Every year, starting in April or May, Rockefeller University (RU) offers a lottery for employees to get a chance to rent one of the two cottages located in the town of Fort Montgomery, New York. The lottery questionnaire asks applicants to select their first and second choice dates spanning from two and three night stays. The Housing Department receives over 250 entries per year. Winners of the lottery are given the Cottage Information sheet, which provides general information (addresses, amenities, etc) and house guidelines concerning clean-up, waste disposal, recycling rules, and such. Each cottage is named after its previous owner: the Hostage cottage which sleeps four, and the MacInnes cottage which sleeps six.

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Board games are just one of the surprising amenities offered at the “rustic” Rockefeller cottages, located in the Hudson Valley. (Indeed, it was nice to find the chess table with pieces set as if it was left in mid-game, upon arrival.) Visitors will be delighted to find modern kitchens and bathrooms, dishware, utensils, extra blankets, toilet paper, a modern stereo, and comfy furniture on which to lounge.

The cottages are 53 miles north, or about an hour’s drive, from Manhattan. They are also accessible via public transportation (plus a short taxi ride). The train ride from Grand Central to Peekskill is an hour long. (This train trip cost $9 at the time of this writing.) Conveniences are available at a local store (M&R Store), plus a larger supermarket nearby, detailed in the Cottage Information Sheet.

Approximately four miles from the cottages, is a bird sanctuary on Iona Island. According to the Town of Highlands website , Iona island extends “[o]ver 100 acres of land, just below Bear Mountain State Park. In the winter, it serves as home to the American Bald Eagle.” In my short visit there, I saw red-winged blackbirds, black and white warblers, yellow warblers, mocking birds, yellow cardinals, turkey vultures and others.

Interesting birds can be seen without ever leaving the cottages. The MacInnes cottage is set on a hill, with an outdoor dining table. The effect is that one is practically dining in the tree tops. This is ideal for bird-watching. Over lunch, my company and I spotted eastern phoebes (conveniently nesting in the eaves of the cottage’s slanting roof), black-capped chickadees, white-breasted nuthatches, and my most exciting viewing: a red-headed woodpecker!

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Two hiking trails begin not far from the cottages. About two miles down the road, there is a playground. Past the playground are two trail markers, one is red, and one is blue. The red trail marker brings one around the circumference of a lake. The blue trail marker promises a more challenging hike. While the location of these trails is within walking distance of the cottages, it is recommended that visitors drive there, as the walk up the steep hills leading back could be more challenging than most leisurely hikers might enjoy.

Next door, Bear Mountain State Park offers a wide-range of activities. From basic hikes, marathons, swimming, boating, to child-friendly activities like the Bear Mountain State Park Zoo, and the merry-go-round featuring “42 hand carved seats of native animals including black bear, wild turkey, deer, raccoon, skunk, Canada goose, fox, swan, bobcat, rabbit and more.”¹ The merry-go-round seemed fun for kids, but my group of visitors found the zoo a bit depressing; the image of a lonely encaged coyote comes to mind.

For those interested in the arts, there are at least two locales worthy of a visit. Just a ten minute drive will bring visitors to the Russell Wright Design Center. Here one can tour Manitoga, a National Historic Landmark, exhibiting Wright’s designs in housewares, as well as his design of the landscape and home on which he worked for over 30 years. “[U]ntil his death in 1976, he carefully redesigned and re-sculpted Manitoga’s 75 acres using native plants, his training as a theater designer and sculptor, and his innovative design ideas. Though the landscape appears natural, it is actually a careful design of native trees, rocks, ferns, mosses, and wild flowers.” Additionally, there are over four miles of paths, open to the public for hikes, “…that wind over creeks, into woods, among boulders, and through ferns and mountain laurel.”²

A twenty-minute drive from the cottages is Storm King Art Center. This beautiful sculpture park was recently written up in the New York Times, “Storm King Art Center is a museum that celebrates the relationship between sculpture and nature. Five hundred acres of landscaped lawns, fields and woodlands provide the site for postwar sculptures by internationally renowned artists. At Storm King, the exhibition space is defined by sky and land. Unencumbered by walls, the subtly created flow of space is punctuated by modern sculpture. The grounds are surrounded by the undulating profiles of the Hudson Highlands, a dramatic panorama integral to the viewing experience. The sculptures are affected by changes in light and weather, so no two visits are the same.”³ My friends and I spent about two hours roaming the grounds in a beautifully overcast day. The gray mist made the colors of the sculptures and the green surround seem all the more vibrant. Tours and tram transportation are available.

History buffs might like Fort Montgomery’s legacy. Per the Fort Montgomery State Historic Site , “Fort Montgomery was the scene of a fierce Revolutionary War battle for control of the Hudson River. Visitors today can tour the remains of the fourteen-acre fortification, perched on a cliff overlooking the magnificent Hudson.” From here one can walk along the Fort Montgomery footbridge, and see views of the Popolopen Creek train trestle and the Bear Mountain Bridge.

After all of this hiking and site-seeing, I advise visitors to partake in the more indulgent activity of cheese-tasting. The foodie of my group of friends led us on an hour-long drive to Sprout Creek Farm. “Sprout Creek Farm is a 200 acre working farm in Dutchess County, New York that provides an integrated context for educational and spiritual development programs for young people and adults.”⁴ After visiting with baby goats, and watching pigs cool in the mud, we entered the shop for an impressive cheese tasting of at least 9 varieties, ranging from hard to soft. Some of the cheeses are named after the animal (goat or cow) from whose milk it was made. I highly recommend the Sophie cheese.

Closer farms/greenmarkets are available. The closest being the West Point/Town of Highlands Farmers’ Market, located at the Municipal Parking lot across from West Point Visitors Center, Highland Falls. (For Internet mapping, enter: 48 Ondaora Pa. Highland Falls, NY 10928.) According to on-line resources, this market is open Sundays, 9A.M. to 2:30P.M., July through October. Others include: Warwick Farmer’s Market (~45 Minute Drive), Goshen Farmer’s Market (~30 minute drive), and
Stone Barn Center for Food and Agriculture (~30 minute drive). A local winery which might compliment your food purchases could be: Brotherhood Winery (~35 minute drive).

The Rockefeller Cottages provide a weekend escape from the city. Whatever your interest you’ll never be bored!

References

1. Bear Mountain State Park
2. Russel Wright Design Center
3. “Where the Ocean Meets the Mountains,” Cotter, Holland. New York Times. May 7, 2009.
4. Sprout Creek Farm