WHO...wouldn't love Washington County?

Covered bridges, old fashioned trains and breath-taking views of the Green Mountains are waiting to greet visitors.

This rural county, one of 14 counties in the Albany Diocese, offers a quiet way of life that has nevertheless left its mark on the nation in many ways: as the birthplace of the United States Navy, as home to artist Grandma Moses, and the spot where apple pie a la mode was created.

Victorian ambience

Our day began with breakfast at the newly restored Cambridge Hotel. Built in 1885, it is a classic Victorian train hotel. In recent years, the property had deteriorated and faced possible demolition. It was salvaged by a civic-minded coalition of investors, who completed $1.4 million of renovations and reopened the hotel just a few weeks ago.

The hotel's Victorian features were preserved while all new heating, air conditioning, plumbing and electrical systems were installed. Among the details that were retained are the original tin ceilings, the main staircase, and the original banisters, doors, moldings and windows.

A-plus food

Breakfast was served in the main dining room, which is decorated in a country French style. We enjoyed generous servings of mushroom quiche, potatoes, bacon and a fresh baked goods basket. The chocolate chip coffee cake was my favorite.

My mother said, "I'd give this an A-plus."

Old friends

Our waitress at the Cambridge Hotel, Leigh Spofford, was equally friendly and helpful. Some of the main attractions of the Cambridge area, according to Miss Spofford, are canoeing, fly fishing and tubing down the Batten Kill River. She pointed out that the village is a few miles from the Vermont border and only 24 miles from Saratoga Springs.

The reopening of the hotel has caused a lot of excitement in the community, she said, adding: "For years, it was a mess and not taken care of. Now you need to make dinner reservations, especially for a large party, a week or more in advance."

Sister Anne Sheridan, parish life director at St. Patrick's Church in Cambridge, said "the people are thrilled about" the re-opening.

Pie invention

Shortly after, the professor traveled to New York City. At the fashionable Delmonico's restaurant, he ordered pie a la mode. When the waiter said he had never heard of it, the professor replied, "Do you mean to tell me that so famous a place as Delmonico's has never heard of pie a la mode when the Hotel Cambridge up in the village of Cambridge, New York, serves it every day? Call the manager at once! I demand as good service here as I get in Cambridge."

The manager came, listened to the professor and changed the menu to feature the desert. The story was reported by the New York Sun and sent worldwide by the wire services.

Choo-choo change

Salem is a 20-minute drive north from Cambridge on Route 22. The trip is tranquil with views of cornfields and mountains. Just as in Cambridge, as we entered the village of Salem, American flags flew from lamp posts.

Carol Hansen, office manager for the Batten Kill Rambler and a parishioner of Holy Cross Church in Salem, was helpful as I planned my trip to Washington County. The train, she explained, runs along New York's most famous trout stream -- the Batten Kill. The ride provides views that can't be seen from any road.

Trip into time

The renovated train cars were built in the 1940s while the locomotive pulling us was a diesel electric, 1600 horsepower, built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in Schenectady in 1950.

Ms. Bain provided a wealth of information on trains as well as Washington County, the first county in the country to be named after the first president. Originally known as Charlotte County, it was renamed after the founding father, who actually stayed in the county twice at what is now the Old Fort House Museum in Fort Edward.

Marble and slate

Marble and slate have played an important role in Washington County's economy. Granville, which is north of Salem, is the only place in the world where bright red slate can be found. Granville is located in what is known as "Slate Valley," a huge repository of fine grade slate. Visitors to Granville can learn more about slate, as well as its impact on the economy and history of the town, at the Slate Valley Museum.

Another industry that continues to have an impact on the county is farming. Dairy farms dominate the views of the landscape. During the train ride, Ms. Bain pointed out the corn and alfalfa grown to feed the cows as well as fields of potatoes for city folk and suburbanites who can't identify a potato until its cooked and served with butter.

Bridges of Washington County

Washington County, according to Ms. Bain, is the perfect place for history and museum buffs.

"This area was caught in the middle of the Revolutionary War," she said. Both the Battle of Bennington and the Battle of Saratoga were fought nearby. In fact, the swamps that the train winds through were used by Washington County residents as hiding places during the war.

The county also has a pre-Revolutionary history. Rogers Island, in the middle of the Hudson River in the village of Fort Edward, was the site of a British military complex that housed thousands of troops during the French and Indian War. An archeological dig has provided information on the blockhouse, hospital and huts used by Robert Rogers and his Rangers. They used the island as a staging ground for raids against the French.

