Travel to the Catskills with BirdEye and Judith Heneghan

Submitted: 30th June 2024

Authors on location – Judith Heneghan, BIRDEYE

Birdeye is set in a fictional commune in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. I’ve loved this small nub of the eastern Appalachians ever since 1973 when my family lived there for most of that year. Back then, the region’s lakes and mountains reminded me of Scotland, but with fewer midges and better weather. It also had hippies, and I knew instinctively that they were the source of the Catskills’ relaxed and colourful vibe.

Judith on location (c) Judith Heneghan

Map of locations in Birdeye

Later, at university, I took a course in American Utopias and discovered that the area had a rich history of alternative communities. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, many religious movements, philosophers, intellectuals and artists sought refuge and inspiration amongst its forests and valleys. In the early twentieth century it became a popular destination for those escaping the disease and heat of New York City, until the invention of air conditioning, and package holidays.

Camping 1973 (c) Judith Heneghan

Map of locations in Birdeye

Then came the Woodstock years after Dylan and Baez moved in. Nowadays it is altogether quieter – hokey, some might say. The hippies have aged, and many of its painted wooden buildings have a faded, decaying air, despite some bougie new hangouts. Most visitors go there to hike or fish or sit by the creek and dream.

Typical old Catskills House, Hunter, NY (c) Judith Heneghan

Map of locations in Birdeye

This, then, is a place where stalwarts of the peace and love generation can tuck themselves away and not attract attention. For Birdeye I imagined a big old house above the river, safe from flooding, nestling into the mountain, surrounded by trees. How would such a commune look now, fifty years after the Woodstock festival at Yasgur’s farm? What secrets might it hold? In my novel, a young stranger shows up, and the ensuing disruption proves catastrophic.

Ashokan Reservoir (c) Judith Heneghan

Map of locations in Birdeye

I made three trips back to the Catskills for research. I like to have a real location in mind when I write, so while I’ve changed some of the place names, I do know that the Birdeye house is situated somewhere between the real hamlets of Phoenicia and Shandaken. These I have merged into my fictional hamlet of Apollonia. From there I could stand above the river, walk the trails and learn which peaks Liv can see from Birdeye’s yard. I began to get a sense of ‘her’ territory – what lay within it, and where its borders might lie.

Bridge across Esopus Creek (c) Judith Heneghan

Map of locations in Birdeye

But setting is always more than mere location. In order to understand what it might be like to live there, I sat in diners and listened to conversations. I attended a town board to gain a sense of local politics. I hiked, I discovered where my mobile signal failed, and I even got a small tattoo at Skinflower Cosmic Arts on Main St, Phoenicia. However, nothing was as painful as the ride I took on an inner tube down the Esopus so that I could see the view from the water. Despite the bruises, I could appreciate how Liv feels when she stands in the river.

Map Birdeye

Map of locations in Birdeye

Maps are key, for me, but so too are photographs, and I took plenty. When I’m researching, I’m not interested in the picturesque. It’s a search for the ordinary: the trash on the sidewalk, the signs on community noticeboards and the manner in which people cross the street. Everything is fascinating. A ‘This Machine Kills Fascists’ cap makes its way into the novel. So does a sign that reads ‘This trail is of medium difficulty’, and a woman who tells me she is wearing two vests under her sweater.

Birdeye Judith Heneghan

Nevertheless, a novel is a work of fiction, which means I make things up. Birdeye is my version of the Catskills. I hope it rings true for those who know the area; indeed, I hope it makes you want to travel there. You won’t find Caspar’s Diner, or the Birdeye house, or Hope Springs Eternal. You might, however, find a vintage store called The Mystery Spot on Phoenicia’s Main St, or a cabin off the Plank Road that could double as Dolores’ home.

The creek and the mountains, meanwhile, are exactly as I found them.