South Hadley & Holyoke (city). April 28, 2024

Day/Date:  SUNDAY – 4/28/24
Towns visited: South Hadley & Holyoke (city)
Had we ever been to this town before?  No
Drive to town:   7 miles from Hadley to S. Hadley   Time spent in town:   9 hours

What did we do in the town/area?  
SOUTH HADLEY:
We woke up in Hadley and headed just a few miles down the road to explore South Hadley. The drive alone, along Rte. 47 from was very rural and beautiful.
Our first stop (for coffee of course!) was The Thirsty Mind Cafe across the street from the Mount Holyoke College campus, where we enjoyed our beverages and even read a poem from one of the many bookshelves inside the cafe. Kathryn Irene Glascock and Emily Dickinson are just a couple of well known poets who attended Mt Holyoke.

Daylight 
Peace was in the falling rain-
 The monotony of pain
 Had a fit accompaniment.
 And the night seemed kindly sent,
 With quietude where nothing mars
 The comfort of the ancient stars
 That see the griefs of all men end.
 Rain or night is the best friend
 For sorrow–but, waking now,
 I seem to have no knowledge how
 I can discover me a way
 To face the bright intolerable day.
–by Kathryn Irene Glascock (1922 graduate of Mt Holyoke College)

Next, we enjoyed a beautiful and quiet walk around the campus early Sunday morning (while most of the students were still sleeping). Mount Holyoke College was  founded in 1837 and was one of the first women’s colleges in the country.  It is the oldest of the “Seven Sisters” colleges in the Northeast.  This group of women’s colleges includes Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Smith, Wellesley, Vassar, and Radcliffe.  Mount Holyoke was founded in 1837 as Mount Holyoke Female Seminary by Mary Lyon. Mount Holyoke is also part of the Five College Consortium (along with Hampshire College, Smith College, UMass Amherst, Amherst College).  This consortium allows students to take courses that may not be offered at their college at one of the other colleges and provides transportation between the schools.  

After a full walkabout of the picturesque campus, we wandered into the Williston Library where we were wowed by the glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly in the entryway.  We also loved the large reading room.  On the wooden beams in the library were angels or cherubs, all reading books!

We also checked out a few local shops nearby including Odyssey Bookshop, where we were on the hunt for a Massachusetts-shaped sticker from the region.  Alas, we did not find one, but did find a cute one of the symbolic archway of Mount Holyoke.  We also really liked exploring the beautifully curated  gift shop, Arts Unlimited.

Then, we drove to the town hall and another section of South Hadley.  This area had a very different feel then the area near Mount Holyoke College.  The area near the college felt a bit more swanky compared to this more modest section of the town.  We snapped some pictures of town hall and the library and noted a few painted tiger sculptures out front of a few buildings.  The purpose of this community art project is to unify the town and highlight different features of the town through painting these fiberglass tigers.  There are 14 tigers in all and the tiger is their high school mascot.   

And, do you remember from our Hadley post that we hiked to the top of Mount Holyoke?  Well, we found a boundary marker at the top that proved that we were in Hadley AND South Hadley on that hike! (if you look close enough on that last pic you can see a few of the tall towers of the Mt. Holyoke College library!)  And, we learned that the college was named for this beautiful mountain, the westernmost peak of the Holyoke Range.

_{Center Church- South Hadley}

_{Thirsty Mind Coffee & Wine Bar}

_{Thirsty Mind Coffee & Wine Bar}

_{reading poetry at The Thirsty Mind}

_{entering Mount Holyoke College campus}

_{Mount Holyoke Campus}

_{Williston Library at Mt. Holyoke}

_{The Chihuly glass sculpture}

_{Mt. Holyoke Library}

_{Mount Holyoke Campus}

_{Mount Holyoke Campus}

_{Mount Holyoke Campus}

_{shops near campus}

_{Arts Unlimited}

_{South Hadley tiger pride}

_{South Hadley Town Hall}

_{the South Hadley Marker at the summit}

 HOLYOKE
As we entered the city of  Holyoke, we crossed two bridges: one over the Connecticut River and the other over the Water Street canal by the old Valley Paper Company. Holyoke used to be known as “Paper City” for the many paper mills that once operated there. There were also silk mills and woolen mills in Holyoke as well, as they capitalized on the hydroelectric power that the Connecticut River provides.

