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Once famous as America’s wilderness, it’s no wonder that a region so vivid with natural beauty, so enticing to the senses, so abundant in the fullness of each passing season, should weather changing tastes and fancies to rise, in one renaissance after another, to become the destination of choice. Seekers of inspiration, reflection, creativity, authenticity, challenge, fortune, and beauty have, time and again, been drawn to the Catskills.
Travelers in the Catskills have shaped the history of the region, even as the streams and rivers, mountains and forests have shaped the majestic landscape. From enlightened and skillful Native Americans, to pioneering early immigrants, dreamy and aesthetic Victorian elite, philosophers and counter-culturalists, artists and robber barons, educators and adventurers and entrepreneurs, radical thinkers, extreme athletes, and soulful sojourners, all have taken in the fragrant mountain air and pure lake waters. Some have left their mark.
The Hudson River School of Painting put the breathtaking scenery of the Catskill region on canvas. John Burroughs, pioneering naturalist and conservationist, preserved the sanctity of this wild region for generations. The Rockefellers, the Gherrys and the Ghoulds built resorts for the privileged and matched the untamed extravagance of nature with orderly architectural beauty. As if to a magnet, poets, musicians, dancers and philosophers have flocked to Woodstock since the turn of the twentieth century.
The Catskills provide the perfect environment in which to find yourself, or lose yourself. Rediscover history in the stone houses of Hurley. Lose track of time flyfishing at Beaverkill Stream. Catch your breath at the snowy summit of the diamond slope at Belleayre Mountain. Abandon your inhibitions along the Shawangunk Wine Trail. Add to your collection with a treasure from the Mountain Culture Festival. Check out, turn off the cell phone and soak up a treatment at one of the region’s many spas and resorts.
Even now, the proximity to New York City and easy accessibility from other major Eastern cities makes the Catskills an ideal refuge from the daily grind. Find rejuvenating solitude, plan a romantic escape, give the family a thrill, or, as in centuries before, meander through the villages rubbing elbows with the famous.
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