Knitting, Botany, Mycology, Nature, Adventure, and Life... in no particular order.
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Rhinebeck 2010
Saturday and Sunday 16-17 October 2010 was the NY Sheep & Wool festival in lovely Rhinebeck NY. For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about, go check their website. Rhinebeck the town is a lovely NY town, just south of Red Hook on the Hudson River. It is nestled in the Catskill Mountains to the east of Catskill park area. If you have not been to that area I would recommend planning a trip in the summer or early fall and take advantage or hiking, camping, lake-swimming and boating. I recommend North Lake and Katerskill Falls area. To the North and East of Rhinebeck is also Lake Taconic, which I highly recommend. (Note: Childhood summer vacation bias in effect.)
In order to go to Rhinebeck I signed up for a 1 day bus trip from Webs in Northampton, MA. The bus was scheduled to leave at 7am sharp, and my wonderful sister let me stay with her AND got up early to drop me off! We got up early enough to have breakfast together first. (She just might win best younger sister ever award… which the prize for is a knit hat with a beard attached.)
When I got to Webs there was no bus yet, but there were people ready for their Rhinebeck adventure inside and outside the store. The most of us were inside in the warm near the Atkins Farm cider donuts!
We all piled on to the buses in an orderly and polite manner when they arrived and chatted with each other and knit for the time it took us to get there. Over 2 hours of excitement building with a raffle along the way.
The fair itself was huge and overwhelming. On the grounds a woman from the bus and I were trying to get our bearings and ended up wandering together. It was lovely. I think both of us missed some things we would have done, but the company for both of our first times there was worth it.
The weather alternated from cloudy to sunny, which had the temperature fluctuating a bit. It was brisk but not cold, but it was definitely windy. People were everywhere, at stalls, at tents, between stalls and tents, on the paths and in line for food and bathrooms.
Most people were polite though, even when they were dying to get to yarn or fiber they had to have. Since I was on a tight budget and not getting anything to do with spinning or dyeing I was able to appreciate many stalls but wander by. Having never been to any sort of sheep and wool festival I did linger by some of the fuzzy friends.
Icelandic Sheep… adorable and petite!
Can’t remember who these spotted ones were, but they were adorable and the colors in their horns is fantastic.
As the day progressed there were more and more people. By this point we both started to feel a bit exhausted. (It was either 11.30 when we got lunch or 2.30 when we wanted a nap.)
It was worth rejuvinating, taking a deep breath and continuing on. It let us see beautiful handmade items in addition to drool-worthy yarns and amazingly soft fiber to touch.
It also let me discover what was actually the background noise to the whole fair. A loud, irregular POP POP POP.
There were a series of coal powered engines that had been used in the area historically. They were being run and their uses being demonstrated. A rock crusher, several items for making cedar shingles, and a water pump. POP POP POP! Coal Power!
I finished up the day by watching the frisbee dogs (missed shepherding dogs). They were fantastic. I think the trainers had the hardest time throwing in the wind, which of course made catching harder for the dogs.
I wish I had spend more time there, had seen the shepherding dogs, caught some of the ewe auction and taken more pictures. Especially pictures of knitters decked out in sheep and wool regalia and the beautiful fall trees.
Next year I’ll do more, when I actually go out for the weekend and go hiking as well. (I also better knit up a lot of what I have so I can make room in the cedar chest for some yarn from small places you only get at an event like this!)