We noticed many murals in this city. One that really stood out to us  was “Father and Baby Moose” by the artist Bordalo II. It is located at the corner of Clemente and Spring Streets. We read that he built this mural in five days using seven tons of plastic trash! Way to recycle, man!

Holyoke’s current claim to fame is that they are known as “The Birthplace of Volleyball,” so we made sure to visit the International Volleyball Hall of Fame, where we enjoyed learning about how much the sport has changed throughout the years and how difficult it is to get into their hall of fame. Dennis, who worked at the Hall of Fame, shared with us that volleyball was invented by the Holyoke YMCA director, William Morgan in 1895. At the time it was called “mintonette” and was designed to be an indoor sport, less rough than basketball, for older members of the YMCA.  (Basketball was invented 4 years earlier at the YMCA in Springfield, MA, just 10 miles down the road).

Located near the museum was the Holyoke Heritage State Park, located on the site of the old Skinner Silk Mill.  The park includes a canalside walkway, a flywheel from the old mill, and a beautiful enclosed carousel that used to be part of Mountain Park. Mountain Park was an entire amusement park located a few miles out of town and was operational from 1897 to the 1980s. It included a dance hall, open air restaurant, theater, casino, and rides throughout its almost 100 year operation.  The carousel has been preserved and is still operating for any of you out there wanting a ride on a painted horse!

Next, we grabbed lunch at the Dam Cafe and then headed to see the Dinosaur Footprints near the Connecticut River- yes, we said dinosaur footprints!  The shape of these footprints is “Eubrontes” and have been found in many parts of the world.  Scientists don’t 100% know what genus of dinosaurs made these footprints, but these footprints in the Connecticut River Valley were the first known non-avian dinosaur tracks discovered in North America in the early 1800’s.  The prints were formed during the early Jurassic period about 200 million years ago!!!

From volleyball and amazing art, to dinosaur footprints and a refurbished carousel, Holyoke was a unique Hampden County city and made for a great visit!

_{Holyoke, MA}

_{Willimansett Bridge- Holyoke}

_{Canal in Holyoke, MA}

_{“Father & Baby Moose”- Bordalo II}

_{HOLYOKE CITY HALL}

_{carousel house}

_{old mtn park carousel}

_flywheel

_{paper city exhibit}

_{Jenny & Dennis at IVHF}

_{International Volleyball Hall of Fame}

_{yup, Dino prints!}

_{Dam Cafe- Holyoke}

_{inside Dam Cafe}

_{this is our “Dam” food !}

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc, Pocumtuc

_{Additional poem by Virginia Hamilton Adair (1933 graduate of Mt Holyoke College)}

Ants on the Melon
Once when our blacktop city
was still a topsoil town
we carried to Formicopolis
a cantaloupe rind to share
and stooped to plop it down
in their populous Times Square
at the subway of the ants
and saw that hemisphere
blacken and rise and dance
with antmen out of hand
wild for their melon toddies
just like our world next year
no place to step or stand
except on bodies

Hatfield & Easthampton. April 27, 2024

Day/Date:  SATURDAY – 4/27/24
Towns visited: Hatfield & Easthampton (city)
Had we ever been to these towns before?  No
Drive to 1st town:   7 miles (from Hadley)   Time spent in towns:  11 hours

What did we do in the town/area?  
HATFIELD  
We woke up early in Hadley and drove the few miles to Hatfield.  In the early morning light, we spotted not one but two hot air balloons in flight amidst the serene neighborhoods of Hatfield!  We made our way to Black Birch Vineyard, not for an early morning drink but just to see it.  We heard it was lovely and often utilized as a music venue or for private events. We were delighted by the family of sheep grazing between the rows of grape vines. So cute! We think they move them every few days or so to keep the vineyard 

