YOUR NEXT FAVORITE BOOKSTORE

Welcome in traveler. The heat has dissipated and the rains are most welcome. Take a rest and enjoy this edition. I’ll see ya out there.

FIELD GUIDE

I just launched FIELD GUIDES: Collections of curated lists and fun adventures from our amazing community.

We’re kicking things off with Steven Weinberg — artist, author, illustrator, angler, and overall Renaissance man. Steven shares his favorite bookstores from across the region — some you may know, others you probably won’t. Happy reading.

P.S. if you have any Field Guides you’d like to see, just hit reply and send me your thoughts.

FROM THE MOUNTAINS

PROPERTY: A-Frame from HBO’s Cabin Chronicles

PETS: We have a special edition… Zacky is a stray who wandered up to a Crew Member's house in Neversink and decided he lived there now. They've been feeding him for a week — no chip, no owner turning up, and the local rescue is at capacity. Their dog has voted no on cats, so this fella needs a home of his own. Whoever takes him gets three months of food and a donation to your favorite rescue. If you are interested, you can reach out to Regina here.

SKY: Earth hit aphelion on Monday afternoon — marking our farthest point from the sun all year (~94.5 million miles out).

SIGHTINGS: Northern Mockingbird Mimus polyglottos

TAKE A GUESS

GARDENERS’ GUILD

CONTRIBUTED BY SANDY

Hey all — Well, suffice to say, we’ve already had plenty of heat this summer. I thought I’d nonetheless share some tips on watering your plants. To the gardener, watering can start to feel like such a chore this time of year, as plants grow and they become increasingly demanding. On especially hot days, I’ll water in mornings and again in the evenings. I become fixated on the forecast, hoping that the sky might do this job for me…

A gardener friend advised me early on to “mulch!!!” Indeed, some strategic mulching can be such a game changer, especially during the hottest months. Mulch helps prevent against evaporation, basically ensuring that whatever watering you do (each morning or whatever) actually remains there. I favor surrounding my plants with straw mulch, which you can buy at a local gardening center probably or hardware store. 

One of my gardens is reachable from a hose, the other is further away and decidedly not. So for years I have tried to figure out various schemes to haul water out to the latter, which is where I plant my tomatoes and squash and onions and other largest and thirstiest plants. Years ago, a contractor built me this ingenious system on my greenhouse that enabled water to get caught via gutters into two storage barrels, but alas, it needs repairs… 

Instead I rely on a water cart that has bicycle tires. This wasn’t cheap but it’s lasted a few years already. I distribute water from that cart into watering cans, which have a gentler stream (especially for younger seedlings, this is better than a full-blast hose). When watering tomatoes and other sensitive plants, try to avoid their leaves. Instead, water at the soil level and avoid splashing onto the leaves, which can spread pathogens. I trellis my tomatoes in a “lollipop” style, with little greenery towards the bottom, for this reason.

Gardeners, remember to stay cool, especially if going outside on hot days! Bring a cold bottle of water, wear sunscreen, sunglasses, and a wide-brimmed hat … 

Keep hydrated friends, 
Sandy

PARTNER

TOGETHER WITH FLOWSTATE

Did you know you can print high-resolution artwork directly on your wall? Wood, metal, glass, drywall, or whatever else you got — Flowstate prints right onto the surface using advanced robotics (robots are cool).

So if you have a wall (which I assume you do), you can put up photos, murals, brand graphics, the works. No vinyl. No seams. Ultra-high quality, done incredibly quickly.

Want a giant brown trout above your bed — no problem. Perhaps a fancy logo behind the bar at the restaurant — easy. Or a mural at a retail shop — done. Basically any blank wall is your canvas.

Crew Members get 10% with CATSKILLCREW when you reach out, and Brian from the Flowstate team will take it from there.

POLL RESULTS

With a 93.77% approval rating, we’re destined to rent out Putt Putt Van Winkle and throw a mini golf party.

I think we should do this when the temperatures downshift and we don some coats once again. Late September? Early October? I’ll get something organized for us.

LIMITED QUANTITY

The Trout Caps are a completely custom design and come with a 100% guarantee that they’ll help you catch more fish. Recent river data is showing they work for other species, including bass and carp.

