Amherst  -  Opening in November 2002. 
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture book art.
125 West Bay Road in Amherst, MA 
www.picturebookart.org

Eric Carle Author/illustrator of The Hungry Caterpillar and many other great books will have a museum to showcase the work of picture book artists of national and international acclaim including the works of  Maurice Sendak, Lucy Cousins, Mitsumasa Anno, Margot Zemach and many others. The Museum, located in an apple orchard next to Hampshire College at will celebrate this special art form with changing exhibits, lectures and a reading library.


                    

Becket
Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival
July 1-August 31, 2002
George Carter Road, Becket
(413) 243-0745.
www.jacobspillow.org

Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival - 2002 is the 70th anniversary for Jacob's Pillow which is the longest running dance festival in the United States.  Premier festival featuring the world’s best ballet, modern dance and culturally specific dance. International performers of ballet,  jazz and traditional dance. The names of some performers and performancesare:
White Oak dance project
Ronald K. Brown
Petrushka
Francesca Harper
Cloud Gate
Grupo Corpo
Big Dance Theatre
Sara Skaggs Dance
Lyon Opera Ballet
Yin Mei Dance


                          

Brimfield

Brimfield Antique & Collectible Shows
Route 20 Brimfield, MA
www.brimfield.com (check the web site for dates)

Brimfield Massachusetts is the site of the largest outdoor antique show in New England, with over 5000 dealers from all over the country. The shows are all located within a one mile stretch on both sides of Route 20.  Rain or Shine.  Thousands of people come every year to seek out their treasure. Furniture, art deco, jewelry, books - you name it - it's here.  

                        

Charlemont
Zoar Outdoor
7 Main Street Rte 2, Charlemont MA
(800)532-7483
www.zoaroutdoor.com

White Water Rafting and float trips on the Deerfield River and other area rivers. Also there is whitewater canoe and kayak clinics and rock climbing instructions for both adults and kids.


                              

Deerfield

Historic Deerfield  
website
(off 5 & 10) Deerfield
(413)774-5581 ( for general info and  tour reservations)

A museum of New England History & Art.
Fourteen perfectly-preserved early 19th-century homes to tour 

Here the Main Street is three Centuries long. People come here for a peaceful walk. The Blake Meadow Walk winds past farmland and livestock on its way to the Deerfield river. You can hike along the Pocumtuck Ridge or travel the village on your bicycle. Settled by the English farmers in 1669, Deerfield has witnessed three centuries of American History
Historic Deerfield offers workshops, lecture series, antiques forums, summer archaeological excavations and educational programs for students and visitors of all ages.
Special Events and celebrations bring history alive in the old village. Family favorites include Patriot's Day, Washington's Birthday, Thanksgiving and 
holiday events and annual summertime Antique and Classic Car Show.

The Museum Store features books, museum reproductions, and unique gifts.
The Deerfield Inn, with dining room and coffee shop and 23 guest rooms, is open throughout the year.


The Historic Deerfield's museum house and the Museum Store are open daily from 9:30am - 4:30pm except on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. 
                         

Greenfield
Route 2


Starting at Greenfield's west end at the I-91 Rotary, this well-traveled highway marks a 10,000 year old trading highway by Native Americans and early settlers transporting goods from Albany, NY area to the Connecticut River Valley and later from the Atlantic Ocean to the Midwest. In the 1920's the Mohawk Trail (Route 2) was built especially as a "scenic highway". It traverses the Taconic and Berkshire Mountains which draw a steady stream of visitors especially during the gorgeous foliage season. It's twists and turns provide continual views of the odd  conical hills around it and remnants from the 1950's motel and souvenir shop boom still can be seen along the trail today.

There are also many places along the drive to purchase Maple Syrup or stop in a restaurant and have some pancakes with that. Its a beautiful drive ..check it out!



Directions

Holyoke

Volleyball Hall of Fame - Birthplace of Volleyball
Heritage State Park, Holyoke, MA
413-536-0926
www.volleyhall.org

1895 - William G. Morgan, inventor of volleyball.

The Hall offers many different things- an interactive kiosk, visitors can see video and hear commentary on the many facets of the game or test their V-Ball knowledge with an interactive quiz; a faux half-court complete with cutouts outlining the main positions of the sport, as well a vertical jump tester where future spikers can test their leap, and an official net straight from the '96 Olympic Games in Atlanta; an area showcasing the past inductees, with pertinent information on your favorite volleyball superstars; a gift shop, where visitors can pick up official VBHF merchandise, ranging from pencils to warm-ups, stress balls to volleyballs, and more. 

The price of admission is $3.50 for Adults, $2.50 for Children (6-17) and Seniors(60+), Children 5 and younger are free- this cost of entry goes towards the Hall's fund for future expansion. The Volleyball Hall of Fame's hours of operation are Friday, Saturday, Sunday 12:00 to 4:30.

