July 4th we went to Woodstock NY. For years now we have talked about visiting Woodstock, the iconic American Town. Yesterday we spontaneously decided to go and so packed the car and off we went. Through Manhattan, over the George Washington Bridge, headed for the Catskills. The town is in Ulster County and is famous for lending its name to the Woodstock Festival, which was actually held at Max Yasgur’s dairy farm 43 miles (76 km) away in Bethel.
With the association to the Woodstock Festival name, the town today still take on a relative hippie vibe. Upon entering you get the sense of the alternate urge, with Yoga, Massage, Health Foods, Arts and Craft signage along the small town streets. There are second hand clothing shops, and a vinyl music shop and there is plenty of tie die to be found. We enjoyed wandering around the quaint town with a little antique shopping and good food options. We were patriotic Americans and had (veggie) burgers and fries for lunch!
After lunch we looked at real estate, and while doing so we heard about a local water hole called the “Big Deep”. This sounded like the perfect 4th of July to us, going to Woodstock and swimming in a a natural waterhole!
The Big Deep was easy to find, right off the main road into town. There was unrestricted parking in the shade of huge old pine trees, and a small winding pine needled path down to the creek bank. The water hole was small and intimate, but big enough for a summer’s day crowd. Small children swam in the cool refreshing waters, big kids swung from a rope tied to a tree, bomb diving into the deep, chatting adults sunned on the rocky ledge. The Girls LOVED the water and swam and kicked and splashed deliriously! By 4pm the trees shaded the fresh water spring and Maya’s teeth were chattering. We had to insist she get out of the creek!
We then made our way back to the City. The girls were worn out from a day in the sunshine and water! It was a long trip home (traffic) and the Girls did well enduring the drive. We had to make a detour in Manhattan due to July 4th celebrations and ended up driving down Broadway….which was quite the contrast to the cool deep waters of Woodstock. Both Cam and I were a little wonder-struck with our life! It could not have been a fuller day, this one day, Independence Day, we experienced the immense diversity available to people living in America, and the opportunity of being an American.