September 2009

1,8,15,22,29 (Tuesdays) - Moms' Fitness Hike and Nature Story Time at Mt. Tom Reservation


1, 8, 15, 22, 29 (Tuesdays) - Storytime at the Hitchcock Center, Amherst


3 - Moonlight Hike, Red Gate Farm, Buckland (my post)


4 - Free Admission to the Springfield Museums (my post), courtesy Highland Street Foundation

4, 5, 6 - Spencer Fair

4, 5, 6, 7- Day out with Thomas

5 - Farm Fest Weekend, Hilltop Farm, Suffield

5 - Charlemont Reggae Fest

5,12,19,26 (Saturdays) - Free concerts at Fish Park, Athol

11 - 4-6 PM, Kids' Activity at Smith College Museum of Art (Free)

12 - Ludlow Community Center, Boys & Girls Clubs Day for Kids, Free

12 - Monarch Butterflies at the Great Falls Discovery Center (Free)

12 - Music Fest at Sweet William Farm, Upton (Free)

12 & 13 - Mattoon Street Arts Festival, Springfield (Free)

13- Birds of Prey Program at Mt. Tom Reservation (Free)

17 - Third Thursdays in Pittsfield, Downtown, Free

18 - Oct 4 - Big E

19,20 -Powwow at Sweet William Farm, Upton (Free)

19,20 - Soule Harvest Fair, Middleboro

19, 26 -(and Saturdays through Dec. 19) - Young Farmers at Red Gate Farm (my post) (Free)

20 - Art on the Street, Worcester (Free)

22 - 3:30PM, Autumn Craft at the South Hadley Library (Free, but pre-register@ 538-5045)

24, 25, 26, 27 - Belchertown Fair

26 - Community Heroes Festival (Spidey!!), Carver


26, 27 - Wachusett Kidsfest

D.A.R. State Park, Goshen, MA

Our initial experience at the DAR was disappointing. It was our first camping trip with kids (24 months and 6 months old). We thought that the drive-in aspect would be a boon, but it turned out to be a pain. Our fantasy of letting the toddler run free in the woods was quickly dispelled as we realized that our backyard would have afforded us more privacy, more room, and to some extent more nature, than we found here. The campsites are packed together tightly, though they are well maintained. We could see and hear all of our neighbors, and spent most of the weekend explaining to a two year old how an outdoor space needed to be treated like a room with walls. The rest of the weekend involved keeping him out of the road. Though drivers were mainly respectful and drove slowly, it doesn't really matter how slow a car is going when it hits my kid, you know? The lessons from this trip were not really what we were hoping to communicate to our youngsters about nature.

Well, we found an awesome place to camp the next year, Tully Lake. That's another post altogether.

My recent visit to the DAR was a day trip to visit my brother. We used the camper's beach and had a wonderful time. I swam on this lake during the summers when I attended Camp Howe, the 4H camp in Goshen. It's still gorgeous!

The photos above were all taken at the camper's beach - take a look at their website to find out about the day use/camper use restrictions.

Beachgrounds Park, South Hadley, MA

I first heard about this new park because they had a big opening day festival. I was later reminded of it by an acquaintance, Julie Ross of Belchertown, who took her two children to Beachgrounds in July and was pleased with the park, though not the restrooms.

On Sunday morning we finally made it over there, and the whole family was quite impressed. It seems a feat of urban planning - the small park is eco-friendly in many ways (recycle bins, rubber tire "mulch," recycled plastic "lumber" used for benches and tables), surrounded by a variety of housing types (apartments and a neighborhood of single family homes), aesthetically pleasing, designed with varied age-groups in mind (for instance, baby swings near the toddler play area and regular swings off to the side). The playground structure itself was an unusual one, which is great. All too often I find myself trekking to a new park only to encounter pretty much the same equipment as they have in the park by my house. My 5 year old described it as an obstacle course and "completed" the play structure a number of times. Both older boys loved the spray park, in which the water is activated by a sensor which my middle son enjoyed figuring out and then using. The spray park is laid out in an organic way which seemed to encourage the kids to move & to use the entire spray pad area. The pad includes a sprayer that the kids can move around, and which is cleverly designed to shut off when sprayed toward the outside of the water pad. The water feature is significantly smaller than the one found at Look Park, but there was plenty of room on the day of our visit.

