83F by mid-morning, breezy but humid and overcast with a sprinkle of rain. Thunderstorms pending.
© J.N. Urbanski 5pm
Daily Catskills: 07/18/16
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Tag Archives: Catskills
Daily Catskills: 07/17/16
81F by noon and mostly clear skies with rolling clouds.
© J.N. Urbanski 5pm
Daily Catskills: 07/16/16
81F by noon with hazy cloud and humid. Another scorcher.
© J.N. Urbanski 1pm
© J.N. Urbanski 1pm
Daily Catskills: 07/15/16
82F by noon, breezy hot and humid, rising to 84F and very hot in the sun.
© J.N. Urbanski 3.15pm
Catskills Conversations: Elaine Mayes
© Laura Sue King
UD: What brought you to the Catskills?
EM: I had a friend called Helen Levitt, who was a wonderful, well-known photographer. I went on summer vacation with her almost every year beginning in 1980. We went to other places, like Cape Cod or New Hampshire and other spots and then in 1994, she came to Catskills. I didn’t come that year or the year after because I was working on a project in Hawai’i. In 1996, I started coming to stay with her in the summer time. That’s how I got introduced to the Catskills.
In 2005, I bought a house across the road from where we were staying every summer. It was a house I had been watching every year and nobody was in it and I used to wonder about it. Anyway, so I started looking for real estate and I looked for two years. The second year, this house was for sale and, almost as a lark, I made a low offer and got the house.
Daily Catskills: 07/14/16
75F at 8.30am, overcast and breezy. 84F at 3pm with rain and a half-hour torrential downpour, then back to sun again.
© J.N. Urbanski 3.50pm Farm
Daily Catskills: 07/13/16
73F at 8.30am with hazy cloud and long periods of sunshine. 84F by mid-afternoon.
© J.N. Urbanski 8.30am
Plein Air Painting at Lazy Crazy Acres
© J.N. Urbanski
Lazy Crazy Acres Farm is one of the most inspiring and eclectic places to paint. Signage of all kinds competes with farm equipment, animals, barns, outhouses, thick vegetation, stunning views and a babbling brook running through it. Plein Air painting is a practice that requires speed and focus because your light source is literally moving overhead. If you’re in it to capture shadows and light, time is of the essence.
© J.N. Urbanski
© J.N. Urbanski
Daily Catskills: 07/12/16
64F at 8.30am, rising to 81F by 1pm with rolling clouds, but bright and sunny: another scorcher.
© J.N. Urbanski 1.45pm
Daily Catskills: 07/11/16
60F at 8.30am and slight chilly, rising to 71F by noon with hazy sunshine and a light breeze.
© J.N. Urbanski 10.30am
Daily Catskills: 07/10/16
71F by the afternoon with a cool breeze and overnight rain lingering on leaves.
© J.N. Urbanski 3.20pm
Daily Catskills: 07/09/16
68F by mid-afternoon, cloudy and humid.
© MAU 6pm
Catskills Behind The Scenes: Artists’ Studios Tour, July 30th & 31st
On the weekend of July 30th and 31st, 16 upstate artists will throw open their doors to the public, so that you can take a peek behind the scenes at what goes on in an artist’s studio. 20 artists are taking part in the tour, but four of us are without a studio. We’ll be showing in the Grange Hub in Halcotsville opposite the old Lake Wawaka Hose #1, a few steps downhill from the Holy Innocents’ Church. Artists are en route throughout the countryside between the villages of Arkville, Margaretville and Roxbury.
The project is the brainchild of local Catskills artist Alix Travis, who was inspired to start the tour after having done similar tours herself in other communities. Studio tours are a glimpse behind the scenes to explore methods and process, swap notes and absorb the creative atmosphere. What’s special about art is that identical processes can result in wildly differing effects when they’re employed by different artists and that’s fun to watch for everyone. What’s a good process for one artist isn’t necessarily good for other artists, but it’s fun to push the envelope and experiment.
Daily Catskills: 07/08/16
A scorching 84F by noon, cloudy and humid. Time for a dip.
