How do you like your summer? Wet and wild? Relaxing and refreshing? Hot and hip? Cool and comfortable? Sports and shorts? Wining and dining? It’s time to go to New York’s Sullivan Catskills.
Roll down the Delaware River in a raft, tube, canoe, or from one of a half-dozen liveries. Take a journey through scenic splendor and foamy rapids. You may even see soaring eagles. Everyone loves a parade. Livingston Manor hails its world-famous history of fly fishing with an annual Trout Parade. Callicoon rolls out the International Harvester Cubs, John Deere Model 60s, and more at the Tractor Parade. And on July 4th, watch the skies light up with fireworks and celebrations. Spend some time on the farm. Meet the alpacas at Buck Brook Alpacas and buy cozy apparel. Or visit Apple Pond Farm, where you can learn about where your food comes from. If it’s raining, swim (and dine) at the Kartrite Resorts and Indoor Waterpark Resort—New York’s biggest—for a day or a stay.
Sullivan County Catskills Hiking
Get out on the trails. The Sullivan O&W Rail Trail follows the route that brought visitors here for almost 90 years. The Hurleyville segment is ADA-compliant. The D&H Canal Linear Park parallels the route that once transported regional coal and other products toward New York City. Up for something a little more challenging? The Tusten Mountain Trail is a moderate 2.9-mile loop. This hike is best from spring through fall. Your leashed four-legged friend will also like it.
There is plenty of song and dance here. The 76-year-old Forestburgh Playhouse season includes Jersey Boys, Spamalot, and seven other productions, plus their new In the Works, in the Woods Festival. Break out your tie-dye and visit Bethel Woods Center for the Arts at the 1969 Woodstock Music and Arts Festival site. Take a virtual reality tour and learn about the ‘60s in the Museum. Then see James Taylor or The Chicks in the Pavilion. On August 19-20, a new music festival debuts on the historic field. The Catbird Festival will feature local eats, craft beer, your favorite folk, indie, Americana artists, and jam bands.
Sullivan County Bashakill Vineyards
Who’s hungry? Foster Supply Hospitality has been nominated as a “2023 James Beard Foundation’s Restaurant and Chef Awards Semi-Finalist, Outstanding Restaurateur.” Their five restaurants feature everything from a 12-course tasting menu to pop-ups in a historic inn’s two-lane, hand-set bowling alley. The Yarra Bed and Breakfast in Roscoe has inventive prix-fix menus on Wednesdays and Saturdays. They’ve been known to honor their heritage with an Australian Wine Dinner featuring kangaroo and Tim Tams. You’re lucky if you’re going to Resorts World Catskills because the world-famous Monster golf course is reopening this summer, and you can celebrate that Condor at Scott Conant’s Cellaio. Famous for aged, 100% Certified Black Angus steaks, Cellaio is equally renowned for a vibrant, relaxed atmosphere and warm, generous hospitality. Don’t miss Stacey Adimano’s (James Beard award-winning author) Little North in Livingston Manor. A big French rotisserie, daily farm-fresh sides, salads, pastry, good coffee, and frozen yogurt to eat in their backyard or takeout to yours. Chef Jaime Stankevicius at the Neversink General Store creates culinary delights inspired by the land’s bounty. Previously, Jaime worked in New York City for the prestigious chef Jean-Georges. Named for the ecological marvel where it is located, Bashakill Vineyards is a wine-lovers paradise. Watch the eagles and sip a Black Bear. Smell the pines and sample a Wood Duck. Samara learned to cook in Italy. Try her Truffle Cheese and Mushrooms.
When you keep bees and distill spirits, you open Catskills Provisions— a women’s LGBTQ-owned distillery and tasting room. (They’re hosting the Catskills Pride Countdown to Pride Month gathering on May 28 from 3 – 6 pm. It’s just one of many monthly socials run by Catskills Pride, a Sullivan Catskills non-profit focusing on improving visibility and social support for the LGBYQIA+ community here). Try Provisions’ smokey 100-proof Bonfire Rye. The food is sourced locally, and you should take home some of their honey, whiskey truffles, and ketchup. Do Good Spirits in Roscoe and Rock Valley Spirits offer unique vodka, gin, bourbon, and whiskey. Do Good also has food, music, and merch to take home. Conde Nast Traveler says Seminary Hill Cidery in Callicoon is “James Fenimore’s America with a dash of Tuscany.” The ciders are first-rate, and the Sourdough Bread with Cultured Butter and Whipped Chicken Fat is to die for. Beer lovers: the Craft Beverage Trail is packed with breweries: 17 West, Bridge & Tunnel, Callicoon, Catskill, Roscoe, Russian Mule, Shrewd Fox and Upward.
The DeBruce rooms 25R (Photographer Ron Cadiz)
The “In” places are our Inns. Rest in a resort, curl up in a campground, beauty sleep in a B&B, or meditate in a motel—a bed for every head, taste, and budget. Sleep well! When you visit, download the Sullivan Catskills Go app— a valuable tool to guide you to the fun.
