Woodstock Magazine - Spring 2019

WOODSTOCK MAGAZINE

SPRING 2019

Balloons at Post Mills Airport Bike Park at Suicide Six The Grange Theatre

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SPRING 2019

CONTENTS

34 34 From the Earth to the Sky IDEA 40

by Dave Yarin

Tales from a hot-air balloon.

by Katy Savage

Woodstock students break down walls between school and community.

54

Going

All-in for Summer

40

by Mark Aiken

Suicide Six opens its bike park.

On the cover: Hot-air balloons take to the sky at the Post Mills Airport.

Photo by Tina Foster.

This page, top: An experimental air ship. Photo by Brian Boland.

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CONTENTS

32

24

61

In Every Issue

Departments

15 Editor’s Note 16 Contributors 18 Online Exclusives 72 Happenings 79 Advertisers Index 80 Last Glance

20 Everyday Essentials

61 Community

by Dian Parker

24 Around & About

Small venue, big vision.

32 Great Outdoors

by Lisa Ballard

Alligators and other wildlife encounters.

27

Shop & Stay In & Around Quechee This Spring

Tips for healthy living.

by Cassie Horner

The Bridgewater Raft Race.

47 Bright Ideas

by Nancy Fontaine

A calf’s adventure.

52

Unique Shopping & Dining In & Around Woodstock

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66 Travel Time

Mountain View Publishing, LLC 135 Lyme Road, Hanover, NH 03755 (603) 643-1830

mountainviewpublishing.com Publishers

Bob Frisch Cheryl Frisch Executive Editor

Deborah Thompson Associate Editor

Kristy Erickson Copy Editor

Elaine Ambrose Creative Director

Ellen Klempner-Beguin Art Director

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Hutchens Media, LLC Web Design

Locable Inbound Marketing Manager

Erin Frisch Advertising

Bob Frisch

KEEP US POSTED. Woodstock Magazine wants to hear from readers. Correspondence may be addressed to: Letters to the Editor, Woodstock Magazine, 135 Lyme Road, Hanover, NH 03755. Or email us at: dthompson@mountainviewpublishing .com. Advertising inquiries may be made by email to rcfrisch1@comcast .net. Woodstock Magazine is published quarterly by Mountain View Publishing, LLC Š2019. All rights reserved.

Reproduction in whole or part is strictly prohibited. Woodstock Magazine accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, artwork, or photographs.

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E D I TO R ’ S N OT E

IAN RAYMOND

Embrace a New Experience

As we witness the renewal of nature this spring, consider heading outdoors for a new adventure.

Hot-air balloonist Brian Boland hosts a show over the weekend of May 17, 18, and 19 at the Post Mills Airport (page 34). Only homemade and experimental balloons may participate, and they arrive from all over the world. Parking and admission are free, so bring the whole family and come out and join the fun.

If you’re looking for a more active adventure, check out the new Bike Park at Suicide Six (page 54). The park offers trails for all skill levels, so bring your bike (or rent one) and ride the chairlift with it to the top of the mountain. The trip down promises to be action-packed.

The first Saturday in May offers a great adventure, so dig deep for your courage and head to the Ottauquechee River for the 45th annual Bridgewater Raft Race (page 32). Participants tap into their creativity to build rafts from amazing to whimsical to navigate the three-mile course. Even if you don’t participate, come out to cheer the rafters on and celebrate the winners at the party that follows.

After a busy day outdoors, relax by taking in a production at the Grange Theatre in Pomfret (page 61). Open for only two years, the ArtisTree Music Theatre Festival won the Theatre of the Year Award from the BroadwayWorld Regional/Vermont Awards in 2018.

Wherever your activities take you this spring, keep in touch with local news and events online at www.woodstockmagazine.com. Enjoy!

Deborah Thompson Executive Editor dthompson@mountainviewpublishing.com

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C O N T R I B U TO R S

Mark is a freelance writer from Richmond, Vermont. He teaches skiing at Stowe and trains for marathons with his wife. He is also involved in another grueling and never-ending endurance sport with his wife: parenting.

Mark Aiken

Lisa Ballard

A three-time Emmy-winning television producer and host, Lisa has been a familiar face around New England for her work on PBS and for various sports and outdoor networks.

An accomplished writer and photographer, she contributes regularly to over 25 regional and national magazines on various backcountry, adventure travel, nature, and wildlife topics. She has written seven books, including Best Hikes with Dogs: New Hampshire and Vermont, Hiking the Green Mountains, and Hiking the White Mountains. To see more of her photos, visit her website, www.LisaBallardOutdoors.com.

Lynn began her photographic career in Boston, studying at the New England School of Photography, assisting commercial photographers, and color printing in photo labs. Originally from West Virginia, she worked her way north, finally landing in the hills of Vermont, where she has a studio in Woodstock.

Her current assignments include photographing people, architecture, and art.

Lynn Bohannon

Cassie is a writer, editor, and publisher and the author of a historical novel, Lucy E.—Road to Victory. Her roots in Vermont go back almost 200 years and inspire her love of the natural world and history. She lives in Plymouth, Vermont, with her husband and two dogs—an English Shepherd and a mini Dachshund.

Cassie Horner

Dian is a freelance writer published in a number of literary journals and magazines. She is also an oil painter and is curator for White River Gallery in Vermont. A solo exhibit of her paintings and drawings was at the Zollikofer Gallery in Vermont last summer. She has traveled extensively, including to Syria before its heartbreaking devastation.

Dian Parker

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E V E RY DAY E S S E N T I A L S Tips for Healthy Living

Spring-Clean

Your Medicine Cabinet

D

o you have small children or grandchildren in the house? It’s critical to clean out your medicine cabinet and lock up any drugs.

According to Consumer Reports, only one in five Americans locks up prescription drugs, and about 60,000 preschoolers are rushed to hospitals each year after accidentally swallowing medicine, whether prescription or over-the-counter.

Prescription drugs like sedatives and painkillers aren’t the only drugs that can potentially cause harm. Acetaminophen, which is found in Tylenol and hundreds of other products, is the most commonly accidentally ingested over-the-counter drug. A child who takes too much can develop liver damage or even liver failure.

To avoid any mishaps, Consumer Reports recommends the following: • Return unused medication to your pharmacy, hospital, or narcotic treatment program for disposal. If the pharmacy or hospital won’t take them, ask the local fire department if they accept unused medication.

• Mark your calendar for National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on Saturday, April 27. Designated police departments and fire stations will allow anyone to drop off leftover medications anonymously. Visit www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/ takeback/ for a list of collection sites in the Woodstock area.

• Some pills can be tossed in your household trash—just hide them in coffee grounds, sawdust, or kitty litter and seal in a plastic bag. Ask your local pharmacy how to properly dispose of unwanted medicines.

Listen Up! S Hearing Loss is Linked to Depression

eniors who suffer from hearing loss have a high risk for depression, and the greater the hearing loss, the higher the risk. Most people over age 70 have at least mild hearing loss, but few people are diagnosed, much less treated. People with mild hearing loss are about twice as likely to have clinically significant depression than those with normal hearing, and those with severe hearing loss are more than four times as likely to be depressed. Get your hearing tested and if warranted, consider treatment—it’s well worth it.

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Fight Pain

with a Good

Attitude

A

recent study finds that optimism may be key to coping with chronic pain. A positive outlook was linked to fewer bouts of back pain, joint pain, and frequent headaches among more than 21,000 veterans. “What was striking was that optimism was associated with less pain even when taking into consideration what the soldiers experienced during deployment, such as combat stress and trauma, as well as injury,� says the study’s lead researcher. And an upbeat attitude can have the same power for civilians, say the study authors. Optimistic people tend to have lower levels of pain sensitivity and generally better adjustment when they do have pain.

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E V E RY DAY E S S E N T I A L S

Cover Up While Gardening

T

he springtime sunshine may have you itching to get outside and dig in the dirt—just be sure your garden doesn’t leave you (literally) itching. Plants with spines, thorns, and small hairs can release chemicals into the skin that result in hives. Common flowers and plants, including tulips and daffodil bulbs, also contain chemicals that can trigger allergic skin reactions.

And you probably already know that plants with leaves of three, like poison ivy and poison oak, should always be avoided. Be sure to cover up with protective clothing when you clean out your garden and do your spring planting. If you’re exposed to any of these plants, rinse the affected area right away.

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Porky Pooch?

Go for a Walk

A

s the weather warms, it’s a great time to get outside and take your dog for a long walk. According to the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, more than half of all dogs are overweight. And a dog that weighs too much is at greater risk for osteoarthritis, high blood pressure, orthopedic problems, ligament injuries, skin disease, heart and respiratory disease, cancer, and a lower life expectancy. Get your dog moving with plenty of walking and playing. You’ll reap the benefits of regular walks as well, including increased heart health, improved muscle pain and stiffness, stronger bones, and a boost in your energy and mood.

