Lost in a “Time Warp” for the afternoon in Woodstock, New York on April 11, 2010. Or was it 1969?

Spending the afternoon in Woodstock is like being in a Michael J. Fox “Back to The Future” movie, except we didn’t fly into town in a time traveling DeLorean. We just flew (OK, we drove) down the New York State Thruway to Exit 20 and made the 9 mile trek on Route 212 from the toll plaza back to 1969.

Once you enter the main street of Woodstock (Tinker Street) and gaze around, you immediately know you have just entered another time zone, a time zone that has stood still for the past 41 years. How often do you see tie dyed vendors and a psychedelic candle shop, where we purchased a hand painted Peace Candle Holder (Candlestock, 16 Mill Hill Road) in todays modern cities and towns. The feel of the town throws you back to a simpler and wholesome time, where people welcome you with conversation and offer your dog biscuits and water on the street. To find out more about the shop Candlestock, click here.

Woodstock is a town that has embraced its past and still lives it today in the stores and people of the town. Music is still, and always will be, the highlight of this artist colony. The names of performers that continue to perform in Woodstock will only make you say WOW!, I have to see them, or, I remember those days and the songs. The place to see the names of the past and names of today perform in an intimate setting is the Bearsville Theatre. Click here to view performance schedule.

One artist who still calls Woodstock home is Levon Helm originally of “The Band”. You can catch a performance by Levon Helm at the Sixth Annual “Mountain Jam”, Hunter Mountain, New York  June 4-6, 2010. To find out more, visit MountainJam.com.

A great way to spend a throw-back afternoon in Woodstock is to shop the downtown and its unique boutique shops. Stop at the Woodstock Wine and Liquors at 33 Tinker Street and pick-up a bottle of wine from their extensive offerings. Then just walk out the front door and go next door to C’est Cheese at 65 Tinker Street and pick-up some goat cheese, blue cheese and maybe some other cheese that strikes your fancy along with some crackers from the knowledgeable staff at this small and personable cheese shop. Don’t be in a hurry, time runs a little slower here, just soak up the atmosphere. After making your purchases, head down the road to the Bearsville Theater at 291 Tinker Street and park in the lot behind the radio station 100.1 WDST. Here you will find stone benches and a running stream to enjoy a scenic picnic.

A shop that should not be missed by the ladies is the Loominus Handwovens at 18 Tinker Street. Here you will fine hand-made (made directly in the shop), scarves, jackets and throws. Visit Loominus at www.loominus.com. For you music and book lovers, stop at The Golden Notebook at 29 Tinker Street and pick-up a Levon Helm Band CD, that way you will always remember Woodstock.

Woodstock offers a variety of cafe and restaurants, if the picnic concept doesn’t work for you.

After a stop at the local ice cream shop for some homemade hard ice cream, it was time to head back to “2010″ and Exit 20 of the New York State Thruway for the ride back to Amsterdam. One thing is for sure, we will be back… and we encourage you to visit as well.

And, don’t leave without buying an authentic tie dye Woodstock T-Shirt. If you couldn’t be there in 1969 to get one, this is the next best thing.

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