A Learning Experience

Yesterday's trip to the Hudson River was a great experience. It was wonderful to see all of the places we've heard and read about in class come to life. I greatly enjoyed our hike to Kaaterskill Falls - to imagine artists coming to such a remote area nearly 200 years ago makes their paintings all the more impressive. My favorite part of the trip was the boat ride from Newburgh to West Point. It was intriguing to see how much of the river is still open space - in 400 years of settlement, much of the riverfront and the surrounding hills and mountains are still undeveloped or only lightly settled. Seeing this idyllic landscape from the river itself made me gladder that the Storm King Mountain hydroelectric power plant was never built - I cannot imagine how different the river would be.