Enjoy NutrientPacked Berries

W

hile you’re waiting for berry season in Woodstock, don’t miss out on the healthy benefits of these nutritional powerhouses. Nutrientdense berries are low in calories and high in fiber, vitamins, and healthsupporting plant chemicals. Make raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries freezer staples until fresh ones are available this summer.

They thaw in minutes and are perfect for topping yogurt and oatmeal and for providing the perfect base for smoothies.

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A RO U N D & A B O U T

By Cassie Horner

15th Annual Great Gardens & Landscaping Symposium

K

erry Ann Mendez started the Great Gardens & Landscaping Symposium 15 years ago with a clear goal in mind. “I began it with a mission to bring garden hobbyists together,” she says.

“It is designed for garden enthusiasts of all levels to learn about everything from edible landscaping to landscaping design.” The 2019 symposium is scheduled at the Woodstock Inn & Resort on Saturday, April 13 from 8am to 4pm. There will be a presymposium class on Friday, April 12 from 1 to 4pm featuring two sessions by Kerry Ann. An award-winning speaker, writer, and garden designer in Kennebunk, Maine, Kerry Ann has brought together a diverse group of speakers with expertise in a variety of topics. “There will be top-notch speakers discussing cutting-edge topics,” she says. “On Saturday, I will do a presentation on really cool, new ‘eye candy’ plants, including annuals, perennials, and flowering shrubs.”

One of the speakers is Matthew Benson, author of Growing Beautiful Food and an award-winning photographer. “He is very popular with audiences because he grabs their attention,” Kerry Ann says. “He is best known for his photography. He is speaking about the art of photography for gardens. He captures the emotion behind the photos.” Matthew owns an organic, 1860s farm in the Hudson Valley in New York.

Above: Kerry Ann’s fourth gardening book.

Right: Her gardens in Kennebunk, Maine.

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Left: Low-maintenance, sun-loving perennials and annuals welcome visitors.

Inset: Kerry Ann Mendez.

“It is designed for garden enthusiasts of all levels to learn about everything from edible landscaping to landscaping design.”

—Kerry Ann Mendez

Top: Colorful foliage adds drama to this small garden bed.

Above: Perennial Heucherella “Buttered Rum” and gold Hakone grass brighten a shady spot.

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A RO U N D & A B O U T

Self-watering red railing planters simplify container gardening.

Another presenter is Annie White, owner of Nectar Landscape Design Studio in Stowe, Vermont. She has a master’s degree in landscape architecture. Her program explores which beautiful garden plants are most beneficial for attracting pollinators. She shows gardeners how the layout of gardens and plants, as well as maintenance practices, impact pollinators.

The third speaker is Warren Leach, award-winning garden designer, speaker, and co-owner of Tranquil Lake Nursery. His focus will be lateseason plants in the garden: how to keep drama in the garden by carrying the color baton through the latter stages of the season when drought, heat, and humidity challenge gardeners. His expertise helps gardeners understand how to have a beautiful garden beyond the peak weeks of the season.

“People love coming to the symposium,” Kerry Ann says. “Attendees were originally mostly from New England and New York but now come from over a dozen states, including Minnesota, South Carolina, Oregon, Maryland, and Ohio as well as Canada.

Many have returned year after year.”

For more information and to register, visit www.pyours.com/symposium.

There are discounts for Master Gardeners and for groups of five or more.

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Shop & Stay In & Around Quechee this Spring

Quechee Pizza Chef

Antiques Collaborative, Inc.

Pet Groomer Quechee Gorge Village, Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 369-2966 www.perfectfursalon.com Visit us on Facebook

5893 Woodstock Road Quechee, VT (802) 298-6669 quecheepizzachef.com

6931 Woodstock Road Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 296-5858 www.AntiquesCollaborative.com

Jake’s Quechee Market

The Vermont Spot

Quality Inn

7161 Woodstock Road Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 291-9900 www.jakesquecheemarket.com

Quechee Gorge Village Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 281-6274 Open daily 9:30am–5:30pm

5817 Woodstock Road Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 295-7600 qualityinnquecheegorge.com

Quechee Home

Andrew Pearce Bowls

Artifactory

Quechee Gorge Village Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 281-6482

59 Woodstock Road Hartland, VT Between Quechee and Woodstock (802) 735-1884 www.andrewpearcebowls.com

Quechee Gorge Village Route 4 Quechee, VT (802) 369-2153 www.artifactorynh.com

Open daily 10am–5pm

Open daily 10am–5pm

Perfect Fur Salon

Sun–Thu 11am–9pm Fri & Sat 11am–10pm Instagram @ gethoppy

Open daily 10am–5pm Closed Wed

Open daily 7am–8pm

Open daily 10am–5pm

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Spring Concerts at St. James

A highlight of the church interior is the organ built specifically for St. James by A. David Moore in Pomfret.

Two concerts at St. James Episcopal Church in Woodstock help welcome spring. The month of May starts off with an organ recital by Dr. James E. Lorenz on Sunday, May 5 at 4pm. The second concert, Ascension Day Choral Evensong, is set for Thursday, May 30 at 7pm.

The May 5 concert highlights the partnership of organist James with the beautiful organ built specifically for St. James by A. David Moore in Pomfret. It was designed to cover music of the Baroque period and German composers, as well as a wide variety of other musical literature.

The May 30 concert is built around the Feast of Ascension Evensong. The highlight of the program is MarcAntoine Charpentier’s “Te Deum.” He was a French comThe choir will perform Ascension Day Choral Evensong on May 30 at 7pm.

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“The St. James music program is an opportunity for us to welcome the community. It is also an opportunity for local singers to participate.” poser in the Royal Court of Louis XV. The composer set the “Te Deum” four times; the version to be heard at St. James is the only one he did that features trumpets and timpani.

A large orchestra, along with soloists and choir, will perform. “It is very regal and ceremonious,” James says.

“The music is festive for Ascension Day. This brilliant and magnificent piece was frequently played at victory celebrations and other occasions of public jubilation during the 17th century.”

The evening will also feature the music of English composer Henry Purcell, a contemporary of Charpentier’s known for his church music.

Orchestra and choir will perform the “Magnificat” and “Nunc Dimittis.”

“The St. James music program is an opportunity for us to welcome the community,” says James. “It is also an opportunity for local singers to participate.” For more information about the concerts or to contact James about singing, visit www .stjameswoodstock.org.

An organ recital by Dr. James Lorenz is set for Sunday, May 5 at 4pm.

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A RO U N D & A B O U T

Innovation in Education Conference

Above: Educators discuss ways to adapt learning to reflect the changing landscape of the educational environment.

Below: Educators explore and redesign the physical space to determine the impact on learning.

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Educators from all grade levels will gather at the Woodstock Inn & Resort on April 2 to 4 for the Innovation in Education Conference, designed as a collaborative endeavor for teachers, technology integration specialists, and administrators.

Gail Ross-McBride, director of EdTechTeacher and organizer of the conference, worked closely with Mary Beth Banios, WCSU superintendent, last year to create the first event, which almost sold out. “This year, we looked at the initiatives of the state and what Mary Beth wants for the district, and then planned the conference around those,” says Gail. For example, the flexible pathways initiative explores offerings for secondary school students in addition to the higher education college track, including work-based learning, career/technical education, and museum or library opportunities. Another example is the ongoing discussion in Vermont about early childhood education. The conference is designed around the goals and objectives of Vermont education but is open to anyone.

“We begin with a vision, then look at how do we actually implement that vision in the classroom,” Gail says.

Justin Reich, co-founder of EdTechTeacher, assistant professor at MIT, and executive director of the MIT Teaching Systems Lab, leads a session about Building Community Engagement.

“In a classroom, we have all kinds of learners. There is a diverse group with individual needs.” She contrasts this approach to a more traditional education conference with a keynote speaker followed by workshops to learn about new ideas. “We are trying to change the format so educators can spend time learning and experiencing,” she says.

“People go home after two days of really having an energetic and intense learning time,” says Gail. “The conference provides deep thinking time to learn strategies and get comfortable with them.” Workshops include “Entrepreneurship in the Digital Age,” “Modern Digital Citizenship and Civic Education,” and “Early Education Technology.”

One day of the conference is for school leaders—superintendents, assistant superintendents, and some principals—focused on leading through change. There are workshops on “Using a Portrait of a Graduate to Transform Your District,” and “Launching Innovation in Schools.”

Gail emphasizes the value of educators coming together to share ideas and experiences. “We tend to stay in our own little world, but it is good to hear what others experience,” she says. Go to www.innovationinedu.org for more information.

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G R E AT O U T D O O R S

Rolling on the River Join the fun at the Bridgewater Raft Race Photos by Lynn Bohannon

I

f you’re looking for an enjoyable way to spend the day, plan on coming out for the Bridgewater Raft Race. Locals have been floating down the Ottauquechee River each spring for more than four decades. This year’s event is scheduled for Saturday, May 4. Registration is at 11am and the race begins at noon.

