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Zip-lining: Adventure in the Treetops

by Betsy Miller In 2009, there were 62 ziplines in the United States. Two years later, there are about 200, three of them in our area. Investors, get out your checkbooks. Treetop zipping is coming to a neighborhood near you. The use of cables and harnesses to transport people between

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Pie Contest in A Box: Competitive Baking with a Soul

Two years ago, Gina Hyams was helping organize the pie contest for Hancock Shaker Village's annual Country Fair, and she was knocked out by the passion of the participants. "People were so excited to be judges," she recalls, noting that the panel included The New Yorker&

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To the Lighthouse: An Interview with Emily Brunner

by Betsy MillerOn Saturday, July 9th, a Hudson Cruise Boat departs from the Henry Hudson Riverfront Park in Hudson on the hour every hour between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. for the season's first regularly scheduled tours of the Hudson Athens Lighthouse. The tour takes about

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O Say, Can You See Some Fireworks

Funny how fireworks, invented by the Chinese in the 12th century, still inspire more awe and delight than anything Disney (studio and parks divisions combined) has conjured up so far. This weekend there will be many displays, the big challenge, apart from nabbing a parking spot with a view (despite

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20 Questions for "Moonchildren" Director Karen Allen

Moonchildren, a play by Michael Weller set over the course of the 1965-66 school year in an unnamed college town, has been called "a masterwork by one of our great writers." Actress (Raiders of the Lost Ark, White Irish Drinkers) and director Karen Allen, who mounted a

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Dan's Diary: The Berkshire/Cape Cod Connection

If you ever wondered why Ellen Spear left her plum job as president and CEO of Hancock Shaker Village in Pittsfield, you'll understand after visiting her at the magnificent Heritage Gardens and Museums in Sandwich, MA, which is a couple of miles from the Sagamore and Bourne Bridges.

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A Free Introduction to Fly Casting

by Betsy Miller “What I try to teach is this,” says Fred Moran, fly caster extraordinaire. “You have to set up a motion of the line that pulls the rod back over your shoulder. Then, when you feel the line tug on the rod, you start the forward motion. The

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The Second Annual Hudson Pride Festival June 17 - 19

One year ago, Hudson became the undisputed LGBT capital of the Rural Intelligence region with the inaugural Hudson Pride Parade and Festival. Galvanized by the surprising and groundbreaking election of Hudson High School seniors Charlie Ferrusi and Timmy Howard as prom queen and king (who were recruited at the last

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Step into the Gilded Age at the Orleton Pleasure Driving Show

In the center of Stockbridge, at the intersection of Main and Elm, there is a modest fountain, erected, according to engraving on its back, in 1881. In front, water spits from the merry mouth of a verdigris Pan into what appears to be a watering trough for horses. Apart from

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Lift Ev'ry Voice Arts and Heritage Festival

by Tresca Weinstein Berkshire County’s Lift Ev’ry Voice arts and heritage festival doesn’t officially begin until Sunday, but it’s already bringing the community together. “This has been one of those projects that is very unifying—there’s a place that has been made for everyone,” says

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Road Trips: Happy Birthday, Harriet

by Angeline GoreauAngeline Goreau is the author of "Reconstructing Aphra: A Social Biography of Aphra Behn." She lives in the town of Litchfield. Harriet Beecher Stowe was fifty-one years old when Abraham Lincoln, on meeting her at the White House in 1862, declared: "So this is

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Big-Spending Boomers Ogle Vintage Bikes

by Betsy MillerGot an extra $200 thousand? Then you might want to head to the antique and vintage motorcycle show in Rhinebeck on June 10 - 12. Once there you’ll be able to plunk down your money and ride home on a beautiful, showroom quality, 1936 Harley Davidson—commonly known

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