North Adams 413-346-4933 touristswelcome.com
retreat. Perhaps locals will stop over this June after Solid Sound, where Stirratt and Richman will be performing. All can revel in the buildings’ design, but the natural surrounds should draw the most attention. That was Svenson’s goal. “Let’s just make a quiet little portal,” he said, “through which you can experience the majesty of the Berkshires’ bucolic wonder.” •
READY, SET, PADDLE!
The New England Canoe and Kayak Racing Association finds a place to compete in landlocked Vermont By Kevin O’Connor BRATTLEBORO, Vt. Sandy Harris can show you all the recreational highs of her Vermont hometown of Brattleboro, from the local outing club with its red clay tennis courts to New England’s sole Olympic-caliber ski jump — both created nearly a century ago by her late father, Fred. But the Connecticut River that flows along the community’s eastern border? “I drove over the bridges here my whole life,” she says, “and never thought about it as a place to spend hours of enjoyment.” Then, Harris learned about the New England Canoe and Kayak Racing Association. The volunteer-run organiza-
tion, marking its 40th year of founding in 1979, has transformed what current leaders describe as a once “rather disorganized” sport into a regional force orchestrating spring, summer and fall competitions in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. The latter, landlocked Green Mountain State might seem an odd man out in an otherwise seaworthy group. But Harris saw differently six years ago when she joined paddlers, both individual and paired, at association events along waterways throughout the region. “Here in Brattleboro we have this huge resource that is often overlooked,” Harris said of the Connecticut Riv-
The Brattle Paddle will take place on June 30 in Brattleboro. Brattleboro Reformer FIle Photo
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In this photo from July 2017, participants compete in the first "Brattle Paddle." Brattleboro Reformer File Photo
er, which is fenced off from downtown by a wall of business blocks. “A lot of us who train here thought, ‘Wouldn’t this be a great place to race?’ ” At 410 miles from the Canadian border to Long Island Sound, the river is the region’s longest. Once a major transportation artery before the advent of trains and trucks, it hosted some of the nation’s first ferries, first shore-side factories and first ships to engage in foreign trade. “It was on the Connecticut that the steamboat was invented and the first submarine was launched,” Edmund Delaney writes in his book “The Connecticut River: New England’s Historic Waterway.” “All along its shores are innumerable reminders of its long and exciting history and of the great personalities who, for over a period of 350 years, have had a profound impact upon American life.” And continues to. Two years ago, Harris went from participant to planner by launching the annual “Brattle Paddle” — it’s scheduled for
Brattle Paddle Canoe, Kayak and SUP Race (flatwater)
41st New England Marathon Paddlesport Championships
What: Canoe, kayak or stand-up paddleboard races on the Connecticut and West rivers in Brattleboro. NECKRA race distance is 9 miles; recreational distance is 5 miles.
What: Canoe, kayak, stand-up paddleboard and surf ski races on the Connecticut River. NECKRA race is approximately 12 miles; recreational course is 5 miles.
When: 10:30 a.m. June 30 (Registration: 8:30 to 10 a.m.) Where: West River Marina, Brattleboro Entry fee: $25 Information: neckra.org or at racemonkey14@myfairpoint. net or 603-363-4868
June 30 — in a community better known for winter ski jumping and its spring Strolling of the Heifers parade. Harris also is helping to organize the 2019 New England Marathon Paddle Sport Championships, set to take place a half-hour’s trek north on the river, in Bellows Falls, on Aug. 4. Organizers expect dozens of racers and recreational boaters to speed along the water in
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When: 10:30 a.m. Aug. 4 (Registration: 8:30 to 10 a.m.) Where: Herricks Cove, Bellows Falls Entry fee: $25 Information: neckra.org or Sandy Harris at racemonkey14@myfairpoint.net or 603-363-4868; Ed Dinnany at Eds@vermontel.net or 802-762-2409
events aiming to pull a crowd. “It’s not only steering but also reading the river, getting in the right current, catching and riding a wave,” Harris says. “I found in it this glorious sport where there’s competition and camaraderie.” And eye-catching views. “You don’t have to race — you can just grab a canoe and go out with friends,” she says. “You can hear all of the birds
and wildlife, see a beaver or nesting eagle.” Spectators are encouraged to watch not only at the start, but also on bridges and shorelines along the route. “It’s extremely exciting, yet something very few people have seen around here,” Harris says of the sport. “I want them to come out and realize the river is such a great recreational resource.” •
Rudyard Kipling built his Vermont home in the shape of a ship. Photo: Kevin O’Connor
‘A JEWEL BEYOND PRICE’
A rare glimpse inside Naulakha, Rudyard Kipling’s Vermont hideaway By Kevin O’Connor DUMMERSTON, Vt. When students, on a local field trip, learn they’re about to be introduced to Britain’s greatest literary superstar, they can be forgiven for anticipating
the bespectacled Harry Potter. When a sign on the wall announces their guest is, instead, the creator of “The Jungle Book,” it’s understood why they next conjure up thoughts of moviemaker Walt Disney. That’s why caretakers of Rudyard Kipling’s former
