About the Kaaterskill Clove Experience

These are the mountains of Thomas Cole, the waterfalls of Frederic Church, the secret valleys of Asher B. Durand – these are the nation’s treasures, preserved in pristine glory for you to enjoy along the Kaaterskill Clove.

When Cole made his first journey through the Catskill Mountains in the 1820s, he was ensnared by the rugged wilderness that surrounded him, by the thunder of Kaaterskill Falls, the rolling groan of distant storm moving across the mountains, and the dazzling light of an afternoon sun illuminating a charming scene in nature. He was enchanted by the beauty and sublime of the American landscape.

From American author Washington Irving, who was so inspired by the descriptions and depictions of the Kaaterskill Clove, that he dreamed up Rip Van Winkle as the everyman’s anti-hero, to John Burroughs’ stirring essays on nature, the Kaaterskill Clove provides an adventure that explores the industrialization of America, the rise of the naturalist movement and entrepreneurial spirit of the nation’s first tycoons.

Explore Palenville, a contemporary artists' enclave made popular by the Hudson River School as America’s first art colony, and trace the steps of the 19^th century’s movers and shakers, from the banks of the Hudson River, through the mountains, to scenic vistas, cultural centers and family-friendly attractions that offer an in-depth, one-of-a-kind travel experience in America’s First Vacation Land.