“We’re celebrating our 45th anniversary this year,” says resident Collen Doyle. “People build their own rafts, and I’m always amazed at how creative they are. They dress in crazy costumes, and over the years, we’ve seen everything from a Flintstones-themed raft to a guy setting off fireworks while floating downstream. One local resident has been in the race 37 times.”

A cannon shot signals the start of the race, and rafters put in near Long Trail Brewery at the bridge. The three-mile watery adventure ends at the Bridgewater Mill. In past years, proceeds went to the local fire department, but last year, the beneficiary was the Alex Abraham Music Scholarship. Collen is currently looking for sponsors as well as a new organization to receive the proceeds.

“It’s a fun-filled day,” Collen says. “After the race, we give out prizes in many categories.

Ramunto’s Brick & Brew blocks off part of their parking lot so people can gather, and there is live music and art for sale.”

For more information, go to the Bridgewater Raft Race Facebook page.

Online Extra Watch a video of the 2017 race at www.woodstockmagazine.com.

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From the Earth to the Sky

Tales from a hot-air balloon

By Dave Yarin Photos courtesy of Brian Boland

B

rian Boland isn’t tethered to a desk job.

In fact, most days he’s untethered altogether, soaring over the majestic Alps or Andes Mountains, taking off as he pleases to land in a small village in Italy, or flying over the green and lush Vermont countryside. More than once he’s been brought back to Earth with help from a searchand-rescue team, also known as his retrieve crew. A hot-air balloon pilot and designer, Brian tells stories that are, in equal parts, adventurous, humorous, and heartwarming.

Above inset: Brian enjoys breakfast while floating over Vermont.

Right: Balloons take to the skies at 6am during the annual allhomemade Experimental Balloon and Airship Meet at Post Mills Airport during the third weekend of May.

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His unique designs, such as rigging up old cars or a sofa to fly as baskets, are memorialized in a museum on his Vermont property.

ADVENTUROUS UPS AND DOWNS

Brian’s story begins in 1970, when, as a college art student, he read a Sports Illustrated article about hot-air ballooning and thought, “God, that sounds neat.” He became fascinated by the field of hot-air ballooning and began designing and building his own balloons. His first, the Phoenix, became his master’s thesis in Art. Eventually, he answered a plea to join a gourmet food tour in France that

wanted to take customers on hot-air balloon rides. Brian headed to Europe, ultimately joining another balloon group that was flying to Italy. But after crossing over the Alps, Brian ran out of Clockwise from bottom left: Test-flying the new airport jitney before it's relegated to ground service. Balloon built for Hands Around the World in 80 Days Adventure. Flying mated kayaks. Spectators enjoy the home-built balloons at the meet. One-person steerable ultralight airship.

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Above: Skiing toward the barns at the Railroad Ranch.

Right, from top: A skier emerges from a trail through the tall timber.

Bird watchers on Nordic skis on the bank of the Henry's Fork of the Snake River. A pintail duck on the river.

propane, eventually crash-landing into the tops of trees where he had to pull himself hand over hand to get himself, the basket, and the balloon to a clearing.

After making it safely to the ground, he spent the next two days as the guest of honor in a small Italian village until his balloon team picked him up.

Brian has been at the center of an

expedition into the Andes to explore a remote 1,000-foot-deep sinkhole, where he ripped his balloon on the rocky cliff face while ascending out of the hole and needed to be rescued by helicopter. But he has plenty of stories that are less harrowing and sometimes bittersweet.

On one occasion, his passengers were a young couple, and the guy proposed to

his girl during the flight. Unfortunately, she declined, and Brian refers to the remainder of the trip as the longest flight he can remember. “The basket got really small. And really quiet. I didn’t know what to say, so I started to point out scenery as a way to break the silence.”

Ballooning has been not only a passion and a career for Brian. It’s also become

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“I have an adventurer’s spirit, and it’s something I try to instill in other people.” an extension of him, a way for him to interact with the world and distinguish himself in the ballooning field.

His unique designs, such as rigging up old cars or a sofa to fly as baskets, are memorialized in a museum on his Vermont property. Mick Murphy, past president of the Balloon Federation of America, has known Brian for more than 25 years and describes him as a “creative genius who is world-renowned in the ballooning community.”

Clockwise from top: Wanda the Fish balloon.

Spam balloon; Brian loves the stuff glazed and baked crisp! One of Brian's ancient industrial balloon sewing machines in the sewing area. Inset: Brian at the helm at the Glen Curtiss Aviation Museum.

Reflections

by Brian Boland

S

ince starting this whole balloon thing some 48 years ago, I’ve logged over 10,700 hours as a hot-air balloon pilot. When not in the air, I am often behind an industrial sewing machine creating something new. Having built 165 of these aerial creations, I also repair and inspect balloons for others. Just as for airplanes, the FAA requires that balloons undergo a yearly inspection to assure strength and airworthiness and to deem them safe for another year of use. As a licensed balloon inspector, I’ll be off soon to do an inspection for a US-registered balloon currently in the Philippines with its American owner.

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As an extension of creating balloons and airships, I formed the Experimental Balloon and Airship Association many years ago. In addition to offering advice and guidance about the design and construction of these lighter-than-air creations, I put together a yearly three-day event held at my airport in Post Mills, Vermont. Only homemade and experimental balloons and airships may participate, and they arrive from all over the world. We’ve had as many as 47 such aircraft come to the meet, providing a great opportunity for the public to meet their owners and designers and witness the magic of flight. This year’s dates are May 17, 18, and 19 with morning and evening flights at about 6am and 6pm (weather permitting—it needs to be calm and not raining heavily). Parking and admission are free, and local groups provide food and entertainment. Perhaps we’ll see you there!

BALLOONING IS PERSONAL

From his charity endeavor Hands Around the World, which balloons across the globe in 80 days, to simply saying happy birthday, ballooning is how Brian says, “Let me help you” or “Congratulations.” He loves to talk about the time he took Elsie Carrick, then the oldest person in New Hampshire, on a free balloon ride to celebrate her 108th birthday and surprised her by landing on the farm where she was born.

As Brian looks back on over 48 years of ballooning, he realizes that his many journeys have also been intertwined with personal hardships. His first three marriages ended in divorce, and Brian candidly reflects that his devotion to hot-air ballooning played a part. “It got to the point where my third wife felt like she was number 36 on my list of what was important.”

Brian’s only son died suddenly in his mid twenties of a heart attack 26 years ago, but for Brian, it served as a catalyst to fulfill yet another hot-air ballooning dream. “His passing was the thing that propelled me to realize that life isn’t forever, so go for it, whatever it is.” For Brian, “it” was beginning an annual winter trek to New Zealand to hot-air balloon, something that he had wanted to do for many years. He met his third wife there, when she was part of the chase team that followed Brian’s flights.

Brian and his life are seemingly wrapped in the very balloons that he flies. “I have an adventurer’s spirit, and it’s something I try to instill in other people.” To Brian, there is more to Earth than just the ground, and the sky is no limit.

Contact Brian at balloons@vermontel .net or balloonvermont@gmail.com.

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By Katy Savage | Photos by Lynn Bohannon

IDEA

Woodstock students break down walls between school and community

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he bell rang and class ended, but students weren’t ready to leave. Zac Cannon, a senior at Woodstock Union High School, was making an indoor garden that waters itself while sophomore Eliza Dodson was using a circular saw to cut wooden pieces of a vending machine that dispenses seeds.

Below: Students Zac Cannon and Hugo Morrel proudly display their latest prototype.

Below right: A collection of prototypes for the mung bean harvester.

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Clockwise from above: IDEA students work on the other common task in the space, research. Joshua Duefield and Eliza Dodson showcase their latest prototype of a seed vending machine.

Min Purvis and Caleb Palazzo present their project at the final exhibit.

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The Woodstock students were solving a problem—a food problem. While Zac wanted to make gardening easier, Eliza wanted to give people access to healthier food options. “We wanted people to stay local—to eat local,” Eliza says. “We were concerned about how much money people were spending on food from outside the United States.”

Their class, called IDEA, is a different kind of classroom. IDEA stands for Innovation, Design, Engineering, and Action. Instead of rows of desks and chairs, the lab has giant flat-screen televisions on the walls and modern-style couches with movable tables and seating. There are large windows students can write on, in addition to bright paint and high ceilings with soft lighting that make the space comfortable.

Above: Students participate in peer feedback at the final exhibit.

Right: Nick Bishop explains his greenhouse project to a guest during the final exhibit.

THE CLASSROOM OF THE FUTURE

Students aren’t given instructions in this class. There are no reading or writing requirements. Instead, they’re encouraged to identify a real-world problem, research it, and work collaboratively to engineer a solution. Teachers say this is the classroom of the future. “It’s preparing our kids for jobs,” says Andy Smith who coteaches the class with Max Vanatta. “You’re not very employable if you’re only willing to be in an environment where you’re told exactly what to do and how to do it.”

The class combines a number of skills.