© MAU 2.51pm
Catskills Sandwich: Phoenicia Diner’s Reuben
© J.N. Urbanski
This year’s Reuben is a tasty, juicy and modestly-sized; this last phrase is meant in the best possible way. So much of what we order today is either a belly-deadening doorstop or enough for two people to share, which limits your options. But even if you only eat half this sandwich, it survives a night in the fridge, like so many don’t. The Phoenicia Diner was written up in the New York Times this month and if it gets any more popular, we’ll start needing a reservation.
Daily Catskills: 07/07/16
73F at 8.30am and humid with thick cloud cover.
© J.N. Urbanski 8am
Daily Catskills: 07/06/16
70F at 8.30am and sunny despite rolling clouds. 84F by 1pm. Update: almost 90F by mid-afternoon. Scorcher.
© J.N. Urbanski 1.20pm
Daily Catskills: 07/05/16
82F by mid-afternoon and breezy with rolling clouds.
© J.N. Urbanski 6.15pm
Daily Catskills: 07/04/16
72F by mid-morning, rising to 82F with clear skies and a breeze.
© J.N. Urbanski 10am
Daily Catskills: 07/03/16
73F by 10am, bright, breezy and sunny, becoming humid later on.
© J.N. Urbanski 5pm
Daily Catskills: 07/02/16
A high of 72F, breezy and sunny with rolling clouds.
© J.N. Urbanski 2pm
Daily Catskills: 07/01/16
73F by 10am with a mix of sun, cloud, afternoon rain and a tornado watch.
© J.N. Urbanski 5pm
Daily Catskills: 06/30/16
64F at 8.30am and blue skies dashed with fuzzy cotton wool clouds. An 81F scorcher by 2pm.
© J.N. Urbanski 3.45pm
Daily Catskills: 06/29/16
64F at 8.30am with rolling clouds, humid and hot in the sunshine. 80F by mid-afternoon.
© J.N. Urbanski 8.45am
The Fleeting Beauty of Wild Roses
© J.N. Urbanski
They’re fleeting because once the deer find out they exist, they will eat them all. All the more arresting for being a complete surprise, all the roses bar two featured in this post disappeared suddenly overnight. I had never seen wild roses before in the Catskills but, as a wise neighbour said, that’s probably because the deer got to them first. It was a joy to have them in our road briefly.
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Absinthe Makes The Heart Grow Fonder
© J.N. Urbanski
The Delaware Phoenix Distillery in Walton makes its own absinthe, the legendary botanical spirit, here in the Catskills.
Absinthe is seen as “other” in the world of booze; its consumption is exotic, ritualistic and accompanied by accessories but it began life as a medicinal tonic revered by ancient philosophers, doctors and scholars. The absinthe that we now drink for recreation is unlike the 2,000 year-old remedy that was chiefly wormwood, a preparation that was administered for labor, menstrual pain, rheumatism and a host of other ailments. The two main herbs in the modern-day absinthe are Grande Wormwood and Green Anise. The spirit gets its green color from chlorophyll.
Daily Catskills: 06/28/16
70F at 8.30am and sunny with rolling clouds. 81F at 2pm.
© J.N. Urbanski 11.40am
Alix Travis at The Commons Gallery
The Barbershop Singers by Alix Travis
The Barbershop Singers by Alix Travis
The Barbershop Singers by Alix Travis in watercolor on handmade paper (top) and again, in block print (underneath) both at the Commons Gallery for the next couple of days.
Daily Catskills: 06/27/16
67F at 8.30am with wispy clouds and a cool breeze. 81F by noon. Update: 70F and raining by 2pm.
© J.N. Urbanski 11am
Daily Catskills: 06/26/16
85F by noon with a mix of sun and clouds.
© J.N. Urbanski 2.50pm
Daily Catskills: 06/25/16
70F by 8.30am, with periods of brilliant sunshine dampened by huge cotton wool clouds sailing through. Humid and hot rising to over 80F.
© J.N. Urbanski 5.30pm
Farm to Belly: Carrots & Beets
© J.N. Urbanski
The first harvest of beetroot and carrots has been pulled and there’s no end to the possibilities. You can eat the carrot straight out of the ground but some sources say that they have to be steamed to give you all their benefits. If you want a raw treat, grate them and mix with balsamic vinegar and feta cheese for a truly healthful side dish that I posted last year. Scroll down for the recipe.