The park also offers the opportunity to head down to the riverbank by the Holyoke Dam. This was an adventure that our family undertook - it is not advertised as part of the park. The trail down to the water was steep and the rocks on the edge interspersed with broken glass and the occasional piece of trash. However, it was nice enough to teach my oldest to skip a stone.

From several articles (here's one) I've seen on this project, it seems that the funding and creating of this space was a triumph of the political process, as used by community/local organization. This sweetens the experience of watching the kids play there.

Cindy's Drive In, Granby, MA

The kids had free soft serve at Cindy's last week, via the Granby Public Library and the Massachusetts Summer Reading Program.

Cindy's is on 202 in Granby, conveniently close to Dufresne Park and the library. The young woman who waited on us was SO sweet, and patient with the kids. She even made me a tiny tiny mini cone for the baby.

The outdoor seating area wasn't particularly scenic, situated on the pavement contiguous with the parking lot and next to a fence. However, the tables and seats were clean. The ground was virtually free of junk, the trash can was wiped down. I really liked all of that. There is indoor seating also, a few stools at a tall counter. The decor is very cute. And of course they are supporting reading and libraries, which is a great practice.

Caveat: NO RESTROOMS. We had to leave for that reason, though the kids were thoroughly enjoying the play area (pictured above).

Heritage State Park Visitor Center, Holyoke, MA

Holyoke's Heritage State Park is home to the Holyoke Carousel and Children's Museum, and the Volleyball Hall of Fame. Our recent stop at the Visitor Center revealed exhibits under construction. After speaking with Charlie Lotspeich of DCR, I learned that the renovations have been undertaken as part of a program called "Creating Holyoke." Funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities were matched by the state, via DCR. This is a wonderful enhancement to a city park, and a city that has an important place in the industrial development of the Pioneer Valley.

The renovation is nearly complete now, and the Visitor Center is open for business Tues-Sun from 12-4PM. I am looking forward to returning there to take a look at the new installments and will certainly post an update with pictures.

Northfield Mountain Visitor Center, Northfield, MA

I have only visited this attraction in the winter, so my experience is certainly incomplete. Parking is plentiful.
The exhibits at this visitor center are interesting. The whole mountain is "sponsored" by a utility company. Thus the exhibits are focussed on the economy of the Connecticut River - ice harvesting, logging, transporting good by waterways, etc. There's a real icebox that is ok to touch, and an example of an old logging tool, which, again you can touch.
A set of stairs lead down to a ski shop/vending area/restrooms (clean, nice). You may want to pause (endlessly, if you are my child) in front of a bank of birdfeeders in the bushes outside the window on the landing.
The yurt outside is awesome and had a fire going when we were there. It was toasty and cute in there.
In the winter the trails are groomed for skiing thus you cannot hike. The scenery is beautiful.

Northfield Mountain

Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Plum Island, MA

Since we discovered this beach, we haven't been to a different one. From our home in the Pioneer Valley it takes about 2 hrs, 15 min. to get there. Many of the beaches on the refuge are closed early in the season, as this land is primarily dedicated to wildlife, not recreation. Later in the summer, once the nesting season is over, all the beaches open. On your drive down to the beach of your choice, you will almost certainly see some gorgeous birds feeding and flying in the saltwater marshes that make up the island.

For $5, you can park at any one of 7 beaches that are part of the Reserve. For FREE you can drive down past beach 7 and park at Sandy Point Beach.

Beaches 6, 7, and Sandy Point are our favorites. The water deepens so gradually that even when your child has become a speck against the horizon, he is only up to his knees. The sand is light and fine.

The nearby (as in, 5 minutes down the road) Newburyport is a great little town for pedestrian sightseeing. A large waterfront walkway lets you see boats of all kinds, and the people who hang out on them! Fisherman are happy to have an audience. Street musicians are happened upon. The downtown is filled with expensive shops and art galleries - we've mainly avoided those! It is also home to a little playground in the middle of a pedestrian mall, adjacent to an ice cream shop (even the small was $3.70 but you get as many mix-ins as you want for free). On more than one occasion, including last Sunday, there was a festival going on downtown with music and street vending. We've always been able to find free parking in town, and have enjoyed the bookstore and toystore (and restrooms!!) in the Tannery building.

Both the Parker River Refuge and Joppa Sanctuary have visitor centers, though we haven't been yet.
Parker River Refuge

Sandy Point Beach