Then, we were ready for breakfast at the Old Mill Inn (located along the Mill River).  The inn, originally built in 1870 as a grist mill, has been beautifully renovated into a boutique hotel and cafe.  We met Marcia and Shannon in the cafe, who were so friendly and chatty.  Jo ordered a breakfast sandwich on a bagel and a cup of Rao’s Coffee (roasted down the road in Hadley), and Jenny ordered a breakfast sandwich on one of Shannon’s homemade biscuits.  OMG!!!  It was amazing!!!!!! It was such a nice place and experience that we left determined to stay here at some point, perhaps when we come for another visit to a nearby town. 

With our bellies full, we headed to downtown Hatfield. We parked by the Hatfield Town Hall and then walked across the street and across a patch of farmland to walk along the Connecticut River. We arrived earlier than expected as we wanted to see the Hatfield Historical Society museum, which didn’t open until 9:30 a.m. (and is only open from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. on the last Saturday of each month—I mean, that’s some small town livin’!).

We were so pleased to meet Wayne inside the museum, who gave us some interesting information on Hatfield (which used to be part of Hadley). In particular, we learned some local women’s history. 

We learned about the woman who once owned the blue house next door to the Hatfield Historical Society Museum/library, which, Wayne proudly told us, also happens to be where he lives!  This house belonged to Marion Billings, an unmarried army volunteer nurse and diarist in World War 1. The museum had several items of hers, including clothing, writings, and army memorabilia. 

He also shared with us the history of Sofia Smith (pronounnced so-figh-a), founder of Smith College.  Sophia was angry that her father made a choice to educate only her brother and then, upon his death left him all of his money to him as well.  But in a twist of fate, her brother died just a few years later leaving Sophia, the only remaining heir, with all of that of money.  (Her father had made his money raising cattle, then took them to Boston to sell)

Sophia was passionate about bettering the lives of girls and women, so she put up the money to start Smith College in nearby Northampton in the 1870s.  Hard of hearing herself, Wayne told us that she had also briefly considered founding a school for deaf people, but since one had just started in a neighboring town, she did not move forward with that.

Wayne told us that Sofia was born in 1796 and lived most of her life in the yellow house just down the street. Just next to it was a much larger Victorian-era blue and purple house, which she had built upon inheriting her family’s wealth. The two houses sit side by side, representing a significant change in Sophia’s life. We learned that the yellow one is owned by Smith College and used for staff to reside in. 

We made a point to walk along this stretch of road simply to see these women’s houses and imagine their lives during that era. Smith College is a leader in higher education that strives to focus on knowledge, community, and thought-provoking ideas that push the world forward. It was just a few weeks ago when we were riding our bikes, in Northampton, through Smith College, and it was interesting to connect that renowned campus in today’s reality with the history of Ms. Smith in this small town of Hatfield.  It was another moment that made this project of learning about each town feel like a small link in a big chain.

Along this same main road in Hatfield, we came upon the Bardwell Farm stand, which is set up right in front of their 40-acre farm. This farm and a few others are integrated into the neighborhood. The farms sit back from the main road. Bardwell Farm has been a working farm since 1685!   

_{early morning balloon in Hatfield}

_{sheep grazing at Black Birch vineyard}

_{The Old Mill Inn}

_{Marcia & Shannon!}

_{breakfast sammies at Old Mill Inn}

_{Jenny loves this bisquit!}

_{Hatfield Town Hall}

_{farmland neighborhood of Hatfield}

_{walking in Hatfield}

_{waiting for the Historical Museum to open!}

_{Marian Billings memorabilia}

_{Sophia Smith (check out the ear trumpet})

_{Wayne! -inside the museum}

_{Library/ Historical Museum}

_{Bardwell Farms farmstand}

_{Marian Billings home (and Wayne’s)}

_{Sophia Smith birth home}

_{Sophia’s home after inheritance}

_{two Sophia Smith homes side by side in Hatfield}

EASTHAMPTON
Our friend Angie came from nearby Connecticut to join us for an afternoon adventure in Easthampton.  

