FEBRUARY PROGRAMS
Sunday, February 12, 2-4pm
Snowshoe Historic Carriage Drives
All ages
Free
Join a naturalist from the Columbia Land Conservancy (CLC) for a snowshoe through the winter landscape at
Olana. We'll trek along the carriage drives to see the transition from farm to forest,
skirt along the edge of North Meadow and finally see beautiful views of the Catskills from Ridge Road.
An educator from the Olana Partnership will discuss the history of the carriage roads and land use at Olana.
Snowshoes provided by CLC and beginners are welcome. If you are new to the sport or borrowing snowshoes,
please arrive at 1:30 pm. This hike is approximately 2 miles round trip on carriage roads and (perhaps)
off trail through the woods. This hike is considered moderately strenuous. We will be out for
approximately 1.5 hours.
Meet in the parking lot by the Wagon House Education Center. To register, please contact Jenny Brinker
at (518) 392-5252 x 210 or by email at
jenny@clctrust.org by noon on Friday, February 10th.
History of Olana Carriage Roads
As a landscape painter Frederic Church designed his own living landscape to reflect the aesthetic ideals of
his day. He carefully planned the route of the carriage roads to elicit a feeling of nature untamed. Many
of the carriage roads were built on the edge of precipices and designed to reveal certain views at just the
right moment. Using switchbacks that cut through the wilderness around Olana, he created a sense of the
sublime, or awe-filled discovery, of the beautiful natural surroundings. By going on a snow shoe trek you
will be experiencing Olana the way Church intended, as a moving landscape painting, full of wonder and drama.