Lenox
Tanglewood Music Center
Route 183 (West Street), Lenox, MA.
www.bso.org

The summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Enjoy the sounds of the  Boston Pops, James Taylor, David Brubeck, New York Philharmonic, music of Weber, Berlioz and Tchaikovsky,  Juilliard String Quartet just to name a few...Yup! you'll find all that at Tanglewood. You may also find  A Prairie Home Companion at Tanglewood with Garrison Keillor. Tanglewood's  property consisting of 210 acres.  Concert-goers are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, blankets, food and wine to accompany the music .The lawn is a popular destination for much of the crowd but if you would like a closer look you can get tickets for inside the Shed.

                                         

North Adams
MASS MoCA
87 Marshall Street , North Adams
(413)664-4481
www.massmoca.org

The largest Contemporary Arts Center in the county. Performing and Visual Arts, concerts, film, dance and theater.  MASS MoCA is a historic mill complex in the Berkshire mountains of Western Massachusetts which was converted into a multi-disciplinary center for visual, performing and media arts. The New York City Ballet performed here in 2002.

Kidspace at MASS MoCA is an art gallery and studio space in the heart of the MASS MoCA complex that is designed especially for students, teachers, and families. Exhibitions include innovative and challenging work by contemporary artists working in all media, as well as art materials and supplies so that young visitors may create art of their own.


Directions

                    

Northampton

Smith College Museum of Art , Northampton, MA. With a world-famous collection spanning an impressive 4,500 years, and a tradition since its inception of making its holdings available to students and the public, the Smith College Museum of Art is also a leader in collecting and showing the art of our day. Ranked among the finest college or University museums in this country, it has become what our first director hoped it would be: "nothing less than a collection of works by the foremost artists of modern times."

Shelburne Falls 
Bridge of Flowers
16-22 Water Street (off Rte 2 Mohawk Trail), Shelburne Falls
(413) 625-2526

1908 Trolley Bridge converted into a 400-foot flowered pathway
Art exhibits,Glass Blowing,Gift Shops, Glacier Pot holes.


                                       

South Deerfield 
Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory & Gardens
281 Greenfield Road (Rtes 5 & 10)
413-665-2805
www.magicwings.net


Surround yourself with a fluttering kaleidoscope of butterflies in the lush Conservatory garden, visit the art gallery or cool off with a Painted Lady Pistaschio or Monarch Maple Ice in the Magic Wings Cafe. Glass covered  conservatory and garden housing hundreds of living butterfies. 


                         

South Deerfield
Yankee Candle Company
Rte 5 & 10 South Deerfield
413-665-2929

Gift shop, Bavarian village and a working candle company that uses 200 year old equipment to demonstrate traditional candlemaking.


                              

Stockbridge
The Norman Rockwell Museum at Stockbridge
PO Box 308, Route 183, Stockbridge, MA 01262
Phone: (413) 298-4100, ext. 220
www.nrm.org

The Museum is located in the beautiful Berkshire mountains of Stockbridge, Massachusetts, where Norman Rockwell spent the last 25 years of his life.  Visitors to The Norman Rockwell Museum currently find more than 70 original works of art by Norman Rockwell on exhibit, including works from every decade of his career. Ages 18 and under admitted free with an adult (up to four children per adult).www.nrm.org


                                         

Stockbridge
Chesterwood Museum
Off  Rte 183, Stockbridge
(413)-298-3579
www.chesterwood.org

Here you will find the summer estate of Daniel Chester French, sculptor of the Concord Minute Man and seated Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. There is a garden here you can walk through, sculpture studio and nature trail.

                                         

Sturbridge
Old Sturbridge Village  
(508) 347-3362

www.osv.org

New England of the 1830’s comes to life in this incredible town of living history.  More than 40 buildings over 200 acres recreate rural New England life between 1790 and 1840; demonstrations and special events. 
                                          

Williamstown
Williamstown Theatre Festival
Rte 2, Williamstown MA
(located in the heart of Williams College)
www.wtfestival.org

Nestled in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts, the Williamstown Theatre Festival is a summer-long celebration of theater that brings together a vast and impressive array of artists and offers audiences varied cultural experiences.

From mid-June through late-August every summer, WTF presents over two hundred performances of classic and new plays on its Main and Nikos Stages. Many well known artist have preformed here including Joanne Woodward, Paul Newman, Blythe Danner, Richard Chemberlain, Christopher Reeves and Gwyneth Paltrow for a sampling.

Williamstown

Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute
225 South Street, Williamstown
413-458-2303

www.clarkart.edu

Experience outstanding collections of French Impressionist, Old Master, and American paintings, sculpture, English silver and more in intimate galleries set on 130 acres of lawn and trails. Special exhibitions year-round.