West Stockbridge lies between Stockbridge and the New York border, only 40 minutes from the capital district but a world away, with hills, ponds, and streams beckoning the city dweller with visions of the countryside. There is something about a village (pop. 1,650) with a small river in the middle of it: that would be the Williams River, flowing through the town beneath flower-bedecked bridges as if it were the Arno of the Berkshires. You must admit, it’s picturesque — and pleasantly walkable. Don’t let the dreaminess of the setting deceive you, though,...
