Legends lurk behind every stone.
Follow the sound of thunder to the 15th Catskill Mountain Thunder motorcycle festival in East Durham, September 13-16, and take in a huge vendor expo, rodeo games, bike seminars and shows, and an off-the-hook pig roast. Grab nearby lodging or camp right on site with your RV or tent.
The same magnificent Greene County landscapes that inspired Thomas Cole and other 19th-century painters will spark your creative side in a guided hike on the Hudson River School Art Trail. It’s an eye-filling two-hour trek to North-South Lake on September 15, and Sunset Rock on October 6, and includes a tour of the Thomas Cole Historic Site.
Leaf peepers, why keep your eyes on the road when you can ride Ulster County’s Catskill Mountain Railroad and enjoy the colors of fall by rail? October Fall Foliage runs showcase the natural beauty of the Catskills from a 1920s vintage coach, or enjoy fresh air and unobstructed views from an open car.
Named a top Halloween attraction by USA Today and The New York Daily News, Ulster Park’s Headless Horseman Hayrides and Haunted Houses provides plenty of chills for all ages. Explore 45 acres of haunted woodlands and mazes, haunted houses, magic illusions and their famous hayride—if you dare.
A decades-long tradition, Belleayre Mountain’s Annual Fall Festival returns to Overlook Lodge, October 6-7, with all the trimmings. Shop hand crafted products of every description at the giant craft fair and outdoor expo, farmer’s market and Entertainment Village. Pumpkin painting, doll making, sky rides and more await you.
The 47th annual Mum Festival on October 7 decorates Seamon Park with thousands of mums amid live music, craft booths, art contests and face painting. You may even be granted an audience with the Mum Queen and her court, and the mums remain through fall to delight visitors.
At Hanford Mills Museum in East Meredith, see a vintage water-powered gristmill in action at Miller’s Harvest Festival & Folkways Fair, October 7, while you shop a farmers' market and watch traditional crafters at work.
Even the ghosts come out in Hurley for the October 26 Ghost Walk, starting at the Reformed Church on Main Street and winding past stately stone homes dating back to 1680 on the way to the town burial grounds. Refreshments will be served for a modest admission fee, and the chills are free.
Fall is popping in Greene County with events like the Heritage Craft Fair on September 30 with live music and wagon rides, and Chilly Willy Winter's Eve Tours, November 17-18, led by costumed guides.
For more information, visit the Catskills region.