SMALL-TOWN TREASURE TROVESMALL-TOWN TREASURE TROVE

Lying low out in Sullivan County in the western Catskills is the birthplace of American fly fishing, LIVINGSTON MANOR, a cozy hamlet, population barely breaking four figures. Start out at The Catskill Fly Fishing Center & Museum, featuring a bamboo rod-making shop and a tribute to globally known local fly-fishing legend Joan Wulff. Book lessons and guided trips at DETTE FLIES, the world’s oldest family-run fly shop. If you feel worn out afterward, Sunshine Colony has homey nooks for a glass of wine and snacks.       

Nearly two centuries after Thomas Cole painted the Hudson River onto the map, a world-class collection of contemporary museums and art sites ink a bold line to trace on both sides of the water.

 Begin where modernist vision meets the landscape itself at STORM KING ART CENTER in New Windsor. Here, 500 rolling acres flanked by mountainsides are continually reshaped for outsize works by David Smith, Richard Serra, Mark di Suvero, Maya Lin and, most recently, Sarah Sze, among others. (Rent bikes at the entrance to make passage among the giants a breezy pleasure). Swing south to Bear Mountain Bridge and up picturesque Highway 9D to MANITOGA, the former estate of the American industrial designer Russel Wright, in Garrison. 

Book a tour of DRAGON ROCK, Wright’s circa-1961 light-filled house, studio and surrounding quarry landscape, designed with architect David Leavitt, where both men’s admiration of Japanese architecture and landscape design create sublime integration with the natural world.

Move on in time for coffee and a bite to eat along the charming 19th-century streetscape of artist-encampment Cold Spring, just 20 minutes north, which is also home to MAGAZZINO ITALIAN ART, an elegantly fashioned new arrival. Opened in 2017 by private collectors and spouses Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu, Magazzino is a 20,000-square-foot showcase for their collection, from Italy’s post-1960s arte povera movement through present day. 

And no better finish to miles of museum-going than Dia:Beacon, the modern-art jewel in the town of that name. Dia:Beacon introduced the world to reusing massive industrial spaces as museums—in this case, reinvigorating an old Nabisco box-printing facility. Exit through a bookshop that’s sumptuous with catalogs, poetry and artists’ books.

New Paltz: Equal parts college town and adventure gateway, this town wears its multiple personalities affably. See the New York Center for Jungian Studies across the street from a modern witchcraft shop. Set off down the twisty village streets, lined with historic homes, to courtyard-blessed HUCKLEBERRY restaurant and LAGUSTA’S LUSCIOUS CAFÉ! (house-made chocolates and a zine library). There’s a healthy tie-dye-and-patchouli presence here by way of SUNY New Paltz, but it’s tempered by INQUIRING MINDS and BARNER bookshops, streetwear at Crust and Magic, and Rock and Snow, a top spot for climbers.

Amid the sheer, spectacular Shawangunk Mountains, MOHONK PRESERVE has 75 miles of carriage roads and trails. Classic routes include the Undercliff-Overcliff Loop (where you can watch rock climbers on belay), BONTICOU CRAG and TABLE ROCKS. Note that hikers pay a day-use fee. 

The valley’s namesake town, Hudson saw the biggest net in-migration of any U.S. metro during 2020, as city dwellers escaped to its wide-open spaces and storybook-like downtown. But it was already changing in ways exciting and complicated (two groups to look into: Future Hudson and Hudson/Catskill Housing Coalition). Balance a visit with new and old. Follow a rye scone or warming rice porridge at CAFE MUTTON with a walk down the HENRY HUDSON WATERFRONT PARK to see a still-active lighthouse from 1874. Break for lunch at The Cascades, a locally loved deli since ’93, before a WARREN STREET stroll with a stop at beer bar-bookstore Spotty Dog, or meander for tropical libations at LIL’ DEB’S OASIS. Listen for music as you pass by The Park Theatre, a 1920s theater slated for demo but saved by Hudson Valley son Shanan Magee.