End of Summer: Adirondacks, part 3

For our last weekend in the Adirondacks we went camping. Sort of. Our version of camping involves reaching a remote cabin on a remote lake accessible only via an old school bus, a guideboat, a footpath,  and a canoe. It's about a three hour journey, and we carry everything - food, clothes, linens, towels, gear, kids' stuff - all the way in and all the way out. When we get there, there isn't a road or a car or a telephone in sight. In fact, there is no electricity at all. But there is gas - so we have lanterns, a fridge, an oven, a toilet and a hot shower. And when I say a cabin, I really mean cabins. The area is so full of black bears, that the kitchen and the bathroom both have to be in separate buildings from where you sleep. Just three days before we arrived, a bear had broken into the kitchen cabin, breaking the window and crawling through to grab some marshmallows that a kid left on the counter.

Living in this simplicity is utter heaven. We swim, fish, eat, read, row around the lake, eat, play cards, eat, go for a hike, and eat some more. Within an hour I forgot all about my phone. It's amazing how much time there is in the day when you don't have your phone on you. An even higher state of bliss was reached when my camera battery died. As you all know I am obsessed with taking pictures, and when that option left me, then I really started to be present and relaxed. 

When I am there, I love to imagine how long I could stay for. Our standard trip is 2 nights and two full days. With 9 people, it would be a pretty major schlep to pack and carry more food. But would I be happy there for a week? Two weeks? Hard to say. I think next summer I'll extend our stay to 4 nights and see how we get on. 

My favourite part of the path on the journey to our camp.

The last leg of our journey, in a 1930's Abercrombie and Fitch canoe. How chic.

The sleeping cabin at our camp. Don't be fooled, we don't actually sleep in there - we just use it as a place to leave our clothes and change. We (meaning everyone except my husband, who does actually sleep in there) spend the night in a lean to -  a three sided hut that opens onto a giant fire pit. It's not the best night's sleep - you are bound to be woken by loons, coyotes, bears all calling out in the night - but it's what we've done since we were barely walking, and so it's tradition. Ambien helps.

I always force myself to get up before the children so I can sit on the dock with a cup of coffee in silence. Christopher usually joins me. 

6:30am. This might have been my favourite moment of the summer.

The crack of dawn view from the dock.

Swimming from the camp dock is a bit swampy so we pile in canoes and row to the middle of the lake where there is a swimming dock. It's never easy to jump in the lake - even in August - but I'm always glad I did.

The cook house - containing the kitchen, a dining porch and an inside dining room. If you look at the side of the house you can see the plywood patch from where the bear broke in through the window just days before. Yikes!

Zach learning to paddle. Our friends just up ahead saw a mother bear and two cubs swim across the lake just in front of them, but sadly we missed it.

It seems only fitting to wear Keen's shoes in Keene Valley. Plus, they are the perfect Adirondack shoe in all ways but in the chic department. 

These guide boats are so beautiful they kill me. I love the wicker seats, the owner's name embossed on the oars, the monogram on the outside and the old school colors. 

The beautiful woods at our camp.

Heading home.

End of Summer: Adirondacks, part 2

Coco and Zinnia waiting for suppertime.

Love Boat.

Tennis in the mountains.

Christopher had the brilliant idea of buying at badminton net at Sports Authority on our way up to Keene Valley. Coco became particularly obsessed. 

Coco and Zach crossing the Ausable River. When I was a kid the bridges only had a railing on one side,  and one time my stepfather turned around to tell us to hold the railing and he walked right off the bridge. His leg was in a cast the rest of the summer!

The west branch of the Ausable River at 7am, just when the trout are starting to bite. 

Who has better a better fishing look? Christopher?

Or Zach? I vote Zach.

Zach, netting his first ever brown trout!

Watching the sun fall behind the mountains.

Mom and I leaping off a high cliff into cold, dark water. The following rush is worth the fear.

Zinnia, loving the porch swing.

My favorite swimming hole.

Warming up on the rocks.

Don't be a dropout!

Zach, graciously holding a boulder so I can pass by.

Here I am on top of Gothics Mountain. Hard to think of a place I'd rather be.

The view from Pyramid.

End of Summer: Adirondacks, Part 1

Hi, hi. I'm back in England, the kids are off at school, and I finally have settled back into my routine. Have you been following the shows at New York fashion week? I have a bit. After years of going to as many shows I could fit on my calendar, it's a luxury for me now just to look at the ones I really, really love. Of course it's better to be there in person, but looking at them on style.com is enough fashion for me at the moment. But more on that in a few days.....

