1969 Revisited – Woodstock, NY

It was August 1969,  I graduated from college, spent the summer in Denver and now I was on my way to Bethel, NY for 3 days of peace and music.  I bought my tickets from WBCN, the alternative FM station in Boston for $9 a ticket, and splurged for the 3 days; a total of $18! I told my mother I was going to visit a friend; little did she know that I was actually on my way to Woodstock.   Who knew what a historical weekend I would be a part of.  What a way to spend my 19th birthday.

Forty years later Roy surprised me for my 60th birthday with a trip to Woodstock, not actually where the festival was held but where the spirit of the festival still lives.  We love it.  It has a special vibe and we vow to come back.

Now here we are again, for the third time.  The town holds something for us; it’s full of color, hippies, yuppies, great restaurants, boutiques, galleries, lots of music and the Levon Helm Midnight Ramble which we’re going to for the 2nd time.

We’re staying at Pike Lane B&B, located in the woods off the main road going through Woodstock.  It’s very secluded, has a pool, and the hosts are Adam and Laura Weiss.  Adam is an organic gardener, holds classes and writes articles; Laura is a yoga instructor in town and a dynamite baker, formerly a pastry chef.  They left NYC after 9/11. Breakfasts always consist of either homemade scones, muffins, fresh fruits and bagels.  If you close your eyes, you’ll think you’re in Paris when eating her croissants.

But in the meantime, on our first night in Woodstock we go to the Hudson Valley Mall in Kingston to see the movie Crazy Stupid Love; 2 thumbs up on that.  After the movie on our way back to Woodstock we almost meet head on with a deer and as we are walking into The Bear Cafe we are confronted by a crazy guy who says to Roy “you’re from Massachusetts” which Roy responded “yes” but it wasn’t the Red Sox the guy wanted to talk about; he confronted Roy and wanted to punch him for no apparent reason.  Not comfortable with that situation we get back in the car head down the road to Cucina, a much better choice.  Cucina is a highly rated Italian restaurant located in an old boardinghouse that now looks like a beautifully redone farmhouse with a large front porch.  We, of course, are 2 at the bar.  Arugula, prosciutto, fig and parmesan along with a Carbonaro with fusilli, just perfect.  A glass of pinot grigio for me (okay maybe 2 glasses) and a beer for Roy.  For dessert, a budino which is a fancy word for an italian pudding, this one is caramel with coconut and a couple of espresso’s to finish off the meal.

Saturday is a beauty.  After breakfast and some suggestions from Adam, we head to Poets Walk, an easy, meandering trail through fields and along the Hudson.  Then it’s on to Red Hook, a funky little town with some good shops, a nice little cafe/gourmet takeout where we sat and relaxed, and there are a few good restaurants.

The best thing about Red Hook though is that outside of town is a trailer making burritos known far and wide.  We order up some burritos, drinks and head back to the B&B for an afternoon by the pool.  The burritos are fat with guacamole, black beans, and rice and even though we bought two, one is enough for both of us.

Now it’s time for the Levon Helm Midnight Ramble.  The Ramble is held at Levon’s home in a studio attached to his house and is known as THE place to hear not only Levon’s band but surprise guests.  Tonight, Ray Wylie Hubbard is the guest.  He’s one of the Austin, Texas legends.  He’s a scruffy, gruff, singer songwriter storyteller that you can listen to all night long.  After Ray, Levon’s band of 12 appears nonchalantly on stage.  5 horns including sax, trombone, tuba, and trumpet, Brian Mitchell (Google him) on keyboards, 2 female singers one of which is Levon’s daughter and Larry Campbell as lead guitar and frontman.  Larry is well-known.  He’s played with Bob Dylan for many years and others too numerous to count.  It’s an intimate setting, acoustically perfect and accommodates only about 250 people.

It’s a dream night if you love music.  The set list is mixed with something for everyone and of course songs from The Band.  Levon’s voice is not well enough for him to sing but his spirit and drumming leads the band.  His smile lights up the room and everyone is so happy to see him!

After the show, we’re starving.  At midnight in Woodstock, NY there’s nothing open so we head down to exit 19 in Kingston, home of the Olympic Diner.  2 at the bar of course! Orange cheese omelet, home fries, some bacon perfectly crisp and buttery toast.  What’s better than that at 12:30am!

On our way back to Woodstock, we’re pulled over.  Roy’s asked to exit the car and he’s given a sobriety test!  Is there anything else that can happen to us!

Sunday is check-out day.  We still haven’t walked around Woodstock and it’s mandatory to go to the flea market.  We spend time talking to a guy who sells antique postcards; he has over 70,000 of them and I’m especially interested in the ones he has from Burlington, VT, my home town.  They bring back a flood of memories so we buy a few; my mother will get a kick out of them.

So that’s the end of our Woodstock weekend.  A little more comfortable and a lot less mud than 1969!  And, P.S., if you go to Woodstock, take the drive to Bethel to visit the Woodstock Museum.  It sits on the original site and it won’t disappoint.  Maybe you’ll see me or Roy (he was there too!) in one of the pictures.

We’ve got to get home to pick up the dog….until next time.