Cheese Run

One of the worst things about back country travel is small road signs. It’s easy to miss good places and interesting things. For example, take the arrow pointing left off Vermont Route 103 that marks the turn to the Crowley Cheese factory. Hard to spot… worth the effort.

Now where does cheese get its start? Cows!

And what is more Vermont than cows? Nothing!

And where did cheese making start in Vermont? At the Crowley Cheese factory in Healdville, just a couple of twisty turny miles off Route 103, five miles north of Ludlow. The sign is easy to miss.

The oldest continuously operating cheese factory in the United States dates back to 1824. All the cheeses are hand-made; cut, dipped, and packaged in the same barn building which is now designated a National Historic Place.

Not all cheese is the same. There is mild, medium sharp, sharp, and extra sharp which are either a Colby, if you buy the government classification, or a Cheddar according to Crowley. Cheese politics, it seems! There is also smoked cheese, a hot pepper, a garlic chive and a Muffaletta along with a sage cheese prepared just for Christmas. You can visit the factory weekdays from 8 am to 4 pm and choose your favorite. We didn’t walk away empty handed.

If you go, there won’t be a lot between you and the cheese makers. There are only three. ( although Crowley staffs up to five people around the holidays to handle all the mail orders.) Crowley cheese maintains a mailing list of some 35,000 names ands ships as many as 4000 packages a year. It will soon be available again in specialty shops too.

The e-mail contact is http://www.crowleycheese.com

A lot of good things can happen when you pay attention to road signs, even small ones.

Phil Johnson

Good Scene at Gore Mt. & North Creek NY

Phil and I stopped in at Gore Mountain this past weekend. It’s always been an underrated ski hill, but, you know what? It’s

• closer and easier to get to from metro New York City than most of New England
• its got all the terrain you can ask for
• and it’s gotten just a bit better every year.

How?

By

• adding a new lift and trails (last year)
• a new children’s center (the year before)
• and, now, new facilities at North Creek Ski Bowl, the area’s small, close-to-town, family-friendly, original ski hill.

But, there’s long been on major problem with Gore as a destination. No place much to go off the slopes.

The good news: that’s changing.

We spent the night at the Copperfield Inn in North Creek. A beautiful, warm and welcoming hotel. We dined at Lorenzo’s Restaurant in the Copperfield, a truly first-rate experience (the rack of lamb was extraordinary). And, we pre-dined at Bar Vino, a sophisticated but casual wine bar.

Wait a minute. A wine bar in North Creek?

It’s true. The little town is showing signs of life. A modest, actual ski town appears to be forming here—a small variety of places to dine, a small collection of interesting shops, a good pizza joint, and a new, free shuttle service that runs from downtown to the ski hill on peak days.

Folks going up for just a day—or driving in from nearby lodging in Lake George or elsewhere in Warren County—during holidays or weekends, park downtown, ride the shuttle to the hill, and return downtown for an apres-ski drink or meal. It’s a whole new experience for this unsung destination.

–Mitch Kaplan

Weather Gods Unfair to Skiers

Martin Griff photo.

When I arrived in New Hampshire to ski last week, the car outdoor thermometer read 58 degrees. And, it was raining.

“Is this fair?” I kvetched to myself.

Out west,
Whistler had six feet of snow in a week
Tahoe just reported three feet of new
Training runs for the World Cup at Beaver Creek had to be postponed because of—you guessed it—too much snow.

And, here we were in the East ready to play golf.

Yes, things have changed radically in the last week. The cold weather came along, snow making began in earnest, and some New England ski resorts reaped more than a foot of snow.

But wait. I’m headed, with Phil and his wife Brigitte, to the Adirondacks’ Gore Mountain this weekend, where the forecast calls for low temperatures of 9, and highs of 20 or so.

Is this fair?

No.

But, then again, the weather gods have never been fair. Sometimes they’re kind. But never are they fair.