First, I want to show you the end of my summer in the Adirondacks. I have been spending August with my family in Keene Valley since I was 5 years old, and it means the whole world to now share it with my husband and children. For me, it is the most beautiful place in the world. And I love our lifestyle there - we are always outside, right smack in the middle of nature, being active, our bodies feel useful and happy, and we are focused on each other. I also love that everything is totally old school - nothing is more complicated than it needs to be, and nothing is pretentious or fancy. Simple and functional is a way of life in the Adirondacks - everyone drives an old car, wears the same Patagonia jacket and Teva or Keens shoes year after year, and passes down canoes within their families from generation to generation. We often sleep outside in a three sided cabin facing a fire pit, wake up before light to go fishing, or climb up a mountain with three generations of our family in tow. We also read and cook and swim, a lot. And of course, I am always on the lookout for style - whether its a trail sign or a pile of hiking shoes or a 1930's Abercrombie and Fitch canoe. Here's what I found:

One of the guest cabins at the house my parents rented this August. My sister and her husband stayed in it. I'm a scaredy cat and was very happy to be in the main house with my parents. Just a week before a bear had broken into this cabin!

The cabin was so charming though.......

Here's the main house. And, yup, that's a sour cherry tree right in front. We spent most mornings just drinking coffee and hanging out on this porch.

Our first day there, Coco discovered a hill that was covered with thousands of blueberry bushes. We made a blueberry and peach crumble that night to celebrate our abundance.

Zach and my mom,  reading a very old comic book they found in the house.

The boat house on the lake. They're called guide boats and what makes them unique is that you row them instead of paddling them like a canoe. They are all made by hand and are incredibly beautiful inside and out. Many of them have wicker chairs built into the interior so you can sit comfortably while you ride or row. 

The lower lake, where we swim and row.

The board where all the guide boat keys are kept.

My favorite guide boat.

The East River Trail, while walking home from the lake after a picnic and swim. 

Hand made signs along the trail.

Despite being warm in the day, the Adirondacks are chilly most August evenings. We only got to eat out on the porch a few times. I love how simple and classic the table and chairs are. 

Coco, discovering more blueberries up high on a mountain. Do you remember that children's book "Blueberries for Sal?" This picture reminds me of it.

This summer we discovered America's oldest weekly rodeo was just over an hour away from us. It was hilarious! I can see this definitely becoming an annual tradition. 

One of the most charming things about Keene Valley is the airport. This is it! (If you don't believe me just look at the tire marks from the last plane that landed). 

Every Monday all the local kids get together to play Capture the Flag on the golf course. All ages from 2-18 join in while the parents get a roadie from the bar and hang out on blankets.

My sister Kim, having an afternoon read on the porch.

The Ausable River, with storm clouds rushing in. Parts of the river were absolutely devastated by Hurricane Irene. Experts say it could take 40 years for the whole river to look like it used to. This section, however, was pretty unscathed.

Travel: The North Fork of Long Island

I've been in and around New York since the 15th of July. It feels good to be home, except that I miss Ginger terribly. I even had a dream that Christopher surprised me and flew her in from England to visit all her favorite New York places with us. Wishful dreaming. Anyway, I was in the city for two weeks taking care of business, and then we spent a heavenly ten days in Southold, on the North Fork of Long Island. We have a beach house there and we are always debating selling it, because we don't get to use it enough to justify the expenses involved. When we left for England, some friends asked if they could rent it year round, except for the 10 days they go to Maine, when we could have the house back. Pretty good deal, right? So we happily agreed and now get to be there for a good long dose right at the height of the summer, no doubt the house's peak season.

I have always loved my time spent in Southold. The North Fork of Long Island is beautiful and real and unpretentious. It is family oriented. It is so very American. It is also surrounded by water. Being a Florida girl myself, I feel most at home in the water. And not just bobbing around in the water, but actually under the water, completely submerged. I like to grab hold of a big breath, dive down deep and just swim as far as I can until the need to exhale pulls me back up. I can do this a dozen times before getting enough of it. But unlike a Florida girl, I also really thrive in cold water, and the Long Island Sound is never too warm. Even in August, the temperature steals your breath for a few seconds as you first enter until you move around enough to get used to it.

We also have our routines in Southold that have now become tradition. Our morning run up and down the 125 lighthouse steps (our record was 14 laps this time), followed by a swim in the sound, then in the pool, then a rinse in the outdoor shower. We like a late afternoon trip to Greenport where we visit Beall and Bell, our favorite antiques shop, followed by an iced coffee or an ice cream at D'Latte, and then a ride on the carousel for the kids. And well, me too. The prospect of catching the gold ring keeps us all feeling competitive. On particularly beautiful days we might take our inner tubes down to Goldsmith's inlet to ride down the "lazy river," have a picnic, and buy an ice cream from the Good Humor truck. And on rainy days, we visit the Tanger Outlets and the Target store in Riverhead to stock up on clothes and school supplies, that are much less expensive here than they are in England. But probably my favorite part is gathering our friends and their children around the outdoor table for long lunches and dinners. We love our Long Island friends, and our children have known their children nearly since birth. I love a full family friendship, and there is no better time or place to hang out as such than in the summer, by the beach.

