Our trip to visit Hannah in Salem, Ma began with a 6-hour drive to Kutztown, Pa. I had never been to Kutztown but heard of the German Festival they have every year. Our timing wasn’t that of the festival but with just an overnight stay we figured we would adventure around town.
Our first stop on our journey was lunch and then the Lindt factory in Carlisle, Pa. Lindt chocolate is probably my favorite chocolate treat. If you have never had one, think of it as a soft chocolate tootsie pop with a liquid flavor in the middle. After getting the “Special”, 75 pieces for $25 I calmly, with a sincere look, asked for my Lindt Master Swiss Chocolatier application! The cashier didn’t take me seriously and just laughed as if I was joking. Oh well, maybe another time. I am now set for chocolate on our trip.
After arriving in Kutztown we decided to look around town. Our first stop was Folino Estate Winery. We did a tasting and discovered a blueberry sangria, blueberry syrup in Riesling wine with a sugary rim. Very different, but quite tasty. The winery had lots of different wines, with grapes of their own and grapes from other vineyards. This vineyard was like the IPA of wines with many infused wines.
We explored downtown Kutztown and ended up driving on some backroads singing our favorite songs like we were the artists. We sort of made our own fun while adventuring around Kutztown.
The next morning we headed for the Catskills Mountains of New York, you know where Rip Van Winkle slept for 20 years under a tree. Oh, how it would be nice to sleep for just a day. I have my eyes out looking for Rip while I drive through hoping I might get to nap with him. I wonder is there a difference between a “Yankee” snoring and a “Rebel” snoring, I should be careful it might start another civil war!
Somewhere in a remote spot in the mountains of New York, we ran across our first covered bridge. Halls Mills Bridge. I find covered bridges soothing like sailboats on the water.
Our drive avoided the toll interstate roads while putting us on back country roads and two lane highways. This route only added 20 minutes to our destination of Windham, NY. I have never seen the countryside of New York and who would ever think New York has grass, trees, flowers, and cornfields. We decided to stay in the Catskills Mountains at a hotel called Albergo Allegria in Windham, NY. I reserved the Millennium Suite, and what a wonderful hotel it is. Windham, NY is known as the “gem of the Catskills,” with Windham Mountain and its ski trails.
After arriving we decided to have some lunch and then venture out. The hotel clerk was very nice and gave us suggestions. Our first destination was Kaaterskill Falls, with being perhaps the crowning jewel of the highest cascading waterfall in New York State. Dropping in two tiers at over 260 feet. Much prettier than the Empire State Building in the city.
Just further down the road was the Laural House, built-in 1852 as a 50 room boarding house. By 1884 it was enlarged to accommodate 300 visitors. It was located on the edge overlooking the falls. It operated until 1965 and in 1967 it was burned to the ground to make way for the Laurel House campgrounds. Unfortunately, New York State does not respect historic structures, and they have a reputation for burning historic structures.
As we headed back to our hotel, we passed by South Lake with all of its beauty in the mountains of the Catskills. The mountain air is fresh and the temperatures cool making the Catskills a favorite destination during all four seasons for New Yorkers.
Before our trip, I decided I would experiment to see where you couldn’t order sweet tea, Windham, New York wins! It’s strange to think of the amount of sweet tea drank in the south and not in the north. That’s probably why Rip Van Winkle slept 20 years, he didn’t have enough sugar in him!
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