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The Sniders, Hotel Owners Who Give Back to the Community

This past Saturday on the island of Martha’s Vineyard, the circa-1913 Capawock Theater reopened for the first time in years. Soon to reopen in less than a month is the historic Strand Theater in Edgartown. The person to thank for this monumental effort is Mark Snider, founding director of the newly formed Martha’s Vineyard Theater Foundation. He recently persuaded singer Carly Simon to join his board and help finish raising the $1 million needed for renovations. 

 
Snider and his wife Gwenn are known on both Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket for their philanthropic efforts. As owners of The Winnetu Oceanfront Resort in South Beach, they always insisted that clients pay an extra resort fee that goes to a local hospital. On Nantucket, the Sniders purchased the dormant shell of the circa-1894 Point Breeze hotel in 2012 and converted it into an upscale property now called The Nantucket Hotel. A bigger gift to the locals, however, is the 20,000 square foot expansion of the Boys & Girls Club set to open this summer. As president of Stanmar Inc., an athletic-facility design and construction firm based in Wayland, Snider, 58, knows a thing or two about building a gym. I’ve had the good fortune to meet the Sniders while penning stories on their properties over the years and they’ve always been incredibly passionate about their latest projects at their resorts. It doesn’t surprise me at all that they want to give back to the islands they cherish. 
 

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Marsh, Billings, Rockefeller—Quite the Trio

“Every middle-aged man who revisits his birthplace after a few years of absence looks upon another landscape than that which formed the theater of his youthful toils and pleasures,” said George Perkins Marsh in 1847 in a speech at the Agricultural Society of Rutland County, Vermont. Growing up in Woodstock, Vermont, Marsh had seen three-quarters of Vermont’s forest cover destroyed for potash, lumber, crops, and pasture.  17 years later, Marsh would delve further into these egregious practices in his epic book on the American environment, Man and Nature. Reflecting on what he had seen, Marsh wrote about a concept of sound husbandry where men could mend nature.

A generation younger, Frederick Billings was deeply touched by Marsh’s writings and, in 1869, purchased Marsh’s childhood home in order to make the estate a model of progressive farming and forestry. Beginning in the 1870s, Billings designed a forest with numerous tree plantations and constructed a 20-mile network of carriage roads to showcase his work. On the lowlands, Billings developed a state-of-the-art dairy. In 1982, Billings granddaughter, Mary French Rockefeller and her husband, the conservationist Laurance Rockefeller, established the farmland as the Billings Farm & Museum. In June 1998, the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller Mansion and the surrounding forest became the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park.

Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller is the first unit of the National Park System to focus on the theme of conservation history and stewardship, the main concern of Marsh and Billings. With their emphasis on the careful cooperation of man and nature, they had the utmost desire to pass land on, undiminished, even enhanced, to the next generation and generations to come. The Park Service will continue a program of forest management on the site, offering workshops on how to use the forest most efficiently.

Tour the exhibits in the Carriage Barn, then hit the carriage path trails like my family did this past weekend through Billings’ dream 550-acre forest. 11 of Billings’ original plantings remain including groves of Norwegian spruce and Scottish Pine from the 1880s, mixed in with the an indigenous Vermont forest of white pine, red pine, and maples. The longest carriage path trail circles around The Pogue, a shimmering body of water backed by the foliage of Mt. Tom.
 

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The Pros of Hiring a Private Guide on Safari

On safari, you have the choice of booking a lodge and going out on game drives with their respective guides or hiring a company like Epic Private Journeys where former lodge owner and Tanzanian native Rob Barbour will act as a private guide. Obviously, there’s an extra cost involved, but if you’re splurging for this amazing opportunity, it’s important to do it right. The lodge guides we had the past two weeks were hit or miss. Laser-eyed Lazarus at Lamai Serengeti was brilliant, spotting a leopard high up in a tree after a kill and a male lion hidden in the tall grass. We watched as other Land Rovers simply drove past, not seeing the amazing sights we were witnessing. At other lodges, however, I could barely understand the guide’s English, and some couldn’t get the right position for getting the best photo, like a cheetah resting under a tree at sunset. 

 
Rob works with the driver and guide, telling him when to stop, spotting lions others had missed, and giving us a well-rounded description of each animal, including probable age. Just as important, he was with us practically the entire trip, helping with travel logistics. Don’t take this for granted. There are no airports in the Serengeti, Grumeti, or Mwiba, simply strips of pavement for small airplanes to land. So you better double-check to see exactly when your plane is arriving the next day or you won’t be leaving. Most of all you develop a relationship with a private guide that lasts far beyond one trip. Rob travels all around east and southern Africa, from Uganda to Botswana, with clients who request his services year after year. Travel with Rob and you have a genuine friend for life, one who has an encyclopedic knowledge of the African bush. 
 
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Peru Week with Abercrombie and Kent: Two Magical Nights at Sol y Luna in Sacred Valley

After touring the historical core of Lima, including the impressive Museo Larco and its vast collection of pre-Colombian art, we flew to Cuzco and headed onward to Sacred Valley. Our lodging for the next two nights was Sol y Luna, where spacious casitas, all with fireplaces and some with hot tubs, dot the grounds of this majestic landscape, surrounded by the serrated ridges of the Andes. I loved it here. Everywhere you walk are flowering shrubs and tall cacti in bloom, another photo to be taken, especially when large hummingbirds would fly into the golden flowers of my back deck. Vases of yellow roses were also found inside the casitas, along with wonderful local painting and sculpture. At night, our group of 18 met in a ranch-style setting for cocktail hour and then a sublime dinner, worthy of the property’s Relais and Chateau rating. We started with pisco mojitos, created with the sweet local mint grown in these parts. Then we dined on trout carpaccio and beef tenderloin, finishing with a dessert of tres leches. This is one Virtuoso lodging that I will recommend highly to our clients. 

