Favorite Catskills Hikes

[Stache]

An idea stolen from the favorite ADK Hikes.

The two my daughter and I keep switching between every Columbus day weekend are:

Giant Ledge from the hairpin turn and Overlook Mt. just outside of the real Woodstock.

Both are short and relatively easy 1/2 day hikes. The ledge is breathtaking, especially if you hit the Woodland Valley leaves right. The old hotel foundations on Overlook are extremely interesting and the old Fire Tower is a real treat. On a clear day you can see the Hudson River from the Rip Van Winkle bridge all the way to the Kingston Rhinecliff bridge.

[catskills]

Stache excellent thread. I also like Giant Ledge and Overlook Mountain fire tower hikes.

I like North/South Lake Hike up to North point. You can see it here and other hikes on Catskill Center Virtual Hikes.
http://www.catskillcenter.org/vhikes/hikes.html

The escarpment trail from North Lake is also a nice trail for folks that want a flat trail with awesome views.



I also like hiking to Hunter Mountain fire tower from the Spruceton Side. Driving up the Spuceton valley from Route 42 is like going back in time. In over 50 years there are very few visual changes. The trail up to Hunter Fire Tower is a nice even grade with only one steep spot for about a half mile. No rambling over rocks required. There is an excelent view where John Robb's leanto use to be. Sad they removed the leanto which has been there since the 1960s. There is even a second trail down to the Spruceton trail head parking lot so you don't need to hike the same trail up and down.

For more information on Hunter Fire Tower and other fire tower hike see:
http://www.catskillcenter.org/towers/


The beautiful Spuceton Valley as seen from the John Robb Lean-to

For some rambling over, up, and under not for the faint of heart try the Lemon Sqeeze trail at Mohonk Mountain outside of New Paltz. If it turns out that the ramble is too much for you, there are places where you can bail out and hike up a carriage trail. At the end of the ramble its straight up a narrow couloir using wooden ladders. They don't call it the lemon squeeze for nothing. The Mohonk Mountain house has an excellent lunch that is a little pricey but includes the price of the grounds and parking, which makes it a good choice. My department from work has done the lemon Squeeze and lunch at Mohonk now tow years in a row. Makes for excellent team building exercise. http://www.mohonk.com/

[hardline]

always liked ledge. slide and double top are good ones. its been awhile for doing double top and i remember doing a bunch of bushwackin but it was fun.

[MichaelJ]

Well, all my Catskill hikes have been outstanding but there have only been two of them! Overlook was, agreed, very cool with the tower and the old hotel foundations. We were up there at night with patches of fog which gave it a really great "creepy" factor. The other was a gorgeous traverse of Twin and Sugarloaf that was loopable with a bicycle spot.

Mountain biking in the 'Gunks is great, too.