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North America, Travel
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July 21, 2009

Day Trip to Hodgson’s Farm, Walden, NY

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Day trips.  These past couple of days this is all NYCity Mama could think of. Her desire to get away from the hot and humid city and go out somewhere, on a day trip with the family.

Luckily, this day, was the celebration of her friends Neeka and Rob son’s birthday, R. He was 3 and in celebration, they had been invited to drive upstate to go blueberry picking.  Mama couldn’t wait.  She hadn’t seen her friends since she interviewed Neeka about her toy shop, and was eager to see her good friends again.

So the family made their way 1.5 hours away from their little apartment in Washington Heights towards the town of Walden, NY. As they drove Mama and her husband couldn’t help but admire all the green that surrounded them.  There was no traffic and it was road as far as the eyes could see.  Mama’s husband commented, as he often does on trips likes these, about his longing for a motorcycle. The boys sat in the back, quietly taking in the breeze from the windows and letting the sun kiss their faces as they stared outside.

They approached a sign welcoming them to the town of Montgomery.  And as they drove by they saw corn fields and horse farms, beautiful farm houses with flowers hanging from the porch where the rocking chairs sat.  They entered what Mama guessed must be their downtown.  They passed little shops with cute signs, and quiet streets before crossing the bridge that crossed over the creek.

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IMG_9198For a city girl like Mama, these kind of small towns are always great to visit and drive through.  Unlike her husband, she didn’t really ever live in a small town, so she is always fascinated by them and often finds them to be charming.

They arrive to their destination: Hodgson’s Farm. They have a wonderful U-Pick system for their fruits and vegetables, and have tables next to their fields should one wish to have one set up for party’s such as R.’s. When they arrived everyone was seated next to the blueberry fields getting ready to dig into R’s birthday cupcake treats before heading out for the main activity of the day.  Mama’s boys couldn’t have more excited!

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IMG_9156They finished their snacks and were getting ready to make their way into the field, but not before R. ran over to a patch of grass and then ran back to hand his mother some “flowers” he had picked for her.  Mama thought that was probably the sweetest gesture she had ever seen from a little boy.

IMG_9160With that they all headed out into the fields. Unlike R., whose parents actually have an organic farm and with whom he is used to participating in these activities, Mama’s boys had never, ever been berry picking and they did so very carefully, examining each blueberry before they picked them, careful to not let any of them drop.  While her 11 year old kept eating them (and it was hard not too! They are the sweetest blueberries they have ever tasted!), her 2.5 year old and 4 year old were very focused on the task at hand.

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IMG_9175They actually picked for a longer period of time than what Mama expected.  Granted her 2.5 ear old, along with R., would kind of sray away from the field at times, but they would always manage to find their way back and continue.

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After awhile, the sun felt warmer, so Mama walked around a bit with one of the boys to check out the site and their flowers.  They had a wonderful, colorful selection of them to pick from.

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IMG_9179The boys had an amazing time.  They loved walking around the farm.  They enjoyed playing with their friends and picking the blueberries. They liked walking into the various greenhouses and smelling the beautiful assortment of flowers and touching the garden displays placed throughout.

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IMG_9192It was enough to make this Mama contemplate on moving out of the big city full time.  But alas, once an NYCity Mama, always an NYCity Mama at heart.  But lucky for her, she always has the next berry picking season, as well as her wonderful friends, to bring her and her family back for another Day Trip Adventure!

Check out Hodgson’s Farms’ plants and produce in Union Square Green Market and others here! 

For more information, including location visit their site here.

UPDATE: 7/21/09  Blueberry Bonanza

NYCity Mama finally baked some goods with the blueberries they didn’t eat or use for pancakes.  They were the sweetest berries and the best treats ever!

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Carol Cain

Brooklyn native Carol is happiest when on an adventure, whether close to home or farther away. She is a small business owner and travel writer. In addition to creating Girl Gone Travel, she is the Founder and Principal of Brave World Media, a social media marketing, communications, and branding agency. She's mom to three wonderful sons and wife to a handsome Irish/Scot. She lives, works, and plays in the beautiful Finger Lakes region of NY.

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3 Comments
  • Liz@thisfullhouse
    July 21, 2009

    Mmmm…blueberries…what AWESOMELY beautiful pictures. I love finding out about new road trips to add to our summer fun. Thanks for sharing them!

    Reply
  • Rob
    July 21, 2009

    Did you also know that Montgomery, NY is also the "Original" home of the famed Orange County Choppers?

    The baked goods look great, btw.

    Reply
  • Carol
    July 22, 2009

    Hi Liz: Thank you! Yes, check out their site for what's in season, you'll love it.

    Hi Rob: Thanks! I'll tell Trav, he'll get a kick out of that : )

    Reply

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About me

Hi! I'm Carol! I am an award-winning travel blogger, a keynote speaker, and the Principal and owner of Brave World Media, a social media marketing, communications, and branding agency. I a wife to a handsome Irish/Scot and a mom to 3 sons and 2 puppies. Welcome to my blog where I share stories of my travels and professional public relations insights and advice. Thank you for reading and for your support!

Carol Cain

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#scotland #birthdayweek
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