Willow appears to be a sweet spot in the Catskills, as it’s neither too secluded nor too developed, and this pretty house sits on a particularly prime piece of land. The evening of our arrival, I stood in the front yard and just listened—there wasn’t a single sound that didn’t come from a living creature. I recorded four whole minutes of organic pastured peacefulness on my iPhone, just because I could, and didn’t hear a single car or aircraft for the duration of the recording. Just the quiet and calm I’d been hoping for.
The house is warmly furnished and beautifully appointed. The kitchen is nicely laid out and had a better array of spices, knives, and pans than most vacation rentals. It was easy to cook there. All the fixtures in the house are modern and in working order, though there are so many light switches I’m not sure I could ever learn them all. (I’m fairly certain that if you flip them in just the right combination, a hidden door opens to a secret temple.) The house was bigger than we needed, and we barely set foot on the second floor, except to use the extra bathroom. The sauna was an unusual treat for us--just the thing for a cool rainy afternoon. My wife also enjoyed the hammock in the screened-in porch, where she sat with her laptop for a few hours one afternoon and got some work done. The windows and fans allow for good cross-ventilation in the house as a whole. Even though a couple of days were hot, we never needed to run the air conditioner in the bedroom.
My only minor issue was the bed, which is a double and not a queen—probably fine for most couples if one of them doesn’t suffer from Periodic Limb Movement Disorder. My wife mostly slept on the futon couch in the living room, which was reportedly very comfortable. The mattress was also a bit firm for my taste, although not uncomfortably so, and the upstairs mattress is even firmer.
But despite a few very minor quibbles, we loved the house and the surrounding area. Do yourself a favor and read the helpful and thorough notes that Karyn provides on everything from using the facilities to a guide to the Catskills, as there’s lots of useful information. Karyn is also extremely responsive, a very good host.