© J.N. Urbanski
Beetroot, Carrot & Feta Salad
3 medium-sized beetroot (with leaves)
4-5 medium-sized carrots
1.5 ounces of balsamic vinegar
3 ounces of goat’s milk feta
Grate the carrots and beetroot. Chop up the beetroot greens. Cut the feta cheese into cubes. Mix the grated vegetables, and cheese together in a bowl with the balsamic vinegar for a quick, easy, utterly delicious, juicy and crunchy salad.
Daily Catskills: 06/24/16
70F by 10am, with scudding clouds.
© J.N. Urbanski 4pm
Daily Catskills: 06/23/16
A hair under 60F at 8.30am with a mix of sun and clouds, rising to 75F by 1pm.
© J.N. Urbanski 1.20pm
Evening Catskills: 06/22/16
I rarely have the opportunity to present a good sunset because the sun sets behind my ridge and is obscured by an acre of trees, but occasionally I get a good shot of our peaceful evenings.
© J.N. Urbanski 6/22/16 8.40pm
Daily Catskills: 06/22/16
65F at 8.30am, sunny with armadas of scudding clouds, rising to 77F by the afternoon.
© J.N. Urbanski 2.20pm
Daily Catskills: 06/21/16
65F at 8.30am rising to 78F by mid-afternoon. Another scorcher.
© J.N. Urbanski 12.30pm
Daily Catskills: 06/20/16
64F at 8.30am, humid and cloudy rising to 84F by mid-afternoon.
© J.N. Urbanski 11.45am
Daily Catskills: 06/19/16
84F by noon and very bright with hazy cloud cover.
© J.N. Urbanski 7pm
Farm to Belly: Garlic Scapes
© J.N. Urbanski
Garlic Scapes are the buds of the flower that garlic sends up in the spring. Farmers cut them off in order to encourage the plant to focus on the bulb. They have a much lighter, gentler garlic taste than bulb garlic and ever so slightly sweet. Delicious in omelettes, scrambled eggs, stir-fry dishes and roasted garlic potatoes, but they can get lost in soups unless you use a lot of them.
They also make a superb pesto. Eaten raw, garlic provides those infamous, extraordinary health benefits.
Garlic Pesto
10-12 large garlic scapes
1/4 cup of grated parmesan
1/4 cup of pine nuts
1/4 a cup of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Blend all the ingredients except for the oil in a blender. Mix in the oil when the other ingredients are blended well. If your pesto is too thick, add a drizzle of extra oil. Serve on bruschetta, toast points, crackers. Or add a dollop to soups, pasta and cheese plates. Delicious!
© J.N. Urbanski
Daily Catskills: 06/18/16
82F by noon with a mix of sunshine and clouds.
© J.N. Urbanski 3.30pm
The Catskill 35: Southwest Hunter
© J.N. Urbanski
The hike to Southwest Hunter was beautifully serene until halfway up The Devil’s Path I suddenly found myself in the midst of what I thought might be – but was not – young Giant Hogweed patch and froze in terror with my elbows in. I avoided touching it, but the dog raced on ahead of me and brushed through all the leaves that obstructed the path. “Giant hogweed!” I shouted to my hiking mate, who happens to be my husband. “Don’t touch it! Don’t touch the dog!”
“OK,” he said, nonplussed and walked on, clearly not fussed at all. I shouted out the consequences of brushing past Giant Hogweed to his back as he retreated into the forest brushing it with his bare arm. I proceeded gingerly through the patch passing what looked like enormous coriander leaves on stalks topped with large, distinctive, white floral umbrells.
The plants were six feet high and far too big to be poison hemlock. Out came the mobile phone, which remained raised in the air for a while and – lo and behold – you can get a faint signal on certain spots on the Devil’s Path and the occasional strong one. Good news. A spousal debate over tiny Internet images of Giant Hogweed ensued that became more annoying than the prospect of being burned by a poison plant…
Daily Catskills: 06/17/16
A scorching 80F by noon with clear skies.
© J.N. Urbanski 4pm
Daily Catskills: 06/16/16
64F at 8.30am and clear skies, rising to 80F by 3pm. Cloudy in the afternoon with brief periods of sunshine.
