The Hudson River School’s home turf
The tranquil 19th-century landscapes created by the painters known as the Hudson River School may look relaxing, said Becky Krystal in The Washington Post. But a self-guided tour of the verdant terrain that inspired them proved to be a workout. My map-guided hike started leisurely enough: It was while strolling the grounds at Cedar Grove, the Catskill, N.Y., residence of movement founder Thomas Cole, that I picked up a benign-looking art-trail map. Then came the slog. After oohing and aahing at Catskill Creek, the spitting image of an 1833 Cole canvas, I headed up a steep incline into the woods in search of Kaaterskill Falls, a two-tiered, 260-foot cascade. With the constant lullaby of rushing water, “I expected the falls at every turn.” Perhaps that’s why they seemed “all the more majestic when I finally came upon them.” You’d have to be pretty jaded to “fail to be impressed” by such sublime beauty.
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