Little Chapel on the River

View of #7 Garrison's Landing, now under renovation, from train platform. Renovations for a new restaurant and cafe are well underway at #7 Garrison’s Landing , home to the former Guinan’s Pub & Country Store, which closed its doors in 2008. A couple of weeks ago, I got a tour inside - stepping back across a threshold into a place so many lucky people once called a second home.  The nonprofit organization leading the reconstruction has rebuilt the pub area in back (no, the floor doesn’t slant anymore but that glorious view of the Hudson River is the same) and generally kept the building’s overall architectural shape in tact. The old green phone booth still stands outside (it might become a library book trading outpost, I’m told), the stone fireplace is there (couldn’t see if the gold shamrock was still embedded on the hearth as it was covered with new windows about to be installed.)   [ UPDATE : Breaking news...the shamrock has been located and while it is not...

My friend Andy Revkin - a Garrison, N.Y. resident, writer, educator and longtime Guinan's patron - recently released his first CD called "A Very Fine Line." It's a collection of 10 songs recorded with some contributions from extraordinary local musicians, among them Dar Williams, Art Labriola, the Motherlode Trio, Al Hemberger, Bruce Molsky , and Eric Starr , among others. The video above is a rendition of his song about Guinan's set to photos by the uber-talented Hudson Valley photographer, Christine Ashburn . Many of the photos were shot during the "Irish Night" musical sessions that occurred every Thursday after the full moon. Andy is a guy of many talents, and he explains his segue into the music world in this write-up here . You can find he entire CD on Amazon and download on iTunes or from Andy (just $7) here .  On Sunday evening (Dec. 22nd), Andy is hosting a CD celebration and musical jam with many of the contributing musicians at th...

Candace Coates , the "Highland Harper," will play at Paula's Stone Cottage Wine Bar in June. Candace reports that the building was home to the Bloggett Memorial Library in the 1960's. Since then, she says, it has been a lawyer's office, and two beauty salons before becoming the wine bar. Date: Sunday, June 12, 2011 Time : 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. Address : 2 Broad Street/1158 Main St. Fishkill, N.Y. Phone : (845) 896-9563 (896-WINE)

Candace Coates , a.ka. the rat-affectionate "Highland Harper" from Irish Night at Guinan's, writes that she will be playing this Saturday, April 3rd for Easter at Maizie's Tea Room, which has opened in the village of Fishkill, N.Y. She'll be there performing from 12:30 until 2:30 p.m. Maizie's Tea Room is located at 1129 Main Street Fishkill New York 12524. Their phone number is (845) 896-4103. Candaces notes that founders are a mother/daughter business team who are new to the area from California and trying to fulfill a dream with the new endeavor. Here's a link to a map for Maizie's

From Betsy Hays : "Here is a painting I did of Guinan's back in the 70s (when I didn't know it was Guinan's or even that a bar was in the back of the country store where I used to occasionally stop on my way up to see friends who lived on a lake up in that general area. I fell in love with the look and feel of the building...little did I know that its fate would come back into my life decades later! ... The original is hanging in my kitchen and has been coveted by many but never given away."

Sunday marked the 51st Annual Candlelight Thanksgiving Service for the Putnam County Historical Society & Foundry School Museum . Held in the non-denominational Chapel of Our Lady Restoration in Cold Spring, a dramatic piece of Greek Revival architecture perched on a rock bluff over the Hudson, the service paid tribute to past proclamations of thanks by various U.S. leaders. This one, read by Elliott Sumers , seems particularly timely: President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1934 "... During the past year, we have been given courage and fortitude to meet the problems which have confronted us in our national life. Our sense of social justice has deepened. We have been given vision to make new provisions for human welfare and happiness, and in a spirit of mutual helpfulness we have cooperated to translate vision into reality. More greatly have we turned our hearts and minds to things spiritual. We can truly say, "What profiteth it a nation if it gain the whole world and lose it...

Price: Admission $8/adult Kids 12 & under free Start Time: Saturday, August 15, 2009 at 10:00am End Time: Sunday, August 16, 2009 at 5:00pm Location: Garrison Art Center Street: Garrison's Landing City/Town: Garrison, NY Phone: 845.424.3960 Email: info@garrisonartcenter.org On August 15th & 16th, 2009, the Garrison Art Center 40th Annual Fine Arts & Crafts Fair (FACF) will host this annual gathering for collectors of fine art and craft. Organized by the Garrison Art Center, a not-for-profit community cultural organization, the event is a longstanding community event and the Art Center's largest annual fundraiser. Some 90 regionally and nationally known artists with traditional and alternative crafts are expected. There will be free rides upon the sloop Woody Guthrie, regional food artisans and wineries, Acoustic Music Series live performances, a new Gourmet Food Court. More about the event on Facebook .

