Rhinebeck!
On the bus to Rhinebeck, after the sun came up
We left terribly early, in the pouring rain. But the die hard fiber fans were there. The bus departed as scheduled at 6:30 a.m. and by 10:30 we were waiting in line to enter the parking lot. Once we unloaded and picked up our tickets, off we went! We had 19 fiber fans on the bus, plus Helen and Diana. Much fun was had by all.
This is the reason we went -- to see the sheep, the alpacas, and to eat all the great food.
Upon arrival, the skies were grey, but no rain or snow. It was cold, but let’s face it folks, it was upstate New York in mid-October. I saw more Clapotis than I could count. Knitters were everywhere wearing a wonderful variety of beautiful handknits, including our own Anmiryam.
This wonderful Lopi sweater was designed by Anmiryam for Ewe and I. The pattern will be available soon.
Anmiryam boarded the bus wearing her recently completed Lopi sweater. Lopi is an Icelandic wool which is light and very warm. Perfect for the cold weather and walking around at Rhinebeck. Everyone was excited to see her creation. There was so much to see and do. Fleece auctions, vendors to see, yarn to buy, yummy foods to eat. I heard that the chicken pot pies cooked by the folks from the CIA (no, not that one, the Culinary Institute of America in nearby Hyde Park, NY) were out of this world, but the line to get one was about an hour long! Some of our fiber friends came back to the bus loaded down with yarn, yarn and more yarn. Some couldn’t wait to start. At least two knitters commenced winding skeins into balls on the bus before we even pulled out of the parking lot at 4 p.m.
Another knitter who couldn't wait
Some knitters couldn't wait to try out their new yarn.
It was a quiet ride home, with lots of knitting accomplished, both on the way there and on the way home. What did I come away with? Well, I didn’t buy any yarn. None. Not a single skein. I bought roving.
Diana didn't by any wool, just roving to spin on the wheel she bought at Rhinebeck.
I bought roving because I wrangled myself a spinning wheel on Ravelry. I made arrangements with another Raveler, from Toronto, to buy her Ashford double treadle Kiwi. Since I’m going to add spinning to my arsenal, what better place to buy materials than Rhinebeck. So my wheel traveled from Toronto to Rhinebeck to Narberh, where it’s living in the shop until my ankle gets better and I can start spinning.
We got home around 8 p.m. after a brief stop to grab a quick dinner. We hit rain again around Exit 7 on the New Jersey Turnpike and it rained on us as we unloaded. Everyone was tired, but had a great time. We can’t wait for next year.