Independent Stores

The Hudson Valley's independent shops sell what they love, stay in business by building a community around them, and seem to surprise people who know the place exists. Bruised Apple Books in Peekskill has stacked used records and books to its ceilings since 1993. Oblong Books in Rhinebeck has grown under the same family for forty-nine years and still hands out staff-recommendation cards. Inquiring Mind in Saugerties holds forty thousand titles and is the town's gathering spot. Beyond the bookstores, you'll find vinyl and vintage, kitchen supplies and consignment furniture, plants and cheese and artisanal candles across nine towns. Most cluster in the valley's main villages—Hudson, Kingston, New Paltz, Rhinebeck, and Woodstock.