POSTED

ASHOKAN HEALING ARTS Do you have the posture of a shrimp from sitting at a desk all day? Maybe your hips are tight from hiking up a mountain? Or your shoulders ache from landing a big fish? Well, Dyanna Rettig opened Ashokan Healing Arts in Stone Ridge and she has 23 years of massage therapy experience and a decade of acupuncture — she works with you, not on you. Book yourself an appointment here or give Dyanna a call at 914-282-6190. P.S. she does house calls.

LAST WEEKS SCRAMBLE: LUNA MOTH

THE FRAME

ADD AN EVENT

Tubby's, Kingston – DJ Takeover: Rough Draft vs Kingston Bread Bar at 6PM

Bronck Museum, Coxsackie – Signing of the Declaration of Independence at 7PM hancock

Heritage Financial Park, Wappingers Falls – Hudson Valley Renegades Baseball: '90s Night at 6:30PM play ball

Fisher Center, Annandale-On-Hudson – Bard SummerScape: "Suddenly Last Summer" see dates

Callicoon Theater – The Doctrine: Documentary Film Screening at 7:30PM Indigenous youth, activists and scholars

Cornell Creative Arts Center, Kingston – Zentangle at 3PM meditative drawing

Unicorn Bar, Kingston – Drag Bingo at 7:30PM tix here

Mountain Top Arboretum, Tannersville – Outdoor Yoga at 3:15PM boat pose

Colony, Woodstock – Pizza Party, Chris Davenport & Miles Cederquist at 7PM quintet

Gravity Vault, Poughkeepsie – LGBTQIA+ Climbing Night at 6PM all skill levels welcome

Terrapin, Rhinebeck – Trivia on the Pavilion at 5:30PM get tickets

Subversive, Catskill – Trivia at 6:30PM

Night School, Athens – Karaoke at 8PM

Sensei Sandy BJJ, Tannersville – Community Jiu-Jitsu Open House at 11:30AM get it

Origins Cafe, Cooperstown – Taste of India at 5PM naan

Bridge Street Theatre, Catskill – Pippin the Musical multiple dates

Ratty Books, Jeffersonville – Summer Nature Series: Meet the Park Rangers heroes

Hudson River Maritime Museum, Kingston – On Land & Sea with Shantyman Geoff Kaufman at 7PM pfff wish i could make this

UPAC, Kingston – Band of Horses & Dinosaur Jr. get tickets

Mountain Top Arboretum, Tannersville – The Canopy Dinner at 6PM good food

Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center, Poughkeepsie – Art Opening Receptions at 5PM explore

Galli-Curci Theater, Margaretville – Rattle and Hum curated by Deven Golden at 6PM arena arts initiative

Marbletown Multi-Arts, Stone Ridge – She who has lived: A ceremony for the elder feminine at 7PM reclamation

Andes Fire Department Pavilion – Annual Summer Square Dance with Catskills Old Time Music, tickets support the Andes Society for History & Culture 5:30-8PM have fun

The Local, Saugerties – Benefit Concert for Hudson River Sloop Clearwater at 8PM for a very good cause

Callicoon Depot, Callicoon – Depot Market and Book Sale at 1PM let's gooo

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia and Greene Counties, Acra – Pond Management: Invasive Aquatic Species at 10AM learn stuff do stuff

Pine Hill – Pride 2026 at 12PM see sched

Woodstock Land Conservancy – Meditative Painting at the Fontyne Kill with Coryn Nadeau at 12PM sup coryn

Assembly, Kingston – Buck Meek at 8PM discover

Community Theater, Catskill – Revelations of Divine Love with director Caroline Golum at 7:30PM get tix

Keegan Ales, Kingston – Sunday 5K with Keegan Army at 11AM join now

Gray Willow, Earlton – Small Town Country Fest at 12PM giddy up

Fleischmanns Park, Fleischmanns – Vintage Base Ball Benefit for Wellington Pine Hill Historic Restoration at 1PM love it

Orpheum Performing Arts Center, Tannersville – Catskill Mountain Foundation's Annual Benefit at 12PM details

Creative Legion, Hudson – Mahjong Monday at 6PM let's play