Hudson River Valley

http://www.norfolkwindmills.com/images/tappanzeesmall.jpg

http://www.hudsonriver.com/images/esopus.jpg

http://www.rosendalecafe.com/outside.jpg

http://pod-135.dolphin-server.co.uk/~gareth/ilx/vermont.jpg

I had to get a speeding ticket taken care of there, once. In the courtroom, there was a stuffed black bear, standing upright with teeth and claws bared. Needless to say, I paid the ticket right then and there.

:-(

Anything good to do on a rainy day somewhere between NYC and Kingston NY? (Other than DIA, Vanderbilt House, FDR, which I already know about).

Anyone?

All I can think of are outdoor things.

So luckily it didn't rain. We went to the Bear Mountain oktoberfest thingy, which was meh but probably an easier thing than some to do with our friends, who had babies. They have good German beers (Spaten, Franziskaner, etc.) but the food is just ok and the entertainment is cheesy. Best thing to do is come on the late side and sit by the lake instead of in the tent area.

Next day we did woodstock, which I've done before, but we had a good brunch at Oriole 9. Then Storm King, which I've also done before but has some nice new stuff.

Anyone live in/know someone who lives in the Hudson Valley? There seem to be nice towns with walkable downtowns, trains to NY and reasonably priced houses. We met this couple who moved from Brooklyn to Peekskill and profess to like it, but idk I street-view-walked around Peekskill a little and it looks kind of deserted.

Took lil K up to the Blue Hill/Stone Barns farm today -- good place for a kid to see animals, good food at the cafe, bucolic surroundings, easy hikes around the premises, etc. and exceedingly close to the city. We dubbed it "America's Most Stylish Farm"

Cool, Hurting! Been wanting to get to a petting zoo or farm for awhile now. That sounds like an awesome place!

We stayed a night in Kingston this weekend at a p cool place that was a renovated church turned guest house. Owner and his wife were a working composer and artist, sort of still transitioning from being a totally informal thing to being a proper b-and-b (they just got up on airbnb and sites like that). The guy is very chill and friendly and likes to chat and hook people up. Saw some music, art and dance at Bard. Also went into Rhinebeck for the farmers' market, which was more high-end than Kingston but pleasant. Kingston seems to have an influx of ex-Brooklyn folk. We went on a guided hike and met all these people who had moved there from the city some time in the last 5 years or so. I guess any Hudson Valley town is like that to an extent.

Checked out a nature preserve in Dobbs Ferry/Irvington with some nice short hikes -- pretty unassuming, like we almost couldn't even find the trail entrances, but nice and quiet. Had brunch in Hastings-on-Hudson after, which seems like a very nice town. We occasionally toss around the idea of moving to a hudson valley town, and Hastings is a great commute to the city and has a really nice downtown but seems a little pricey. Also it's pretty small.

Has anyone here ever been to Marlboro/Marlborough? (apparently these are two different towns but also the same town?)

Not that hamlet (lol) specifically but my bf lives in the Village of Walden just a short drive away.

They're all very small and sleepy afaict except for like Poughkeepsie and maybe Beacon because of DIA but also Beacon is unaffordable for the same reason. I would consider Pgh maybe. I also like Middletown personally but I think the schools aren't considered to be that great which is a good reason for me to go work there but maybe not for someone with kids to move there.

Yeah, it's more because a possible opportunity for a small cheap weekend home kind of deal came up (we'd airbnb it when not there and probably be able to at least break even with minimal rentals). It's a cute house on a nice piece of property but I don't know what the area is like.

So not worried about schools.

I saw Marlboro has a music venue although the booking seems to skew toward jam/cover stuff.

Oh I see. Well, by the map, I thought Marlboro would be on the water or have river access, but actually it looks like there is NO water access and all the acreage fronting the river is just woods. Possibly it's a mountain with a very steep slope, idk. There's a yacht club but no public waterfront that I can see. For my money, that's not far enough upstate to be relaxing. It's just Trump country with no good food options.

lol fair enough

https://www.liveatthefalcon.com/

The booking is mostly not my thing but they do actually book some good name jazz acts as well as some blues-type acts I've heard of.