In this particular class, students are writ-

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“You get to see students engage in knowledge in a very different way.” ing computer code that delivers instructions to a laser, which cuts pieces of plastic or wood. They use software to design plastic parts on 3D printers, scissors to cut cardboard prototypes, and circular saws to complete their designs.

“I do very little teaching. It’s mostly them teaching themselves, and I provide a framework for it,” Max says. “You get to see students engage in knowledge in a very different way.”

IDEA was started about four years ago by science teachers Jennifer Stainton and Tim Brennan. “Our goal was to have a class where students use engineering skills to solve problems that exist in the world,” Jennifer says. Along

the way, IDEA has become more robust, and the projects have become larger in scope.

HIGH-TECH EXPERTISE IN A RURAL TOWN

Last year, the school formed a partnership with NuVu, an innovation school based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The partnership costs about $200,000 a year and includes a NuVuemployed teacher at Woodstock and access to NuVu’s resources and other campuses. Though NuVu works with many private schools around the world, Woodstock is its first partnership with a public school.

Above: Louis Mills gets feedback on his mushroom table project from local experts Frank O'Connell and Charlie Shackleton.

Left: Earlier prototypes of the mushroom table. These iterations are one of the most important elements of the design process.

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It’s also NuVu’s first time bringing its high-tech expertise to a rural town. Emily Glass, a NuVu coordinator, says the close-knit town and school have made Woodstock an ideal partner. “There’s a strong sense of place and rootedness in the community, and from that we’ve been able to design studios around local issues,” she says.

The collaboration has allowed IDEA to expand. Woodstock teachers and administrators have pushed the possibilities of the NuVu program, Emily says, tailoring it to the needs of the area. Woodstock parent and engineer Jason Drebitko initiated the partnership. He wanted a space that takes students away from the traditional classroom.

Above: Andy Smith provides Sam Mitchell with some feedback on the latest iteration of his mung bean harvester.

Right: Projects in the lab vary widely, including this ongoing project, a shark swing, for the other IDEA class.

“It’s breaking down the walls between the school and the community,” Jason says.

PARTNERING WITH LOCAL INNOVATORS

Though Woodstock is small, it’s home to a surprising number of innovators who choose to live in this bucolic town. Many of them have participated in IDEA. Prior to designing their projects, students brainstormed ideas following a field trip to visit master gardener Benjamin Pauly of Kelly Way Gardens at the Woodstock Inn. Kelly Way Gardens is a three-acre garden that provides the Woodstock Inn & Resort with

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“It’s breaking down the walls between the school and the community.”

Above: Students on an average research day in the IDEA class.

Left: Christian Bloch and Aiden McDermott with their project at the final exhibit.

fresh herbs, vegetables, and flowers.

Benjamin told students that the most expensive commodity in gardening is time. “The challenge is efficiency,” he says.

Students also visited Farmhouse Pottery—one of the country’s largest handmade pottery producers, just up the road from the high school. Farmhouse Pottery Production Lead Jessica Bonasera took students on a tour of the studio and worked with a few to teach them how to make clay pots.

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Student prototypes alongside a one-page fact sheet on the project.

Student Louis Mills collaborated with acclaimed furnituremaker Charles Shackleton of Shackleton Thomas to build and design a picnic table that grows mushrooms inside.

Through his project, Louis wants to show people the farm to table movement in a literal sense. He wants to bring awareness to Woodstock visitors who may not be used to growing the food they eat.

Students don’t want to leave the lab space. IDEA gives them an alternative to traditional classroom education, which can sometimes feel like a “prison,” one student said. “I’m not a huge fan of sitting in a classroom at a desk all day,” says Sam Mitchell, a student who designed a self-picking mung bean harvester with Jacob Maxham.

“I like to work hands-on. That’s more appealing to me.”

At the end of the semester, students presented their designs, including a bicycle that brews coffee, a self-sustaining greenhouse, and a jukebox that dispenses drinks based on the song you choose, to the Woodstock community. The goal is to share the projects by installing them where they are needed most in the Woodstock area.

They spoke about their iterations and mistakes. Some designs weren’t done yet, but that didn’t seem to matter. The class is teaching students more about the process. “The process is where the learning happens,” Principal Garon Smail says.

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BRIGHT IDEAS

A Calf’s Adventure Huck’s Way Home tells the story of a runaway’s return

By Nancy Fontaine

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ow can a little calf become a big star? By becoming the subject of a picture book! Huck is an American Milking Devon steer who lives at Billings Farm & Museum where he gives demonstrations. When he was just a baby, he pulled a stunt that caught the eye of children’s book author Kristina Rodanas.

Only a week old in September 2017, Huck and his brother Finn came to Billings Farm to become draft animals in training. Within minutes of his arrival, Huck created a ruckus by bolting. As he ran out through the back gate and into the fields, members of the farm’s staff, volunteers, and visiting kids all gave chase but to no avail. Huck was gone.

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Top: Author Kristina Rodanas at a recent visit with Huck, who was 16 months old in January 2019.

Above: Huck’s Way Home book cover.

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BRIGHT IDEAS

Above: Kristina sketches Huck for the book cover.

Right: Kristina reads Huck’s tale to young guests.

A CALF ON THE LAM

Farm manager Chuck Deome tracked the calf by following his hoofprints as the local police fielded calls about a cow running through the town. Huck was even sighted by hikers near the star atop Mt. Tom, but nobody could catch him.

Huck’s running away was a devastating loss. American Milking Devons, once so numerous they are featured on the Vermont state flag, are now an endangered species. Emotionally, it affected not only Huck’s brother Finn, who was bonded to him, but also the humans at the farm.

“This is an amazing story of survival and miracles,” Kristina says. “Huck was just a weak little calf. . . . Yet he somehow found his way back to a farm he didn’t know was his home.”

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Teamster Amy Deome and Huck when he was one year old.

But the next day, to everyone’s surprise, Huck was back. When the little steer was spotted by farm staff, they were able to corner and capture him.

Kristina Rodanas read about Huck in The Vermont Standard. A former art teacher, Kristina has written and illustrated more than 25 children’s books.

Her reaction to Huck’s adventure? His was a story that needed telling.

A HAPPY ENDING

“This is an amazing story of survival and miracles,” she says. “Huck was just a weak little calf. Everyone thought he was a goner when it became dark—that he would be eaten or would starve to death on the mountain. Yet he somehow found his way back to a farm he didn’t know was his home.”

Kristina explains, “Billings Farm & Museum is a truly amazing place, and Huck’s story is an example of the kind of human and personal factor there.

The people are invested in the animals, and the animals themselves have personalities. They are not just beasts; they are part of the family.”

Kristina included several members of the farm family in the book. Chuck

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BRIGHT IDEAS

Kristina reads the story to Huck.

“Billings Farm & Museum is a truly amazing place, and Huck’s story is an example of the kind of human and personal factor there.”

Deome appears as “Farmer Chuck,” and the little girl pictured at the end of the book is his daughter Hannah.

The book was published by Billings Farm & Museum because the story is closely tied to its mission of teaching children. Book sales will benefit the farm and museum by supporting educational activities and continued efforts to maintain heritage breed animals like Huck and Finn.

You can visit Huck, Finn, Farmer Chuck, and the rest of the Billings Farm & Museum family. And Huck’s Way Home is available at the Billings Farm & Museum shop, at local bookstores, and online at huckswayhome .com.

Online Extra Follow Huck’s journey on a map showing his route at www.woodstockmagazine.com.

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Unique Shopping & Dining In & Around Woodstock, VT

The Village Butcher

Gallery On The Green

FH Gillingham & Sons

18 Elm Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-2756

1 The Green Woodstock, VT (802) 457-4956 www.galleryonthegreen.com

16 Elm Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-2100 www.gillinghams.com

Mon–Sat 10am–5pm Sun 11am–4pm

Mon–Sat 8:30am–6:30pm Sun 10am–5pm

Woodstock Hops N’ Barley

R.T. Home

Mon Vert Cafe

446 Woodstock Road Woodstock, VT (802) 457-2472 www.woodstockhopsnbarley.com

43 Central Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-5700

28 Central Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-7143 monvertcafe.com

Open daily

Open daily

The Barnard Inn Restaurant & Max’s Tavern 5518 Vermont Route 12 Barnard, VT (802) 234-9961 www.barnardinn.com Tue–Sat 5–9pm

Mon–Sat 10am–5pm Sun 12–4pm

Mon–Thu 7:30am–5pm Fri & Sat 7:30am–5:30pm Sun 8am–5pm

NT Ferro Jewelers

Anything Printed

11 Central Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-1901 www.ferrojewelers.com

Anything Printed 2490 East Woodstock Road Woodstock, VT (802) 457-3414 www.anythingprinted.net