Affordable New York City

The New York Times’ Frugal Traveler column offers some insightful advice on making a New York City visit as affordable as possible, including transportation to the city, lodging, dining, shopping and entertainment. Read about it here: Frugal Traveler: Going Deep for the Cheap in New York by Matt Gross. Published: December 9, 2009.

Fish and Chips at the Hungry Trout

Spring can be a tough time. I’ll want to head out and play some golf. But I know the fishing reports will be too good to pass up at that time. Like the Lovin Spoonful once sang: “… you have say yes to one and let the other one ride.”

Well, maybe not! I’ve found a plan that should help me and the rest of you decision-impaired souls when it comes time to choose. It is called “Fish and Chips” and it’s offered by the well regarded Hungry Trout Resort in Wilmington NY, near Lake Placid

While the scheduling is flexible, most who sign up head out to one of the nearby golf courses in the morning then come back to the Resort where its off to spend the late afternoon, early evening flogging the nearby AuSable River or one of the other productive waters in the area.

And the Hungry Trout has a pretty fine restaurant too where you can wrap up the day with good food and your choice of stories; golf, or fishing. Or both.

The Hungry Trout will rent you a room, schedule a tee time, fix you up with a fishing guide and cook you dinner. Check out Fish and Chips at http://www.hungrytrout.com. A gift certificate is looking like a pretty good stocking stuffer to me right now.

–Phil Johnson

Burton’s Olympic Snowboard Uniforms

Burton has just released photos of the US Snowboarding Team uniform for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

And I like it; sorta!

The jacket is a red, white and blue plaid ( yes, Beach Boys/ Preppy Guide plaid! ) affair. Now if you go out on the hill these days, the average snowboard outerwear you see looks more like your mom’s old table cloth… only bigger and baggier… much bigger and much baggier. But no fire hydrant look this time. The uniform jacket that US team members will be wearing in Vancouver, at least the picture of it released by Burton, looks fashion fitted.

The pants on the other hand seem to be asking “Why?” Now we all know pants can’t talk so I guess we’ll never know why design graffiti had to be added to a neat denim look Gore-Tek fabric. The crisp weather beating fabric has been mucked up by faux rips and tears that make it look just a little too trashy for my taste.

Now I am a long time admirer of Jake Burton Carpenter for the innovation and business acumen he has brought to snowsports over the past quarter century. We’ll know if his designers scored a hit with this one when we see what’s being worn on the slopes next season. Kids and grandkids? … maybe. Grays? No!

Early on-line comments were mixed. Here’s a sample:

… “… the US is poor now… we may as well look the part.”

“…sweet, going to look really different from all the other jock dork conventional uniforms”

And finally from someone who’ll never be pleased:

“…uniforms defeat the purpose of snowboarding. What has the world become? Are you kidding me…?”

Phil Johnson

Driving to New Hampshire

Here’s the thing. No matter how many times I’ve driven to New Hampshire—summer or winter, it makes no matter—I have no sense of where I am.

Why is that?

I don’t have that problem anywhere else in New England. Not in Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island or ever Maine, which is vast and, in some places, virtually unexplored.

And, I drive to New England a lot. Including New Hampshire. To ski mostly. But, in summer, I find myself up here to hike, play golf, or do the myriad other activities offered by the mountains the coast, and the resorts.

So, how come I never have a sense of knowing where I am?

Take yesterday, for instance. I drove to Waterville Valley. No traffic to speak of, excellent driving weather. I chose a route through Hartford, then north on I-91 through Springfield, Mass., and up to White River Junction, Vt.

Fine to that point.

Then it was east on a series of numbered roads til I was supposed to reach I-93, on which I was to travel two exits north.

I did all that. But, by the time I reached I-93, I had no confidence that I was in the right place or driving in the correct direction. I was traveling on faith.

Sure, I got here in the end. Still, what is it about New Hampshire that engenders this state of confusion? Forget “Live Free & Die”; for me, it’s “Live Free & Feel Lost.”

