To preface this post: The day of this Catskills outing was Tuesday of the Torah portion of Vaetchanan. The daily study of Chumash of that day ends off with this phrase: “Underneath/at the base of the waterfalls falling from the peak.” (Devarim/Deut 4:49).
We dropped off our youngest two daughters at sleepaway camp in Ellenville on Tuesday. Soon after we went to get a bite to eat in the nearby town (which has two Kosher pizzarias, two Kosher cafes and even more Kosher eateries in the summertime) and got caught in a torrential downpour. The skies literally opened up and the raindrops felt like large balls, not droplets.
We were already in the Catskills, so despite the stormy weather and persistent rain, we went off on a search for that Russian Babka we heard about in the Israeli consulate. The weather alerts kept popping up with a Tornado Watch for the greater area. The skies looked gloomy even between the rains.
After trying to find the Russian Babka, the rain slowed, so we decided to take the more scenic windy backroads way back to the 209. These are roads that we have many memories of from our 7 summers in the Catskills with the Ivy League Torah Study Program, now called MyJSF etc.
We did the three old backroads that we used to take from Camp Emunah on Route 52 in Greenfield Park to Shaloh on Route 55 in Naponach: Birchall to Briggs Hwy, Briggs to Geiger Road, Geiger to Ulster Heights Rd, then Sherman Road to the 55 and the Reservoir – and all the way down to the 209.
While driving those scenic roads we remembered where the deer used to hang out, where the chickens often crossed, where we once saw a black bear. The little pond in the marsh where people used to fish, and the horse ranch and all the different landmarks. And we noticed someone put new windows in that old corner building I called “The Baal Shem Tov Shul” and we saw old signs and new signs and things that were the same and things that were different. And the little indent in the side of the road with the fence where our station wagon once broke down many years ago.
So many memories! And of course we saw our old bungalow from the road, the one near the fence and the basketball court, where we spent 7 summers when our family was younger. It was a fun sweet drive down memory lane.
Finally we got back to the 209 North. Soon after we saw a sign pointing to Vernoy Kill Falls, and on a whim decided to follow it. The windy steep mountain road took us higher and higher up, further in than we expected. And then we both asked: Who says Vernoy Kills Falls is viewable from the road, maybe its a long hike to get there? Not the best idea with the continued threat of rain, and certainly not with a well-soaked trail… A quick online search told us that the trail to see those falls was quite long, and none of it is viewable from the road or a pulloff.
But the day’s daily study closed with these words about waterfall! And here we were in an adventurous spirit, still soaked from the rain, having dropped off the kids at camp. Perhaps another waterfall nearby is more accessible? and on a day when this is mentioned in the closing verse of the daily study!!
Raizy found Stony Kill Falls, close to Minnewaska, up a steep road just off Route 44. It’s a falls we’ve never been to, it wasn’t too far off from where we were and there was some time before sunset, so off we went. The road going up has houses on both sides, it’s well paved, wide but twisty and steep. But then you get to the Shaft IIA road and it gets narrows and wooded, and on that day, extra foggy. But we already came that far…
Near the end of the Shaft IIA road, it narrows further, and there’s a slight descent into a clearing, but it was all white, all dense cloud, a thick fog. It looked like we might be driving off that mountain. Raizy peered further into the fog and made out markers she thought might be a parking area. So we pushed forward and parked. There was cloud/fog around us, but the ground was clear, you could see that much.
We saw a sign that said the trail to the Falls was .47 miles. Half mile in, half mile out. We already came this far. The skies were holding. Fog was everywhere but no rain. So we ventured onto the well-packed gravel path. It took us into a woods where the fog cleared. At this point you could hear the Falls, thundering crashing waters. The further in we went the louder it got. Soon we saw the stony creek alongside the woods, to our left. The waters were rushing and raging, crashing against the rocks. No doubt all the rain doubled or tripled that volume of water in the creek.
The ground was still smooth, the skies were holding. There was dripping from the trees but no rain. We got to a point that we could make out some of the 90 foot falls in a clearing ahead, past a wooden bridge. The water was coming down in sheets, torrents. At that point the trail got rocky, there were wet and slick stone steps and we thought it prudent to turn back and get down the mountain before dark.
But we got pretty close to that day’s daily study closing verse of: “under/at the base of the waterfalls falling from the peak.”
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The Baal Shem Tov taught that everything we see, hear or experience can have a lesson for us. What do we learn from this adventure?
1) The “Kee Karov” verse teaches us the accessibility and closeness of Torah. Don’t think it is out of reach, so much is more possible and available, much more than we realize. True, the Vernoy Kills Creek was beyond what we could do that day, but don’t give up. Stony Kill Falls was something we could reach. It was (mostly) doable.
2) Even the waterfalls that are supposedly viewable from the parking lot or pull-off, etc – you still have to get out of the car. You may have to walk a bit. It might take a little push, a slight venture into the fog, or a little walk into the woods. You have to get out of bed and off the couch. Even the closest and easiest things take some doing.
3) There’s that saying that “Close enough doesn’t count except for in horseshoes and hand-grenades.” Well, waterfalls is another thing like that. True, we couldn’t get down to the base of the falls on this particular trip, but we were close enough to get a glimpse, to hear the water’s crashing thunder, to watch the water rush its way over the rocks and down the creek. Not 100% but close enough is also some form of experience. Don’t underestimate or dismiss the close-enough experience, you still get something. Savor and appreciate that for what it is.
4) Coming so soon after a major rain storm had its pros and cons. The rain brought all that fog, the rain made the rock steps too wet and slick. But thanks to the rain the water was coming down in much greater volume than usual. We may have seen less, maybe we couldn’t get as close, but the vibe and energy and impact was much stronger because of it.
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Speaking of Falls that are gorgeous and quite accessible:
Awosting Falls in Minnewaska State Park. Beautiful area, and a very walkable approach to the Falls.
There’s Kaaterskill Falls near North South Lake which has several tiers. Getting to the base is a hike but there’s a very scenic viewing platform that’s easily accessible close to the parking area.
Bash-Bish Falls in MA close to the NY border. More of a hike, but quite doable.
And further out from Albany area, there’s the 3+ gorgeous Falls in Ithaca: Robert Tremain, Buttermilk and Taughgonk Falls. All accessible. evenb further are the Falls are Letchworth State Park, and of course there’s Niagara Falls…
And many more…
will finish this post soon…