Last Friday, I left work and drove right into the Berkshires for a weekend holed up in a cozy cabin with two of my very best friends from college. It was the most satisfying, deeply needed time. We hiked, we cooked, we played games, we talked about everything – I cried both tears of sadness, and tears caused by the kind of laughter that just leaves your abs wrecked for days.
I feel extremely lucky to have such deep, powerful female friendships in my life. Honestly, it didn't really matter where we were – just that we were together – but it just so happens that where we were was pretty gorgeous too. Chiara, Katy, and I stayed in a cabin we found on Airbnb (use this link to get a $20 credit for your first trip). I hadn't really spent much time in the Berkshires before (just this camping trip; see the video here), and oh my gosh it felt so truly New England-y and rustic and charming – especially when we woke up on Saturday to big fat snowflakes falling quietly outside our cabin.
There was no TV, but music was playing pretty constantly from a speaker Katy brought. We spent lots of time curled up together reading (I'm charging through "Jane Eyre"), or playing a card game called pounce – very much a throwback to college! I loved the cabin's chalkboard wall for scorekeeping – see the final scores here.
The wood-burning stove made the whole cabin so cozy! Chiara and I pretty quickly saddled Katy with all stove-related responsibilities – she grew up in New Hampshire, and was a lot more familiar with safety and just like general knowledge of wood stoves. THANK YOU KATY for keeping us warm and not burning the cabin down!!!
We took our time getting our shit together Saturday before driving to Monument Mountain for a hike. We clambered through the woods for about three miles, trying to come up with good marching songs (at which we failed completely, "Baby Got Back" being the top choice) and attempting to identify different animal tracks we saw in the snow (I swear we saw red fox prints, and I think that the bird tracks lower in this post are from either a bald eagle, killdeer, or Canada goose). Once the sun started to set, we drove to Great Barrington for dinner (delicious GF pizza here!) and then back to the cabin.
I feel like can't really describe how restorative this trip was. Every once in awhile the universe provides exactly what you need. <3