— Mitch Kaplan

Olympic Dreams

I won’t be in Vancouver this February for the Winter Olympics. Too bad, because I’ve been a great fan of the games since I worked at Lake Placid in 1980. Like every games since, I’m sure I’ll be glued to the TV for the full two weeks of competition (even though, I confess, Ice Dancing is snack time for me).

A major reason I like the games so much is the chance to see athletes in sports that get little attention most of the time get their day in the sun. Take Steve Holcomb for instance.

Steve looks to me like the perfect guy to have over for a backyard barbeque. At 5’10”, 235 pounds, he looks like he’d be right at home, flipping brats and burgers and turning the chicken while watching the games on the big screen. You just know he’ll be back for seconds when the cooking’s done.

But unfortunately Steve won’t be available to watch the tube at my house. He’ll be on the tube instead.

This 29 year old from Park City UT is the reigning world champion in the four man bobsled and one of the favorites to medal at the games. He is certainly a fan favorite in Lake Placid where last year, after becoming the first American to win a bobsled world championship since 1949, he went back up on the hill with no fanfare and gave rides to some of the spectators.

Think there are many other world class athletes who would do that?

Holcomb was his usual good spirited self recently when he won the World Cup four man bobsled race at Lake Placid and took the silver medal in the two man event. I don’t know about you, but I am more impressed with a successful athlete who remains friendly with the fans than someone who looks great in spandex but indifferent to the public.

He is he kind of guy I want to see do well in the Olympics. And the grill at my house will always be open if Steve wants to stop by.

 

–Phil Johnson

At the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian

On Thanksgiving Day, we discovered that the sites of Washington, DC, were uncrowded and welcoming.

What a difference a day makes.

Returning to the Mall—specifically to the Smithsonian and its National Museum of the American Indian—on Thanksgiving weekend Friday, we found an entirely different scene. Crowded? You betcha.

So crowded that we couldn’t even gain entrance to the museum’s food court. Indeed, we couldn’t find seats at a nearby Cosi, Au Bon Pain or Pot Belly Sandwich. True, we were a group of 11, including a toddler, but still . . .

Tragic. The NMAI serves the best food on the Mall, an enticing variety of signature dishes of tribes across the continent. And fry bread to die for.

But, NMAI ranks among the Smithsonian’s best sites. A dramatically designed building with an open circular center space on the ground floor, and spiraling walkways that lead to galleries on three floors above, it exudes a dynamic that few museums do.

A Maize Festival was taking place over the weekend, drawing scads of families to watch native dances and sand painting and to do crafts. But, the highlight for me was the special exhibit “Strange Comfort” by Brian Jungen—a series of sculptures in which native themes are carried out through media comprised of everyday modern American items.

Such as?

• totem poles made of golf club bags
• a warrior made of baseball glove pieces
• an athletic shoe eagle
• a huge whale skeleton made from white plastic resin chairs.

Superb.

But, next year, I think we’ll museum-go on Thanksgiving Day, and eat turkey on Friday.

At The Smithsonian’s Museum of American Art

We’ve finally discovered an uncrowded day on which to visit Washington, DC—Thanksgiving Day.

The Metro was uncrowded. The city streets sparsely populated, and our visit to the American Museum of Art delightfully calm

Why, among all the Smithsonian museums, did we pick that one? A wonderful exhibit called 1934: A New Deal for Artists.

In a show of 56 paintings created under the New Deal’s Public Works of Art Program, scenes from everyday American life are portrayed by a huge variety of artists working in myriad forms.

Most of these artists, I’d never heard of.

But, the sense of the time, the feeling of mid-1930s life in the USA, is irresistibly and compellingly communicated in displays sorted by theme—The City, The Country, People, Labor, etc.

Amazingly, the Public Works of Art Program lasted only six months, from mid-December 1933 to June 1934.

This exhibition celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Public Works of Art Program. It runs until January 3, 2010.

Indeed, the building itself is worth a visit. It was once the U.S. Patent Office. Now, grandly columned, it houses both American Art and the National Portrait Gallery, and is centered on a delightful, huge, glass-canopied courtyard.

Well worth visiting if you’re in the D.C. area.