Mon–Sat 10am–5pm Sun 11am–4pm

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Mon–Fri 8am–5:30pm

Shop Local for the Best Selection this Spring

Pizza Chef

Fox Gallery

Unicorn

Route 4 Woodstock, VT (802) 457-1444

5 The Green Woodstock, VT (802) 457-3944 www.thefoxgallery.com

15 Central Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-2480 www.unicornvt.com

Open daily 11am–4pm or by appointment anytime

Mon–Fri 9:30am–5pm Sat 9:30am–5:30pm Sun 10:30am–4:30pm

Sun–Thu 11am–9pm Fri & Sat 11am–10pm

Clover Gift Shop & Apothecary

Eat Woodstock

Sleep Woodstock Motel

10 Elm Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-2527 pj@clovergiftshop.com

Woodstock’s Boutique Diner 4374 West Woodstock Road Woodstock, VT (802) 672-6025 www.eatwoodstock.com

Woodstock’s Budget-Friendly Motel 4324 West Woodstock Road Woodstock, VT (802) 332-6336 reservations@sleepwoodstock.com www.sleepwoodstock.com

Open daily 10am–6pm

Eat In, Take Out Thu–Mon 7am–3pm

Just 8 minutes from Downtown Woodstock

Collective–The Art of Craft

The Prince and The Pauper

506 on the River Inn

47 Central Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-1298 www.collective-theartofcraft.com

24 Elm Street Woodstock, VT (802) 457-1818 www.princeandpauper.com

1653 West Woodstock Road Woodstock, VT (802) 457-7232 www.ontheriverwoodstock.com

Mon–Sat 10am–5pm Sun 11am–4pm

Cocktails in the Tavern at 5pm Dinner served 7 nights a week starting at 5:30pm S P R I N G 2019

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Going All-in for Summer Suicide Six opens its Bike Park

By Mark Aiken

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Photos courtesy of Suicide Six

historic Vermont ski area is entering a new era. Suicide Six in South Pomfret, one of Vermont’s original ski resorts and home to America’s first ski lift, is no longer just a ski area. “We opened the Bike Park last July,” says General Manager Tim Reiter. “This year we’re shooting for a Memorial Day opening, weather permitting.”

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Suicide Six joins a growing number of Vermont resorts looking to expand their operations beyond traditional winter months. Vermont ski areas get plenty of fanfare in wintertime; after all, Vermont skiing—along with ice cream, maple syrup, and maybe snowmobiling—is world famous and draws tourists to the Green Mountain State.

But Vermont has plenty going on in the summer months too. “Route 4 has more traffic in summer than in winter,” says Tim. Why not get in on the summer action?

EXPANDING TO YEAR-ROUND

Suicide Six’s expansion beyond winter started with an aging double chairlift that needed replacing. “I was

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Clockwise from bottom left: Off-loading at the peak. Riding the berms. New quad chair with bike attachments.

consulted on the purchase of the new quad chair,” says Tim, who came on board at Suicide Six in 2016 after a career in designing snowmaking equipment. “For minimally more money and a minimum of engineering, it could be set up for bikes.”

And suddenly Suicide Six began gearing up to be a

four-season mountain. It should be noted that although Suicide Six has never operated or turned lifts in the summer, people involved in the resort do know a thing or two about four-season operations. Laurence Rockefeller purchased Suicide Six in 1961, adding it to his portfolio of properties across the country—a portfolio that famously included the neighboring Woodstock Inn & Resort. The inn offers cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in the winter (as well as a place for Suicide Six

The Bike Park at Suicide Six currently offers four miles of trails covering 650 vertical feet, with plans to increase to seven miles in the near future. alpinists and snowboarders to stay), but its high season is summertime with its hiking trails, crosscountry mountain biking trails, tennis courts, spa, and golf course. Downhill mountain biking makes sense as another amenity for Suicide Six’s neighbor and sibling destination.

Left: Suicide Six Bike Park base area.

Below: The park offers all-level riding from expert to beginner.

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Above: Preparing to ride the lift.

Left: Trail network built by Sinuosity: Flowing Trails.

SKID STEERS AND MATTOCKS

There’s more to downhill biking than just having a lift set up to carry bikes. The Bike Park at Suicide Six currently offers four miles of trails covering 650 vertical feet, with plans to increase to seven miles in the near future. They have two pump tracks and a strider track. They offer lessons, a full fleet of rental bikes, a hammock lounge, yard games, family activities (like giant Jenga), and food and beverages are available.

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The transition to a four-season mountain happened fairly quickly. “The year 2017 became a planning year,” says Tim, as the focus became laying out trails, outlining big-picture plans, finding the right contractors, securing permitting, and bringing in the best people.

One of these was Brooke Scatchard, a celebrated mountain-bike trail builder and owner of trail construction company Sinuosity: Flowing Trails. Everyone who rides at Suicide Six notices how well-made the trails are and how well they flow, with their banked corners and smooth rollers. “As bike technology has improved in the last five or ten years, so has trail building,” Tim explains, marveling at how mindfully Brooke built the trails using a combination of heavy equipment and hand tools.

“He used skid steers and small excavators and plenty of shovels, pickaxes, and mattocks,” says Tim.

While Suicide Six already had Woodstock trail authority Nick Mahood, the resort’s Nordic Center & Recreational Trails Director, to serve as liaison with Sinuosity, they brought in Christina Mattsson, an avid cyclist and former competitive enduro and downhill racer. Christina serves as the resort’s year-round director of outdoor programs and oversaw the acquisition of the rental fleet and organizes lessons and camps. “This summer I’m excited about Gravity Camps, women-only workshops, and expanded lesson offerings for kids and adults of all ability levels,” Christina says.

ONE PART OF THE LARGER WHOLE

Speaking of ability levels, one thing that makes the new park special is its appeal to a range of abilities. “The team from Sinuosity built incredibly diverse trails,” says Christina. “You can ride a trail at speed and discover countless lines and hits, and it can be fast and challenging. Or you can ride the same trail with a beginner, and it is entirely rollable and perfect for learning.”

Christina also appreciates the quality of the dark loam and dirt on the mountain. “Our trails remain

The focus became laying out trails, outlining bigpicture plans, finding the right contractors, securing permitting, and bringing in the best people. relatively consistent despite the variety of weather conditions,” she says. Meanwhile, many of the trails remain under the canopy of the trees—another protector against conditions.

A source of pride for both Tim and Christina is how the Suicide Six Bike Park fits into the Woodstock community as well as the larger Vermont mountain biking community. They celebrate the efforts of the local Vermont Mountain Biking Association (VMBA) chapter and the Woodstock Area Mountain Bike Associa-

Riders of all levels enjoy riding the trails.

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tion (WAMBA). “Our local riding community is a strong and athletic community,” says Tim, adding that the bike park complements both the 10 miles of double-track riding on the Woodstock Inn & Resort’s cross-country ski trails and the 11 miles of single-track on neighboring Mount Peg. “The S6 bike park is a fantastic riding venue for our locals,” says Christina. “And the investment we’ve made in our bike park is an investment in the greater Vermont mountain biking community. As more networks and venues come on the scene, the mountain biking culture flourishes and encourages continued investment and financial growth for ancillary businesses and tourism that will support our Vermont economy. “It’s something we can all be stoked about!” she says.

Someone who is particularly stoked is Justin Lillie, a mountain biker from Rockingham, Vermont.

“I like that my kids can do it with or without me,” he says, noting that his 11- and 8-year-olds ride the regular trails at Suicide Six, while the pump tracks and strider area are just right for his 4-year-old. “I grew up mountain biking; I pretty much spent all my time mountain biking,” says Justin. “I got away from it for a while, but my kids got me back in. I couldn’t be more psyched.”

Suicide Six Bike Park 247 Stage Road South Pomfret, VT (802) 457-6661 www.suicide6.com/summer/ mountain-biking

Online Extra Find information about spring and summer events and the retail bike shop online at www.woodstockmagazine.com.

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COMMUNITY

By Dian Parker

Small Venue, Big Vision The Grange Theatre

Above inset: The Grange Theatre in South Pomfret, Vermont.

Right: The Fantasticks. Photos by Emmy Walden Fox.

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rtisTree Community Arts Center in Pomfret has been a vital source of education and entertainment not only in Pomfret and Woodstock but also for many of the surrounding towns. ArtisTree is a constant thrum of innovative creativity. It includes a first-rate art gallery offering quality exhibits, art and music classes, and performances for children and adults, as well as the newly renovated Grange Theatre.

The Grange Theatre has already made a great impact on the area since opening only two years ago,

with shows for children and adults, bringing yet again a high standard of artistic endeavor. Just this past year, 2018, the Grange Theatre’s ArtisTree Music Theatre Festival won the Theatre of the Year Award from the BroadwayWorld Regional/Vermont Awards.

PROFESSIONAL MUSICAL THEATRE

The ArtisTree Music Theatre Festival offers a season of live, professional musical productions in the Grange Theatre that runs from August to October each year. During the threemonth season, a company of resident

actors, designers, technicians, and musicians mount three musicals.

The actors are chosen by a series of auditions led by the festival’s artistic director, Josh D. Smith, and his creative team. Last year, 800 applied including veteran actors from Broadway as well as neophytes.

