If you’ve been to Saugerties, its old-fashioned brick buildings and river views probably caught your eye. If you’ve never ventured to the historical village, you’re missing out. While many assume the iconic 1969 festival happened in the town of Woodstock, this is a common misconception. Although if you’ve visited, you know the hippie vibe is alive and well. We’re sure there are things you may not know about these neighboring artsy villages. Here are some little known facts about these classic towns.
Saugerties
The name Saugerties was adopted in 1855. It’s Dutch for “little sawyer,” a nod to the area’s earliest industry. Whether any of the early sawyers were especially short is not known.
Saugerties is home to Opus 40, Harvey Fite’s bluestone sculpture park, which has been described by Architectural Digest as “a cousin of Stonehenge and the long-since-vanished Hanging Gardens of Babylon.”
The eight-week Horseshows In The Sun (HITS) extravaganza that happens every summer involves over $3 million in prize money and the shining stars, two- and four-legged, of the rarified world of show jumping. It’s spectacular: The electric tension in the air, the massive animal athletes flying gracefully through it.
Saugerties is laced with communal outdoor spaces. There’s the Village Beach on the Esopus and the Tina Chorvas Waterfront Park nearer the Hudson. There’s the Veterans Memorial Complex at Cantine Field, the Lions Club playground, and the beautifully landscaped Seamon Park, full of chrysanthemums in season. Come play.
Woodstock
Although Woodstock didn’t host the 1969 Woodstock Festival, these days you can attend the town’s acclaimed Woodstock Film Festival, the Woodstock Writers Festival, the Woodstock Comedy Festival, and the Invitational Luthiers Showcase. Mower’s Flea Market also runs Saturdays and Sundays through November.
The Village Green is much more than just a pleasant spot. Sundays are filled with ongoing antiwar demonstrations and drum circles.
If you want to watch a movie that’s genuine Woodstock, check out First Name: Jogger Last Name: John, a short documentary that tells the story of one of the town’s formerly long-term homeless characters.
Woodstock artists have their own cemetery, off Rock City Road near the Colony Café, with famous names on amazing headstones. Luminaries include painters Milton Avery and Philip Guston, as well as bluegrass great John Herald.
Up Meads Mountain Road you’ll find an only-in-Woodstock convergence of the spirit. There’s the charming, tiny, historic Church of the Holy Transfiguration of Christ on the Mount and the Karma Triyana Dharmachakra Buddhist monastery, which offers meditation classes and guided tours on weekends. A bit past that is Magic Meadow, where hippies gather at the full moon to beat the drum.
Remember old-fashioned pharmacies? Woodstock has one: the Village Apothecary. The shop’s pharmacists compound medicines the old-fashioned way, focus on wellness, and generally think outside the pill box.
This article appears in Fall/Winter 2016.
