Music
In the studio. The area is home to lots of recording studios, each with their own styles and costs. Shout outs to Northfire, The Rotary, Zing, Signature Sounds, Goofy Goober, Sonelab, Spirithouse, Dead Air, Shoestring, Night Train, and Slaughterhouse.
Alternative venues. It’s great to see a show at Mountain Park or Symphony Hall, the Academy of Music, Mullins Center, or MassMutual Center. But hitting a small venue, with a packed house, cheap drinks, and loud music creates a community within a party. So, thanks to the Shea, The Nest, Bing!, Gateway City Arts, Flywheel, Arts Block, The Tank, Mocha Maya’s, The Vouz, MaxCap, the Still, the Waterfront, Parlor Room, and many more for providing hot spots to see local acts.
Variety. This isn’t a one-note Valley. The music scene here is wide and varied, but with serious cred in jazz, punk, grunge, alt, gypsy, jam, and folk.
Festivals. Hosting festivals before they were “festies,” Western Mass has a slew of multi-day concerts. Kicking off and closing the season, with festivals on Memorial and Labor day weekends, is Strangecreek in Greenfield, a crunchy old hippie’s delight. Then there’s the big boy, Green River Fest, also in Greenfield, in June with more than 50 acts on multiple stages — plus balloon rides. Apple Jam, Pig Jam, Jazz in July, D’Jango in June, Springfield Roots Jazz Festival, Frendly Fest, Springfield’s Indie Soul Fest, and Freshgrass are all coming up.
Meet the musicians. They work, live, and play here. Also, they often get a drink after a set here.
Trails
Mass Audubon Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary. 127 Combs Road, Easthampton
Barton Cove. 82 French King Highway, Gill
The Seven Sisters (via the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail). Hadley and South Hadley
Robinson State Park. 462 North St., Feeding Hills
Chesterfield Gorge.
Amherst
Ultimate. It doesn’t take a genius to invent a game based on throwing random objects around — Lord knows enough teenagers do that already — but Amherst College turned it into a true sport in the mid-’60s, when students there established the rules of team Frisbee. Today, it’s inescapable — especially on beautiful afternoons in pretty parks (like, say, the Amherst Commons).
The Brickyard. This conservation area is an easy bike ride from town, a lot less trafficked in summer than Puffer’s Pond and a sublime place to birdspot and find some inner peace. Plus it has an excellent swimming hole, complete with a bridge to jump off of, but we won’t tell you exactly where it is — go find it yourself.
The Fine Arts Center. It’s not just one of the best-programmed performance and arts venues in Western Mass. As a cultural destination, the FAC brings in business and visitors. It offers wide-ranging arts and education programs to the Five Colleges. It’s a huge cultural library and resource center for teachers and students everywhere. Best of all: it features work by BFA and MFA students at the university.
A way with words. From the simple eloquence of Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson to the bizarro candid essays of Augusten Burroughs to the next generation of homegrown writers, Amherst is the cornerstone of the Valley’s reputable history as a place for poetry and well-crafted language. That’s bolstered every year by programs like the Juniper Summer Writing Institute at UMass, local writing workshops and retreats hosted by Writing Full Tilt, and social writing groups like Amherst Writers & Artists.
The Black Sheep: Always, and forever, the best black-and-white cookies around.
Fashion
Work. It varies office by office, but in general the Valley has a more relaxed attitude toward work attire. We’re not awash in black suits, shoulder pads, shined pumps, pin-straight hair, and tailored pants. As long as there are no holes, of the unironic variety, in your togs and buttons somewhere on your outfit, you’re kind of good.
Ink. Wearing your heart on your sleeve is taken literally around here. The area is home to scores of talented tattoo artists and thousands of people eager to commission permanent masterpieces.
Vintage. We love thrift shopping. It’s where all the best T-shirts, jeans, jackets, and hats can be found.
Art. We’re a community of individuals who value fresh expression and that means there’s a big market for custom, wearable pieces of art. Galleries and converted mill buildings up and down I-91 are stocked with artisan jewelry, scarves, knits, belts, ties, and pins. It’s pretty common to see people wearing hand-poured silver earrings underneath Red Sox caps, is what we’re saying.
