SIELA

PLACES THAT INSPIRE

The Catskill Mountains

Siela’s Guide to Woodstock & The Catskill Mountains, New York

With summer upon us, and perfect weather to be enjoyed, it was finally time to scratch the itch of a camping trip. The both of us took three days off to venture off into the Catskill mountains, along the Hudson valley. We found a perfect campsite along the river in Phoenicia, NY, and set off for the woods. 

On our short journey from NJ to NY, we figured we had to pitstop in the iconic Woodstock for coffee and a walk. Funny enough, neither of us have been to this area of New York, and living so close, we both knew this was our next adventure, especially after hearing so many wonderful stories from all our friends. 

I found myself wanting to be so immersed in the creek, along the little blue, perfectly symmetrical flowers. I wished I could shrink myself to fairy size and live in it. It was all so perfect, like a little set. The last day, as camp got packed up, a beautiful butterfly flew by and rested on one of our reusable bags. I tried to capture a picture, but she flew too quickly. I wanted to capture my dream creek home, fairy home, so I borrowed the film camera and barefoot walked to the oasis. The same butterfly lingered on the blooms. As I tried to take a close up of the blue beauty, the butterfly, almosting jokingly flew straight into frame. A perfect last moment. A nudge or more so a giggle from God and universe.

Woodstock, NY

A place of love, art, music, peace, and hippies… And of course, the infamous music festival.

A haven for artists… A place of quiet that allowed ideas to flow? A place that created room for creativity. Creatives are drawn to the natural beauty and the inspiration it brings.

“Woodstock had been a renowned haven for artists and counterculture musicians like Bob Dylan since the early 20th century. Organizers wanted to capture and promote this “Woodstock” identity. Organizers originally planned to host it there to raise funds for a recording studio retreat in the famously bohemian artist colony. When the town denied permits, the event was moved to Bethel, New York, but the established name stuck” 

“Woodstock’s creative spirit found an anchor when Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead, Bolton Brown, and Hervey White established the Byrdcliffe Arts Colony in 1902. 

The colony was an artist utopia that attracted writers, painters, and musicians who were interested in exploring new forms of artistic expression. Folk music, with its deep roots in storytelling and simplicity, was naturally at home here. 

Traditional folk songs sung by early settlers and influenced by Celtic, African, and Indigenous music began to echo through the hills, fostering a connection between the land and the sounds that would define the area for decades to come.”

Woodstock itself is small, quaint and super walkable. Filled with the cutest small boutiques, cafes, and bakeries, we had the best afternoon strolling around. 

Siela’s recommendations for an afternoon in Woodstock: 

  • The Penny: great quality espresso drinks, locally sourced foods, breakfast / lunch options, and an incredible outdoor seating area immersed in nature
  • Small Talk: cocktail & wine bar on the main strip. Hip, aesthetically pleasing, craft beverages, and great vibes. 
  • Bread Alone: One of the few locations located in Woodstock, we stopped in for a pastry, we had to. We enjoyed pastries, and even some breakfast options on our way home. 
  • Garden Cafe: a beautiful all vegan restaurant with unique and creative menu options. 
  • Leisure Syndicate: “A space where the eminent and archaic occur”, including furniture, gifts,  clothing. This whole small strip includes a few different shops that have a beautiful selection of unique gifts, for others, or yourself. 
  • The Colony: the cutest, rustic outdoor space and bar with live music almost every night. 
 

Advice from us: make sure to keep an eye out for hours! A lot of places in the area are closed Monday-Wednesday give or take. 

Back to the nature…

Vastness, lack of artificial stimulation, the quiet, simple living give us room to just be. And from being comes the creating… 

The beauty of camping is that there is nothing to really do, we just be. Outside. 

We set up our tent, sleeping bags already laid out inside. Camping chairs facing the running creek. The sound of the water fills the mountains, as the sun sparkles amongst the ripples. Internally I feel this twitch. What were we going to do next? That I should do something. That I should be doing something. And as I observed this feeling, I could only help but empathize with myself. I was running around, crossing things off my to do list, feeling a hit everytime i checked something off. 

At this very moment, sitting and zoning out into the distance of the trees swaying was more productive than checking things off a list.

Phoenicia: “Everything you need”

Camping in Phoenicia was nothing less than beautiful. Our campsite lay along a constantly running river, surrounded by pure nothingness. The town of Phoenicia is nothing more than a short strip, indeed consisting of everything you need. With one gift shop, one country store, one ice cream shop, a small boutique, what more could one really need?

Camping consisted of a whole lot of nothing, in all the best ways. Except for the multiple black bear sightings, which we were warned about, but weren’t actually expecting. However, both of our first times encountering bears so close, were as close as can get. Multiple times, multiple shocks, multiple scares, and multiple fits of hysterical laughter realizing we survived. 

 

During the day, we hiked around the Kaaterskill Falls. We stopped for apple cider donuts on the way back as a reward. There are multiple hikes in the area, all ranging around 40 ish minutes from Phoenicia, and all varying in degrees of difficulty. An abundance of choices and beauty. 

One of our final stops was the Peekamoose Blue Hole. Imagine a natural outdoor swimming pool, as we called it, the eastern version of the Ojai valley swimming creeks. If you want to dip, or cold plunge, this would be the perfect place to do so. 

A theme of our trip was the idea of how filling your own cup allows you to fill others’ cups around you. It happens naturally, all the time, and we probably don’t even notice. After a day to yourself, after you’ve taken care of yourself, perhaps you start doing things for other people simultaneously. You finally have the time to bake that extra loaf for a loved one, or perhaps water your family garden. 

You finally have the time to reach out to that friend you haven’t responded to, and maybe you not only fold your own laundry, but your partners as well. When we give the gift of time to ourselves, and fill our cup, it allows us to overflow into the cups around us. And when you really think about it, the act of service that flows outwards tends to be much more fulfilling than the one inwards.

Doing such things for others, is also doing things for yourself. For the collective consciousness. It’s like the idea of wishing the people you encounter well, as it will be a ripple into the world, and of course then reflect and come back to you. When we take care of ourselves, we’re always taking care of our neighbor. Vice versa. Here we are back to the basics, do unto your neighbor as you would do to yourself. 

So, if you were looking for a sign to take some time off to simply tune out, let this be it. And if you don’t have Catskill mountains to turn to, start in your backyard. It only takes some fresh air and sunshine after all.

Feeling inspired or called to share? Send us a message hello@sielaco.com