Interviews and auditions were held locally and in New York City.

The first year of the festival in 2017, the Grange Theatre presented Always . . . Patsy Cline, Godspell, and The Marvelous Wonderettes. Last year, the festival presented SUDS: The Rocking ’60s Musical Soap Opera,

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The Fantasticks, and I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. Scott Moreau in The Fantasticks won Best Actor in a Musical (professional), also from the Broadway Regional Awards. The festival partners with the Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), which enables it to be recognized as a small professional theater (SPT) and to hire professional actors and stage managers.

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INTRIGUING PAST, ACTIVE PRESENT

The historic Grange Theatre has an intriguing past. It was formerly the Teago Grange Hall and before that, in 1850, a basket factory, but information further back is sketchy. The Harlow family owned the building on Stage Road in Barnard, close to the Pomfret town line. In the winter of 1908, the building was taken apart and moved by sled to its present location in South Pomfret Village where it was reconstructed.

The Teago Grange was active from 1908 until 1983, sometimes with as many as a hundred members. During this time, the property was transferred to the Teago Fire Department Inc., and then in 1997 to the nonprofit Teago Grange Community Hall Association, Inc. Kathleen Dolan, ArtisTree’s executive director, purchased the Teago Grange in 2016 and began renovations for the new theater, retaining the Grange name through a special arrangement with the National Grange Association.

Because the venue has only 90 seats focused on a 24-foot-wide by 16-footdeep stage, everyone in the audience has an intimate experience with the production. The acoustics are excellent, and the lighting and sound systems feature state of the art equipment. The Holiday Cabaret, featuring local artists

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1. The Grange Theatre offers orchestra and mezzanine seating. Photo by Marie Cross.

2. SUDS. One of the final scenes of the show! Photo by Emmy Walden Fox.

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3. The local cast and crew of Picasso at the Lapine Agile. Photo by Emmy Walden Fox. 4. I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change.

Photo by Tara Wray Melrod.

5. Getting ready for the performance of Disney's The Little Mermaid Jr. Photo by JJ Overstreet.

6. BarnArts Brighton Beach Memoirs Show.

Photo courtesy of BarnArts.

7. Historic pieces from the original Pomfret Teago Grange Hall on display in the lobby.

Photo by Marie Cross.

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on December 21 last year, saw a packed house on the same night as an ArtisTree gallery opening.

Ashley Barrow, theater programming coordinator, is in charge of productions and classes. She teaches classes on theater basics for ages 3 through high school, as well as an outreach program with Woodstock Union High School.

During the year, she holds a class called “Art Runners” every Friday for two months, culminating in a performance in the Grange Theatre. “I also run the music theater summer camp for ages 8 to 18 during July,” Ashley says. “Last year I had 30 kids who did everything; acting, helping with costumes, painting the sets.” The end of the camp culminated in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland Jr. “I love working with kids,” she adds. “Many of them have never done theater before. Theater brings out who you are. It is like a game and a lot of fun, which helps kids get out of their shells and become bolder.”

AN ART EXPERIENCE FOR ALL

ArtisTree is situated in South Pomfret, Vermont, just outside Woodstock. The art center is a renovated 1891 threestory barn, just across the street from the Grange Theatre. On the first floor are a children’s movement studio, children’s art studio, and a ceramics studio. The second floor has two art studios, one for mixed media and the other for painting. The third floor is a movement studio and performance space that can seat up to 80. In the yellow farmhouse next door is the beautiful ArtisTree Gallery.

In the future, the Grange Theatre team hopes to house an event every month, including but not limited to book signings, workshops, films and art-based documentaries, talks after

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COMMUNITY

performances, puppet shows, and one or two shows a year with a primarily local cast. They also hope to offer more classes, as well as establish an improvisational group, an acting techniques class, and comedy workshops.

The Grange Theatre is also for rent. Green Room Productions from Montpelier produced Constellations there last year. BarnArts produced The Clean House in February of this year in the Grange. BarnArts in Barnard has had a cooperative and collaborative relationship with ArtisTree since 2012.

When the Grange Theatre opened, Kathleen Dolan invited BarnArts to use the space for a yearly production.

The goal for the Grange Theatre is to offer an art experience for everyone, including collaborations between community members and professional artists. “Although the Grange Theatre is a bit off the beaten path in Pomfret,” Ashley says, “its charm of history, intimacy, and quality theatrical experiences definitely make the trip worthwhile.”

Always . . . Patsy Cline. Photo courtesy of the Grange Theatre.

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Disney's Alice in Wonderland Jr. Musical Theatre Camp cast and crew in front of the Grange Theatre. Photo by Marie Cross.

The Grange Theatre 65 Stage Road South Pomfret, VT (802) 457-3500 info@artistreevt.org www.artistreevt.org

Into the Woods Junior Musical Theater Camp • Instructor: Ashley Barrow, Theater Programming Coordinator • Class Dates: Two-week camp, July 8–July 12 and July 15–July 19 • Performances: July 18, 19, 20 • Day/Time: Monday–Friday, 9am–4pm • Cost: $300 for 2 weeks • Ages: 8–18

Music Theater Festival • Artistic Director: Josh D. Smith • Shows: • Souvenir • August 29–September 14 • 7:30pm, except Sundays, 2pm matinee. Final performance, Saturday, September 14, 3pm • Tintypes • September 19–October 5 • 7:30pm, except Sundays, 2pm matinee. Final performance, Saturday, October 5, 3pm • Forever Plaid • October 10–October 26 • 7:30pm, except Sundays, 2pm.

Final performance, Saturday, October 26, 3pm

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T R AV E L T I M E

Story by Lisa Ballard Photos by Jack and Lisa Ballard

Alligators and Other Wildlife Encounters Adventures in Everglades National Park

Z

oe, my 16-year-old stepdaughter, desperately wanted to see an alligator. “Let’s go to the Everglades,” I proposed, which was not as far-fetched as it sounded.

We wanted a break from the snowy north; Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers and Tampa University were on her list of possible colleges; and my parents, who winter in Pompano Beach, needed someone to drive their car north. For Zoe’s spring break, we could put my parents on an airplane, visit Everglades National Park, then work our way up Florida’s west coast to Tampa on a mini college tour.

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Top: An alligator "smiles" from its pool in Everglades National Park.

Above: The Anhinga Trail winds past water holes where visitors can spot wildlife.

The trip excited both of us and her dad (my husband), Jack, a professional wildlife photographer like myself. The Everglades is a birding hot spot where 366 avian species have been recorded, some extremely rare. Endangered Florida panthers live there, along with a plethora of fresh and saltwater fish, deer, bears, amphibians, turtles . . . and manatees! Zoe longed to see her first alligator, but manatees, those gentle, giant mammals that loll in the inlets and shallow channels among the mangroves, were high on my wish list.

ALLURING ALLIGATORS

Everglades National Park is an immense mixture of inland waterways, hundreds of keys (islands) and submerged wilderness in Florida Bay, marshes, sawgrass prairie, sloughs, and pinelands—all spanning 1.5 million acres. The main

road through the park begins at the park entrance near the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center, just south of Homestead, and ends at the Flamingo Visitor Center in the southwest corner of the Florida Peninsula. Some people call it “38 miles of nothing,� but we found it fascinating.

Our first stop was four miles inside the park at Royal Palm, where both the Anhinga and the Gumbo Limbo Trails begin. The half-mile long Anhinga Trail was a known alligator-viewing spot due to the waterholes beside it. Last spring, the Everglades was in the midst of a severe drought, which concentrated the alligators in the deeper pools, along with the fish, turtles, and water birds.

Right: An alligator waits patiently among the lily pads, waiting for its lunch to swim by.

Below: Hunting for small fish, a little green heron scans the shallow water.

A little green heron stood motionless on its bright yellow legs beside the gator pool, intently watching the water. The sunshine made its velvety green back feathers glow iridescently.

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Clockwise from bottom left: The trunk of a gumbo limbo tree. Poisonwood leaves. An anhinga after stabbing a fish with its bill. An osprey near the marina.

Zoe was beside herself. There were gators galore! A half-dozen lay on the grassy slope between the paved path and the water. Countless gators, big and small, floated here and there in the water. One goliath 15-footer crawled onto the path near us to sun itself.

Alligators in the Everglades are like bison in Yellowstone. They look docile and sluggish, hanging out within touching distance of tourists, but both can be deadly without warning. I begged my kin to keep their distance. Luckily, there were other distractions.

“Check out that anhinga,” Zoe called excitedly to me and Jack. “It’s swimming!” We crowded together with three other people on the opposite side of the trail just as a black-feathered torpedo stabbed its beak through an unsuspecting sunfish. The bird hopped onto the

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far bank of the small water-lily-covered pothole, then skillfully worked the shish-kebabbed fish off its bill and into its mouth. Jack and I could not lift our fingers off the motor-drives on our cameras, but Zoe had already moved on.

