Historic Hudson Valley's kick-off event of the season, Hands-on Heritage Crafts at Van Cortlandt Manor , drew a big crowd April 5-6 looking to go to the work the old-fashioned way. And that they did. We had youngsters churning butter, breaking flax, even tin smithing! Adults got in on the acts, too, more images of that to follow.

That weekend's weather did a bit of a flip-flop. The forecast called for grey skies and general sadness on Saturday, with decent sun and warmth on Sunday. Ended up sorta the opposite. Oh well, either way it was a nice kick-off for the spring season. Were you at the event? Did you churn, smith, or sew anything? Let us know.

OK, so this is really late notice (10 days late, yeesh), but I would be remiss if I didn't point out, for those of you who missed it, that the gardens of Van Cortlandt Manor are given huge play in an article in the Escapes section of the July 13 New York Times.

Titled "The Hudson Valley's Fields of Joy," the excellent article by Judy Dobrzynski includes profiles and pretty pictures of five worthy gardens to visit in the Hudson Valley.

Van Cortlandt gets a great spread -- and Judy even points out that pumpkins are grown here! (No mention of Blaze, though. Darn. Next time.)

The Times also profiled Montgomery Place, Historic Hudson Valley's Dutchess County paradise.

In the print version, the article appears on the front cover of Escapes with color photographs of both Van Cortlandt and Montgomery Place. When it jumps to the section's back page, it includes a HUGE color image of  the view of the Hudson from Montgomery Place. The article also profiles the grand gardens at Stonecrop, Bellefield, and Lasdon Park and Arboretum.

The online version includes a slideshow of images that is well worth checking out.

Nothing gets us more excited about the coming 2007 Blaze than watching footage from last year's event. Thanks to YouTube, viewers from across the globe can relive (or live) the experience. Here's one excellent example we uncovered. Long live pumpkins!

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