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Vermont home — named Naulakha, after a Hindi word meaning “a jewel beyond price” — have opened the late Victorian writer’s private hideaway to people of all ages, so they can enjoy a rare look inside. “It’s one of the best-kept secrets,” says Kelly Carlin of
Landmark Trust USA, which owns the property. “Education is part of our mission. This is a way to educate people not only about Naulakha, but also the fact that someone who was the most famous author in the world lived here.” Kipling, born in India in
One of Naulakha’s second floor bedrooms. Photo: Kevin O’Connor
1865 and schooled in England, sailed across the Atlantic Ocean in 1892 upon his marriage to American Caroline Balestier. Settling on a Dummerston hillside at age 26, the writer, who would go on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1907, designed a home similar in shape to the vessel that transported him to the United States. “He imagined he would ride his ‘ship’ over the mountains, having many wonderful journeys,” Carlin said. Alas, his landing wasn’t so smooth. On his first day, he met a pair of reporters seeking comment. A newspaper interview, Kipling replied, was “a crime
— an assault — it is cowardly and vile — no respectable man would ask it, much less give it.” American journalism, he continued, had “nothing to admire and less to respect.” As for any reader curious about him, “say I am a boor, for I am, and I want people to learn it and let me alone.” But Kipling would befriend such locals as former Vermont Gov. Frederick Holbrook, host barn dances, and travel to nearby Brattleboro — sometimes with snowshoes or skis, the latter given to him by Sherlock Holmes author and friend Arthur Conan Doyle — to drink lager in a basement bar of downtown’s cornerstone Brooks House.
Naulakha House rental What: Stay at Naulakha. The three-floor historic home sleeps eight people comfortably and offers four bedrooms with three full baths on the second floor. The third floor features a game room with a pool table. The first floor includes a fully equipped kitchen, breakfast nook, dining room, loggia, office and spacious library. Minimum stay of three nights required. Where: Naulakha, 481 Kipling Road, Dummerston, Vt. Cost: $520 during the peak season; $450 off-peak. Weekly rates are available. Other Landmark Trust USA properties available to rent: Kipling’s Carriage House, Dutton Farmhouse, Sugarhouse, Amos Brown House Reservations: landmarktrustusa.org/properties More information: 802-254-6868 or info@landmarktrustusa.org
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“Been in Europe, ain’t ya?” one patron was said to have asked the author. Kipling wrote his classic works “The Jungle Book” and “Captains Courageous” and conceived “Kim” and “Just So Stories” at his Vermont home. But such professional highs were offset by personal lows. A border dispute between the United Kingdom and Venezuela over the South American colony of British Guiana, for example, led some in the United States to criticize Kipling’s homeland, prompting him to plan his departure. Shortly thereafter, in 1896,
Kipling’s brother-in-law, drunk on the street, threatened the author — leading to the relative’s arrest and resulting publicity that shattered the writer’s privacy and spurred his return to England. Nearly a century and a quarter later, locals have been introduced to Kipling — in the form of Massachusetts actor Jackson Gillman, dressed in period costume — during specially scheduled programs. “If Mr. Kipling was here today,” Carlin tells visitors, “he would recognize the house.” That’s because, after the author left in 1896, the property
stayed within the family, then sat unused (except for interloping raccoons) for 50 years before the Landmark Trust purchased it in 1991 and since has opened it for short-term stays. “People still are shocked when they hear Kipling lived here and you can rent his house,” Carlin said. The house features large, light-filled windows as, upon its construction, the electrical wires that served Brattleboro had yet to make their way to the outskirts of Dummerston. “Sort of like we still can’t get cable,” Carlin said. The nonprofit has restored
the interior to look as it did when Kipling conceived his “Just So Stories” after his children asked him to repeat a favorite story “just so.” Downstairs, visitors can touch Kipling’s original dining room table (although they’re encouraged not to) and browse his study and its wall of books. Upstairs, they can see not only his bed, but also his bathtub. “It’s a way to keep Kipling and his stories alive,” Carlin says, “and educate our community about this amazing resource.” •
Guided Tours of Rudyard Kipling’s Vermont Estate and Rhododendron Display What: A one-hour guided tour of Rudyard Kipling’s former Vermont estate when its 100yard multi-colored rhododendron tunnel is in full bloom. Tea on the stone patio. After each tour, guests can visit the grounds that include a barn museum, rhododendron tunnel and pergola, and Vermont’s first tennis courts. Tours are limited to 20 people, and preregistration is required. Where: Naulakha, 481 Kipling Road, Dummerston, Vt. When: 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m., 2:30 p.m., May 29 and May 30. Tickets: $35 More information: 802-254-6868, or landmarktrustusa.org/events
Rudyard Kipling spent plenty of time reading and writing at Naulahka. Photo provided by Landmark Trust USA.