© J.N. Urbanski 3pm
Rhapsody in Hue
© J.N. Urbanski
Dotted around the Catskills through the warmer months this year, in leafy nooks and floral crannies, on (disused) train tracks and atop mountains, you’ll find Plein Air painters at their easels from dawn to dusk. The East Branch of the Delaware River Plein Air Group meet every Tuesday and yesterday they were painting on the curated grounds of The Blackbird Inn in Halcotsville, possible the most picturesque hamlet in the Catskills. There were patches of vivid red poppies; fresh mullein glistening with essential oils, getting ready to start their journey upwards like cornstalks from a double set of train tracks; kayaks laid out on the shore of Lake Wawaka were waiting for visitors from far and wide to Susan’s Pleasant Pheasant Farm.
Daily Catskills: 06/15/16
70F by 10am, clear and sunny.
© J.N. Urbanski 10am
Daily Catskill: 06/14/16
52F at 8.30am, clear and sunny rising to 66F by noon.
© J.N. Urbanski 10.15am
© J.N. Urbanski 10.15am
Daily Catskills: 06/13/16
48F at 8.30am and grey with a chilly breeze, rising to 60F by mid-afternoon.
© J.N. Urbanski 5pm
Daily Catskills: 06/12/16
64F by mid-morning, lowering to 55F by 5pm. Windy, chilly and overcast with brief periods of sunshine.
© J.N. Urbanski 2.40pm
Daily Catskills: 06/11/16
60F by mid-morning with torrential rain, rising to 72F and sunny by late afternoon.
© J.N. Urbanski 5pm
Daily Catskills: 06/10/16
64F by mid-morning with a steady breeze, rising to 74F by the afternoon with mostly clear skies.
© J.N. Urbanski 7pm
June Events in the Catskills
© J.N. Urbanski
Today Friday 10th through Sunday June 12th, the Catskill Center is hosting Taking Flight: Birding in the Catskills.
Saturday June 11th, the Catskills own live radio event, Catskill Cabaradio will be hosted at the Pine Hill Center, in Pine Hill. Hosted by Elly Wininger, the event will be “an evening of music, drama, local lore, and laughs”, exploring the theme of “Food in the Catskills” with some of the region’s most celebrated and unique residents. In addition to growers, purveyors, chefs and food activists, there will be performances by a crop of regional talent including musician Chris Maxwell, poet and storyteller Margot Farrington, and young Maxwell Barnes, saxophonist. The potluck dishes are some of the best cooking in the Catskills.
Voices of Wisdom Gathering at the Blue Deer Center on June 11th and 12th. The gathering will start on Saturday at noon. People will sit by the fire and each of the two elders will speak in turn, offering the wisdom that they see is needed in that moment. The talks and conversations will be followed by a potluck dinner. The Blue Deer Center is
The 5th Annual Living History Cemetery Tour hosted by Middletown Historical Society will be held at Halcott Cemetery in Greene County near Fleischmanns on Saturday, June 18th. Tour goers will visit eight departed residents, portrayed by local actors, who will talk about their lives, loves and losses. Meet a fugitive “calico Indian;” a little girl remembering her Halcott childhood punctuated by tragedy; a farm couple whose long life together was ended by a charging bull; a young World War 1 soldier who fell to the Spanish flu. Tours begin every 20 minutes starting at 4pm. Reserve a tour time by calling 845-586-4736 by June 15th.
Straight Out Of The Ground Farm is hosting a farm dinner on Saturday June 25th for $55 a person. Make a reservation here.
Amy’s Takeaway in Lanesville is open all weekend this weekend from Friday, June 10th through Sunday, June 12th, 2016, 11am to 7pm with a special menu.
© J.N. Urbanski
Daily Catskills: 06/09/16
52F at 8.30am, rising to 63F by mid-afternoon with clear skies and high winds.
© J.N. Urbanski 4pm
Daily Catskills: 06/08/16
55F at 8.30am, sinking to 52F by mid-afternoon, cloudy, chilly with afternoon rain and down to 48F by the evening. A cold snap.
© J.N. Urbanski 6.20am
Daily Catskill: 06/07/16
63F at 8.30am with rolling clouds, light breeze and brief periods of sunshine.
© J.N. Urbanski 9.30am