Catskills and Hudson River Valley

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Catskills and Hudson River Valley

One of our RVing stays was just to the south of the Catskills - in the Village of Florida NY, not far from the NJ border.

This is small town America - population of around 2000. Clustered along Main Street are the local hardware store, library, fire department, places to eat, shop and have your hair or nails done.

While Florida NY is not really an RVing destination in and of itself, the Hudson Valley and Catskills are scenic areas worth exploring. And this “neck of the woods” may just fit with plans to travel further into upstate New York, or on to New England.

So some fun facts:

Florida NY is Home of Jimmy Sturr, the Polka King. You will spot the signs with this claim to fame as you enter the village. If you have never heard of Jimmy Sturr, don’t knock it. JIMMY STURR AND HIS ORCHESTA is on the Top Ten list of the All-time Grammy Awards, with 5 gold albums and fourteen Grammy Awards. They have received more consecutive Grammy nominations that anyone in the history of musical awards. We danced in the street to this band at the village block party and they played a wide variety of music – swing, country, standards, oldies and of course, polkas.

Jimmy Sturr is a home town favorite, living in the house he grew up in. With an RV! Jimmy’s 45-foot customized tour bus is on the road 165 days per year. You might just see their show in your travels.

Another famous Floridian: William Henry Seward was a land speculator, born in the village of Florida in 1801. He was a prominent presidential candidate in 1860, but lost the nomination to Abraham Lincoln. He was then appointed by Lincoln to be his Secretary of State. (And here is an interesting coincidence - Seward was wounded by a would-be assassin on the same night that Lincoln was murdered). Anyway, Seward then served under the administration of Andrew Johnson and negotiated with Russia for the purchase of the vast frozen wilderness known as Alaska in 1867. At that time, the soon-to-be-state was known as "Seward's Folly" for the seemingly bad deal that Seward made!

Florida is in Orange County NY (not to be confused with the Orange County in California!). Home of the Orange County Choppers (custom motorcycles) and the Orange County Bicycle Club. The Brotherhood Winery in Washingtonville is the oldest in America, and there are other local wineries in Warwick and scattered throughout the Catskills and Hudson River Valley. The Orange County Fair in Middletown is at the end of July. Applefest is held in Warwick in October. The Museum Village in Monroe is a large living history museum with costumed interpreters demonstrating crafts in a 19th century village setting. There is shopping at Woodbury Commons Outlets, or you can take in a leisurely and more eclectic day in Sugar Loaf Arts and Crafts Village. The NY Renaissance Fair is held in Tuxedo on weekends during August and September.

Speaking of Tuxedo… The tuxedo dinner jacket originated in Orange County in Tuxedo Park, one of the country's first planned communities designed by resident architect Bruce Price. His daughter later married and became Emily Post. Another Orange County claim to fame!

This is the “Black Dirt" Farming Region. In nearby Pine Island is one of the largest onion producing areas in North America, The "Black Dirt" area was formed from a glacial lake over 12,000 years ago. The area was originally called "the drowned lands" until it was drained to create the fertile farmland it is today. Here you will find sweet tasting “Orange County Onions" and scenic vistas of vegetable farms.

Velveeta Cheese originated in Orange County (in Monroe) and Philadelphia Cream Cheese was actually invented in the county (in Chester).

The Catskills are just to the north of Orange County (and about 100 miles northwest of New York City). They span six and a half counties, and over 6,000 square miles. The mountains include 35 peaks with top elevation of 3500 feet.

Rivers, mountains, waterfalls, forests and farmland make up the terrain. The Catskills offer plenty of opportunities or outdoor activities such as hiking, skiing, snowmobiling, camping, canoeing, fishing, hunting, biking, rock climbing, horseback-riding, bird-watching and picnicking.

The Catskills used to be THE playground for New Yorkers, with big name entertainment and many comedians getting their start in the resorts. While this has changed over the years, there are still Catskills resorts and recreational areas that offer theme weekends, leisure activities and entertainment. But the area is best appreciated for its rolling landscape and outdoor activities.
The Catskills are highly regarded for trout and fly fishing.
There are a lot of campgrounds in the Catskills - check out member park listings for Happy Campers, Good Sam, Passport America or any other discount clubs you belong to.
Golfers will find that there are a good number of participating Golf Card courses in the Catskills.
TIP: You can scroll down to More Benefits and do a search for the area around Accord NY 12404. Click here. You will get a good idea of the participating courses in the Catskills and Hudson Valley area.
The story of the Catskill Park is an interesting one. The Catskill Park refers to a portion of the Catskills. It encompasses both privately-owned and public land (average ratio of 2:1, which fluctuates as the State acquires more land). The State-owned lands are designated as the Catskill Forest Preserve, and the New York State Constitution requires that these lands be forever kept as wild forest. In 2004, the Catskill Park marked its 100th anniversary – a century during which the designated Forest Preserve lands have expanded from about 34,000 acres to over 287,000 acres.
The town of Woodstock is in the Catskills. Yes, this is the town that gave is name to the famed music festival of 1969. Note that the festivals were actually held elsewhere (about 50 miles southwest in Bethel NY). Nevertheless, Woodstock itself is worth a visit. It has a long standing reputation as an artistic community, dating back to the nineteenth century. You can browse eclectic shops on Tinker Street, take in local galleries, or bike around town.

What else is nearby? Using Florida NY as a starting point:

West Point Military Academy is within 30 miles.
New York City is within 60 miles.
Hyde Park (Springwood, home of Franklin D. Roosevelt) is within across the Hudson River, within about 55 miles.
The Tarrytown/Sleepy Hollow area within 50 miles. Tour Sunnyside, home of Washington Irving (Legend of Sleep Hollow, Rip Van Winkle). Or visit Lyndhurst, an 1838 Gothic Revival mansion, considered the best example of the style in the country. Van Cortlandt Manor in Croton-on-Hudson has a Revolutionary-era home, tavern, tenant house and garden. Also in this area are the Boscobel Restoration, Phillipsburg Manor, and Kykuit (the Rockefeller Estate).

Oh, and about the other Florida New York… That would be the Town of Florida, about 40 miles northwest of Albany, on the southern border of Montgomery County in the Mohawk Valley. It includes the hamlets of Minaville, Scotch Bush, and Fort Hunter. Population of over 2,700. This "other Florida" is north of the Catskills, about 150 miles north of the Village of Florida that we have been describing.

We only learned of this second Florida NY from a rather puzzling conversation at an RV rally. We told a fellow RVer that we were staying in Florida NY, and he then struck up a conversation about several places he knew of in Florida. The clueless look on our faces led him to guess that we were talking about two completely different localities. All I know about the other Florida is that it is near the Alpin Haus RV dealer in Amsterdam NY.

People do a double take at the mention of Florida NY to begin with. But two of them? "Who'da thunk it?"