Anna Aberg reimagines wilderness at the Livingston Manor Fly Fishing Club

By Jillian Scheinfield
Photography Harold Julian
Creative Direction John Paul Tran
Styling Stacey Cunningham
Beauty Kate Best
Hair Yukiko Tajima

Anna wears dress by LOEWE

Imagine your dream weekend in the Catskills. Then think what it would look like if you took that weekend and transformed it into a covetable lifestyle brand.

This is the foundation of the Livingston Manor Fly Fishing Club, a membership-based community of like-minded souls dedicated to getting out in nature and enjoying it to the core. Here, you’ll find members taking morning plunges in the river, lingering in the sauna, drinking Catskill Brewery beer on tap, attempting to cast a fly fishing rod, and even networking.

I arrive on a June day to find two ordinary white farmhouses situated across the street from a local diner. Co-founder Anna Aberg, standing under the club’s discreet flag, waves me in. She looks every part the stylish pioneer in brown corduroy overalls, a white crewneck tee, and a thick, shaggy white cardigan that could double as a chic throw rug. Born and raised in Sweden, Aberg has the striking facial features of a Nordic supermodel. Her silky, flaxen hair is tucked under a quilted hat emblazoned with the club’s name. She greets me toting a cream and wood-patterned thermos filled with coffee, and I can’t help but smile inwardly. Even her canteen is on brand.

The Livingston Manor Fly Fishing Club was dreamt up by Aberg and her fiancé, Tom Roberts, on a drive back to the city one morning in 2016, she tells me as I step inside the main quarters of the club. The décor here is warm and wintry, in hues of chocolate, light brown, dark green, and gold. There’s a handsome oak wood table in the center of the room; the floor is draped in cowhide rugs. I see Craigslist-sourced vintage chairs, various candelabras, a pen and quill, and an open coat closet filled with durable tan and hunter green Stutterheim raincoats. A map of the Netherlands lines a hallway wall that doubles as a secret door, leading to what feels like a stately Englishman’s cabin library.

Above: ONARINS top worn with ALIX OF BOHEMIA trouser; right: jacket by ALENA AKHMADULLINA, crochet skirt by MY BEACHY SIDE

The couple initially purchased the five-acre property as a Shangri-La to kick back, relax, and host friends on the weekends. Like many Catskills-bound weekenders, Aberg and Roberts worked high-stress jobs in branding and marketing and were craving a homey respite. What began as a personal hideaway soon became a full-fledged retreat business centered on the idea of helping people reconnect to the wild. At the heart of their concept was fly fishing — a complex sport that uses flies as bait and requires a complete survey of the land and careful consideration of the elements — which was popularized in the United States during the mid-19th century after anglers like Theodore Gordon and Edward R. Hewitt discovered Catskills trout streams like the Willowemoc Creek, right where you’ll now find the club. “The reason we got into the fly fishing idea is because we wanted to stay true to the origin of the area,” Aberg says.

Mugs in hand, we walk past fishing rods and waders leaning against the stairs, a vegetable garden to our right. We mosey along a long wooden plank flanked by purple flowers that leads to a spectacularly verdant, raw forest. There’s something deeply enchanting and almost dizzying about being in the thick of this utterly beautiful — not to mention thoroughly well-conceived — expanse of land. I spot charming benches and scattered one-off chairs, a hammock skirting the river, a weird and wonderful elephant sculpture, two safari tents, and a ladder strewn in lights suspended over an outdoor dinner table. There are even spotlights hidden in the trees. How else do you think they capture those magical Instagram photographs of trout dinners by candlelight?

“It’s all about experiencing communal life for a weekend in nature, slowing down and asking yourself: How can you involve nature in your adult life?”

Above: sleeper gown by SAMANTHA

Engulfed by the sound of rustling trees, Aberg and I sit on Adirondack chairs facing the Willowemoc, gazing at the creek’s tranquilizing calm. “It’s all about experiencing communal life for a weekend in nature, slowing down and asking yourself: How can you involve nature in your adult life?” she asks. “To be able to create this place where people can learn about nature and understand it is really special. The fact that it’s becoming a cool thing to care about the environment is incredible.”

Considering the entire concept behind the Livingston Manor Fly Fishing Club, cool is an understatement. The club sold out its Memorial Day weekend retreat in three days. They’re also booked through summer with private events for groups of friends, but look forward to having another open retreat weekend for guests come late July. And they just officially launched their membership program, which entails a short application and costs $300 annually.

One of the greatest things about the club is that although it may seem exclusive, it’s not. Aberg and Roberts are hospitable, dynamic people who want to share what they’ve learned about rural living with other curious minds. They’re not only championing a distinct rustic lifestyle; they’re also actively reimagining the idea of luxury. “Buying a vintage item or sharing spaces, these things will eventually be considered luxury. The whole world’s not there yet, but it’s happening more and more,” Aberg says. “I also think if you live in the city, it is just a luxury to simply get out in nature, and that’s what we provide.”

“I also think if you live in the city, it is just a luxury to simply get out in nature, and that’s what we provide.”

Right: Swimsuit by CARLA COLLETTO

The experience is also great for people who are interested in coming up to the Catskills but don’t know where to start. The region can feel a bit vast and elusive at times, and belonging to the club obviously has its social perks. “If you’re not in a group of friends where everyone leaves the city on the weekends, it’s hard to find people to do that with and to know where to go. Many guests have been grateful to meet similarly minded people here,” says Aberg.

And keep in mind not everyone has to be some pioneer-like, woodsy explorer to stay here. For non-rugged types, all of the bedrooms and communal spaces are built with thoughtful dedication to comfort, and of course glamping is an option. From the luxurious Lexington Company bed linens to the cozy couches and a sauna kit filled with coconut oil sugar scrub and Fuller’s Earth Clay Mask, there’s no shortage of indulgent accoutrements.

Looking forward, Aberg and her partner will expand their retreat empire with their new bed-and-breakfast, The Lady Pomona. The launch date is still unknown, but think apple-pie baking and cider buzzes and late-afternoon hikes. Yes, it all may sound too perfect and too good to be true, but surprisingly there’s no catch — except for the fish.

Published in the print edition of the DVEIGHT, issue 10.