Urban Cowboy Lodge, Big Indian, New York
Maximalist Mountain Living in the Catskills Wilderness
Why DNA Hotels Loves It
● Lyon Porter and Jersey Banks transform an 85-year-old mountain lodge into an unapologetically layered retreat filled with pattern, craft, and Americana.
● Twenty-eight individually designed rooms and suites combine hand-printed wallpaper, Pendleton blankets, vintage furniture, fireplaces, and forest-facing bathtubs.
● Sixty-eight acres of wilderness, communal fires, outdoor rituals, and limited phone reception make disconnection part of the experience.
A Lodge Deep in the Wilderness
Urban Cowboy Lodge sits on the side of a mountain within the Catskills Forest Preserve. The former turn-of-the-century vacation lodge was reimagined by Lyon Porter and Jersey Banks with hospitality developer Phil Hospod. Rather than replacing its rustic character with predictable modern minimalism, they amplified it. Wood, leather, stone, pattern, and collected objects fill the interiors. The landscape remains the reason to be here.
Rustic Design Without Restraint
Porter approaches each room like an individual composition. Custom Printsburgh wallpapers collide with Navajo rugs, Pendleton blankets, antler chandeliers, original artworks, and individually sourced antiques. Hand-carved Vermont furniture and locally made twigwork pieces connect the interiors to the craft traditions of the region. The styling is dense, theatrical, and deliberately personal. Nothing feels timid. Nothing feels generic.
Rooms Made for Staying In
The 28 rooms and suites are spread across several buildings, including Walden, a freestanding cabin, a chalet, and the Grand Lodge. Some include private decks, in-room potbelly stoves, clawfoot bathtubs positioned towards the trees, or Japanese cedar soaking tubs. Walk-in rain showers and generous beds introduce contemporary comfort without disturbing the lodge’s older spirit. The rooms feel warm rather than polished. Comfort comes through texture.
Communal Life Around the Fire
The Grand Lodge forms the social centre of the property. Guests gather around the towering river-stone fireplace, at the bar, or in the Dining Room, where seasonal produce and wood-fired cooking shape the menu. Chef-led ambitions towards low-waste dining reinforce the property’s connection to its surroundings. Cocktail hours, shared meals, and outdoor fires become part of the rhythm. Hospitality feels natural.
Space to Wander
Beyond the lodge, the land encourages a slower form of exploration. Trails lead through forest towards views of Slide Mountain, while yoga, fly-fishing, archery, and open-air dining introduce more structured ways to experience the landscape. An imported Estonian Iglu sauna offers heat and stillness after a day outdoors. There is little mobile phone reception. That feels less like an inconvenience than a design decision.
Why It Works
Urban Cowboy Lodge succeeds because it refuses to neutralise the Catskills. Its maximalist interiors, handcrafted details, old lodge architecture, and communal atmosphere all heighten the character of the setting rather than smoothing it away. It is rustic, eccentric, and deeply comfortable—a mountain retreat where wilderness and personality are given equal space.
