Hudson Valley

Hudson Valley of New York State

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Hudson Valley Hiking

Local Trails

Lower Hudson map

Map from NYS parks

Bear Mountain State Park: Palisades Interstate Park Commission; Route 9W; Bear Mountain, NY 10911; Phone: (845) 786-2701; Directions: 45 miles north of New York City. Accessible from the Palisades Interstate Parkway or I-87. Bear Mountain State Park, located at the intersection of Route 9W and the Palisades Parkway; Bear Mountain State Park is situated in rugged mountains rising from the west bank of the Hudson River. The historic Bear Mountain Inn overlooks Hessian Lake and provides fine food and overnight accommodations. The park features a large play field, shaded picnic groves, a dock on the Hudson for mooring small craft, lake and river fishing access, a swimming pool, a zoo and nature, hiking, biking and cross-country ski trails, and ski-jumps. An outdoor rink is open to ice skaters from late October through mid-March. The Perkins Memorial Tower atop Bear Mountain affords spectacular views of the park, the Hudson Highlands and Harriman State Park.

Breakneck Ridge Trail: Beacon, NY; In the Hudson Highlands State Park; The small Breakneck Ridge Metro-North Railroad station serves hikers and campers traveling to and from Breakneck Ridge, near Beacon, New York, via the Hudson Line

Camp Smith Trail: Westchester County, NY; Camp Smith Trail extends from the Historic Toll House (Visitor Center) on Route 6-202 to the Appalachian Trail (AT).

Mount Beacon: Beacon Mountain, sometimes Mount Beacon, is the highest peak of the Hudson Highlands, located behind the City of Beacon, New York, in the Town of Fishkill. Its two summits rise above the Hudson River behind the city and can easily be seen from Newburgh across the river and many other places in the region.

North Lake Area: Taconic State Park; Columbia County

Overlook Mountain: is surely one of the most interesting in all of the Catskills. Its close proximity to Woodstock has made it a popular destination for tourists. Although the Overlook Mountain Wild Forest only covers 590 acres, its rocky slopes make for a very interesting day hike. In addition to providing a habitat for the timber rattlesnake, a protected species that only lives in one other area of the Catskills, the summit is covered with red oaks (trees usually found on lower slopes and in valleys, not 3,100' above sea level), and some red spruce/balsam fir trees (those typical over 3,300').; In 1871, the Overlook Mountain House opened its doors to guests, joining numerous others in the Catskills. This hotel had the distinction of being the highest, at 2,920'. The Mountain House could house 300 guests and, despite burning down twice, prospered until around the time of the stock market crash. In the following years, it was rebuilt (but never opened to guests) and eventually looted and abandoned, leaving the ruins that can still be seen along the trail today

Pine Meadow Lake

Slide Mountain: Slide Mountain is the highest peak in the Catskills. It is located in the Town of Shandaken in Ulster County, in southern New York. While the 4,180-foot contour is generally accepted as its height, the exact elevation of the summit has never been officially determined by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, and many informal surveys suggest the mountain may actually top 4,200 feet (1,280 m) above sea level.

Shawangunk's: The Shawangunks contain Mohonk Preserve, Minnewaska State Park Preserve and Sam's Point Preserve with more than 100 miles of hiking trails and several climbing areas. The Long Path long-distance hiking trail follows the ridge from Sullivan County to the vicinity of Kerhonkson; south of it the Shawangunk Ridge Trail connects to the Appalachian Trail near High Point.

The Long Path: The Long Path is a 347.35-mile (559 km) long-distance hiking trail running from George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, New Jersey to Altamont, New York, in the Albany area. While not yet a continuous trail, relying on road walks in some areas, it nevertheless takes in many of the popular hiking attractions west of the Hudson River, such as the New Jersey Palisades, Harriman State Park, the Shawangunk Ridge and the Catskill Mountains. It offers hikers an incredible diversity of environments to pass through, from suburbia and sea-level salt marshes along the Hudson to wilderness and boreal forest on Catskill summits 4,000 feet (1219 m) in elevation.

Belleayre Mountain: Highmount, NY 12441; (845) 254-5600; Mountain resort offering winter skiing snow boarding and snowshoeing. Scenic chair lift rides offered summer and fall fishing, hiking, biking. Summer concert series.

Basha Kill Wildlife Management Area: Wurtsboro, NY 12790; (845) 754-0743; The NYS owned Basha Kill Wildlife Management Area offers hiking, fishing, birding, boating and quiet walks along trails that parallel this 3,000 acre wetland.

