![Wreath-making workshops](https://lakevillejournal.com/media-library/barbara-ellis-and-u-s-rep-jahana-hayes-d-5-made-wreaths-at-great-mountain-forest-on-dec-2.jpg?id=50873353&width=980&quality=90)
Barbara Ellis and U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-5) made wreaths at Great Mountain Forest on Dec. 2.
Photo by Jennifer Almquist
Woodsmoke curling above the small, weathered barn and, within the faded green doors, the smell of fresh-cut pines and cider warming on the woodstove made a perfect setting for the annual wreath-making workshops at Great Mountain Forest (GMF) in Falls Village.
For decades, folks have enjoyed creating their seasonal masterpieces using evergreens, berries, and pine cones gathered from the woods nearby.
On Saturday, Dec. 2, the first pair of workshops took place at the Mountain House Barn on Canaan Mountain Road under the expert guidance of GMF staff: director of programs and operations Matt Gallagher and office manager Vicki Muni Nelson. [The second set of workshops took place Saturday, Dec. 9.]
Participants in the wreath-making ranged from two women who learned about the workshops from a friend they met at Yellowstone to a local family with two young daughters, and to everyone’s delight, U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-5) and Barbara Ellis, her friend and campaign manager at Friends of Jahana Hayes, arrived ready to join the fun.
Gallagher welcomed the 20 or so wreath makers and explained the names and origins of the various pine branches lying on the rough floor in great piles. A blaze of red winterberries in a large bucket stood next to baskets filled with pine cones gathered from various types of conifers that grow in the GMF. There were large bows of various ribbons: red, shiny gold, brocades, patterns of vintage trucks, burgundy velvet, and even some reindeer images. The staff had made educational signs with the specific names of the conifers and cones, listed with their Latin names.
Muni Nelson demonstrated the methods of wreath making, which involved metal rings, spools of green garland wire, wire cutters, hot glue guns for adhering the cones, and wired stakes for the bows. A patient teacher, Muni Nelson worked with each maker during the session. A father and mother said they were making some good family memories. After some guidance, the two girls set right to work making their own wreaths that they held up proudly at the end.
Hayes said she was happy to spend time with her friend and, yes, have some personal time, which is in short supply. After another difficult vote in Congress the day before, Hayes felt respite in the barn working with her hands. She laughed as she twisted her greens with wire and created a festive bow: “You must know that I am very competitive, even with crafts!” Later, she wrote on her social media page: “I have found another CT-05 gem! Had a fabulous afternoon at Great Mountain Forest holiday wreath making workshop. Craft, laughs, and hot apple cider-a great way to get into the holiday spirit!”
Norfolk artist Bevin Ramsey came with his petite mother, Maureen, who had traveled from Ottawa to spend time with her family and celebrate a granddaughter’s birthday. The joy between them was contagious.
Each worktable was a flurry of activity. Ellen Walsh of Winchester Center showed off her steel-toed work boots as she tackled her huge wreath.
Journalist Avice Meehan chatted with Hayes, both having recently attended former Gov. Weicker’s memorial service. Meehan had been his press secretary. Susannah Wood from Norfolk worked solo, while Norfolk tax collector Sarah Bruso shared her table with Martha Mullins.
According to The New York Times in a Dec. 25, 1988, article: “Ancient Pagan people, endowing trees with spirit, sheltered the branches of life-preserving evergreens through the frozen winter. Early Romans gave gifts of green branches at New Year’s, bestowing the wish for health and vigor upon family and friends. The evergreen wreath its circular shape an emblem of perfection, unity, and the enduring sun-later became a symbol for Christ’s suffering. Evergreens embody eternal life. . . today’s wreaths communicate a sense of joy and a desire for peace.”
As they joined in spirit with an ancient, symbolic and traditional craft, the Norfolk makers proudly hung their wreaths on the gray barn walls for the group to admire. One by one, the jolly revelers walked away through the surrounding meadow bearing their festive wreaths home to grace their doors and windows.
Abstract art display in Wassaic for Upstate Art Weekend, July 18-21.
WASSAIC — Art enthusiasts from all over the country flocked to the Catskill Mountains and Hudson Valley to participate in Upstate Art Weekend, which ran from July 18 to July 21.
The event, which “celebrates the cultural vibrancy of Upstate New York”, included 145 different locations where visitors could enjoy and interact with art.
On Saturday, July 20, The Wassaic Project hosted numerous community events. Will Hutnick, the director of artistic programming, said “We’ve been a part of it since the beginning, this is the fifth year of UPAW.”
Most of the action was based at Maxon Mills, the seven-floor grain mill located in the heart of Wassaic. On exhibit was work from 30 artists, 18 of whom were past residents of The Wassaic Project. “Artists can come and do a residency here, meaning they live and work with one another for a couple months at a time,” Hutnick stated.
The first floor held work by Petra Szilagyi, who uses dirt and linseed oil to construct images of paranormal concepts, most of which include bats. They reflected that a recent trip to a fifth sense competition in Vietnam was the influence behind the exhibit.
Across the floor was Tiffany Smith’s interactive installation which incorporated plants and wicker chairs, all of which were objects associated with her Carribean upbringing. “The room being filled with plants is symbolic of hurricane prep which often included bringing the plants from outside into the house,” Smith said.