Converse All-Stars. Never. Let. Go.
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What We Love: Advertisers Speak
“As a kayaker, biker, and general outdoor junkie, I love how close great outdoor experiences are to the culture and entertainment options in Northampton, Amherst, Springfield and Brattleboro. It’s easy to ride for several hours during the day on great mountain bike trails or go on an exciting zip line trip and then be in Amherst for dinner and a movie that evening.”
— Bruce Lessels
owner, Zoar Outdoor
“This Valley is the perfect place to launch new creative adventures and cherish old traditions. The natural and cultural environment here is writ large in the lives and on the faces of those who have chosen this as their real home place.”
— Lucinda Kidder,
co- founder and managing director, Silverthorne Theater Company
“The Pioneer Valley is unique with its diversity of culture as well as its surrounding beauty of nature. I wouldn’t want to live and work anywhere else because opportunities are around every corner — economically, educationally and socially.”
— Jill Vincent-Lapan
director of marketing, Canon Real Estate
“Most of all, we love the people who live here in the Valley. They are open-minded, friendly, nature-loving and forward thinking. Our kind of folks!”
— Lilly Moss
manager, Adam & Eve
“We love that the farms in the Valley provide us with high quality, fresh vegetables. Mi Tierra means my land and we strive to live up to that.”
— Dora Saravia
owner, Mi Tierra Restaurant
“I love the Valley for its conscious and bountiful nourishment for the mind, body and soul.”
— Chris Menegoni
owner, Great Falls Harvest Restaurant
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“Western Massachusetts has a wealth of arts and culture organizations up and down the Pioneer Valley. There’s always something great to do here.”
— Laurie Nivison
director of marketing, Historic Deerfield
“My favorite thing about the Valley is the small business environment. So many skilled people continuing to follow their passions and succeed.”
— Alex Abrams
division manager, The Enthusiast
“We love the Valley because we are a city with small town values. Our residents truly appreciate participating in a community for everyone.”
— Abaz Cecunjanin
owner, Terrazza Restaurant
“I’m continuously impressed with the tremendously high quality of our local performers. From emerging musical acts, to theater, to spoken word, the Pioneer Valley is a genuine hotbed of world-class creative artists.”
— Dr. Steven Goldsher
owner, The Arts Block
“We love the fact that the people of the Pioneer Valley like to shop local. As a business owner we appreciate getting to know our neighbors.”
— Dave Satkowski
owner, New England Meetinghouse Design
“There is so much to love about the art and culture of the Valley, but most of all, we love the local independent spirit.”
— Shari Zarin
owner, Altiplano
“What I love about the Valley is the friendly and forward-thinking people. The area also attracts so many people – young and old — with its changing seasons and things to do in terms of recreational activities. It is rich in culture and history, offers high-quality educational institutions and has a diverse business community, cottage industry and craftspeople — anything can happen here.”
— Michael (Mick) Kittredge III
president, Kringle Candle Company
Greenfield
Beacon Field. Most towns around here have an open space as important as Beacon Field is to Greenfield. Even so, there’s something special about this big, humble expanse of grass. It’s hard to put into words why Beacon Field ties local families and generations together so strongly. But when you’re out there on your picnic blanket at night, munching potato salad and watching the Fourth of July fireworks overhead, it all sinks in.
The Garden Cinema. No, we don’t have an XD screen. No, our chairs aren’t leather. No, they don’t recline. Get outta town — this isn’t a cruise line. It’s an old movie theater. It’s banged-up, but it’s still standing. You can get in for five bucks. It’s got pinball. You know half the people in there on any given day. It’s perfect.
Great places to stock up. Ryan and Casey Liquors has an excellent selection and really knowledgeable staff. Foster’s Market is one the best, most endearing old independent grocery stores in the Pioneer Valley. BJ’s kicks wholesale butt. And no-frills storefronts like Bootlegger’s and The Outlet Store offer supplies, coats, shoes, and everything else to suit your all-terrain, all-weather needs.
Village Pizza. It’s not the only pizza in town. But it’s one of the best places for a pepperoni pie for miles around, and it’s pretty easy on the wallet. Don’t go for the ambiance — stop in for a deeply delicious comfort slice or two.
