Passing through a variety of owners, the lodge periodically hosted private events up into the 1960s, but at the same time it had become a party destination for local youth. Residents describe how it was not uncommon to hear raucous activity echoing down the mountain after dark, and after one such night in November of 1970, the building burned to its shell.
Greystone's rustic interior was not only a bonus for those visiting during its lifetime, it's a bonus for explorers like us who visit it in death. Atop Nahor Hill still stands much of the original stone frame, steadily being consumed by vegetation.
There's a creepiness that comes with wandering through woods among decades old ruins, particularly in a town you've never been to. Adding to that vibe were these old shoes we unearthed, and my wife and I have seen too many B-horror movies not to recognize that a collection like this would account for every member of some poor, unsuspecting family.
But in addition to creepiness there were yucks to be had, because you're not going to pass an abandoned oven without my wife pretending to pull a hot apple pie out of it.
Scrambling through this debris while on the lookout for rusted nails and poison ivy, it was hard to visualize what a grand place this once must have been. But I found an old postcard on Amazon, and for $5 it shows us the Greystone Lodge in all its glory.
And if Mae is to be believed, the Greystone Lodge was as enjoyable a destination as it claimed. Also, in case any of my children ever read this post, the style of writing you're looking at is called cursive.
One of our favorite places to explore are ruins, as they combine several things we enjoy most in life into one activity. Hiking, exploring, learning about local history - you can check all those boxes off with a single trip to the Greystone Lodge ruins.
Further Reading:
http://archive.antrimlimrik.org/1995/1995-09%20LIMRIK%20Sept%201995.pdf
Those are actually what remains of the cabin, located about 75' downhill from the lodge. After the fire, the owners of the property (a logging company I believe) had the stone foundations, walls, and chimneys all bulldozed, apparently because of a possibility of collapse, and because they knew people would be visiting the site. They didn't want the possible liability.
ReplyDeleteThe cabin burned a couple of years later, due to squatters using it, and trying to stay warm in the winter.
Thank you for this information. I wondered why the ruins felt smaller than the picture of the lodge in the postcard. Glad to know another piece of the puzzle :)
DeleteNot squatters - a family with four children who had permission lived there at the time of the chimney fire that destroyed the caretakers cabin
DeleteReally? Are you sure? I thought that the cabin burned sometime in the winter, so the fireplace would be the only source of heat, unless someone brought up some kind of wood stove (which would not have been easy to get there). It just doesn't seem plausible that a family would be living there in wintertime, under what would be very difficult conditions, even for one person. Over the years, that chimney would definitely have built up a supply of wood smoke residue, a perfect scenario for a chimney fire.
DeleteIs it ok to metal detect the area if holes are covered and nothing gets damaged?
ReplyDeleteSorry, I don't metal detect and don't know the rules :)
DeleteThanks for the info and pics! My girlfriend and I visited Nahor Hill today.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear it, thanks for the comment!
DeleteThank you for sharing…you’re so lucky to have this history
ReplyDeletemy family lived down Pleasant st just down from there saw the buildings from my grandparent's yard. It was so sad when it was destroyed.
ReplyDelete