Accord

For Labor Day weekend, we went to Accord, which is near the Catskills. I'm hoping to go again when the leaves turn color, though I heard that this year we may lose that stage, due to the lack of rain and climate anomalies due to global warming. The leaves will supposedly turn from green to brown. In any case, we wanted to spend a weekend on a farm, and do some hiking. 

We have two dogs with us, a one year old Samoyed, and a nearly 15 year old Pekingese poodle mix that I have had since I was fifteen--for half my life! Travelling with dogs presents some challenges, but there actually are a lot of dog friendly options. Especially in summer, many places have out door seating and it's nice to sit outside with your pet. 

We stayed on a farm, which had horses, goats and dogs roaming free. The Samoyed, Max, tried to play with the goats, but the goat wanted to fight. In the end they collided and the goat bleated a resounding "meeeeeeeehhhhhh!!!" And that was the end of that. It's a great place for kids, but maybe not the best for playful dogs. 

Minnewaska State Park has lots of paved trails, and if great for hiking. Due to the drought, the waterfall was just a trickle, but we were able to walk along the riverbed. The paved roads are great for people with strollers or wheel chairs, and are generally easier to walk on. 

The highlight of the trip for me was a restaurant called Mountain Brauhaus, a German restaurant with a great view of the mountains and outdoor seating. We went with the two dogs and had really good beer, and the best pretzel that I have had in my life. You can order a cheese dip with it. I also had beer battered bratwurst, which comes with sauerkraut. Since we went around sunset, we had a really nice view of the sky.