That big fake tree trunk in the Stop & Shop plaza that’s also an ATM. Seriously, what is that?
Science and technology
Tech Foundry. This nonprofit is on a mission to make Western Mass the Northeast’s tech capital and provide youth with the IT skills they need to succeed in the modern economic landscape. Need for tech skilled workers is growing across all industry sectors, according to the Springfield Economic Development Council, and teaching these skills to area youth goes a long way toward insuring the city’s economic future.
TechSpring. Baystate’s “technology innovation center” is enabling tech companies in the Valley and beyond to make use of Baystate Health’s vast wealth of healthcare data to develop and test new technologies for the medical field. The aim is to accelerate development by connecting healthcare professionals and technologists.
High performance computing. Projects like Holyoke’s Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center (MGHPCC) is a collaboration between the state, EMC2, Cisco, several high-powered academic institutions. The center is supporting research by running millions of virtual experiments related to the development of new drugs and materials, analyzing data sets from crop pathogens to gravity waves, and running complex climate modelling systems, right here in our own backyard.
Growing opportunities. UMass’ Center for Data Science just received $15 million from MassMutual to build up its data science and cybersecurity programs. HCC’s $10 million Center for Life Sciences amounts to a big boost for accessible life science education. Delcie Bean, serial tech entrepreneur and Paragus Strategic IT CEO, says he’s excited about the number of tech-focused startups that are coming out of the Valley Venture Mentors, a program which helps local businesses get started.
Innovation districts and revitalization. Holyoke and Springfield, both “Gateway cities,” have embraced innovation districts as an urban planning model. They’re the perfect examples of cities that have struggled since their manufacturing bases declined, but there are plenty of reasons to feel hopeful about revitalization efforts. The idea behind an innovation district is that a city which may be lagging in employment but has a lot of great existing architecture gets wired up with the kind of things that tech companies need to hit the ground running, creating the base for a modernized economy. All of the businesses and nonprofits mentioned in this list, and many more, are working hard at brightening the future in Western Mass.
Vibes
Cottage Street in Easthampton. The street is wicked fun at night. That’s no news flash — the downtown street has some well-established spots to get food and drink, like the Brass Cat and Amy’s Place. But it’s more eclectic than ever along that strip, with options for ice cream, speakeasy cocktails, live music, and cheap pints. And the recently renovated waterfront walk along Nashawannuck Pond provides Cottage Street’s night crowd with a little extra space to get out under the stars. Just be careful not to get lost in the Beer-muda Triangle.
Ale House. The vibe at the Ale House on Worthington Street in Springfield is straight out of Cheers. People are welcomed convivialy — regulars by name — the box of Primo’s Pizza at the end of the bar is for everybody, and the drinks are so cheap there’s a well-established custom of buying rounds for new friends. Plus beer pong and a great jukebox selection.
Another sentimental favorite. The Montague Mill building, for its sun-soaked floors, rooms of books, the calm hideaway corners of the Lady Killigrew Cafe, the refined quiet of the Alvah Stone restaurant, and the building’s upstairs concert space, which is the Valley’s best place to watch a show on a funky old couch.
Downtown Shelburne Falls. As quintessential as a Rockwell painting, as friendly as your grandma’s house, and as charmingly historic as, well, pretty much everything else in this neck of the Hilltowns. Serene, stuffed with ephemera, and sprinkled with great food spots — from the cheap to-go tacos at Ponte to the French white-tablecloth treatment at Gypsy Apple, Bridge Street is so evocative of a bygone era that Hollywood can’t leave it alone (recent films shot there include Labor Day and The Judge). Did we mention the candlepin bowling?
Hadley farms. Steer yourself out of the fray that is Route 2 between Amherst and Northampton and head down Hadley’s South Maple Street, and all your commuter stress falls away. Hadley’s gorgeous farmland unfolds on all sides as you point your car in the direction of the Holyoke Range, which sits solid and green against a big open sky. The drive is so nice, you might be tempted to glide on past Flayvors of Cook Farm — but, of course, you should probably stop for ice cream.
Pretentiousness
Properly pronounced words.