It's a decent change of pace for me to go up there and garden and watch the birds out the window and be within driving distance of scenic views and hikes, those are the parts I enjoy! So if that's your goal then fair enough. Also I think with Beacon blown up already and Newburgh poised to (the gentrification there is going to be something horrific), maybe it's a good investment? Ime the food is a big problem though--if we don't want to drive 30 mins to Newburg or pay the bridge toll to cross to Beacon/Fishkill, the options are dire.

Where do you guys like to eat in Newburgh/Beacon/Fishkill?

We had mediocre food in Cold Spring (the Depot) and in Phillipstown (Juanita's Mexican Kitchen) over the weekend. I've generally found it harder than expected to find good food in that part of the Hudson Valley, although Beacon has good coffee and ice cream and that sort of stuff.

The Depot is one of those food network style bistros where everything has bacon and some kind of sweet glaze

i like ulster county but most of my experience is further up, in and around kingston/saugerties/etc.

kingston seems to be a burgeoning refuge for nyc weirdos. there's some diy stuff going on up there--it's cheap as fuck and the housing stock is pretty nice.

there's decent food in new paltz in sort of a ramshackle student vein.

heading west there's some goofy brooklyn expat places in sullivan county. had a couple great meals at the heron in narrowsburg. not quite the hudson valley at that point but very much catskills-adjacent.

Kingston is one of the more fun towns I've been to up there. We've stayed there twice. Bard also has the performance center and the little contemporary arts center and it's not far from there.

We haven't been enough places in Newburgh yet but on paper there are good options. At the very least there's (more) authentic Mexican, Peruvian, Korean, and I feel like I've read good restaurant profiles in the free Hudson Valley bougie promotional magazine that goes around. Don't: Billy Joe's Ribworks, just in case you were tempted. Awful.

In Walden: La Campana, even though they still don't have their liquor license and it's not the BEST-EVER Puerto Rican food I've had but it's the best around and the owner is very sweet. For breakfast, Conklin's Barnstormer Cafe: Again, this is on the level of pretty much any brunch spot in NYC in terms of options and flavors. It's not magic but it's good enough to look forward to. Don't: Anywhere else.

In Beacon: ZIATUN PALESTINIAN, DON'T MISS IT! Everything was fantastic. Don't: Brothers Trattoria. Stupid white-tablecloth Italian wasn't even good.

Fishkill: I love this place called "Farm to Table Bistro" in a strip mall in the middle of nowhere. They have well-marked gluten-free options and everything is locally sourced and I just think they're great.

I want to try more places but I'm usually only there Fri/Sat nights and at least one night we stay in, so there's not much time.

xp Going up at least as far as Kingston seems to be what's necessary for good deals and interesting surroundings at this point.

Beacon had an amazing restaurant that closed due to ownership internal fallout drama which was devastating for me! Anyway, another notable spot is the... [this is the part where I looked up the name of another place, and learned that it has also closed... it was called Stock Up Sandwich Shop... I give up!!]

lol, we have a running joke about how every middle-eastern restaurant is called Ziatun/Zaytoon/Zeitun/Zeitoon (it means olive).

It's reeeeeally good.

oh yeah actually I remember now another trip to Beacon we tried to eat there but there was a long wait and we wound up at a very average pub type place.

I have friends in Stone Ridge, which is half an hour west of Kingston, and it is very pretty and they got an amazing house with nine acres for what they sold their place on Long Island.

Billy Joe’s! I am pretty sure that is one of the bars in Newburgh that one of my former coworkers would frequent.

Also, a NY detective shot himself there.

If you like old house tours, go to my favorite Hudson River School painter Frederic Church's house Olana in Hudson NY.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Olana%2C_August_2015.jpg/640px-Olana%2C_August_2015.jpg

I’m in Hastings. Retirement/resort vibe (reminds me of Devon). is this the least dull/conservative town in westchester?