Page 14 - Dutchess Tourism 2023

12
DUTCHESS COUNTY DESTINATION GUIDE
NORTHERN DUTCHESS
See & Do
The quaint-but-bustling Village of Rhinebeck is the nexus of northern Dutchess. Its walkable, picture-postcard-like blocks are lined with historic original buildings housing fine and casual restaurants and shops. On the edge of the village center is the Dutchess County Fairgrounds,
home to the annual Dutchess County Fair and other weekend festivals.
Right outside the village is the 200-acre Ferncliff Forest Game Refuge and Forest Preserve, whose 80-foot fire tower provides an incredible 360-degree view of the Hudson River and the encircling mountains. ‘T’ Space, founded by the Steven Myron Holl Foundation, is a 30-acre woodland reserve and indoor exhibition space focusing on art, architecture, music and poetry. The Omega Institute for Holistic Studies offers diverse healing classes, workshops, conferences
and retreats. A beloved attraction is the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome, a living aviation museum with a collection of fully operational early-20th-century vehicles and aircraft where you can enjoy an air show or take a biplane ride.
On the campus of leading
liberal arts institution Bard College
in Annandale-on-Hudson is the futuristic,
Frank Gehry-designed Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, an acoustically astonishing venue for symphonic and jazz concerts, operas, ballets and other events. Shop and dine in nearby Red Hook or plan an overnight during Bard’s annual music festival
or Summerscape.
Visitors to the Village of Tivoli to the north will join residents in saying “i lov iT” (Tivoli spelled backwards).
The popular annual Tivoli Street Painting Festival is a draw, as well as hiking and kayaking in nearby Tivoli Bays Wildlife Management Area and Research Reserve. Due east of Rhinebeck is Pine Plains, whose boundaries contain hiker’s paradise Stissing Mountain and prime swimming spot Stissing Lake. Along the Hudson River west of Rhinebeck
is the idyllic community of Rhinecliff and the Amtrak
station that connects the region by rail to New York City
and Albany.
Beatrix Farrand Garden at Bellefield, Hyde Park
Dutchess County Fair, Rhinebeck ‘T’ Space, Rhinebeck Poets’ Walk Park, Red Hook
© COURTESY OF SUSAN MYRTLE
© MELVIN BRINSON