Jesse Murch 5/13/16 Jesse Murch 5/13/16

Recent Travels - Dr. Oliver Bronson House

The hum of the engine whispered in the background as we traveled paved highways through mountains and valleys, our destination would bring us hours from home to the town of Hudson, NY where the historic Dr. Oliver Bronson house lay vacant just outside of the penitentiary. Past the prison gates and right onto the dirt road where a small black sign with outlined white lettering assured us we arrived. Pulling onto the circular driveway the impressive old victorian sat nestled around tall trees whose branches seemed to embrace the old house. The front porch wide and vast directed us to the massive front door, once opened your eyes stretched over peeling sage floral wallpaper and onto the grand hall where a most impressive staircase grew from the floor circularly up to the third floor, a grand spindle entwined railing led the stairs. The boards creaked as our weight was brought upon them, we split up and each set off to discover the wonders and mysteries of a house long forgot. A musky stale air drenched throughout each of its glorious rooms, of which each had a themed paint color that was pale with age and history most were even complimented with a grand marble fireplace. Traveling to a time of sophistication and class as we strolled about the empty halls, sensory overload would be an understatement as each of us worked with our cameras and models to capture the beauty we soaked in. The sun flooded in, through massive windows that had warped and sagged with time, creating brilliant natural light unlocking every corner and secret of the old doctors estate. The few short hours we were given with the house seemed to be a tease equivalent to a bite of pie without getting a slice, but grateful as ever to witness such a beautiful piece of history we packed up said our thank you’s and headed back down the dusty road through the iron prison gates. After a refuel in the form of burgers at a quaint diner in the nearby town we drove to an old factory we had seen on the way in, parking in a truck repair shops back lot behind tall blonde grass we headed toward the massive structure left to waste in the expansive field. A small piece of pealed back sheet metal that once sealed an old entrance way led us into the belly of the factory, inside the concrete walls were complimented with to many windows to count, graffiti and bird droppings coated the walls and floors as we wandered. Climbing up railing-less stairs to an old office on the top floor that was filled with blueprints and old file cabinets. Quick to capture the surroundings we surveyed around the outside of the building and headed back to our cars, those that had come from other states said there goodbyes, we climbed in our respective cars and welcomed the mild engine hum as we grabbed some shut eye on the way home.

Travelers:

@jessemurch

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@cvatik

@kaylasavage

@brittneypanda

@trousseaux

As always safe travels friends.

Jesse Murch 3/12/16 Jesse Murch 3/12/16

Recent Travels - Dover Stone Church

The dover stone church, is an incredible natural formation in upstate New York, about an hour from the north jersey border. Ive seen photos of it passed around online and on social media and was always intrigued with the place, after all who wouldn't be interested in seeing a water fall inside a cave? So we packed up some snacks, and camera gear and pilled in the car and headed up north. The drive was a little over an hour on back winding roads and highways that swirled between towering mountains, it was pleasant and the time passed quickly. Upon arriving the entrance to the trail didn't allow parking so we found an empty school and left the car there and proceeded to the trail head. The first part of the trail leads through an open field lined with young trees on either side and was rather pleasing sight in the early morning fog on the slightly overcast day. Upon crossing the field we navigated through a forested trail that bent and turned and eventually came to a small foot bridge to cross a delicate stream. After this part we followed the stream about a half mile before reaching the entrance. A large cliff face looked back at us, the cliff face had a narrow crack that grew wider as it reached the stream, this was were we hopped stones and climbed into the opening. Once inside although dimly lit it was the most beautiful of sights. The waterfall crashing down the back wall as the ceiling of the cave stretched high above our heads, a low lying fog creeped along the gentle current. I had a flare in my pack as i usually do when adventuring, part of it is because they do come in handy but mostly i have it because i not so secretly want to be Indiana Jones. I was glad i did because i soon as it was lit the cave shined brilliantly and came to life more then i could have imagined, the above photo is of fellow traveler Catie holding the flare and taking in the surroundings. enjoy.

- Keep Traveling friends