“Hey, look at this!” called Zoe from a little farther down the trail. A little green heron stood motionless on its bright yellow legs beside the gator pool, intently watching the water. An alligator gar as big as the crow-sized bird swam by. The bird didn’t move. The sunshine made its velvety green back feathers glow iridescently. Our cameras whirred again.

GUMBO LIMBO

After exploring the short Anhinga Trail, we wandered down the nearby Gumbo Limbo Trail. It was so close and about the same length as the Anhinga Trail, yet so different.

The Gumbo Limbo Trail traversed a “tropical hammock,” or rise of land, in this case consisting of a grove of gumbo limbo trees poking up through

A red-bellied cooter (turtle) nibbles a water lily flower. Turtles are a favorite food of alligators in the Everglades.

dense, leafy jungle. Nicknamed “tourist trees” due to their red, peeling bark that resembles sunburned skin, this fast-growing tree has a number of uses.

Haitians make drums from it and burn it as firewood; its resin is used for glue, varnish, and incense; and birds depend on its seeds as a food source.

We could hear a cacophony of birds but could not see them. The impenetrable undergrowth still hid its residents well. “Don’t touch anything leafy,” I warned Jack and Zoe. Poisonwood, a native bushy tree in the Everglades that causes a rash similar to poison ivy, laced the forest around us.

“How can you tell what’s poisonwood?” asked Zoe. “All the leaves look the same.” She was right. Most of the leaves on the tropical plants surrounding us looked like shiny green patent leather. They were smooth and ellipti-

PIRATES IN THE EVERGLADES

T

he American alligator is easy to spot in the Everglades, but pirate ghosts? The Everglades, with its thousands of islands, was a favorite place for pirates to stash their loot during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, some people believe the Everglades are haunted by a pirate ship and its crew.

The tale begins with the dastardly buccaneers overtaking a merchant ship, then forcing the ship’s crew to walk the plank while the captain’s wife watched. Distraught, she cursed the pirates, who laughed at their panicked prisoner. That night, a hurricane kicked up, sending the pirate ship deep into the Everglades where it was doomed to sail the swamp for eternity. Locals say that if you’re camping in the Everglades and the gators suddenly rush away, beware of the pirate ghosts coming to steal your stuff.

Though apparitions are for campfire tales, the Everglades is well-known for hidden treasure that’s never been found. Some of the pirates who buried their booty in the Everglades died before they recovered it. For example, Calico Jack Rackham was rumored to have buried a treasure valued at over $2 million about 10 miles up Shark River Slough or Lostman’s River. It’s illegal to remove caches from a national park, so Rackham’s plunder is still there, somewhere.

Another legendary pirate, Jose Gaspar, honored by Tampa’s annual Gasparilla Festival and the main character in the new children’s book, Gasparilla, A Pirate’s Tale (by the author of this article), was said to stash his booty on deserted keys between Tampa and the Everglades. He recorded the locations in a small diary. To find out what happened to him and his large fortune, you’ll have to read the book!

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T R AV E L T I M E

Clockwise from bottom left: A cattle egret, a common bird in the Everglades, walks through a clearing by the road. A rare wood stork, with its 5½-foot wingspan, flies overhead. View of Florida Bay past old dock pilings. Wildlife watchers on the Anhinga Trail photograph its namesake bird.

cally shaped, with a “drip tip,” a pointed end that bent slightly toward the ground, allowing water to drain off. It was nearly impossible to pick poisonwood out of the tight mosaic of green flora, although we could sometimes spot a touch of red where a leaf connected to a twig.

WOOD STORKS

At the prospect of accidentally touching a poisonwood plant, we headed back to the car and continued deeper into Everglades National Park. We crested Rock Reef Pass and laughed at its elevation— three feet! But in the Everglades, a few inches of elevation can cause an entirely different ecosystem.

We stopped briefly at Paurotis Pond, about 24 miles from the park entrance.

The pond is named for the Paurotis palm, a tree with fan-like fronds that’s

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native to the Everglades. We were more interested in the birds. Roseate spoonbills nest around the pond each January, and I hoped to see one. The only spoonbill in the Americas, its range is limited to south Florida, the Caribbean, and a thin band of the Mexican and Central American coastline. The size of geese, these birds look cartoonish with their pink plumage, red eyes, and long, flattipped bills.

Just as we pulled over, several of them took off. I watched them with delight until Zoe summoned my attention again, pointing to a wood stork—an enormous, ugly white bird with a bald dark head— flying toward us. Along with spoonbills, Paurotis Pond is a known wood stork rookery. By April, when we were there, the baby storks had fledged, but this fullgrown adult obviously resided here. It was as Seussian as the spoonbills.

Wood storks are uncommon. It was only in 2014 that the US Fish and Wildlife Service down-listed them from endangered to threatened. As we got back in the car, I gushed about how lucky we were to see one.

A gentle manatee, a marine mammal often called a "sea cow," surfaces for air.

MARVELING AT MANATEES

The road ended at Flamingo Visitor Center. We parked, then followed a short trail to the edge of the water where a ragged strand curved away to either side. The tide was low, exposing strips of bleached coral that had washed ashore and the pilings of an old dock that Hurricane Andrew had blown away in 1992. It was yet another habitat, coastal marine, with island after island dotting the water to the horizon.

A small manmade harbor lay on the opposite side of the Visitor Center. I spotted an osprey nest near the gas pumps and wandered over to take a look. As I strolled down the dock, several people rushed to the end of an adjacent one, pointing at the water. A brown nose broke the surface, and another, then both disappeared.

I stood quietly, watching and hoping.

A moment later, I nearly fell into the water. A dark-gray back the size of an Angus cow suddenly emerged from under the dock inches below me. It was so close I could count the barnacles on its back. The manatee moseyed along,

unrushed and uninterested in anything above it. Then it dove, but the show was not over. The longer I watched, more brown noses surfaced here and there—a cow with her calf, the big one from under the dock again, a half-dozen others. I had finally seen not one manatee but a whole herd of them!

Everglades National Park is a largelandscape national park on par with places like Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and Yosemite. Like other iconic national parks, it’s big. It’s also unique in its biodiversity, a labyrinth of water, interesting flora, and marine- and freshwater-based wildlife. I’m secretly hoping Zoe goes to college in Florida so I’ll have many more chances to return.

MORE INFO For more information on Everglades National Park, go to www.nps.gov/ever/ index.htm.

The book, Gasparilla, A Pirate’s Tale, is available through most booksellers including Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. For a personalized (autographed) copy, go to the author’s website, LisaBallardOutdoors.com.

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HAPPENINGS

Spring 2019

MARCH | APRIL | MAY

April 19, 20

Baby Farm Animal Celebration Billings Farm & Museum BILLINGSFARM.ORG

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March, April, May – Thursdays Play Bridge at Norman Williams!

Norman Williams Public Library, 3:30pm NORMANWILLIAMS.ORG

March 28, April 11 Mix, Mingle & Make Art Come meet new people who share your interest in making art.

ArtisTree, 6:30pm ARTISTREEVT.ORG

March 28 Memoir Writing: An Ideas & Brainstorming Workshop Charlotte Donaldson, author of Life’s Workbook, will lead a workshop designed to help people brainstorm and organize information as a first step to writing a memoir or autobiography. Refreshments will be served. Participants will receive a complimentary copy of Life’s Workbook.

Free, but preregistration is required as space is limited. To register, call Jennie Shurtleff at (802) 457-1822, ext. 2.

Woodstock History Center, 9pm WWW.WOODSTOCKHISTORYCENTER.ORG

March 29 Mah Jongg Games Norman Williams Public Library, 1:30pm NORMANWILLIAMS.ORG

March 31 10th Annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser to Fight Hunger Join us at the Pomfret Town Hall for a community dinner event to help fight hunger!

Pomfret Town Hall, 4pm ARTISTREEVT.ORG

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HAPPENINGS

April 6 Woodstock Vermont Film Series: Landfill Harmonic The world generates about a billion tons of garbage a year.

Those who live with it and from it are the poor—like the people of Cateura, Paraguay. And here they are transforming it into beauty.

This documentary follows the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura, a Paraguayan group that plays instruments made entirely out of garbage, as it takes its inspiring spectacle of trash-into-music around the world. Follow the lives of a garbage picker, a music teacher, and a group of children from a Paraguayan slum who, out of necessity, started creating instruments entirely from trash.

This film is a beautiful story about the transformative power of music and also highlights two vital issues of our times: poverty and waste pollution.

Billings Farm & Museum BILLINGSFARM.ORG

April 2, May 7 Recite! Poetry Norman Williams Public Library, 7:30pm NORMANWILLIAMS.ORG

April 9, May 14 What’s on Your Nightstand?

The Not-a-Book-Club Book Club Norman Williams Public Library, 10am NORMANWILLIAMS.ORG

April 15 Writing Workshop with Yvonne Daley

April 1 Opening Day of Our 37th Season!

