USA 2022, part 13 (Congers, Garrison, Cold Spring, New York)
New York City is known under the nickname of “Big Apple.” Although the US state of New York is the second biggest apple producer in the USA, the city’s nickname has nothing to do with apple production. The term “Big Apple” started to be used for New York during the 1920s and has to do with horse races. Over time, the nickname almost fell out of use, but was reactivated during the 1970s as a part of a tourism marketing campaign.
I have never fancied this nickname, but I’m mentioning this precisely because of – apples. Namely, during my stay in New York, in October 2022, Nataša, the wife of my friend Velislav and my friend suggested that the two of us could go and pick apples. Apple picking in autumn when they become fully ripe is one of the very popular activities here and I was absolutely delighted. And so, one nice and sunny day, Nale and I headed north of New York City to one of the numerous farms that offer this type of useful fun.
I left the whole organisation completely in the hands of Nale and she picked Dr. Davies Farm in the place called Congers. This is a farm of around 180 ha that is located close to the Hudson River and that was bought towards the end of the 19th century by Dr. Davies and her husband. Today, the farm is managed by their descendents.
It is all very well organised here and when you approach the farm along the road, you first come across the employees that stand in the road and show you where you should turn in order to get to the parking lot on the other side of the road. When the visitors head for the farm on foot, those same employees make sure that they safely cross the road, while also managing any approaching vehicles.
And when you get here, you first come across some stands that offer different products. It was clearly autumn and everything was reflected autumnal fruits and flowers, with pumpkins leading the way.
Then you get to a stand where you pay for the tickets and the picking, by selecting the size of the bag in which you are going to put your apples. This is not an inexpensive pleasure, for apples can be bought in a store for less, but it is certainly a great pleasure when you pick an apple directly from the tree. In addition to practically paying for the apples that you pick and put into the bag, the apples that you eat come for free. On this day, the “menu” included six varieties of apples, so Nale and I headed for the orchard.
Needless to say, we were not alone here and at first we were confused a little since the first tees were devoid of fruits that had already been picked completely, but then we ventured among rows of apple trees and started with our picking, as well as eating. The apples were absolutely perfect, regardless of the variety, and I did not care whether they had been sprayed with a pesticide or not (and I believe they had been). I would just wipe them off my shirt and bite into them.
Nale and I were very content with our picking and the bags we bought were full up to their maximum.
Of course, either because they are overripe or because people pick some apples, while others fall to the ground, but in any case there were many fallen fruits there. And yet, I don’t believe this is a problem, because I’m sure these get collected, probably at the end of the day, and then they are turned into a juice that is sold at one of those entrance stands
Very happy with our “adventure,” Nale and I now went to the picnic area with tables and benches, so the visitors can enjoy additionally and if they haven’t brought their own food, there are things to be bought on the spot.
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Nale and I were full, both because of the good breakfast we had had and because of all the apples we had eaten, so we just had some juice, frankly only in order to try apples in this shape as well.
In the end, we walked around a little, taking photos, and then we went back to the car and continued with our excursion.
Now we transferred by car in the direction of the town of Cold Spring. Along the way, we enjoyed the splendid autumnal sights and the gorgeous sunny day.
By the way, by chance, the photo above included also a sign showing the speed limit – 55 miles, which means 88.5 km per hour! During the 1970s, there was a major oil crisis and since the American cars, at least at that time, were famous for huge consumption of fuel, the authorities decided to limit the speed on the roads. In addition to some large savings in fuel, this also led to a significant reduction in the number of traffic accidents with all that this entails. And it was because of this that the authorities, once the crisis was over, left the speed limit. Admittedly, over time in some places the permitted speed has been increased to 110 km per hour, but this is the absolutely the maximum permitted speed, while most of the roads continued to allow no more than 88.5 km/h.
Frankly speaking, this speed is quite fine when you want to gaze out of the window and look around. Nale and I continued further to the north and at some point we crossed over a bridge to the east bank of the Hudson, while some 12 km farther we approached our next destination.