For our first stop, we took a nice hike at the Arcadia Mass Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary  We walked along the Old Coach Trail, The River Trail, and The Fern Trail, all of which guided us along a narrow part of the Mill River and Hulpberts Pond for a nice two-plus-mile loop.

Afterward, we parked in a nearby school lot, grabbed our bikes, and hopped on the Manhan Rail Trail, which led us into downtown Easthampton. 

We parked our bikes, walked around, and shopped a bit upon arrival! First stop was the shop The Water’s Fine goods & coffee, which had a lot of sweet gifts and home goods. We were also able to order a cup of coffee and sit behind the shop, looking out at the Nashawannuck Pond. Several thrift and gift stores along Cottage St. were also fun to peruse. 

After shopping around, we got back on our bikes and explored the town neighborhoods a bit.  We saw the old City Hall building, which has been renovated and now serves as a community arts and event space.  Then, we biked over to the old mill building known as EASTWORKS , which has also been renovated into beautiful spaces for local businesses and artist studios. 

Worn out and hungry, we stopped for a delicious dinner at Mission Taco . Wow!  Those tacos and salads really hit the spot! Our favorite tacos were the pork and pineapple ones. Chef’s kiss!

We kept passing several old tobacco barns in Easthampton, which really struck us.   People have been farming tobacco since the mid-1850s in this area, and a few families in Easthampton still do so today.  Jo wanted to stop and get a decent picture of one of the old barns. So, we pulled over on a side road and parked in order to walk up to the busier road to snap the pic. When we did, we were pretty surprised to see a big black bear walking across the grass of someone’s large yard. Then it started crossing the road to our side, so we grabbed another pic and headed back to the car with haste! I guess it’s coming out of hibernation time! What a crazy way to end the day.

_{Mass Audubon Arcadia}

_{Angie & Jenny at the trailhead}

Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary

_{Jenny, Jo & Angie}

_{biking along the Manhan trail}

_{mural in Easthampton}

Easthampton City Hall

_{The Water’s Fine goods & coffee}

_{inside The Water’s Fine store}

_cute!

_{Easthampton shopping}

_{old city hall- now City Space Arts Ctr}

_{renovated mill bldg- EASTWORKS}

_{dinner at Mission Taco- Easthampton}

_{old tobacco barn}

_{you see this bear, right? I mean…}

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc, Pocumtuc, Nonotuck

Hadley. April 26, 2024 (also 3.8.24 briefly)

Day/Date:  FRIDAY – 4/26/24 (& part of 3-8-24)
Town visited: Hadley
Had we ever been to this town before?  No
Drive to town:   99 miles    Time spent in town:  many hours

What did we do in the town/area?  
Because we planned to visit a few areas in Hampshire County this weekend, we booked an Air B&B in Hadley. Little did we know at the time of booking that we would be staying quite literally across the street from the Connecticut River (by the Alexandra Dawson Conservation Area) and on the oldest street in HADLEY, MA (West St). Our Air B&B home was a historic house known as the Captain Locke house circa 1797. The room was large and comfortable and we could see the river from our window. It was pretty cool!

Our very first stop in Hadley was at the Esselon Cafe. This cafe and coffee roaster is pretty awesome. They have a very nice menu for food and their coffee is just fantastic. Lucky for us, Esselon was just up the street from where we were staying, and we found ourselves returning several times during our weekend in the Pioneer Valley. 

There is another coffee roaster, Rao’s, that’s also located in Hadley. We stopped at their facility along Rte 9, but they were closed on weekends. That’s too bad because we learned that you can order online and pick up there if you are local. But alas, later, we found their coffee at a local shop in Hadley, so we were happy about that.

During our town center exploration, we checked out the town hall and the farm museum building, which sadly didn’t open until the first weekend in May, so we didn’t have the chance to see inside. We popped into the Hadley library, where Jo was excited to put her hands on the 900+ page book she had just finished listening to—’ My Name is Barbra’—to see the pictures! The library was pretty nice and there was a lot of local art currently being displayed inside.