Billings Farm & Museum BILLINGSFARM.ORG

Yvonne Daley will lead a workshop in which she explains how to use techniques for weaving historical, scientific, and cultural information into writing. This workshop will include examples, a discussion, free writing time, and an opportunity to share one’s work.

Free, but preregistration is required as space is limited. To sign up, please email Jennie Amirkiaee at education@ woodstockhistorycenter.org.

Woodstock History Center, 1:30pm WWW.WOODSTOCKHISTORYCENTER.ORG

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Pentangle Council on the Arts 31 The Green Woodstock, VT (802) 457-3981 WWW.PENTANGLEARTS.ORG

March 29 The Contenders Town Hall Theatre, 7pm

April 4 The Devil Wears Prada Town Hall Theatre, 7:30pm

April 11 Barefoot in the Park Town Hall Theatre, 7:30pm

April 23 Wasted! The Story of Food Waste Town Hall Theatre, 7:30pm

March 27 Children’s Musical: Madeline and the Bad Hat Town Hall Theatre, 10am

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April 15 Memories of Vermont’s Counter Culture Movement Author Yvonne Daley will share images and remembrances of Vermont’s Counter Culture Movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Her newest book, Going Up the Country: When the Hippies, Dreamers, Freaks and Radicals Moved to Vermont, explores how thousands of young migrants like her, largely from cities and suburbs in New York and Massachusetts, turned their backs on the establishment of the 1950s and moved to Vermont, spawning a revolution in lifestyle, politics, farming, sexuality, and business practices that had a profound impact on the state and the nation.

Woodstock History Center, 7pm

May – Fridays Foodways Fridays

May 4 Bridgewater Raft Race

Every Friday discover how we use seasonal vegetables and herbs from our heirloom garden in historic recipes. Different take-home recipes each week!

Billings Farm & Museum BILLINGSFARM.ORG

May 3 Valley Improv Show at the Grange Theatre The premiere improvisational comedy troupe of the Upper Valley comes to the Grange Theatre!

The Grange Theatre, 7pm ARTISTREEVT.ORG

WWW.WOODSTOCKHISTORYCENTER.ORG

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The race spans three miles of the Ottauquechee River from a home near the Long Trail Brewery in Bridgewater Corners and ends behind the Bridgewater Mill Mall.

Registration is at 11am, with the race at noon. For more information, visit the 45th Annual Bridgewater Raft Race Facebook page.

May 4 Tanglewood Marionettes Present The Fairy Circus Tanglewood Marionettes’ presentation of The Fairy Circus begins with a brief demonstration of the art of puppetry. Through humorous interplay, the audience will learn about various forms of puppets, from the simple glove puppet to the sophisticated marionette. Featuring over 20 beautifully hand-crafted marionettes, The Fairy Circus is a showcase for turn-of-the-centurystyle trick puppetry. The puppets will dance, play instruments, juggle, contort, transform, and fly through the air with the greatest of ease, all to the best-loved music of favorite composers!

The Grange Theatre, 10am ARTISTREEVT.ORG

May 11–December 1 Exhibit: Richard Artschwager Artschwager was an American painter, sculptor, and draftsman.

Although he has been associated with Pop Art, Conceptual Art, Minimalism, and Photorealism, he is best known for forging a path of stylistic independence.

Artschwager’s work confounds our expectations of the ordinary through a heterogeneous body of whimsical work that references everyday objects, symbols, people, and places, and is often made from unconventional and industrial materials.

Hall Art Foundation WWW.HALLARTFOUNDATION.ORG

May 11–December 1 Exhibit: Malcolm Morley Hall Art Foundation WWW.HALLARTFOUNDATION.ORG

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May 11–December 1 Exhibit: Made in Vermont The Hall Art Foundation is pleased to announce Made in Vermont, a group exhibition of new and recently completed work by Vermont artists.

Hall Art Foundation WWW.HALLARTFOUNDATION.ORG

May 12 Draft Animal Day Explore large animal power in the Billings Farm fields. Local teams of oxen, working steers, and draft horses will demonstrate throughout the day.

In honor of Mother’s Day, mothers receive free admission.

Billings Farm & Museum BILLINGSFARM.ORG

May 20 Life in a Jar: The Irena Sendler Project Dr. Jack Mayer will discuss Irena Sendler, a Polish Catholic social worker who, during World War II, organized a rescue network of fellow social workers to save 2,500 Jewish children from certain death in the Warsaw ghetto. Incredibly, after the war her heroism, like that of many others, was suppressed by communist Poland and remained virtually unknown for 60 years.

Woodstock History Center, 7pm WWW.WOODSTOCKHISTORYCENTER.ORG

May 25–27 Sheep Shearing & Herding Join us for sheep shearing, a spring tradition at the Billings Farm and throughout Vermont. Watch as our Southdown ewes shed their heavy winter fleece with the help of our sheep shearer, who will demonstrate hand shearing, hand-powered clippers, and today’s electric shears.

Billings Farm & Museum BILLINGSFARM.ORG

Online Extra Find more events online at www.woodstockmagazine.com.

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ADVERTISERS INDEX 506 on the River Inn................................................ 53

Gilberte Interiors..................................................... 11

Alice Williams Interiors........................................... 46

Hull Maynard Hersey Insurance.............................. 15

Andrew Pearce Bowls............................................. 27

Jackson House Inn................................................... 49

Anichini...................................................................... 4

Jake’s Quechee Market & Café............................... 27

Antiques Collaborative........................................... 27

Jancewicz & Son........................................................ 8

Anything Printed..................................................... 52

Jeff Wilmot Painting............................................... 39

Artifactory............................................................... 27

Junction Frame........................................................ 60

ArtisTree................................................................... 21

Kedron Valley Inn.................................................... 51

Bentleys.................................................................... 78

Landshapes.............................................................. 16

Billings Farm & Museum......................................... 29

LaValley Building Supply.......................................... 5

Blood’s Catering & Party Rentals............................ 60

Little Istanbul........................................................... 22

Carpet King & Tile................................................... 73

Loewen Windows.................................................... 39

ClearChoiceMD Urgent Care.................................. 78

Main Street Kitchens................................................. 9

Clover Gift Shop..............................................53 & 65

Mertens House........................................................ 71

Collective—The Art of Craft................................... 53

Mon Vert Café......................................................... 52

Crown Point Cabinetry............................................ 17

Montshire Museum................................................. 26

Crown Point Select.................................................... 2

Mt. Ascutney Hospital.....................................50 & 75

DHMC Dermatology................................................ 77

N.T. Ferro Estate & Custom Jewelers..............23 & 52

Deer Brook Inn........................................................ 45

Neely Orthodontics................................................. 75

Eat Woodstock........................................................ 53

Perfect Fur Salon..................................................... 27

F.H. Gillingham & Sons............................................ 52

Phillips Auctioneers................................................. 14

Fine Paints of Europe......................Inside back cover

Piecemeal Pies......................................................... 64

First Impressions Salon & Spa................................. 75

Pizza Chef................................................................ 53

Four Seasons Sotheby’s International Realty......6 & 7

Quality Inn............................................................... 27

Fox Gallery............................................................... 53

Quechee Home, Porch & Closet.............................. 27

Friends of Norris Cotton/Prouty............................. 50

Quechee Pizza Chef................................................ 27

G.R. Porter & Sons................................................... 64

R.T. Home................................................................. 52

Gallery on the Green............................................... 52

Rain or Shine Tent and Events................................ 77

GeoBarns.................................................... Back cover

Ramunto’s Brick & Brew Pizza................................ 49

Renewal by Andersen of VT................................... 13 Silver Lake Getaway................................................ 31 Sleep Woodstock Motel.......................................... 53 Snyder Donegan Real Estate Group........................Inside front cover Splendid Chaos........................................................ 23 Squechee Clean....................................................... 22 Terrace Communities.............................................. 26 Terrigenous Landscape........................................... 65 The Barnard Inn Restaurant & Max’s Tavern......... 52 The Braeside Lodging............................................. 65 The Carriage Shed..................................................... 3 The Daily Catch........................................................ 49 The Gilded Edge...................................................... 71 The Prince and The Pauper..................................... 53 The Public House..................................................... 19 The Quechee Club..................................................... 1 The Quechee Inn at Marshland Farm..................... 46 The Vermont Spot................................................... 27 The Village Butcher................................................. 52 The Williamson Group............................................ 21 Tuckerbox................................................................ 76 Unicorn.................................................................... 53 Upper Valley Haven................................................ 78 WISE......................................................................... 31 Wagner Hodgson.................................................... 51 Woodstock Beverage.............................................. 64 Woodstock Chamber of Commerce....................... 73 Woodstock Farmers’ Market.................................. 14 Woodstock Hops & Barley...................................... 52

For more information about print and online advertising opportunities, contact Bob Frisch at (603) 643-1830 or email rcfrisch1@comcast.net.

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LAST GLANCE

Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. . . .

Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders. — Henry David Thoreau

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