Excellent cheese.
An insane variety of craft beer.
The ubiquity of the lime green Prius.
No shortage of reclaimed, repurposed, refurbished stools on which to sit.
Southern Vermont
Sandglass Theater. This unique theater is all about puppets. Sandglass creates new work and hosts other artists to promote the art of puppetry and expose audiences to diverse styles and traditions of doll manipulation. Funk-ay.
Book stores and exchanges. Have you ever gone to Vermont and not come back with a sack of used books? We haven’t. If you’re looking for a book sale or exchange, Southern Vermont has you covered. Check out upcoming sales here: http://www.booksalefinder.com/VT.html.
Ice cream. Thanks to its many dairy farms, Southern Vermont may have the highest concentration of amazing soft serve and ice cream in the nation. If you’re a frozen freak, you’ve got to take a road trip along the border and hit up these places: Wilcox, Walpole, Fast Eddie’s, Scoops, Blueberry Haus, Ice Cream Machine, Stewart’s Shop, Ben & Jerry’s, Arlington Dairy Barn, Billy T’s, Tastee Freez, Northfield Creamie. Really, we could go on.
Rock River. Where else are you going to find a sanctioned nude, gay swimming hole? On the outskirts of Brattleboro, is Gay Beach, a clothing optional area within the Rock River Preservation.
Hamilton Falls. Not far off Route 30, Hamilton Falls in Jamaica may be the most awe-inspiring falls in the state. The waters of the Cobb Brook plummet 125 feet down a steep rock face and splash down in the West River. It’s gorgeous and photogenic, but stick to the path, the rocks are slippery and dangerous to climb — 10 people have died on the falls. No swimming is permitted.
Local farming
Barstow’s Longview Farm. This is what the future of family farming looks like. The farm utilizes a human-free robotic milking system to streamline the process and improve the comfort of the animals. They’ve installed a closed-loop anaerobic digester to convert their farm and food waste into heat, electricity, and fertilizer. Sound cutting edge? Actually, it’s a lot like a cow’s stomach. Microorganisms convert the waste into gas that powers an engine, reducing waste and environmental impact. Sounds like a win to us.
Legacy of working the land. Western Mass is regarded to have some of the richest agricultural soil in the world. Hadley lays claim to the title of “Asparagus Capital of the World” and many dairy farms have been handed down generation to generation. No farms, no food; we get that here.
CISA. We love the variety of locally produced farm products that are accessible to us in the Valley. The South Deerfield-based nonprofit Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA), which has been performing its mission to support local farmers for over 20 years, lists 275 Western Mass farms on its website. Want honey? Sure, check out Warm Colors Apiary, or one of the many others throughout the region. Mushrooms? Yup, Hadley Mushroom Farm has you covered. Meat and dairy? You’ve got options. Veggies? Please.
Nuestras Raíces and Urban Agriculture. Agriculture isn’t just for rural places. In fact, an increasing number of urban farms are springing up around the area. The nonprofit Nuestras Raíces has been promoting sustainable urban “agri-culture” (get it?) in Holyoke since 1992. They run a 3-acre farm and 13 community gardens around town, two of which are devoted to teaching youth agriculture skills. This organization is doing great things in Holyoke.
Home gardening. It seems like gardens are popping up on any open patch of dirt in Western Mass as more people than ever are growing at least a small portion of their own food. Whether it’s at an urban or community garden, or just out in the backyard, people in the Valley are getting their hands in the dirt. That’s a good thing not only from a sustainability perspective, but from a personal and community perspective, too.
History
Did a monkey burn down Springfield City Hall? In 1905 Springfield’s City Hall burned to the ground in less than an hour. A New York Times article at the time said the $50,000 hall was completely destroyed and employees barely escaped the blaze. The fire was caused, allegedly, by a monkey who was hanging out in Assembly Hall as part of an ongoing fair, knocked over an unattended kerosene lamp. The charges against the monkey didn’t stick, however, and the true cause of the fire was never nailed down.
