Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1090027
102 This is the time of year when the grip of winter begins to lose its hold. The days become lighter and warmer, and the earth begins to smell sweet and fertile as nature begins to renew herself. Not surprisingly, spring tends to make us want to recharge ourselves as well. To help you do that, we have put together a list of wellness escapes where you can revitalize the body, spirit, and soul and return home feeling better than when you left. The concept of wellness permeates this picturesque New England– style inn. It begins with opportunities to connect with the animal kingdom, which studies have shown can have multiple health benefits, including lowering stress. The inn has partnered with New England Falconry to let you experience these breathtaking birds of prey. After a detailed explanation about what to expect, a master falconer will instruct a trained Harris's hawk to swoop down from the sky and land on your leather-gloved arm (thanks to a nugget of raw meat). At nearby Billings Farm & Museum, which is owned by the same charitable nonprofit as the inn, you can commune with cows, sheep, pigs, draft horses, steer, oxen, and chickens. Back at the resort, which completed a $16.5 million facelift last summer, you can stay in one of eight new sky-blue spa rooms outfitted with eco-friendly linens, luxurious bathrooms, a spa bar of soothing bath amenities, and a yoga mat. The inn's expansive fitness center offers yoga and other classes, while its spa has an abun- dance of body treatments ranging from the citrus espresso body scrub and massage combo to Reiki. In late spring, Kelly Way Gardens, with its new culinary center, offers cooking classes and demonstrations, and the garden supplies fresh organic produce and herbs for the inn's various restaurants and herbal tea served in the garden. Woodstock Inn & Resort 14 The Green, Woodstock, Vermont, woodstockinn.com PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF WOODSTOCK INN & RESORT 102 The Woodstock Inn & Resort just underwent a $16.5 million facelift last summer.