How can you resist an invitation to spend a week in the Catskills with your Brooklyn grand-baby and her parents? After precautionary testing, we jumped at the chance to leave Chicago’s spiking cases and headed for the hills.
12 hours later we were on top of the mountain in a 200-year-old farmhouse with our favorite New Yorkers. 
The original house and the family who built it…
Leave it to my daughter to find the MOST atmospheric house in upstate NY, complete with a sauna, hot tub, scenic little lake and two resident deer who emerged every night around 4 PM.
More on the house later…
Across our steep road was a breathtaking view of the valley beyond the mountains. We had our choice of three or four hiking trails from the gate. 
One was a deep forest trail that had no end, and the other two led to two waterfalls
via steep switchbacks.
.
These were probably the same woods that sourced our house’s beautiful pine flooring; 12-inch knotted planks worn smooth by many generations.
My first impression of the house was that time had stood still and its bones hadn’t been touched. But that was the beauty of the owner’s renovation. 
The upstairs hall was almost the size of another room
Every piece of furniture and art was chosen to further this notion, as if someone had locked the door years ago and thrown away the key.
Dancing bears in a bonfire orgy (?)
Yet every modern convenience was ours.
Note cordless phone, modem and router on antique doily
The cozy atmosphere satisfied my lifelong fantasy that we were visiting a dear grandma or old aunt, and each handmade quilt on the bed had been made with patience and love. 
And each book in the library and pitcher on the sill had been placed there by a life well- lived.
We did venture forth for groceries to create an early Thanksgiving meal. 
Desserts for every palate
Mani/pedis were on the to do list
And one day we did a complete circuit to see some neighboring towns – Kingston (pre-revolutionary!), 
Dutch church, 1639
Hudson (chic art galleries and home stores),
and Woodstock (nothing’s changed since the ’60s!).
Other than that, we indulged in a lot of cooking (my son-in-law and daughter are excellent),
reading, drinking, and lazy conversation around the fire pit.
I didn’t want to come home, especially with the continued political upheaval and rising cases. Everything is so surreal during this pandemic, that when you do escape for a week, you almost start to believe that life is back – back to normal.
But on the road home, a snowstorm caught us by surprise in Pennsylvania, and only added to the confusion of the seasons and lack of safety.
Yes, we did transition back to autumn when we returned, and dutifully put on our masks…
1 Comment
LOVE those old wood beams on the ceilings! How do I get a 200-year-old house in the Midwest…?