North-South Lake, North Point, The Catskills, NY
Trail Description: This great day hike in the Catskills at North-South Lake utilizing multiple trails offers stunning views such as Artists Rock, Sunset Rock, Newmans Ledge, and North Point. Also, some popular features such as Ashley Falls, Badmans Cave, and more.
Trail Info:
Where: Haines Falls, NY Distance: 7.0m (4-5 hours) Difficulty: Difficult Trail Type: Loop Features: Views, Mountains, Valley, Lake, Water, Cave, Catksills, Hudson Valley
How to get there:
93 North Lake Road, Haines Falls, NY 12436
https://goo.gl/maps/9rUFAjK3PieRJY7U9
Put the address above in your GPS. You will need to drive through the state park to find the trail. As you get closer, you will pass Scutt Road on the right, then go past the guardhouse. Turn right onto the first fork around the lakes heading south. Follow this road passing a big parking lot on the left until you reach another big parking lot at a dead end, past the pavilions. Park in this area and the trail will start in the back corner.
Hiking Tips
Not great phone service, so make sure to screenshot a map. Or my guide!
Lots of signage throughout trail, but keep an eye on the trail markers.
The Hike
This is a long one folks. Make sure you have all the snacks and hydration necessary on this hike. Once you are ready to go, head to the back right corner of the parking lot for the start of the trail, away from the picnic pavilion and lake area. There will be a gate with a stop sign. Go around the gate and start your trek on the yellow trail toward the old Catskill Mountain House, the first of many sites and views on this hike.
There will be a junction with the blue trail. Continue to walk straight across the field at the area of the old Catskill Mountain House. Off the ledge of the field will be the first view of the hike overlooking the Hudson Valley.
Turn around and head back toward the junction across the field. Stick to the right and continue following the blue trail until you see the North Lake signage. Past the guardrail with a stop sign, cross another parking lot to re-enter the woods & head straight across to find the blue trail. I did not see a sign (could have missed it) but just keep an eye for the blue markers.
Pass the picnic tables and this will lead to walking along a chain link fence to the right. At the end of the fence, there is a view off a porch ledge. Keeping straight on blue, the next item to pass is a registration box.
From here, the hike will begin to have an incline. In about 10 minutes will be the first viewpoint, Artist’s Rock. The first of many views on this hike.
Continue on the blue trail as the trail gets steeper toward the next viewpoint, Sunset Rock. There will be a set of cliffs above on the right. Sunset Rock viewpoint sits above these cliffs. The trail will eventually get you there. There will be a sign to hop on the yellow trail for Sunset Rock in 0.2 miles.
Keep a lookout for the markers, then turn right onto the yellow trail. The views will just open up and another incredible view will be had. But this isn’t Sunset Rock quite yet. Keep along the yellow trail and in a few minutes there will be a big rock to the right. I was actually too enamored with the view, I did not take a picture of the rock! But it will be pretty obvious & there is a sign. This area will have the best views of the hike. There will be views of North-South Lake with the Catskills in the background. Pretty jaw dropping in my opinion.
From here, retrace your steps from the yellow trail back to the blue trail. Turn right at the blue/yellow junction to rejoin the blue trail. There will be signage for Newman’s Ledge, 0.2 miles away, and North Point, 1.6 miles away. The trail will get steeper but in minutes you will reach more awesome views off of Newman’s Ledge.
In about 0.6 miles the next point of interest is Badman's Cave following the blue trail.
Continue on the blue trail as it becomes steep then levels out in an open area before re-entering the woods. In 0.6 miles there will be a junction with the red marked Mary Glen’s Trail. The red trail will need to be used but for now continue on the blue trail toward North Point. There will be a sign showing only 0.3 miles to North Point. The ascend for the next 0.3 miles is one of toughest in the hike. There will be a sign for North Point. The views will be beautiful as the Catskills will be right in your sight.
After you soak in the last of the amazing views, begin to head back toward the junction with the red trail. Take a right to hop on the red trail. This will be a rocky, steady decline as you eventually reach the sign for the North Lake Campsite, which will be another 0.6 miles. This will lead around the lakes onto the paved roads of the campsite. Continue to follow the red trail as you cross a footbridge over a stream. There will be a sign for Ashley Falls off the yellow trail if you wanted to take a look, it was very short but no waterfalls on this hot day in the middle of the summer.
Continue on the red and take a left on the road by the campsites. Then it will be almost a mile until you get back to the parking lot. At least it is a flat surface to end! Whew, what a hike. Tough but so many views.
HIKING FOR DONUTS
Hi, I’m Mark. I live in Connecticut. I take new trips every chance I get. A good trip has a great hike, great food, and something fun to do. My goal is to search out new trips and share them to inspire others to try something new and exciting.
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Ferncliff Forest Fire Tower, Rhinebeck, NY
Trail Description: This is a short hike that brings you to a fire tower with stunning panoramic views of the Catskill Mountains.