 
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Family Fun with the Trustees of Reservations at Martha’s Vineyard

Few folks realize that the Trustees are the largest private owner of farmland in Massachusetts with five working community farms across the state serving over 1,300 CSA members. Now you can add Martha’s Vineyard’s FARM Institute to that growing portfolio. This spring, the Trustees announced their plans to integrate with the Katama-based farm, known for their educational programs and summer institute that attracts close to 1000 children who are interested in learning about agriculture. Expect even more exciting program offerings at the Farm Institute to happen in 2016. 


The Trustees has a longstanding commitment to the preservation of open space on Martha’s Vineyard. Start your tour of the island with a short ferry ride over to Chappaquiddick at their Japanese-style garden called Mytoi. Azaleas, daffodils, dogwoods, and rhododendrons line the fresh water creeks. On July 10th from 4:30 pm to 6 pm, kids will get to help restock the garden pond with goldfish. 

A short stroll from Mytoi and you reach the Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge and East Beach. The waters of Cape Poge are one of the best places to birdwatch on the Vineyard. Ospreys, oystercatchers, piping plovers, terns, and the occasional bald eagle nest here. To get a close-up look at the birds, sign up for the 2-hour Wildlife Discovery Kayak Tour with the Trustees that happens daily from 10 am to noon and 2 pm to 4 pm. Or you can simply rent kayaks and venture out on the water for a self-guided paddle. Please note that you don’t need to bring a car to Chappaquiddick. The Trustees offer complimentary van pickup for guided tour participants on the Chappy side of the Chappy Ferry. Call 508-627-3599 for more information and to book your reservation.

Chappy offers one of the most pristine stretches of beach on the island at Wasque Point, also under the helm of the Trustees. Wasque is a great spot to try your luck surfcasting for stripers and blues. Or simply get lost in this glorious seascape by heading out on 1.5 miles of trail. 

Beach lovers will also love Long Point Wildlife Refuge in West Tisbury, where families can spend the day body surfing, swimming in the sheltered ponds, or explore Long Pond Cove by kayak or paddleboard, which are available for rentals. Families can also grab an Exploration Backpack, full of supplies for a day of adventure like binoculars and scavenger hunts. Every Tuesday from 5:30 pm to 7 pm, bring your mat, towel, and water for yoga on the beach. There’s also a chance to go on a moonlight paddle and return to the beach of Long Point for a campfire three nights this summer. 

Another great spot to escape the crowds is Norton Point Beach, just off Katama Road. Be sure to deflate your tires to 15 psi using the air hose next to the entrance before you drive on the sand. Then choose a spot on the beach and savor the serenity.

End your day with a walk through Menemsha Hills. If you scale Prospect Hill, the second highest point on the island, you’ll get spectacular views of the Menemsha Harbor and Gay Head Light, especially during sunset. Also worth checking out is the adjacent 18-acre property, The Brickworks, where clay was once used to manufacture highly sought after bricks that were shipped to Boston, New York and Newport. It’s open to the public for the first time this summer. 

If you’re taking the ferry from New Bedford to the Vineyard, be sure to make a stop at the Allen C. Haskell Public Gardens. Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands once sought gardening advice from the renowned horticulturalist Haskell, so expect to find an exotic showcase of plants and trees surrounding one of New Bedford’s oldest homes. The Trustees acquired the property in 2013 and began a lengthy $2 million overhaul to preserve this cherished urban oasis. 
 
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Voluntourism in Kenya

I’m in Kenya the next two weeks researching a handful of stories. I’d like to share with you the pitches that were accepted as assignments. Given the current worldwide recession, visiting Masai Mara merely to spot the Big Five from your open-air Jeep or quaff sundowners from your luxury tent seems slightly self-indulgent. That’s why luxury tour operator Micato Safaris offers its clients a chance to give back by participating in its partnership with AmericaShare, a nonprofit foundation Micato Safaris established twenty years ago that supplies education, food, clothing and shelter to thousands of children living in the Mukuru slum in Nairobi. Clientele who arrive or depart from Nairobi participate in Micato’s “Lend a Helping Hand on Safari” program. During these one-day philanthropic excursions to the Mukuru slum, travelers visit the community, plant trees, and donate much-needed supplies. More often than not, the inspiration and urge to help out doesn’t end that day. Many Micato Safaris veterans have become involved in AmericaShare’s School Sponsorship program, which enables needy children to attend boarding school in Nairobi. One recent visitor even helped fund the Harambee House and Women’s Centre, a community center and boys’ dormitory run in part by women with HIV.
 

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A Fun Day at the West Baden Springs Hotel in French Lick, Indiana

French Lick, Indiana, might be best known as the boyhood home of basketball hall-of-famer Larry Bird. Pete Dye also helped to put the town on the map by designing a world-class golf course at French Lick Resort. But by far the most remarkable part of the area is the massive six-story domed atrium found at the West Baden Springs Hotel. We spent a night at the hotel last week before dropping our daughter off at Indiana University.  Dubbed the “Eighth Wonder of the World” when the historic mineral springs-based resort opened in 1902, the 200-foot-long atrium is a joy to view now that the current owner has poured in more than $500 million in renovations. Book a room with a balcony overlooking the atrium, like we did, and you’ll spend a good amount of time staring up in awe at the grand dome. Then walk the gardens, where deer can be found nibbling at the bushes around limestone buildings that once housed the therapeutic spring water. That evening, we took a short train ride over to neighboring French Lick Resort and grabbed birthday dinner at the wonderful 1875: The Steakhouse. Many of the travelers we met at the resort were from nearby Louisville, only a 75-minute drive from French Lick. 

 

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