Norfolk Events Include Hikes in Great Mountain Forest and Stained Glass Windows

By Ruth Melville

On two weekends this fall, September 20 and 21, and October 4 and 5, Housatonic Heritage will be sponsoring its 13th annual Heritage Walks program. The walks are designed to explore the multifarious aspects—natural, cultural, historical—of the Upper Housatonic Valley. The federal government has recently designated this area, which extends from Kent, Conn., to Lanesborough, Mass, a National Heritage area.

Several of the walks, two of them under the auspices of Great Mountain Forest, will take place in and around Norfolk. On September 20, Star Childs will lead a hike through the Norfolk woods, exploring its ancient, glaciated landscape of eskers, erratics and kettle holes. In addition, Jody Bronson and Hans Carlson will lead a trail walk focusing on the changing use of the land, from historical charcoal production to the present-day emphasis on wildlife and timber. Carlson would like visitors to appreciate “how different the forest is today from what it was 100 years ago. In fact, what we have is a postindustrial landscape, which is true of most of central New England.” To register for either walk, e-mail jean@greatmountainforest.org or phone 860-824-8188.

In town, Ann Havemeyer will conduct a tour on October 4 of Norfolk’s stained glass, including the library, the Church of the Transfiguration, the Immaculate Conception Church, the Tiffany windows at the Church of Christ, and perhaps a private residence with Tiffany windows. To register, e-mail norfolkhistorical@sbcglobal.net or phone 860-542-5761.

Also close to Norfolk are a walk to an American chestnut orchard in Falls Village, a tour of Freund’s Farm in East Canaan, and a hike along the old roadways and trails of the Bidwell House Museum lands in Monterey, Mass.

For those willing to roam farther afield, the range of walks being offered reflects the diverse nature of the Northwest Corner and the Berkshires. Several of the walks are through farms (101-year-old Gould Farm in Monterey and Hilltop Orchards, featuring antique apples, in Richmond, Mass.) or along forest trails (Threemile Hill Trail in Great Barrington, Mass., two old-growth white pine forests in Cornwall, Beartown State Forest near Lee). The Berkshire Botanical Gardens tour will emphasize highlights of the early fall season.

Some hikes explore old industrial sites, like the Carroll Mill in New Marlborough, and the Levenworth quarry and marble sawmill in Great Barrington. A walk along the Housatonic in Falls Village will go by the site of the Ames Iron Works, where the Civil War’s largest cannon was made.

For those with a more artistic bent, there are tours of the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield; the house, studio, and gardens of Chesterwood, the country home of artist Daniel Chester French, in Stockbridge; and the Tanglewood campus and its music facilities and the gardens of Edith Wharton’s The Mount, both in Lenox. And for ghost lovers, three cemeteries are on the list: Cone Hill Cemetery in Richmond, West Center Cemetery in West Stockbridge and Riverside Cemetery in Egremont.

The various walks are geared to different levels of activity. Some involve are an easy stroll through a garden or a village, while others require hiking boots. While most take only an hour or two, a couple of hikes along sections of the Appalachian Trail will last about three to four hours.

For those who would rather ride than walk, a bike trip through Stockbridge, Lenox and Lee is on offer, as well as a canoe trip on the Housatonic, starting in Ashley Falls.

Registration is requested for most of the walks and tours. For a full listing of the walks, with information on how to register, go to the Heritage Walks website, www.heritage-hikes.org.

Photo by Bruce Frisch.