Dinosaurs. The first dinosaur tracks in North America were discovered right here in the Valley. Credit goes to Pliny Moody, the South Hadley farm boy who stumbled upon them in a family field circa 1800. Thanks, Pliny! The tracks are all over the Valley, as it turns out — Greenfield, Turners Falls, Holyoke — preserved in what was once subtropical swamp soil, about 200 million years ago.
Sojourner Truth. The abolitionist and women’s rights activist escaped slavery in upstate New York and toured her lectures around the country, but it was Northampton’s abolitionist-founded Association of Education and Industry that attracted her to the Valley in 1844. In 1850, she bought a home in what would become Florence for $300, the same year she spoke at the first National Women’s Rights Convention, held in Worcester.
Native American heritage. King Philip’s War, the bloody string of sieges waged between 1675 and 1678 throughout New England, marked a big shift away from 10,000 years of Native American culture toward small-town Anglo-American life. We can’t change the past, but we can rewind the tape, and study and honor what we learn. Local programs like the Nolumbeka Project in Greenfield, which works to preserve tribal heritage, and events like the annual Pocumtuck Homelands Festival in Turners Falls, help to make this possible.
Ghosts. Not everyone believes in them. But living in homes as old as many are around here, everyone seems to have a personal story about an encounter with the otherworldly. Savor them or scrap them — they still give you chills.
Green
Hampshire College Solar Power. In February 2015, the Hampshire College Board of Trustees approved a plan to generate nearly 90 percent of its electricity from ground-mounted solar arrays, with a goal to reach 100 percent through additional panels on rooftops, parking lot canopies, and research-oriented panels on active farmland.
Living Building Challenge. Hampshire College is back on the list, this time with the K.W. Kern building, which generates its own electricity, collects its own water, and was built avoiding toxic “red list” chemicals using materials from local and regional sources.
The Conway School. This graduate program in sustainable landscape planning and design uses the Valley as its lab and learning space, with students using what they learn to help plan or build regional projects in coordination with conservation agencies, land trusts, citizen groups, municipal planners, and nonprofit organizations. Recent student projects have touched on themes of conservation, food and farms, green cities, regenerative design, and restoration.
Divestment. In May, at the behest of student activists, UMass became the first major public university to divest its endowment from direct holdings in fossil fuels. The decision was made by a unanimous vote of the board of directors of the UMass Foundation, the nonprofit that oversees the campus system’s endowment, which stands at about $770 million.
Permaculture. There’s a lot of it around here. The Permaculture Guild of Western Massachusetts organizes events and a platform for people interested in the sustainable landscaping/farming/gardening method to stay connected. And there are permaculture gardens and farms up for touring at Neustras Raíces, Pink Palace, and Paradise Lot, all of Holyoke; UMass Amherst’s Permaculture Garden outside the Franklin Dining Commons; Tripple Brook Farm and Bioshelter, both of Amherst; Birch Brook Farm in Shelburne; and Hickory Gardens of Leverett.
Miscellaneous
The mural on the back of Pivot Media on Maple Street in Florence. Jim Gipe, Martin Bridge, and Justin Norris painted the image, which depicts a gigantic robin, feet firmly planted in the landscape of the Pioneer Valley, engaging in a tug-of-war with three industrial workers whose drudgery is further enhanced by the smog filled cityscape background behind them.
Buskers. Some street musicians play because they need money. Some just play for fun. Should it really matter who belongs to which group, when it means downtown is lit up with music?
Boswell. Few independent bookstores in theValley can match the cozy, creaky-floored, riverside appeal of Boswell’s Books. And that Shelburne Falls shop has a big leg up (or four) on the competition because it’s also the home of Boswell, the fanciest kitty for miles around. Boswell knows that he (or she — the specific cat has varied over the decades) will get lots of love, hugs, and ear scritches from customers. In return, we are welcomed by a soft furry mascot for all that is good and adorable about local business. Like Mr. Tumnus, roving the thick of the Narnia woods, Boswell is always there to greet us.
The scar left by the 2011 tornado in Monson. How can we love a path of destruction? Because of the way it has healed. Over time the vegetation has slowly begun to come back and the new homes are stunning. The clock tower of the church looks pretty good, too. It reminds us of how the community can come together for good when faced with despair.
The “A” in Calvin. Wherever you are, we love you. Come home soon.•