Photo of Andy Arthur

Andy Arthur

The color television assures us that April showers bring May flowers. 🌷🌻🌼 I'll believe it when I see it, though there are definite hints of the green up -- grass is looking greener in the city, some bushes are starting to bloom and there are signs of the days to come. Days have gotten longer, windows open and it's generally just nicer then not that long ago.

I used to think of the Heldebergs as a very special place πŸŒ„

But then things changed or did I?

A lot of it was the realization that there are many small towns nestled in the hills and hollows and that the area I once called home in the shadows of the Catskills really isn’t that unique or special.

There really are many great areas of similar lifestyle, and indeed the best of the hilltowns is when you head west into Schoharie County in the deep rural, beyond easy commuting distance where the hollows grow deep, the country and the people wild.

Places not in urban states like New York were urban thinking dominates and policies generally serve the people of the rural countryside poorly and with contempt.

Swimming Hole

I bet this location along the remains of the old Fox Lair camp is an excellent swimming hole, assuming there is enough water in the East Branch which often gets very dried up come hot and dry summer days.

Taken on Saturday April 18, 2020 at East Branch Sacandaga River.