As visitors made their way up the narrow wooden stairs, music could be heard from behind the walls. The echoing music was Daniel Shieh’s installation, entitled Mother’s Anthem, which played a recording of the American Anthem in 30 languages. The languages ranged from Spanish and Italian to Navajo and Bengali.
Each floor was filled with artwork of all mediums, including painting, fibers, collage and photography. Rachel Bussières, who switched her concentration after watching the 2017 solar eclipse, uses varying light sources to produce lumen prints. During the wildfires, she recounted that she “made a new exposure each day to capture the changing air quality”.
Luciana Abait also incorporates the natural world into her pieces, instead using maps. An environmental activist originally from Argentina, Abait’s work highlights “environmental fragility, specifically the impacts it has on immigrants.” Her installation that is currently on display at Maxon Mills, takes the form of a mountain range built solely from maps of the US and Argentina.
Throughout the day, visitors could “Arm Wrestle 4 A Popsicle”. Winners had the choice of 3 playfully flavored trout-inspired popsicles - Nightcrawler, Power Bait, and Salmon Roe. Artist Katie Peck, who spent the day in costume as a rainbow trout, encouraged guests to step up and try their hand at an arm wrestle.
Shibori Indigo dyeing, group meditation, and dance workshops were open for community members of all ages as well.
While the daytime activities fostered appreciation of fixed art, a dance party until midnight at The Lantern Inn offered guests a space for performative art.
When describing the environment of The Wassaic Project, Smith emphasized, “It’s all community, it’s all love.”
A serene scene from the Amenia garden tour.
AMENIA — The much-anticipated annual Amenia Garden Tour drew a steady stream of visitors to admire five local gardens on Saturday, July 13, each one demonstrative of what a green thumb can do. An added advantage was the sense of community as neighbors and friends met along the way.
Each garden selected for the tour presented a different garden vibe. Phantom’s Rock, the garden of Wendy Goidel, offered a rocky terrain and a deep rock pool offering peaceful seclusion and anytime swims. Goidel graciously welcomed visitors and answered questions about the breathtaking setting.
Amenia Finance Director Charlie Miller welcomed visitors to his Bog Hollow Road garden in Wassaic, a manicured expansive yard with well-placed garden beds framing a far-reaching view. He said he plans carefully each winter for the next spring’s improvement.
The organic, environmentally responsible Maitri Farm was next, a lesson in coordinating agriculture with natural balance. The farm stand and a walk among the greenhouses brought visitors together.
Near the center of Amenia was the garden of Polly Pitts-Garvin, offering a chance to visit a robust vegetable garden with raised beds to be envious of and a remarkable absence of any insects or usual vegetable garden problems.
At Chez Cheese, the vast garden acreage surrounding the 1850s historic home of Joan Feeney and Bruce Phillips in Millerton, visitors could begin at refreshment stations where walking tour maps of the 15-acre property were available. There were streams and ponds with docks, and a dozen bridges arranged around the landscape. In the 19th-century, the property had been the home of the Wilson Cheese Factory, inspiring the name of the estate.
The Amenia Garden Tour was supported this year by Paley’s Garden Center in Sharon.
Gary Dodson working a tricky pool on the Schoharie Creek, hoping to lure something other than a rock bass from the depths.
PRATTSVILLE, N.Y. — The Schoharie Creek, a fabled Catskill trout stream, has suffered mightily in recent decades.
Between pressure from human development around the busy and popular Hunter Mountain ski area, serious flooding, and the fact that the stream’s east-west configuration means it gets the maximum amount of sunlight, the cool water required for trout habitat is simply not as available as in the old days.
This is not a new phenomenon. It does seem to be getting worse, though.
Gary Dodson and I convened where the creek makes its final run into the Schoharie reservoir, part of the New York City water supply system, on a semi-broiling Thursday afternoon, July 11.
The goal was simple. Catch smallmouth bass, which abound in the lower section of the river.
This was hot stuff — as in an 80-degree water temperature.
The air temperature was actually slightly less at 77.
After negotiating the intensely slippery rocks, festooned with treacherous algae, the first major pool presented several difficulties, with a back eddy competing with a main flow and several large trees draped about the whole thing.
I hit on the simplest strategy, which was to flip a weighted attractor fly called a Tequilley into the start of the eddy so it would proceed slowly but steadily into the maelstrom, sinking all the while.
This worked. A proper adult smallmouth, with bronze coloring and vertical stripes, took the thing.
The point-and-shoot camera finally died, however, and I was not going to try to fumble my phone out for a nice but routine fish photo.
Why not?
Because I guarantee the fish would have made a sudden, last-moment bolt for freedom, causing me to drop the device into the drink.
Gary moved downstream while I continued trying to annoy the residents of the pool, succeeding a couple of times with different colored Wooly Buggers.
Then we all got bored and I moved off, where Gary was catching rock bass and cussing them out for not being something else.
I have to admit, they are not the most compelling critters. Something about the red eyes.
This latest trip was dominated by extremely tedious and distasteful Harry Homeowner activities, but on both Wednesday and Thursday mornings I prowled Woodland Valley Creek. By “morning” I mean “dawn,” because that was when the water temps were down to a barely acceptable 64.
I made the acquaintance of several stocked browns and of a handful of their wild cousins. The wild fish are smaller and nimbler.
The successful ploy was an Adams wet fly, size 16, drifted behind something big, like a Parachute Adams or Stimulator.