When: Saturday, August 15th, 2009 at 7:30 pm Where: Chapel of our Lady Restoration-Opposite Metro North in Cold Spring (Free Parking on Weekends) Why: To support Hudson River Sloop Clearwater Cost: Tickets are $60-seating is limited. for further information, contact Clearwater at (845) 454-7673

Date: Saturday, June 27th, 2009 Location: McKenna Theater SUNY New Paltz campus Street: 1 Hawk Drive Town: New Paltz, NY Time: 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Cost: $25 At the door: $30 Phone: 8452573844 Email: amy@ecoartspace.org Cold Spring, N.Y.-based singer/songwriter Dar Williams and special guest Nick Panasevich will perform at the McKenna Theater/SUNY New Paltz to benefit the work of ecoartspace and Habitat for Artists , a collective of artists based in the Hudson Valley including: Chris Albert, Richard Bruce, Sharon L. Butler, E. Odin Cathcart, Ryan Cronin, Simon Draper, Kathy Feighery, Marnie Hillsley, Matthew Kinney, Grace Knowlton, Michael Natiello, Sara Mussen, Steven Rossi, Todd Sargood, Matthew Slaats, Lynn Stein, Dar Williams, Grey Zeien, Donald Kimmel and Flying Swine live Theater.

Garrison Yacht Club will present The Eilen Jewell Band for its 2009 Spring Dinner. Details below: When: Sunday, April 5 Time: 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Where: Dutchess Manor -- 263 Rte. 9D, Beacon, NY Cost: $75 per person including full dinner and beverages and music. Checks should be made payable to Garrison Yacht Club and sent to P.O. Box 176, Garrison NY 10524 Tickets are available on first come, first serve basis until Sunday, March 29th. No tickets will be available at the door. Contact info: fleetcaptain@garrisonyachtclub.com Sponsors: Polhemus Construction, Nick Roberti's Marine, Samalot Marine and Sea Tow Central Hudson . Photo by Jennifer Lucey-Brzoza @ eilenjewell.com

Chuck Leavell , keyboardist for the Rolling Stones and a founder of the new environmental Web site Mother Nature Network , talks to local art curator Amy Lipton and artist Simon Draper in the Carl Van Brunt Gallery in Beacon N.Y. Amy and Simon discuss their two projects -- ecoartspace and Habitat For Artists -- with Chuck. Cool projects with national reach; check them out.

The Hudson Valley's own Ned Sullivan of Scenic Hudson talks with Chuck Leavell of the Mother Nature Network (and Rolling Stones keyboardist) about smart growth, brownfields and conservation easements in the Hudson River Valley.

Here is a list of upcoming events and programs for families at the Desmond-Fish Library in Garrison. Math Homework Help with Laura Meiselman– resumes Jan.6, 4-5 p.m. for children in 4th through 6th grades. Ongoing except for school vacations. Kid's Craft Hour–Tues. Jan. 13, 4 p.m. Make some snowflakes and enjoy cocoa and marshmallows. Jan. 20, 4 p.m. Edible and non-edible snowmen Jan. 27, 4 p.m. Celebrate Chinese New Year with lanterns and Fortune Cookies. Feb. 3, 4 p.m. Sew some Warm Mittens. Feb. 10, 4p.m. Valentine Extravaganza. Cards and treats for all. Preschool Story Hour -Wednesdays 1:30 p.m. Stories and a related craft for children from 3 to 5 years old. Ongoing except for school holidays. Parent-Child Workshop Play Group Monday and Wednesday, 10:30-11:15 a.m. resumes Jan. 7 & 12. For toddlers and their caregivers. Free play with circle time, songs and a story. No PCW on Jan. 19th. To register for any of these programs, please call 424-3020 Jan 6 & 20 6-8 p.m.- Ba...

Event: Uncle Wade @ Depot Theatre "More Simple Music for Complicated Times" What: Concert Host: Andy Revkin & the rest of Wade Start Time: Friday, January 16 at 8:00pm End Time: Friday, January 16 at 11:00pm Where: Philipstown Depot Theatre, Garrison's Landing, Garrison NY 10524 // View map here . Contact: membership@philipstowndepottheatre.org // 845.424.3900 Facebook RSVP: Click here (only if you're on Facebook.)

