New-York tribune., 1910-06-05
Easy to Reach, Easy to Enjoy,
They Draw Thousands from
City Every Summer.
LURE OF THE WOODED HILLS
AL Sorts of Inducements to
Spend the Hot Weather in the
Haunts of Rip Van Wrinkle
How to Get There.

easily reach il. in the Catskills Since the
DAYS when Rip Van Wrinkle slept his
wondrous sleep the Catskills, standing out
boldly beautiful above the Hudson, have
filed the hearts Of thousands, have az
fordeG rest and health TO as many thou
sands and have served as one Of the great
2 summer Fairgrounds Of the East.
Here are no lakes Ior motor boating or
. yachting. but every other delightful thing
is TO be found in the compass Of the lovely
range O. mountains that rises on the west
OF the great river. so near New York that
the trip IS easy enough and quick enough
for any one 10 take. Rising precipitously'
The Catskills make a wonderful showing,
towering up among the clouds from smil-
,iRg land Of farms and meadows, traversed
by splendid mountain roads and shelteTing
each summer a population of scores of
thousands in superb hotels that are scat
tered on every side
The vacation seeker who cannot find
what his heart desires In the Catskills must
be hard 10 please indeed. The woods are
full Of beauty. the roads for walking or
for driving are of the best, the accom-
modations on all sides are not to be sur
passed in any pleasure resort in the land
From the giant hotels that can house a
, thousand or two thousand guests. il the
need arise. 10 the smaller inns where a
few congenial visitors find pleasure in quiet
ways. there is a place TO meet any de-
nand that may he made.
CatsklIIs Within Easy Reach.
IT is easy to reach the Catskils. as has
neen said. From New York there are sew
eral routes. depending in large measure
Of course. upon the ultimate destination
d The New York Central carries the traveller
@ Greenburg and thence by ferry TO Cats
kill. if the entrance to the mountains IS
10 be made hy the northern portal. by way
OF the Catsldn Mountain Railway The
West shore division runs direct TO Cats
XIII. and the Hudson river steamboats,
plying by day or by night as may be most
convenient, make il possible TO take the
frap in the utmost comfort.
r .Catskin itself. lying on a high bluff
overlooking the Hudson on one side and
lCatsIziu Creek on the other. is q charming
place with good hotels. both large and
small. 10 tempt the traveller either to stay
there altogether or TO make a stay of a
few DAYS. at all events, before going up
into the higher country. To the south and
west the mountains loom up, indescribably
beautiful In the morning and evening or
when the clouds are right 10 form those
wonderful effects that none who has seen
them can ever forget.
There are golf links at Catskin and tennis
cour,ts-both good. There is a pleasant
summer colony that mingles well with the
element that ma lzes the town, an important
one itself in winter as well as summer its
3 home AS a result Of this there is always
a pieasant social life, with fixed element
tc give it stability ana permanent form
Many will remember with delight restfui
davs and weeks spent in Catskill town. for
one reason or another, 10 be marked with
a red letter in the annals of vacations.
From Catskin il is easy to make trips
: that will take in the most desirable parts
OF the mountain itinerary The little rail-
Nav that covers the range starts from
CatsIlll. and upon il many little Journeys
Of MEASURE and interest may he taken.
It has pleased many in the past TO make
Catskin headquarters for such excursions,
which may be made TO last two days or
more. If desired, TO permit of a leisurely
inspection of the places that lie further up.
Many Tramp Through Mountains.
on such excursions good accommodations
{ are easy TO fnd. Many like 10 walk
through the mountains, stopping for the
night where they may happen TO be 9th
ers drive. To a certain extent motoring
is not only possible hut delightful. Al
together Catslin mas good reason for its
pride IN itself, and many who plan merely
TO use the town as a gateway find II
extremely hard 10 tear themselves away
from its delights
First Of the villages that is usually con
sfdered as being in the Catskills proper is
Palen7ine living at the foot Of the great
hills, about miles south and west OF
CatsBiIl II Is quaint. charming little
place. unspoiI oy its years of repute as
q summer r., - unassunling. quiet, and
10 one worn or- and nervously exhausted
wholly soothing and delightful. Its setting
IS so picturesque il is so easy TO reach and
SO so-charnling when once il has been reached
90 that il wins new friends every year.
PalenvfLe IS a type, in a way. Of the viii
lares that lie in the fertile country about
the foothills Here are farms and herds
Of cattle. good crops. a prosperous country
: side with the stern mountains looming
.up above with their sterner and more virile
: soys. Such a place is Cairo, county seat
OF Greene County. where famous fair Is
held each year old fashioned and delight
fll III spacious grounds that are we'll
kept up.
-htThere IS a good track. with half mile
eraces and some for longer distances, that
zftrsct good horses Of the minor circuits,
with an exhibition mile for variety now
-and then by one from the bigger tracks.
There come the sideshows that have found
their way into contemporary literature, and
there the life that Mark Twain wrote about
IS being lived. To the country boy who has
made his mark in the city there is some
thing very attractive about all this coun-
;ry II reminds him of his boyhood.
e., Running up the line OF the Ulster &
Delaware from Kingston through the
mountains. the train carries the summer
visitor through many charming resorts,
perched on their wooded crests. until
Stamford is reached. The town. seventy
two miles from Kingston, is 1.790 feet high.
and directly over ii Mount Utsayantha.
one of the loveliest OF CatskiIl Mountain
peaks, adds 100 feet OF elevation. The
first stttlers Of the region came from Stam-
ford Conn, so they chose that name,
abandoning the pretty name Of the Indian
maiden, famous in the degends of the re-
xion, that has chung 10 the mountain.
20 Fine Location of Stamford.
Stamford lies at the confluence OF the
kesdwaters Of three great rivers, the Della
ware. the SchoIarie and the Susquehanna.
From the top Of Mount Utsayantha. which
IS 10 he reached by a good carriage road,
four states may be seen. a superb view OF
river and woods, hills and dales, being af-
forded. The country round about the VII
lage is charming. varied, as the Catskill