Tour Report

President’s Tour to Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Boylston, Massachusetts

Sponsored by Todd & Ellen DeMaio

December 11, 2011

I’ve been asked to write a tour report for this year’s President’s Tour by our Vice President, Tour Chairman and 2012 President Todd DeMaio. We met 9am at the commuter lot at exit 89 in Moosup, Connecticut. About half of our final group departed from this location. Due to the time of year and the distance to our destination, it had been previously decided to take modern cars for this outing. We started out heading north on I-395 in the direction of Massachusetts. We generally stayed together but Todd and Ellen had the good forethought to handout printed directions to our final destination as some members forgot the tour protocol to watch for the car behind you and to slow down or pull over if you don’t see them. But this wasn’t a big deal as we all caught up to each other and met the remainder of our group at McDonald’s in Oxford, Mass. for a quick pit stop. At this point we had approximately 46 members and about half as many vehicles. We regrouped and continued to head north on I-395 to I-290 through Worcester, Mass. exiting onto route 140 which we followed to Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, Mass. which is the home of the Worcester County Horticultural Society, for their annual "Holly Days". It took a few minutes to enter the property and I wondered what was up until I found out our new president negotiated and received an additional discount at the gate over and above the previously agreed upon rate from the society. I want to thank Todd for that pleasant surprise. This is just another example of his continual service to the members. We continued up the long winding driveway where we were greeted by a metal statue of a bull made from what appeared to be an old oil tank and cast off motorcycle and car parts. Once we entered the main building, we were greeted by the staff and directed to the exhibits. The bulk of the display was held indoors in their greenhouses and galleries. We were treated to beautiful displays of 1000’s of hand-made ornaments crafted from natural materials and also themed Christmas trees that were decorated by such diverse objects as jewelry, hats and shoes. There were also many little displays of fine china and furniture. There was also some entertainment consisting of some enjoyable piano music. Those of us who ventured outside and walked the grounds were taken by the stark but beautiful late fall landscape with views to the west of Lake Wachusett and the Wachusett Mountain Ski Area beyond. Many of us agreed we should return as a group in late spring or summer when the outside gardens and grounds are in full bloom, the statuary is in place and the numerous fountains are operating. After most of the group had a chance to check out the gift shop it was time to gather our group together for a picture on the steps leading to the main buildings (please go to the club’s website, www.yycc.org to view the pictures of this tour). It was now time to leave and head to our next destination which was Point Breeze Restaurant on the lovely Webster Lake in Webster, Mass. for lunch. We were treated to a wonderful pre-selected menu served by their very capable staff. As an additional treat, we were serenaded by their house guitarist who provided some really nice dinner music. All in attendance really seemed to enjoy their meals and the entertainment. I want to thank Todd and Ellen for honoring me with a truly wonderful, well planned tour.