As I emerged from the woods, two women appeared in front of me, walking down a dirt road. Even though at first it seemed like I was a sojourner in another era, in reality I'd just completed a walk through the nature trails of the 1812 Homestead near Willsboro, Essex County, a place where the past melds almost daily with the present. The Homestead, which includes dwellings, a school house, blacksmith shop, farm, and candle-making cabin, is set in a clearing surrounded by 130 acres of forest and fields.
Nature trails emanate out from the clearing.
Recently, I explored the Homestead trails. The trail mentioned earlier has a wide path, covered with wood chips. It descends gradually through a hardwood forest to a wetland, where there is a plank boardwalk over soggy ground. Bill Umber, longtime employee at the Homestead, said there are 19 different ferns growing near the walkway. For serious nature lovers, a good field guide or two should be brought along.