_{omg so good (Esselon cafe)}

_{our Air B&B (Captn Locke House) on West St}

_{the river right by our Air B&B}

_{Hadley Town Hall}

_{Hadley time}

_{Hadley’s new library!}

_yay!

Hadley is definitely the land of farms! There are almost 100 farms in this Hampshire County town, and just driving around seeing all the farmland is a lovely experience.

Our drive took us to our next destination- Skinner State Park, where we went for a hike. We could see an old hotel at the top of Mt. Holyoke (known as the Summit House) from the foot of the mountain along our drive. The hike was steep at points but well worth it, as the reward was a 360-degree view of the Connecticut River valley at the top. We could see so many of the local towns, and the views spanned as far as Hartford, CT! 

Not far from Skinner State Park is a Dairy Farm Store that someone told us about called Barstow’s. Barstow’s has a longstanding farm town known as Longview Farm, which has been around for more than 200 years. The store is awesome, and we got some fresh meat to take home and a few treats to sustain us. The store didn’t have any local asparagus out yet but, luckily for us, just a third of a mile down the road, we saw a sign on the side of the road that said “Asparagus- $5”- so we immediately pulled over and got ourselves some. Did you know Hadley is considered the “asparagus capital of the world”? The climate and soils are ideal in this area, so much so that the locals simply call it Hadley grass.

After a bit of rest, we headed out for dinner at Wildwood Barbecue, where we shared a hearty and tasty meal. 

Then, around dusk, we explored the Sylvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge where, amidst a colorful sky, Jo spotted an eagle flying from tree to tree. Plus we learned about a screech owl that lives there from a knowledgeable local woman!

_{Mt. Holyoke
(see the white summit house?)}

_{view from atop Mt Holyoke}

_{CT River Valley}

_{Barstow’s Store}

_{inside Barstow’s}

_{oh yeah baby… Hadley grass!}

_{dinner at Wildwood BBQ}

_{serenity at Silvio O Conte}

A note about these last few pictures: In March of 2024, we stopped at the North Hadley Sugar Shack (on our way to another town) during MA Maple Sugar Weekend because we just had to taste their maple syrup and see their operation during maple sugaring season! We saw their restaurant and store and tasted some of their super fresh maple syrup!

Thanks, Hadley- land of farms, asparagus, good coffee, and maple syrup!

_{samplin’ the syrup}

_{Maple evaporator!}

_{North Hadley Sugar Shack menu!}

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc, Pocumtuc, Nonotuck

Northampton. April 20, 2024

Day/Date:  SATURDAY -4/20/24
Town visited: Northampton (City)
Had we ever been to this town before?  Yes, several times
Drive to town:   98 miles    Time spent in town:   10 hours

What did we do in the town/area?  
Ahhhh, Northhampton—“Where the coffee is strong and so are the women.” We love that motto, and we always enjoy visiting this sweet city. Located in Hampshire County, Northampton is part of the Connecticut River Valley and the Pioneer Valley.  With a population of about 30,000 residents,  Northampton has been ranked the most politically liberal medium-size city (population 25,000–99,000) in the United States!  It has a large LGBTQIA+ population as well.

This visit, we were so psyched to get to hang with our friends Peter & Jen (and their super sweet son), who live there. Peter led us on bikes to some great places. We started the day biking to the Sojourner Truth Memorial Statue on Pine St. in Florence (Florence and Leeds are villages of Northampton). Sojourner Truth was born an enslaved person who became a nationally known advocate for justice and equality between races and sexes during the 19th century after being freed. She lived in Northampton (Florence) between 1843 and 1857.

Then we headed over to the Florence Pie Bar, where there are some seriously delicious baked goods. Wow. Jenny, Peter, and the little one gobbled up some goodies, while Jo abstained due to the lack of non-dairy items!  