Trail Info:
Where: Rhinebeck, NY Distance: 1.4 miles (1 hour) Difficulty: Easy Trail Type: Out & Back Features: Views, Mountains, Water, Pond, River, Fire Tower
How to get there:
68 Mt. Rutsen Road Rhinebeck, NY 12572
https://goo.gl/maps/cXzcj8ZLTL8BxYBh7
Hiking Tips
A busy spot for nice weather and fall foliage.
There are multiple hiking trails in this park, plan your route.
The Hike
From the parking lot, there is a kiosk where you can view the trail map. The yellow-blazed trail starts past the gate. Proceed with the yellow-blazed trail as it inclines gradually along the gravel road. The signage is pretty good on this trail and there are signs to the fire tower.
In about 5 minutes, the trail reaches a pond and there will be a cabin with a sign marked “TOWER” .
And, once you pass the cabin, there is a lean-to that points to the right to continue on the yellow-blazed trail marked “TOWER”. That is the trail you want to be on.
The path continues to climb slowly. There will be another lean-to on the trail and at about another 0.6 miles, the fire tower will be on the left. There are multiple paths that lead to the tower. This is the shortest route. Once my wife and I arrived, there was already a line to go up to the tower. Only 10 people can fit at a time and even that is a stretch. Only family and friend groups were going up.
Once we got up to the top, the panoramic views were amazing! Views of the Hudson River, Catskills, and the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge. The fall colors were really popping. This is a great spot for sunset or sunrise. We didn’t get to spend as much time as we wanted up top as we wanted to be considerate to others waiting in line. We returned the same way we came but you could get back to the parking lot a different way.
HIKING FOR DONUTS
Hi, I’m Mark. I live in Connecticut. I take new trips every chance I get. A good trip has a great hike, great food, and something fun to do. My goal is to search out new trips and share them to inspire others to try something new and exciting.
If you are looking for posts in a particular place, search City or State here.
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Poets’ Walk Park, Red Hook, NY
Trail Description: Poets’ Walk Park is an easy jaunt through scenic meadows that offers wonderful views of the Hudson River and Catskills.
Trail Info:
Where: Red Hook, NY Distance: 2.4m (1.5 hours) Difficulty: Easy Trail Type: Loop Features: Views, Mountains, Water, River, Bridge
How to get there:
776 River Road, (County Road 103) Red Hook, NY
https://goo.gl/maps/y9V6GaXcWxRzqd6P9
Hiking Tips
Walk the entire loop. Many see the views of the bridge initially and turn around.
Not great phone service, so make sure to screenshot a map. Or my guide!
For trail map, click HERE.
The Hike
As I continue to look for the best bang for your buck views, I really don’t think it gets better than taking a stroll through Poets’ Walk Park in the fall. The Hudson Valley is full of amazing landscape and mountainous views. Most of those views require challenging hiking. However, a leisurely stroll in Poets’ Walk Park offers stunning views of the Catskills and the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge.
From the parking lot, begin walking on the gravel road by the trail signage. Continuing straight through the open field will lead you to a gazebo structure. Walking through the gazebo, there is the first “oh snap” view of the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge with the Catskills looming in the background. There is a neat little wooden bench to take a seat and enjoy the views.
The trail will split from here, where the loop begins. Either direction will bring you back to this spot. We chose left heading toward the river. Some great views of Catskills to the right and a closer view of the bridge to the left. The loop will begin on the right and suddenly you will find myself thwarted into the woods. There will be a few bridges to cross. If you need a moment of solitude, the Summerhouse gazebo area is a good spot to take a seat and look out into the mountains above the river.
From the Summerhouse structure, just retrace your steps back to the trail split and head on back to the parking lot. Easy peasy. The skies cleared on our the way back and the fall colors really popped. Just incredible views.
Depending on how long you choose to explore, take pictures, and enjoy the benches, this shouldn’t take more than an hour and half, give or take. Definitely one of those places I considered keeping to myself but the place was crazy packed. There is no secret here. It’s a spectacular park to visit for stunning views.
HIKING FOR DONUTS
Hi, I’m Mark. I live in Connecticut. I take new trips every chance I get. A good trip has a great hike, great food, and something fun to do. My goal is to search out new trips and share them to inspire others to try something new and exciting.
If you are looking for posts in a particular place, search City or State here.
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Sam’s Point and Verkeerderkill Falls Trail, New York
Trail Description: Sam’s Point Reserve offers panoramic views of the Shawangunk Ridge along with exploring a 180 foot waterfall.
Trail Info:
Where: Ellenville, NY Distance: 6.2 miles (3-4 hours) Difficulty: Moderate Trail Type: Out and Back Features: Views, Mountains, Valley, Waterfall, Ice Caves (optional)
How to get there:
400 Sams Point Rd Cragsmoor, NY 12420
This will take you right to the parking lot. Parking costs $10. There is a kiosk to pay near the visitor center.
Hiking Tips
Parking lot opens at 9am. If parking lot is full, you have to wait until someone leaves. Plan accordingly as parking is limited.
Did not include the Ice Caves on this day. Would add an additional 1.1 miles to the hike.
Use bug spray for ticks and sunscreen when sun is out. