An hour north of Manhattan--on Westchester County's border--is an unpolluted hamlet near Lake Mahopac. Its first inhabitants were Algonquian-speaking Wappinger tribes of Native Americans, followed by Dutch landowners in 1691, and then English settlers. In 1697, a merchant of Dutch descent, Adolphus Philipse, obtained a royal charter from the Dutch-born Stadholder of the Dutch Republic who was also the King of England, William III, to own a swath of land in the Hudson River Valley. (It was similar to how the Spanish Empire granted ranchos in Texas and California).
*To see when Lewis and I visited King William III's former palace in the United Kingdom, please click this link:
Named Philipsburgh Manor, it developed from The Bronx to the Croton River.
Its third and last Lord of the Manor lost it to the British in 1779, and they lost the American Revolution in 1783.
Lewis and I have a bi-coastal friend who owns a home there, and he invited us "to the country" for October's bounty. We boarded a MetroNorth train that chugged along the Hudson River.
We were thrilled to arrive and inhale clean air.
Around a curve on a private road, and behind a stone wall (which is a New England accessory), is Wixon House.
Across from it is a State Forest Preserve that ensures a splendid view of undeveloped land.
Every window showcased autumnal plumage!
However, our friend, whom we call by his middle name, Lee, had other "visitors". Lee was only visiting for a few days, before flying to meet a potential renter of his house in Arkansas. With his handyman "under the weather", Lee orchestrated several winterizing appointments for the house. Fate smiled on him by allowing all the visits to occur rapidly, on after the other! Lee was also thankful that Lewis and I were able to supervise them during his conference call with affiliates in Singapore.
First, two plumbers serviced the six bathrooms/commodes. Nicer than plumbers in NYC, they wore foot-covers to protect the floors from their heavy-duty boots.
The next vehicle to arrive brought an electrician to stabilize a lamppost on the driveway (before the ground froze) and to replace two exterior garage lights. Then, a man came to give the furnace its annual cleaning in the cellar. "Ding-dong" the doorbell rang again as a cheery woman delivered some food ingredients from the local shop.
Fortunately, all the appointments finished early and successfully. Triumphant, we ate at a lakeside restaurant, admiring the crystal-clear water its the rustic ambiance.
Seen above, some people docked their boats there, and some diners ate outside to savor the sunshine.
We chose to sit inside by the cast-iron stove, and we had the most pleasant waitress who said "Yes dear" and "Yes darlin'" to all of our requests.
In the evening, we sat in Lee's library and chatted. It was so entertaining that we never needed the television! He asked if I was working on a sequel to my first novel. I was! He was eager to read my next e-book. *I can now provide a link to it:
As a trio, we also planned an outing for our other friend, Yvonne, who intended to join us, the next day.
In the morning, I awoke early and luckily caught the sun coming over the hillside! I watched its majestic ascent, as it brightened the colorful trees, lawn, and house. Such a gift from Nature!
Neither sun nor birdcalls roused Lewis, so I let him slumber, and I enjoyed the home's peacefulness for awhile.
I brewed myself a freshly-ground organic cup of coffee, listened to baroque classical music (it blended with the mood), and sat amidst a pile of pillows on that suede sofa.
After breakfast, we did grocery shopping (to bake cookies later). It was sunny enough that some residents used their convertibles with the tops down!
Unexpectedly, the local supermarket had one of those new robotic floor cleaners!
Driving past a movie theatre, Lee saw its sign that advertised "Downton Abbey". He sighed that he wanted to watch it sometime soon. We already saw it and knew that it was grand.
Spontaneously, Lewis and I suggested that we all see the film that day. Lee was skeptical. Using his iPhone, Lewis viewed the theatre's showtimes, and a screening was about to begin! Perfect timing. However, we still had one more errand to do at Home Depot: buying replacement lightbulbs for Lee's bathroom. Lee was doubtful that we would complete the errand before the movie began. With my usual "Yes we can do it" attitude, I emboldened him to try.
Dropping Lewis off at the theatre to buy tickets, Lee and I drove hastily to the other end of the strip-mall, where the Home Depot was. Lee was lucky to get a parking spot near the door, so we were inside faster than expected. I smiled with confidence that we would succeed. Lee asked for assistance from the first employee that he met, and that man stopped what he was doing and led us to the correct aisle for bathroom lights. Thankfully, the man knew everything that Lee wanted to know (unlike employees at Home Depots in NYC), and Lee's purchase was finished after only 10 minutes! He drove us quickly to the theatre.
Once again, he was fortunate to get a parking space by the front door of the theatre. Our trio got to our seats before the previews ended! Whew! We congratulated ourselves, and he was very grateful. It is a magnificent movie.
Afterwards, Lee was anxious that our friend (and a first-time houseguest for him) would arrive at his country home before we got there. Once more, we assured him that everything would work out smoothly. Lee gently accelerated.
We arrived at Wixon House mere moments after Yvonne drove up the driveway! She hadn't exited her car yet. In fact, when Lee remotely opened his garage doors, it startled her. He invited her to park her sedan alongside him in the garage. All of it was "great timing" that rewarded our faith that things would be okay.
Giving her "the grand tour", Lee acclimated Yvonne with the many rooms of the house.
Behind the scenes, Lewis and I finished making the bed in her guest room (Lee left the sheets in the dryer before our errands). Then, we scurried down the back staircase and joined them, giving a cue for Lee to take her to her room.
Outdoors, we enjoyed hot apple cider on the deck. We inhaled the fresh air. Next, Lee drove us for dinner at a farm-to-table restaurant that has an Italian flair. The cocktails were strong, the owner was gregarious, my pork chop was succulent, Lee's lamb chops were a huge portion, Yvonne's halibut was perfectly crusted, and Lewis' scallops were plump and flavorful. Seen below, Lewis wore an iridescent bolo tie, because bolo ties are rustic fashion accessories. :-)
*To see when we ate the best scallops in the world, please use this link:
Back at Wixon House, we donned our cozy autumnal socks.
Using a sturdy basket, I toted firewood indoors from the garage and lit a crackling log fire in the fireplace. Next, we baked cookies! Oven-fresh cookies and a toasty fire go well together!
Our baked goodies were supplemented by gluten-free rainbow cookies from Lee's local bakeshop, and handcrafted organic lavender shortbread that Yvonne purchased from Black Dirt Gourmet (sourced from their own farm). We chatted until the fire dwindled to embers.
The next day, Lewis and I were excited for Yvonne to see Boscobel Mansion, a marvelously historic site in the Hudson River Valley, near the quaint Village of Cold Spring.
You can tell that you're in a rural area when shop signs say "Horseshoeing and Wagon-making"! We also drove past the Putnam County Courthouse, built in 1814. It is the second-oldest courthouse in the United States still in use.
Arriving at our destination, we enjoyed farm-to-table food at Tilly's Table, a restaurant in a reclaimed barn on a functioning farm.
Such a gorgeous pastoral setting whetted our appetites for shrimp scampi, foraged mushroom-crusted beef tenderloin, salmon, and freshly-slaughtered chicken with rosemary gravy.
From there, we arrived at the historic estate, where the yellowed trees matched the house's color.
Occupying a former carriage house, the gift shop also sold bags of apples and pears, plucked from the on-site orchard! (What a handsome plank flooring)!
As luck would have it, Saturdays are the only day that a Farmers' Market exists at the site, so we explored it.
From Rogoski Farm, Yvonne bought non-GMO vegetables (weeded by hand and hoe, and fertilized with manure). Lewis and I supported an elderly lady who sold homemade pumpkin scones and cheddar/leek scones. They were great! We also got Lavender/Earl Grey tea from North Winds Lavender Farm. Their delicious cookies were made with only five ingredients: unbleached flour, rice flour, butter, sugar, and lavender.
Lewis--who is a born-and-bred "city boy"--happily immersed himself Nature's beauty. His favorite was touching an earthworm for the first time! Luckily, he spotted the worm crossing the brick pathway, and he moved it to the grass before it was trampled. It was a good deed.
Amongst fruit tree espaliers at the former Orangerie (where two fireplaces originally kept citrus trees warm), we admired the "harvest season" garden: sage, lemongrass, turnips, pumpkins, and grape vines hanging from a curved arbor. The Orangerie protected citrus trees (rather expensive in that era) from harsh winters with two fireplaces and tall windows for sunlight.
In addition to the colorful caterpillar, Lewis saw a "praying mantis" for the first time. By coincidence, we saw them on a television show, last week, so he easily recognized it, in awe!
Monarch butterflies also added color to the formal gardens, before their miraculous thousand-mile, instinct-steered migration to Mexico (to escape America's winter).
More good fortune occurred when our tour began (on time) and involved the SAME docent who gave Lewis and I our first tour--two years ago! Out of all ten tour-guides, she is the best, which was a perfect coincidental situation. Inspiringly, she remained as excellent as she had been, two years ago! I love that type of dedication and excellence. As seen below, apparently, other people were swooned by the ambiance, too.
Local residents praised the fortuitous weather for our visit: the sunlight made the yellow mansion gleam brightly, and it highlighted the unparalleled view (at the widest part of the Hudson River).
Appropriately, the foyer was a cheerily bright room. The grey/white floorcloth, was locally handmade to resemble the original--something used to protect the wood underneath.
Green-painted wood chairs with scarlet cushions and gold piping sat on either side of the room. They complemented the re-created wallpaper. The hand-painted wallpaper was the result of six sets of “wood blocks” being carved, each dipped in various colors, and then stamped—in succession—to every square-meter of wallpaper. It created a pattern with rich hues and color depth—impossible to achieve by machine.
Two months ago, the museum was gifted a piano, made in 1810. The piano-maker only made eight of that type, and Boscobel has one of them!
In addition to preserving the household's original porcelain, imported from France, they also took great care to hide electric cords that illuminate historic lamps (as seen below).
We admired the craftsmanship of the curved staircase banister, whose occasional spindles were made of iron, for extra support.
The floor tiles were woven from packing materials used in the ancestral family's purchases from China. So thrifty.
Above, a foot warmer held pieces of hot coals. Below, a piece from the family's china, depicting a similarly-yellow house.
We were delighted that Boscobel maintained its tradition of offering complimentary cider and gingersnap cookies, at the conclusion of each tour. That gesture is nicely open-handed.
It was a perfect segue for some people to picnic on the freshly-cut lawn, overlooking the wetlands and the river.
Best of all, the house got a superior view than its original site, further downriver. After being a forerunner of architecture for one century, it was sold to a demolition man for $35 in 1953. Most of it was rescued and--brick-by-brick, and plank-by-plank--relocated to this scenic curve in the riverfront. It symbolized the good that a cooperative population can achieve. It brightened our day.
The joy instilled in us was the highlight of our trip.