This next destination was the Boscobel House and Gardens. Although this site formally speaking belongs to the town of Garrison, it is significantly closer to Cold Spring.
I have already written before that the Hudson River Valley is a National Heritage Area that extends from Albany, the capital of the state of New York, to New York City. This area is rich in natural beauties, as well as historic heritage and I had already been here with my friend Daniela when we were returning from Vermont. Now I wanted to add up to my experience and sightseeing in this part of the USA with Nale, plus we both wanted to go for a walk around here.
After we had bought the tickets, first we walked a little past a pond where some Canada geese were plucking grass and enjoying the autumn sun.
The house that we later saw on this estate was built at the beginning of the 19th century and it was actually located some 20 km more to the south, but around the middle of the 20th century it was due for demolition. Then some entrepreneurial individuals jumped in and moved the house right to this site, which was then followed by the setting up of the accompanying gardens, orchard, etc.
Nale and I first followed a brick path leading towards the orchard and the gardens.
We walked a little around the Herb Garden and Orangery, and then, following the main path, we also went to the Formal Garden. It looked much better, because of the position of the Sun, when looked at and photographed as we were getting ready to leave it.
This was all well and good, but one should actually come here because of the absolutely spectacular view that can be enjoyed when the visitor leaves the Formal Garden and goes to the Great Lawn. As you approach the end of the lawn and the flat section, a slope leading to the Hudson River starts, so the view from this point expands even more.
What can be seen here is in fact a river island, Constitution Island, while between the island and the east bank of the Hudson River, there is a tidal marsh that is an important habitat for birds, fish, etc.
I was completely mesmerised by the beauty of the landscape and while admiring the nature, I moved slowly in order to look at it all from an objectively only slightly different angle, but I was very content anyway. The photo below, on the left-hand side, shows a paved semi-circle called Belvedere – which comes from Italian and means “nice view.” The view from each angle was magnificent.
And then Nale and I paid a little more attention to that house from the 19th century that had been moved here
With its yellow and white facade, partially hidden by a huge tree the top of which was orange with all the autumnal foliage, and against the green lawn in front, and the woods and the blue sky in the back, the house also looked as if from a fairy-tale.
Still, Nale and I had now a very good plan that did not concern the house at all and that was to go for a walk following a trail within the estate.
The walk through the woods was exceptionally nice and from time to time we could also enjoy views at the river. From one point one can see quite well the famous U.S. Military Academy at West Point on the other side of the river.
And at some other point there was also a bench so that the visitor can enjoy the fine view even better. I decided to take a seat here, while Nile took a photo of me. I really, really enjoyed.
Then Nale and I went all the way down to the marshy area and following a trail reached its end called the Sacred Place.
There, at the end of the trail, there was a sign saying that this place was frequented in the past by Native Americans and that they used this marshy area in order to catch game and fish, as well as collect reeds in order to make baskets, etc. Also, that area called the Sacred Place today, where the end of the trail is, in the forest, at the edge of a marsh and where there used to be a small waterfall back in the day, is the place where the earth, water and air are brought together and this is certainly the place where spirits, such as Manitou, the supreme power and spiritual energy, used to dwell.
To the glory of Manitou, who certainly continues to be present in such places, I took photo of three fallen leaves against the base made of twigs and moss.
After a short stay at this place, we followed the same way back, thus reaching the main trail, and then we continued with our walk through the woods.
The forest is very pretty and from time to time the light effects were exceptionally beautiful.
But, like in any other forest, there are many more creatures living here than what may seem at first site. Such as a small snake that we could barely discern.
After the most enjoyable walk through the woods, Nale and I returned to the Great Lawn, where I admired the house again, but then I admired even more the stunning view.
Needless to say, I could not stay here forever, so we slowly started to head home.
But, before that, we entered the small museum dedicated to the saving of the house. As I’ve mentioned, the house was in a very bad shape and due to be demolished, but it was saved, moved here and has been opened as a museum since 1961.
Here we practically finished with our visit to the Boscobel House and Gardens, so we moved to the front part of the house where, on the one hand, the colours of the autumnal foliage lit by the strong sunlight seemed unreal, while, on the other hand, some newly-weds and their closest friends and family had their photos taken, since the place was obviously set for a wedding ceremony.
As we were walking leisurely towards the parking lot along the path called the Maple Lane, I could see in the direction of the Visitor Centre some sculptural portraits of painters that belonged to the Hudson River School. And thus this place is called exactly like that – the Hudson River School Artist Garden. I have already mentioned this school, as well as such sculptures in one of the previous sequels of the travelogue (https://www.svudapodji.com/en/usa-22-8/).
The Maple Lane also leads beside the pond where the Canada geese were still enjoying themselves.
It was getting late in the afternoon and we needed to eat something, so Nale and I went to the nearby town of Cold Spring. The place is certainly quite lovely, but the colours that could be seen there, on account of the sunlit autumnal foliage and the blue sky, were simply incredibly beautiful.
Now we walked to the main street with an intention to sit there and have lunch, but it was very crowded and all the restaurants in this small town were full or were getting ready for the dinner, which meant a pause in the serving of food. That’s why we had to improvise and it all turned out well in the end, but the quest for food meant that we first walked down the Main Street and then up, which was not a problem at all since the place is truly charming.
Following this nice walk, we got back to the car and then all the way back to New York City. This was yet another great day spent in the company of a dear friend.
I spent the following days rather quietly with my friends, since the end of my stay was getting nearer, so I wanted to be with them as much as possible. And yet, one day I made a short trip to Coney Island.
Although the name says “island,” today, this is in fact a peninsula at the south end of Brooklyn, one of the five New York boroughs. Originally, this was indeed an island, but at the beginning of the 20th century, a wide causeway was created and the island got connected with the rest of the dry land, so to speak. It was, in fact, connected to another island, which is Long Island, that is also a rather well known geographic term. Let me explain, the far west end of Long Island belongs to New York City in the shape of two boroughs – Brooklyn and Queens. New York has three more boroughs, Staten Island, Manhattan and the Bronx, and only the last part of the city that I’ve mentioned, the Bronx, is terra firma. Everything else is islands or parts of an island.
But, let me go back to my story about Coney Island. What makes this place interesting and comparatively well-known is a sand beach on the one hand and a large amusement park along the beach on the other. I came here by an underground train and then I walked towards the beach.
Because of this large beach and good connections with the city, Coney Island serves as a kind of a seaside resort and the city beach of New York. Of course, October was not the time for swimming in the Atlantic Ocean and I just strolled along the shore. On the one side of the large boardwalk there are different parts of the well known amusement park, between which I had to pass in order to get to the beach, but it was only now that I started to take photos of them.
It was a weekend and the weather was not bad, so there were other visitors as well and from time to time I could hear the screams of the people having fun in the park.
The Coney Island Beach extends into another well known and popular beach – the Brighton Beach, but instead of an amusement park, there are residential buildings along the shore.
I saw some people playing beach volleyball here, but in the meantime the clouds had started to gather, so I just walked some more before passing between the buildings in order to get to the underground station where I would catch a train to go back to my NYC home.
I spent the last afternoon and evening of this trip with the younger members of my friends. In addition to having good time as always, we also went for a light dinner at a local restaurant. When Velislav later took me home, he stopped briefly close to the East River bank, within Long Island City. This neighbourhood has become quite renowned over the last several years because of its fast development and popularity, with many residential and business buildings, art galleries and parks along the river. These parks were something that I was particularly interested in, since you can see Manhattan very well from the shores of this neighbourhood. The reason for this is that the night view at Manhattan has remained a part of my vivid and impressive memories ever since my first visit to New York.
This was the perfect picture that I could take back in my mind, hoping that I would return again to this magnificent city and my friends.
The only thing left to do is to share two maps that show the places that I visited during my trip around northeastern USA and within New York City.