Hudson Valley Day Trip: Opus 40

Last weekend I made a trip to nearby Opus 40 sculpture park located in Saugerties. I’ve definitely never seen anything else quite like it! Opus 40 is “one of the largest and most beguiling works of art on the entire continent and the greatest earthwork sculpture in existence” according to Architectural Digest.

It took 37 years for sculptor and quarry man Harvey Fite to create the sculpture park visitors see today. Using only hand tools and no mortar or cement, he fitted together thousands of stones to form a series of curving walls and terraces connected by cobbled pathways and labyrinthine staircases. Only after his death did Fite’s wife decide to open up their property to visits from the public. Also open is the museum workshop displaying the tools Fite used to make his creations. You can see the views of the nearby Overlook and Roundtop Mountains in the distance which was in Fite’s opinion the perfect scenic background for his monumental sculpture park.

I’m so glad I finally made a trip to see Opus 40. It was a fun place to visit and small enough to make it a part of your day when spending time doing other activities in the Woodstock and Saugerties area. Scroll down to see some photos from my day there. For more on the history of the park or to plan your visit, please click here.