This is our beach house. It was built in 1949 by the Sardi family (yes, like the restaurant). It's pretty rare to have a mid century, flat roof house in this area of Long Island and when we first saw it, our broker told us it was a tear down. To the contrary, we couldn't believe our luck in finding it.

Because the house is mid-century modern, my husband completely replanted the whole garden to reflect the style of the house. We have lots of bamboo, succulents, grasses, but I insisted we keep this purple hydrangea that lives next to the pool. I love the unusual color. 

I have all sorts of childhood hangovers when it comes to summer food. They are all pretty disgusting and not things I would feed my own children in normal circumstances apart from our week in Southold. Marshmallow fluff and peanut butter sandwiches, Crystal Light iced tea, Cape Cod potato chips and Duncan Hines brownies (bowl licking is mandatory, as you can see above) all bring back happy summer memories.

Our most prized beach finds from this trip. I think the shell of the baby horse shoe crab might be our best one of all time.

I like to keep everyone out of the kitchen while I'm cooking dinner, so they usually end up at the ping pong table. You can see Christopher's competitive nature is relentless, even when playing against a 5 year old.

This is where the moms and girls hang out. The boys are way too active in the garden, on the trampoline and in the pool to sit down even for 5 minutes, but the ladies can read magazines and gab away the afternoon for hours here (especially when a bottle of rosé is involved).

I love how you can only see the sun in its reflection on the water.

A two-suit day is always a good one.

The view from the top of the lighthouse steps is the reward for the hard work in getting there.

Coco and Christopher heading back down after lap 14. 

Boy action in the pool. We inherited this pool from the previous owner - it was built in the early 80's, and we are very grateful for it because today you would never be allowed to build a pool so close to the beach. It's a liner pool, as opposed to a gunite one, and we've never gotten around to rebuilding it despite our intentions. We did recently replace the liner though and the grey one we searched and searched for - and finally found! -  made the water such a beautifully subtle grey/blue color, as opposed to the bright, tacky turquoise the former (and more standard) blue liner created. Just wanted to pass along my discovery, in case you have a liner pool.

Greenport is a wonderful town. It's not at all fancy or uber tasteful, like the Hamptons, but its very authentic. Starbucks opened there and closed down within two years because everyone refused to give up the local coffee shops. It has great history, fantastic restaurants, a few good shops and lots of fun for every age.

I love to sit on the deck at Scrimhaw's and watch boats sail around Shelter Island while having dinner.

The new taqueria in Greenport - good Margherita's.

Summer fruit at Briermere Farm.

When we went to Long Island more regularly, we used to rush out from the city to make it to Briermere before closing so we could stock up on fruits, vegetables, and most importantly,  pies for the weekend on the way out. If you get there at a popular time, you may have to wait on line for a pie, but it's worth it. I promise you its the only place you'll wait on line on the whole North Fork.

This is the prize possession of the whole summer - a peach/blueberry cream pie from Briermere. We spend the winter dreaming about these things.

Sometimes before starting dinner prep, I sneak down to the sound on my own for one last swim. I often get lucky at this time of day and have the whole beach to myself.

There is no kitchen I love cooking in more than in Southold. It's pretty much a beach shack kitchen (although we finally replaced the 1970's GE stove this year with a new Viking one), but the view of the sunsets makes cooking pleasurable no matter how many people you have to feed.

The unspoiled view on the way into Orient, a nearby town.

Orient is no doubt the prettiest town on the North Fork, and it's also the most remote. We have lots of friends in Orient, and on this night some friends invited us to join them for dinner in the town hall, where the former chef of Prune in New York, was cooking dinner on the occasional Saturday during the summer in advance of opening his own restaurant in the city this fall.

Our town hall dinner served by pop-up restaurant Houseman's. It was fantastic.

With my girlfriend Amy at dinner in Orient. We have lots in common - we are avid North Forkers, we work in fashion, we are devoted moms of two children, and we both have husbands named Chris. We can chat for hours and hours on end, and often do.

Visiting Goldsmith's Inlet is a win/win for the me and for the kids. They run around independently making new friends and eating ice cream, and I chill out. Sometimes it's nice to have a break from being at home. Our house is like a commune, and I love having lots of people over, but occasionally its great to not be looking after anyone but myself.

Coco, enjoying the chance to wear something other than a school uniform and riding clothes.

The sunset on our last night in Southold was the most insane of all, and it reminded the kids of the Lion King poster.