The following is a post from Gell Center Director of Operations and Office Manager, Kathy Potetti:
Writers & Books Gell Center of the Finger Lakes is closed for the season, and re-opens in early April 2013.
Writers & Books Gell Center of the Finger Lakes is our Retreat Center located in the Finger Lakes Region, about 10 minutes from Bristol Mountain Ski Center. It’s truly a world onto itself. Visiting the Gell Center is a respite from reality, it allows writers to finish novels, playwrights to finish writing plays, songwriters the opportunity to complete lyrics, and that’s only a portion of it!
We also provide a welcoming and inspiring setting for meetings, retreats, weddings and conferences. The Gell Center’s facilities provide the perfect environment for a creative and memorable retreat, meeting or special event. Consider this location for your event next year!
We have four venues to choose from: The Gell House, which is a furnished “cottage” surrounded by a beautifully landscaped yard and acres of woodlands. It consists of two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, dining room and kitchen and has WIFI. This retreat location is perfect to write, study, read and reflect. We also have a journal to capture people’s experiences while there.
The Gleason Lodge is located on a secluded hillside with a magnificent view of the Bristol Valley. The great room provides an inspiring meeting place with its stone fireplace, high ceiling, and bookshelf-lined wall. This can accommodate up to 74 people for a social gathering, 50 people for a day-long meeting/seminar/workshop. The dining area can seat 25 people comfortably around its four tables. It has a commercially equipped kitchen, and is completely handicapped-accessible.
We have rustic retreat facilities also; we have a 200 square foot Treehouse, often referred to as the “classroom in the sky” it’s a “green” project, and has an outside deck providing beautiful views of the nearby stream and surrounding woods, it’s surrounded by a cathedral of trees of many sizes and types. This was built in June 2005 with New Energy Works former board member Jonathan Orpin leading the way, plus a group of interested builders and writers coming together for a week to build it.
The Thoreau Cabin is the exact dimensions of Thoreau’s Cabin at Walden Pond, and is nestled in the woods. This can accommodate one or two people that enjoy a rustic camping experience. Lastly, we have two tent platforms each equipped with heavy-duty muslin canvas tents that can accommodate one or two people each.
Come see for yourself when we re-open in the spring, or contact Kathy Pottetti, Gell Center Director of Operations & Programming at kathyp@wab.org.
What a wonderful place — and I’m so fortunate to have experienced it!
Feel free to visit us when we reopen in April 2013! Hope to see you there!