Saturday 3/27 was cloudy and chilly with occasional scattered snow flurries. But the roads were clear and we headed out for the Spring 2015 edition of the biannual Hudson Valley Yarn Crawl.

On the first day of the Crawl weekend, we stayed on the west side of the Hudson River in Ulster County, roaming from one end to the other.

First stop – White Barn Farm in New Paltz. Paula, the owner, set up a needle felting station where visitors could make their own Easter Bunny.

White Barn Farm is noted for its selection of locally produced yarn and roving including their own “Heaven,” a blend of the farm’s Cormo sheep’s wool plus alpaca and silk for a beautiful soft yarn. Paula with her art background has a great eye for color. She kettle dyes skeins of the yarn in her unique colorways.

Next headed north to Saugerties, near the northern end of the county, and Pinewoods Farm Wool Shop, nestled, not surprisingly, among the pines out in the country.

Tina, the owner, had a fun activity for yarn crawlers-an Easter egg hunt. She hid colorful plastic eggs around the shop, on the shelves, under skeins of yarn, next to a row of tape measures. The more you looked, the more eggs you noticed. But you could only pick one. Inside was a paper cut-out flower which told what you won. My prize was a red “Knit Happy “ project bag which will be perfect for the upcoming smaller spring and summer projects.

In addition to an array of yarns, Pinewood Studios offers a wide range of spinning fibers, rug hooking supplies, books and DVDs.

Friendly owners, lovely shops, lots of color, what more could you want on a cloudy day.