Catskill Hiking Shack: Wurtsboro, NY 12790; (845) 888-HIKE; Outdoor hiking specialty shop providing information, maps, guides, gear, footwear, etc.

NYSP Taconic

Catskill Outdoor Education Center: Delhi, NY 13753
(607) 746-4112
The Catskill Outdoor Education Corps offers programs for school, youth, adult and other organized groups. The programs are designed to introduce participants to various aspects of outdoor recreation.

Catskill Revitalization Corp.: Stamford, NY 12167
(607) 652-2821
The Catskill Scenic Trail lies on top of the former rail bed of the Ulster & Delaware Railroad. This 19-mile Rails to Trails project offers a hard-packed surface that makes it perfect for hiking.

Catskill Scenic Trail: Stamford, NY 12167
(607) 652-2821
Rails to trails, 19 miles, very gentle grade, easy hiking/biking along West Branch Delaware River. Winter snowmobile trails.

Morningside Park
South Fallsburg, NY 12779
(845) 434-5877
Rowboats, boat docks, fishing, pool, bath house, ball fields, tennis, picnic, playgrounds, hiking, camping, refreshment concession.

Overlook Mountain Fire Tower
Woodstock, NY 12498
2 1/2 mile long hiking trail offering views of the Hudson Valley and the Ashokan Reservoir. Hike is rated moderate. Volunteer guides available weekends.

Town of Thompson Park
Monticello, NY 12701
(845) 796-3606 Hiking, picnicking, x-c skiing. 160 acres of parkland. No rentals.

Walnut Mountain Park
Liberty, NY 12754
(845) 292-7690
Hiking trails, mountain bike trails, picnic area, softball field, soccer field. Amazing views.

Appalachian Trail
Bear Mountain, NY 10911
(845) 786-5003
Spanning for 35 miles in NYS, offering scenic view of the Hudson River, Greenwood Lake, and also winds its way through the Trailside Museum and Bear Mountain Wildlife Center.

Appalachian Trail
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603
(201) 512-9348
30 miles of the Trail pass through souteastern Dutchess. 4,000 acres of protected parkland with hiking, backpacking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and five overnight use areas.

Bear Mountain State Park
Bear Mountain, NY 10911
(845) 786-2701
Playing field, picnicking, dock for small craft, fishing, swimming pool, zoo. Nature, hiking, biking and XC ski trails.

Black Creek Forest Preserve
Esopus, NY 12429
(845) 473-4440
130 acre nature preserve via a 120 foot suspension footbridge over Black Creek, a tributary of the Hudson River. More than 2 miles of trails leading to the river.

Not So Local

Appalachian Trail
The "AT" provides 2,100 miles of backpacking opportunities from Maine to Georgia. In the NY/NJ area, the AT enters NY at the Connecticut state line north of Pawling. It follows a generally southwestern course from the foothills of the Taconic Mountains, through Fahnestock State Park and the ridges along the southern end of the Hudson Highlands. The trail crosses the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain Bridge, then continues west through Bear Mountain State Park. It ascends the summit of the Ramapo Mountains then extends through the valley to NJ, to the Kittatinny Ridge at High Point, and thence south to the Delaware Water Gap. Open fires are prohibited at many areas along the AT so take a backpacking stove. Camping is permitted along the AT in areas more than one-half mile from a road access and 25 feet from any stream or other water source within the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. In NY and NJ outside the Delaware Water Gap NRA, backpacking and camping is allowed only at designated shelters and campsites. Overnight group size is limited to 10 (day hike use is limited to 25). For more information about these sites, see the Appalachian Trail Guide for NY/NJ, which is available through the NY-NJ Trail Conference.

Appalachian Trail in NY
New York - 88 Miles The wildness of the A.T. is surprisingly close to New York City. You can take a bus from the city and be on the Trail within an hour. The trail crosses the Hudson River, entering Harriman-Bear Mountain State Park, where the first section of the A.T. was completed in 1923. Heading south, the trail then passes through the newly protected Sterling Forest.

Related Links

The Hiking Shack: 169 Sullivan St; Wurtsboro, NY 12790; 845-888-HIKE; The Hiking Shack has expanded into the shop next door Come in and check out our new and expanded merchandise lines.

Backcountry Hiking and Camping Rules

Black Rock Forest

Catskill Fire Tower Project

Escarpment Trail Run

Favorite Haunts

Fishkill Ridge Caretakers

Hiking in the Hudson Valley

Interstate Hiking Club

Links to Natural Places of Recreation

New York / New Jersey Trails Conference

New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

New York State Parks