Antipodean Books Maps & Prints in Garrison, run by David (a.k.a "The Bookman" in Little Chapel on the River) and Cathy Lilburn, has 75 items under $75 on sale for the holidays. Some of the suggested gifts include a first edition of Joseph H. Adams' "Harper's Outdoor Book for Boys" from 1907 ($45), a steel engraved plate of a trout with named trout flies shown below it from Bunney & Gold, 1801 ($75) and an 2008 updated version of Frances F. Dunwell's fantastic book, "The Hudson: America's River" ($29.95), which I may buy myself if no one beats me to it. Click here to see the entire list.

While researching Little Chapel on the River, I spent hours at the Putnam County Historical Society museum researching Philipstown. Many towns leave their history stored in residents’ memories, and when these locals pass away, sadly, so do those tales. PCHS helps prevent that from happening. Here are a couple of interesting events on the organization's plate this month: This Saturday, Nov. 15th at 5 p.m., the group’s Young Associates will host an event called A Night of Historical Drama dedicated to the local villain (or misguided, misunderstood patriot depending on whom you ask) -- Benedict Arnold . According to an email from the group, Julie Heckert will lead a cast from the Philipstown Depot Theater in a dramatic reading of the play, "The General from America," which tells the notorious tale from the perspective of Arnold and his young British wife. The evening's bartender, Jim Young , will serve up the very same last drink that Arnold had before he fled West ...

From: Neil Bloch, Fleet Captain Garrison Yacht Club Dear GYC Members and Friends, ‘Twas the month before Christmas and down by the river The docks are now stacked, so it’s time to deliver This missive to you, be you friend or a member; Please join us this year for our fête in December. As change is in the air, we are going to do this a bit differently this year. Although many of you have already bookmarked this date (thank you), here are the particulars: Saturday, December 6, 2008 - 13:30 to 16:30 Highlands Country Club, 955 Route 9D, Garrison, NY 10524 $55 per person – checks should be made payable to Garrison Yacht Club Hors d’oeuvres, beverages and music Awards presentation Each attendee should bring a wrapped gift for our annual holiday gift exchange. As we’ll again be participating in the U. S. Marine Corps Toys for Tots Program , please bring an unwrapped gift as well for donation to this worthy cause. We need to get an accurate headcount (for which we will be billed) to Highlan...

View Larger Map Tomorrow morning at 5:30 a.m., Team Guinan will gather near the battlefields of Gettysburg, Pa. to mount our bikes and ride 275 miles to Manhattan. Forecasts say it will be raining with thunderstorms much of the three-day ride, but as they say, we'll ride on... until they won't let us. We're part of a larger group -- Braking the Cycle -- but the seven of us are riding for someone you all loved well: John Guinan who did this ride on behalf of his wife, Mary Jane , and brother-in-law Tommy . And we're riding with John's daughter, our team leader, Kelly Guinan Preusser . Other members include: Ed Preusser, Dean Bradshaw, Christine Ashburn, Chris Robinson, Lisa Bernhard and me. This map above shows you our terrain. (It's mostly uphill. Seriously. Or at least it feels that way.) We owe many of you in this community and in our larger out-of-Garrison community a great deal of thanks for all you did to help us raise funds; we each needed $3500 to r...

While Team Guinan is away on our 275-mile bike ride this weekend, alumni from around the country will gather to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Garrison Union Free School . Anita Prentice writes to say there will be people returning to Garrison for the festivities from California, Minnesota, and Colorado, as well as all over the East Coast. Organizers of the event have put together a pretty slick social networking Web site here on Ning that links alumni and hosts videos, photos, links to local businesses and community institutions as well as details about this weekend's events. Given the weather report, I expect we'll all be pedaling in the rain wishing we were there for Jeff's Dain's grilling Saturday night.

Mike Koutsourades, who runs The Hudson River Shop , writes: "The Tugboat Roundup is September 5-7 at Waterford, NY. It's one of the largest tugboat gatherings in the Northeast. This year they are expecting over 30 tugs. What may be interesting to your readers is a lot of the tugs will be making their way up the Hudson the week of Sept. 1st. This is really a great event with historic boats, music, food and fireworks on the Erie Canal. Also, check out some great shots of tug parade." Thanks to Mike for this tip. I watched the promotional video above and in addition to tugboats (which you can ride) and fireworks, there is apparently a "line-throwing" contest. Presumably, this is the maritime equivalent of hitting the bell with a mallet at the state fair.