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The Robert Frost Stone House Museum is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, Bennington Banner File Photo
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IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF POETIC LEGEND
The Robert Frost Stone House Museum puts literary history on display By Telly Halkias SHAFTSBURY, Vt. For almost a centur y, American students from grammar to graduate school have committed the following lines of the great poet Robert Frost (1874-1963) to memory: “Whose woods these are I think I know / His house is in the village, though.” As it turns out, if talking about Frost, “his” house, known today as the Robert Frost Stone House Museum, is not quite in the village of Shaftsbury proper, but still within its boundaries, perched off the west side of Vermont Historic Route 7A. The home, located only a few miles away from Frost’s gravesite in the Old First Church of Bennington’s cemetery, is on the National Register of Historic Places. From 1920 to 1929, Frost lived here, having left a teaching post at Amherst College to try his hand at apple farming — but never giving up on his writing. Good thing, too, because when you stop in for a visit, you’ll be able to walk the rooms where Frost worked on many of the poems included in “New Hampshire,” his first of four lifetime Pulitzer Prize winners. Surprises abound. Here, Frost also wrote his most famous poem, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” (its opening lines are found above). What you might not have known is that, unlike the romantic legend of the poet penning his most-often recited verse under snowfall, the truth is more mundane, yet still a matter of intrigue: You’ll learn how Frost came to write the poem on a hot June morning
in 1922, at the dining room table of the stone house. As such, inside the museum, that entire room is dedicated to Frost’s American classic. Along with the historic dining room exhibit, there are
curated photographs of Frost and his family, a facsimile of the “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” manuscript and a collection of woodcuts by the illustrator of Frost’s many books, the artist J.J. Lankes.
After Frost’s death, his family eventually sold the home, and it was acquired from private hands by Carole Thompson and the nonprofit organization Friends of Robert Frost, who then proceeded,
Poet Robert Frost shown in 1924. Photo: The Associated Press
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In this May 2, 2018 photo Megan Mayhew Bergman, director of the Robert Frost Stone House Museum, stands in front of the famous Frost poem “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” painted on a wall of the museum. Frost wrote the poem at the house on a warm June morning in 1922. Photo: The Associated Press
since 2002, to run it as a museum. Its displays and grounds always reflected a modest tribute to the great poet, open to visitors part of the year and mostly filled with static, educational displays. In 2017, upon Thompson’s retirement, The Friends of Robert Frost gifted the Museum and its surrounding 7 acres, containing long-dormant parts of Frost’s beloved apple orchards, to nearby Bennington College. During its first year in college hands, the museum saw a re-imagining, as well as 3,000 visitors, according to its director, award-winning author Meghan Mayhew Bergman, who also teaches literature and writing at Bennington. “Some people think of an author’s house as being a dusty old place where students go on a field trip,” Mayhew Bergman said. “We imagined a more dynamic place, where
people could learn about Frost and his rich, creative time in Shaftsbury, but also where students and community members could come together, create place-based art, have nourishing conversations and enjoy mindful time outdoors.” One of the popular attractions loosely connected to the museum is the nearby Robert Frost Hiking Trail, a project of the nonprofit Fund for North Bennington.
Opened in 2011, it has evolved into a popular attraction often mentioned in tandem with the museum, as its trailhead is literally a stone’s throw from their shared driveway. The trail is a 2.1-mile rolling path through the Shaftsbury and North Bennington woods and across Paran Creek, which weaves its way to nearby Lake Paran. Many visitors to the museum also make the hike, which is open to the public all year.
Robert Frost Stone House Museum 121 Historic Route 7A, Shaftsbury, Vt. Hours: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, May 1 to Nov. 1 Admission: Adults, $10; seniors and students, $6; younger than 18, $5; active-duty personnel and children younger than 10: free. More information: 802-447-6200, bennington.edu/robert-frost-stone-house-museum
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Friends of architecture should also note that the stone house, built circa 1769, was considered significant even before Frost’s ownership. Having been altered very little since Frost’s time there, the house itself is a rare example of Dutch Colonial architecture made of native stone and timber. Still, the poet’s legacy is at the core of the Stone House Museum, and its new keepers from Bennington College are working to develop annual programming that connects the spirit of Robert Frost with a new generation, and with the surrounding community. “We’ve put together inclusive, exciting programming for 2019,” Mayhew Bergman said. “This includes bluegrass concerts, indigo-dying workshops, art shows, nature walks, mindfulness and poetry workshops, and readings from excellent poets.” •