Building a life in the country

In their first summer at their new Upstate New York home, this young couple has been making good progress in their efforts to create a productive small farm.

Andy and Shannon - who is adopting the name Wren - have planted more than a dozen rows of crops, as seen above, and are raising a flock of chickens. They put in many hours of hard work putting up fencing around the crops to protect them from the chickens, and a much bigger fence around their property to protect the chickens from other animals. The importance of that project became clear when a dog killed a few of the chickens before the fence was completed.

They also outfitted the coop where the previous owners had kept a handful of chickens to accommodate the flock of more than 50 birds they acquired as chicks in March (see previous article). The birds are growing quickly, the roosters are starting to crow, and in a couple of months the hens should begin to lay eggs.

Dan and Julie drove up to visit on Independence Day weekend. Since the pandemic hit the U.S. in March, both couples have been keeping mostly isolated and taking precautions to avoid any significant contact with other people - so a weekend visit at the country house seemed reasonably safe.

It was a very enjoyable visit. Andy and Wren were fine hosts, providing delicious meals (although not home-grown yet; maybe next time). The weather turned beautiful, and the property has a wonderful view of wooded hills - with great sunsets.

The four also took an afternoon drive to revisit Thacher State Park and survey the Albany valley from the Helderberg Escarpment, which they'd seen on a previous trip last summer.