Kaatskill Kaleidoscope

Zen Mountain Monastery (or, Doshinji, meaning Temple of the Way of Reality) is a Zen Buddhist monastery and training center on a 230-acre (0.93 km2) forested property in the Catskill Mountains in Mount Tremper, New York. It was founded in 1980 by John Daido Loori originally as the Zen Arts Center. It combines the Rinzai and Sōtō Zen traditions, in both of which Loori received Dharma transmission. Loori's first dharma heir was Bonnie Myotai Treace, Sensei, who received shiho, or dharma transmission, from him in 1996. From Loori's death in October 2009 until January 2015, Zen Mountain Monastery had two teachers: Geoffrey Shugen Arnold and Konrad Ryushin Marchaj, who received Dharma transmission from Loori in 1997 and 2009, respectively. Since January 2015, the training at the Monastery has been led by Shugen Roshi, assisted by Ron Hogen Green, Sensei; Jody Hojin Kimmel, Sensei; and Vanessa Zuisei Goddard, Sensei (currently on leave).

Mount Pleasant is a mountain located in the Catskill Mountains of New York state, USA, northwest of Olivebridge. Cross Mountain is located southwest and Romer Mountain is located north-northwest of Mount Pleasant.

Mount Tremper, officially known as Tremper Mountain and originally called Timothyberg, is one of the Catskill Mountains in the U.S. state of New York. It is located near the hamlet of Phoenicia, in the valley of Esopus Creek. At 2,740 feet (840 m) in elevation, it is well below the higher peaks of the region. Its slopes were a source of two major local products during the 19th century: hemlock bark, a source of tannin, and bluestone used in construction. Later it was the site of Tremper House, one of the Catskills' earliest railroad resorts. Henry Ward Beecher and Oscar Wilde were among the guests there. In the 20th century it was acquired by the state and became part of the Catskill Park Forest Preserve. Its location in the Esopus Valley between the northern and southern Catskills made it an ideal place for a fire lookout tower, which still stands on the mountain's summit. The Mount Tremper Fire Observation Station has been restored and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Hikers often follow the old road to it from Phoenicia, also a section of the Long Path long-distance trail, to enjoy the views from the tower.

Romer Mountain is a mountain located in the Catskill Mountains of New York south of Phoenicia. Sheridan Mountain is located north, and Cross Mountain is located south of Romer Mountain.

Established in 1960, the Empire State Railway Museum is a non-profit railroad museum currently located in the historic Ulster & Delaware Phoenicia Railroad Station, Phoenicia, New York. The station was built in 1899 by the U&D, and is one of the few surviving examples left along the line. The museum owns a small collection of historic railroad equipment. The museum was formerly the publisher of the annual Steam Railroad Directory until the 2006 edition, when the title was taken over by Kalmbach Publishing and now released as the Tourist Trains Guidebook.

Phoenicia station is a repurposed train station located on High Street just south of Phoenicia, New York, United States. It is a frame building that opened in 1899. It was built by the Ulster and Delaware Railroad to replace an earlier station, primarily serving the patrons of hotels in the surrounding Catskill Mountains. It remained in use for about 55 years, after the New York Central Railroad bought the U&D on February 1, 1932, and ultimately ran its last passenger train on March 31, 1954. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995 as the Phoenicia Railroad Station, and today is home to the Empire State Railway Museum.

Phoenicia is a hamlet (and census-designated place) of Shandaken in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 268 at the 2020 census, making it the second highest populated community in the town. The village center is located just off Route 28 at its junction with Route 214 and is nestled at the base of three peaks, Mount Tremper, Romer Mountain, and Sheridan Mountain. The community sits at the confluence of the Esopus Creek and Stony Clove Creek. A popular getaway for New Yorkers, the hamlet has frequented many tourism guides as among the best vacation towns in the greater New York City area.

Cross Mountain is a mountain located in the Catskill Mountains of New York south of Phoenicia. Sheridan Mountain is located north, Terrace Mountain is located west, and Romer Mountain is located north of Cross Mountain.

Stony Clove Creek is a 10.3-mile-long (16.6 km) creek in the Catskill Mountains in New York. It is a tributary of Esopus Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Hudson River. It joins the Esopus in the village of Phoenicia, and has two smaller tributaries up north of Phoenicia.

Onteora High School, located in Boiceville, New York, is part of the Onteora Central School District. The High School shares its building with the Onteora Middle School. However, the two schools remain administratively separate. The school serves the towns of Woodstock, West Hurley, Olive, and Shandaken, each comprising several small hamlets including Glenford, Ashokan, Beechford, Brodhead, Brown's Station, Cold Brook, Davis Corners, Krumville, Olivebridge, Samsonville, Shokan, Winchell, West Shokan, Bearsville, Byrdcliffe, Montoma, Daisy, Shady, Willow, Wittenberg, parts of Zena, Phoenicia, Pine Hill, Ohayo, Oliverea, Mt. Tremper, Mt. Pleasant, Woodland Valley, Highmount, Allaben, Chichester, Bushnellsville, Big Indian, and Yankeetown. Despite its size, the number of students in attendance remains small and is steadily declining. In 2011, 85.2% of students graduated within 4 years, up from 81% in 2010.Previously the school mascot had been the Indians, which had been a point of contention for many years within the community and there has been multiple attempts to have the name changed. The first one, in May 2001, resulted in very close vote in favor of retaining the name 1,940 to 1,868. A new initiative was started in 2016 by a new generation of students who believed that the use of a racial group as a mascot was insensitive. This eventually let to the school board of trustees voting 5-2 in favor of changing the mascot to the Eagles.

Cold Brook is a former railroad station in the Boiceville section of the town of Olive, Ulster County, New York, United States. Located on Cold Brook Road, just north of New York State Route 28A next to Esopus Creek, Cold Brook station served the New York Central Railroad's Catskill Mountain Branch, formerly the Ulster and Delaware Railroad. The station was located 22.1 miles (35.6 km) northwest of Kingston Point station in the city of Kingston. The station replaced a flag stop at Cold Brook Bridge and became the primary station for Boiceville on June 8, 1913, when the railroad abandoned the alignment and station through Boiceville for construction of the Ashokan Reservoir. The Ulster and Delaware commenced construction on a new station depot in June 1915. Construction was completed c. September 1915.The New York Central Railroad ended passenger service on the Catskill Mountain Branch on March 31, 1954, and despite being given permission to demolish the station in April 1955, the station continues to stand. The station is also an access point for the Ashokan Rail Trail, a rail trail runs from Cold Brook to West Hurley.

Boiceville Railroad Station was built by the Ulster and Delaware Railroad to serve the community of Boiceville, New York. Located at MP 21.3, Boiceville was the westernmost depot to be removed as a result of the construction of the Ashokan Reservoir. Although the community of Boiceville was submerged, the station site remains above the reservoir level, at a point just west of where the old railroad right of way slips under the waters of the reservoir, and just east of where it diverges from the new line.In total, 12 miles of railroad were relocated away from the Ashokan Reservoir in 1913. The station stop was replaced by the new Cold Brook station.