Adventures with thread maker Doug Kreinik
Every year, my wife, Myla, and I aim the car in a direction and set off on an adventure. This year we decided to head for Vermont, my wife’s 49th state (now we are tied in the number of states visited). Along the way, we learned interesting facts and saw fabulous sites.
Hidden in the rolling hills of upper New York State driving out of Utica, you will find the Holy Trinity Monastery- a Russia Orthodox friary completed in 1946 in Jordanville, New York. Next stop was visiting a friend in Johnstown, NY, the site of the last battle of the revolutionary war taking place after Yorktown.
Our first goal was soon met by dropping into Ausable Chasm located south of Plattesburg, New York, known as the Grand Canyon of the east coast. Very beautiful, lots of walking trails, short rafting trip, and lots of rock formations. If you're going, get there early.
On leaving, we took the Port Kent Ferry to Burlington, Vermont—a very relaxing hour trip. It deposited us into downtown Burlington, a city with great restaurants, walking and biking paths, beautiful vistas and even a very busy boardwalk area on Lake Champlain. We walked the University of Vermont campus and saw the statue of Ira Allan, the younger brother of Ethan Allan and founder of the University of Vermont.
Then...aaahhh...we visited the famous Ben and Jerry’s Ice cream factory in Waterbury, Vermont. It was a very short tour, but we saw how they make ice cream and of course enjoyed the tasting room. I am lactose intolerant so I selected their Vegan ice cream (it was good).
I like to bake, especially cookies and breads, so a stop at the King Arthur baking school in Norwich Vermont was fun. I picked up some gifts and of course flour. No tour here, but if you want to go to a baking school, this would be a nice venue.
Being in manufacturing, I am always interested to learn how machinery works or was created. The American Precision Museum in Windsor, Vermont, takes you step-by-step through the development of the machinery used to create the machines we use today. This is the ultimate museum of how-they-made machines that make other things: from gun assemblies invented during the revolution creating replaceable parts to machines created for the cutting of gears, to the development of textile machinery. It was all fascinating.
When in Vermont, we had to visit the Vermont Country Store in Weston, one of Myla’s favorite catalogue stores. It was unbelievable the assortment of candies that are no longer available except there. I saw Charles Chips in a can and that brought back childhood memories.
The American Fly Fishing Museum in Manchester Center, Vermont, is a small museum that packs a lot into a limited area. It covers the history of everything fly-fishing: rods, reels, clothing, hooks, lines, and more. The fabulous non-profit organization Project Healing Waters has an exhibit on the second floor with a fish plate denoting the wars fought in the last 120 years. Colors used in the flies represent the wars fought. I noticed that the purple heart used Kreinik braids.
From the fly fishing museum, we stopped at the 301-foot memorial obelisk in Bennington, Vermont, dedicated in 1891 to celebrate the Battle of Bennington. The battle actually took place in Walloomsac, New York, but was fought by soldiers from Vermont.
But Doug, what about the food?
Kreinik friends know how much I love to find good restaurants and good food. We ate well on this trip! We love lobster rolls, and found Brown’s Seafood in Seabrook, New Hampshire, to be a very good place to eat.
Back to the interesting sites...
A surprise along the way to Boston was America’s Stonehenge in Salem, New Hampshire. This site has a lot of walking. Hidden back in the woods is an historical site more than 4000 years old. It is not known who created the sanctuary, but the on line app we downloaded walked us through, explaining all the rocks, how they lined up to Stonehenge in England, and also that it was used as a hiding place for runaway slaves in the 1800s.
We viewed the Toulouse-Lautrec exhibit at the Massachusetts Fine Arts museum in Boston. The exhibit took us on a tour of his life and times, explaining who he painted, where and when. It was very exciting see all these pieces in one place. The museum also had a fantastic collection of old musical instruments from all four corners of the world. Never knew that there were so many types of lutes.
Wakefield Rhode Island, east of Newport, has a lot of small mom and pop stores including a drug store with a soda jerk. It's a fun stop if you're driving through.
Myla has always wanted to visit the Catskills, so after visiting my older brother in Connecticut we headed to Woodridge, New York, in the heart of the Catskills to visit Doris, owner of Needle Gallery and More. It was a lot of fun surprising her and getting a tour of the shop, which stocks Kreinik threads. Check out my video posted on Kreinik's Facebook page.
The Poconos are vast. Lake Harmony was perfect place to spend an evening of eating and sitting outside. We also found a hidden treasure in the town of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. This charming little town has walking and biking trails as well as rafting, kayaking, canoeing, a train ride and interesting old homes. We walked around this very old town, remarking on the wonderful old buildings and parks. We then took the train through the Lehigh Gorge.
Lancaster’s Central Farmers Market a fun market, with lots of food and Amish handicrafts. It is located in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and is a good stop for a bite to eat if you get there early.
This trip was a drive through history, and our next stop was no exception. Gettysburg Battlefield National Museum is really worthwhile. They took us through the entire event, minute by minute, covering what lead up to the battle, the generals and troops involved, and the results to the soldiers and citizens in the area. We saw the aftermath of battle and the horrors of war. There were many videos to watch while going through the museum and even a bus tour through the battlefield. We ate crab cakes in the old Dobbin house’s Springhouse Tavern. The bar was built in 1818.
On the 10th day, we got back home. Our cat was glad to see us. It was one fun adventure of experiencing 20 great things in 10 days through 10 states. I encourage you to take as many road trips as you can while you can, for the sights, sounds, food, and memories—and don't forget to visit needlework stores along the way.
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