Sabbatical shots Vol 3: My Son the Blacksmith, Biologist, Fireman, Backhoe operator

Besides most weekends, we got to spend a solid two weeks up at a log house we rented in Gardiner, NY, on a heavily forested 250 acre mountainside property. We explored the woods and the streams, and we took a few fun day trips around the Hudson Valley. The boys got to scrape their knees on rocks and sticks instead of worrying about playing in broken glass.

We found an uncommon salamander, shown here on Leo's chest.


Here's a massive bull frog, found in the drained pool of the property's owner.

Leo's developed a fondness for the lost art of the blacksmith. We were able to find a wonderful expert blacksmith in the area and got to take a couple of father and son lessons

The fruits of our labor: two skewers for the grill.

At a fire engine show in Kingston, a number of classic vehicles were on display.


250 acres on a mountain takes some massive upkeep, so the property's owner recently bought a backhoe. Eli was thrilled to get to take a seat.