Afterwards, we took the toddler back for his “nippy nap” and headed out along the bike path into downtown Northampton. We enjoyed some drinks (coffee, kombucha) at Iconica, a fascinatingly decorated cafe with a steampunk-like vibe. Jo enjoyed a yummy sandwich called the Berbere Grilled Chicken Wrap, which was excellent.  _{(Berbere is an Ethiopian spice mix made up of red chili peppers, fenugreek, and ginger, with the addition of warm spices like coriander, cardamom, allspice, cumin, peppercorns, cloves, and cinnamon)}

We walked around downtown, taking pictures and noting many cool shops and restaurants. We also checked out all the music posters for the upcoming acts at the soon-to-reopen Iron Horse Music Hall. Peter is an awesome singer-songwriter (petermulvey.com), and we were reminiscing about seeing him play at the Iron Horse many moons ago. In fact, Jo introduced Jenny to Peter for the first time after his show at the Iron Horse in 1997. 
While we didn’t get the chance to go, a friend of ours told us about an amazing yarn store in Northampton called Webs- America’s Yarn Store. Word is that it is vast and amazing and it’s been family owned for many years! (I’m sure we’ll be back for that adventure.)

On our bike ride back to Peter’s house, we were awed when we noticed a black bear eating skunk cabagge down the hill from the path. That was interesting! 🐻

_{Sojourner Truth Memorial}

_{Florence Pie Bar}

_{Florence Pie Bar}

_{Northampton City Hall}

_Iconica

_Iconica

_{Peter in front of the Iron Horse}

_{do you see the black bear?}

When we parted with Peter and Jen, we decided to explore the beautiful Smith College campus. But first, we stopped at the State Street Fruit Store- a market, deli, and wine store, where we bought some YUP coffee (which is a local Northampton coffee roaster). We parked our car there and then, biked to the campus and walked peacefully along the perimeter of the beautiful Paradise Pond and the Mill River. There was a Japanese garden, an island with stunning trees and flowers, and a sweet vibe, as many students were out relaxing, enjoying the beautiful day.

On our way back to the car on our bikes, we bought some amazing fresh khorasan bread from the nearby Hungry Ghost Bread.  We learned that khorasan is similar to wheat, but produces larger grains that are somewhat nutty.  We ate this over the next few days and it was really delicious!  

Next, we headed back to Florence near the Mill River.  We stopped by YUP coffee roaster, located next to an old mill, right on the river.  They used to have a cafe in this location, and the building has a nice porch and a free library outside.  But, the cafe is no longer open and the building is now just used as a roaster and place to pick up beans that you order. 

We then stopped by our friend, Dey’s house.  She bought a home in Florence a few years ago and has been fixing it up ever since.  The standout feature of the house is the wood – the wood flooring, wood trim, wooden tables, wooden shelves.  She sourced most of the wood from a very large tree that needed to come down behind her house!  It is really beautiful and we are glad that we stopped in to see her progress.

To nourish ourselves for the ride home, we had a relaxing and yummy dinner at Bela Vegetarian Restaurant, which really hit the spot after walking, biking, and exploring all day!

On our way out of town, we had to stop at the River Valley Co-op.  This was like no co-op we had ever seen!  Opened in 2008, the co-op was almost 20,000 square feet and carried almost everything you would need.  It is located on Rte. 5 in the North part of town and is on the site of an old rock quarry.  We loved their black bear mascot, as we had just seen one in town!  

As we were leaving town, Jenny realized she couldn’t find her phone.  So, we were trying to retrace out steps, when a woman called Jo’s phone from the Hungry Ghost Bakery and said that a few Smith students found her phone on the ground near the store and brought it in.  Wow, how nice of them!  This act of kindness put a smile on our faces as we left Northampton.  We knew we really liked this town, but now we liked it even more!  

_{State St. Fruit Store}

_{Paradise Pond}

_{River walk at Smith College}

_{dinner at Bela}

_{Mill River}

_{Yup Coffee Roasters}

Indigenous/ Native land info for this region: Nipmuc, Pocumtuc, Nonotuck