shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileNew York

above Cragsmoor, on the Shawangunk Ridge

Sam's Point Ice Caves Shawangunks

Name: Sam's Point Ice Caves Shawangunks — on ceramic tile, by WenderVista
Brand: WenderVista

— — the rock that keeps winter into July.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.

— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand

— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines

— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall

— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround

— a note from the studio

“The high southern end of the Shawangunk Ridge, where the white quartz conglomerate splits into deep crevices that hold ice through the warm months. A loop trail leads from the parking area at Sam's Point past dwarf pitch pines to the caves and the cliff edge above Verkeerderkill Falls. Cooler by ten degrees than the valley below, even in August.

from the studio

— bring it home

Sam's Point Ice Caves Shawangunks, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?

One tile — square or rectangle.

How big?

the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand

6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb

Surface finish

A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.

How it sits

A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.

$58

Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.

— size

6 × 6 in

15 cm

— weighs

1.6 lb

solid in the hand

— surface

ceramic, hand-finished

art rests beneath a thin glossy finish

— from

Knoxville, TN

our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies

— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Sam's Point Ice Caves Shawangunks

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.

— the place

Sam's Point sits at roughly 2,255 feet on the southern end of the Shawangunk Ridge, above the village of Cragsmoor in Ulster County, New York. The 4,600-acre Sam's Point area is the largest contiguous tract within Minnewaska State Park Preserve and is managed by the New York State Office of Parks. The bedrock is a hard quartz-pebble conglomerate called Shawangunk grit, which fractures into wide vertical crevices. A globally rare dwarf pine barrens covers the ridge top.

— informed by NY State Parks, Wikipedia

— the stone

The conglomerate that forms the ridge is roughly 420 million years old, deposited in a Silurian river system and uplifted as the Appalachians rose. The wide tectonic crevices in the cliff face are deep and narrow enough to trap cold air and snow through the warm months, true ice caves rather than seasonal ones. Ice persists into late June or early July in cooler years. The same rock forms the climbing crags at the Trapps, ten miles north along the ridge.

— informed by USGS Shawangunk Formation

— the season

The preserve is open year-round but the ice caves are at their strangest in May and June, when the surrounding woods are leafed out at eighty degrees and the cave floors still hold winter ice. The high blueberry barrens on the ridge ripen in late July. Fall color peaks across the dwarf pines and oaks in mid-October. Winter access is limited; the gate road closes when conditions warrant, and the upper loop is exposed to wind off the Catskills to the north.

— informed by Minnewaska visitor info

— where

United States · Cragsmoor, Ulster County, New York

— within

Minnewaska State Park Preserve

— elevation

687 m · 2,255 ft

— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.

3 km N

Verkeerderkill Falls

ridge-top waterfall

2 km S

Cragsmoor

ridge-top hamlet and art colony

12 km N

Minnewaska Lake

sky lake on the Shawangunks

Sam's Point Ice Caves Shawangunks

Verkeerderkill Falls

Cragsmoor

Minnewaska Lake

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Sam's Point Ice Caves Shawangunks — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

Deep crevices in the quartz conglomerate cliffs at Sam's Point on the Shawangunk Ridge. They trap cold air through the warm months and hold ice well into June or early July most years.

At the southern end of the Shawangunk Ridge above the village of Cragsmoor, in Ulster County, New York. The trailhead parking is on Sam's Point Road, about ninety miles north of New York City.

Yes. Sam's Point is the southernmost section of Minnewaska State Park Preserve, managed by New York State Parks. The Sam's Point area alone covers about 4,600 acres of ridge, barrens, and cliff.

The ice caves loop runs about three and a half miles from the parking area, with rough stone steps inside the caves themselves. Adding the spur to Verkeerderkill Falls totals roughly eight miles.

A globally rare dwarf pitch pine barrens covers the ridge top, pines kept short by thin soil and frequent fire. Lower slopes carry oak, mountain laurel, and high-bush blueberry.

Most years ice lingers in the caves through May and into June, sometimes into July after a cold winter. The caves feel coldest in late spring when the surrounding woods are already warm.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. Climbers and hikers who know the Shawangunks recognise Sam's Point at once. The white rim of the conglomerate cliffs is distinctive. A Small or Medium reads well at a desk or hallway.

It carries Mountain-modern, Cabin, and Earth-tone Minimalist rooms. The cool grey of the conglomerate and the deep pine green pair with raw oak, charcoal linen, and matte black hardware.

Yes. Quiet northeastern landscapes have moved into the biophilic vocabulary alongside coastal and high-desert work. A Large above a desk or reading chair grounds a nature-led palette.

A single Large above a standard sofa; a four-tile Mural for a wider wall; a nine-tile Mural for a statement install. The Medium reads well above a console.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish for vertical installs near humidity. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure and resists steam and splash.

Soft microfibre cloth and plain water. No abrasives, no ammonia cleaners. The finish wipes clean.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is made in-house at Wender Studios in Knoxville, Tennessee. No licensing, no third-party art.

— if this one stayed with you