Museums galore

Whitehall's shipwrights built vessels used by the Navy during the War of 1812. The Skenesborough Museum in Whitehall provides visitors with information on the village's maritime military history, as well as Revolutionary War artifacts, canal and railroad memorabilia, toys, and tools.

Other museums worth a visit, according to Ms. Bain, are the Old Fort House Museum in Fort Edward and the Pember Museum in Granville.

The train stops for a half-hour in Cambridge before beginning the trip back to Salem. With stops in Shushan and Cambridge, the ride took almost three hours. There are also special children's theater trains that feature a 20-minute ride to an outdoor stage, a short play and another 20-minute train ride back to Salem.

Exploring Salem

It was interesting to watch the residents of Salem interact. As regulars entered the restaurant, the teenaged waitresses would enthusiastically greet the patrons. Both the adults and the youth seemed interested in what the other had to say.

Salem, which was settled in 1761, has many historic homes and landmarks. Walking tour maps are available at the train station, the Town Clerk's Office and the library. The 58-point walking tour includes Holy Cross Church, which was built in 1889 in a Gothic style. It is the centerpiece of the neighborhood known as "Irish town." Irish immigrants came to the area during the great famine of the 1840s.

We also spent some time at the Salem Old Book and Paper Emporium. We thumbed through old cookbooks and craft books. It seemed that the shop has books to interest everyone.

Moses' mount

Mt. Nebo Gallery is located in Eagle Bridge. A simple sign in front of the 175-year-old farmhouse indicates that the house was where Grandma Moses began her art career. While in her late 70s, she began painting for her own pleasure. Her work was discovered hanging in a local pharmacy. Today, her collection is housed in the Bennington Museum in Vermont.

Great-grandson Will Moses now carries on the family tradition of painting. While his style is reminiscent of his great grandmother's, it is described as being more complex. A red barn on the farm serves as a gallery for visitors to view and purchase his works. One of the goals of the gallery is to offer high quality art at affordable prices.

Mt. Nebo is also a small farm where the family grows Christmas trees, makes maple syrup, and raises Scotch Highland cattle and a few chickens. It is easy to see how this picture-perfect farm could inspire generations of paintings.

Famed cheesecake

My mother purchased a cheesecake sampler to keep on hand for company. The gourmet cheesecakes, which provide the nuns with their main source of income, are baked in small batches to enhance and preserve their unique flavor.

Next, we took route 372 to Greenwich. Again, the drive was picture-perfect, with farms and wild flowers popping up all along the way.

Time to shop

Mrs. Jeffords said the building, which was recently renovated, had served as the livery for the old hotel. Many of the buildings in the village have been recently restored, she said.

Joani Henderson, an employee at the Country Peddler, said there are many reasons to visit Washington County. "The people are its biggest attraction," she said. "It's an old-fashioned neighborhood where people say, `Hi.'"

Farmers markets, local honey and local maple syrup are other reasons to make the trip to Washington County, as are the beautiful lakes, like Lake Lauderdale.

The upcoming Washington County Fair, both women say, is a must-see. Featured in an issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine, it is one of the last fairs in the state where alcohol isn't served, so the atmosphere is upbeat and family-friendly. The fair runs August 24-30 at the fair grounds in Greenwich.

Thumbs up

* For Rev. Thomas Konopka, pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Greenwich, the village and the county are filled with interesting activities. A native of Fort Edward, he said, "I'm in the middle of everything I like. There's Saratoga, Vermont and my family."

In addition to tubing down the Batten Kill, the area is ideal for biking. "It's a great bike area," he said. "I do a lot of it."

Many enjoy life in Washington County because of its inhabitants. "It's a slower, quieter life," Father Konopka said. "I like the people. I can walk down the street and people know me."

* Rev. Brian Cronin, pastor of Notre Dame Des Victoires and Our Lady of Angels in Whitehall, had a similar observation. "In village life, everyone knows everyone and is supportive and concerned," he said.

* Rev. Thomas Zelker, pastor of St. Mary's Church in Granville and administrator at Our Lady of Mount Carmel there, enjoys life in Washington County as well. "It's an old-style community," he said. "You can walk around town, meet people and they say, `Hi.' You can relax with people."

(For information about the sites mentioned in this article, contact the Washington County Tourism Office at 888-203-8622 or www.washingtoncounty.org; the Cambridge Hotel at 677-5626 or www.cambridgehotel.com; the Batten Kill Rambler at 692-2191 or www.nenyrail.com.; Mt. Nebo Gallery at 686-4334 or www.willmoses.com.; and New Skete Kitchens at 677-3810 or www.newskete.com.)

(08-05-99) [[In-content Ad]]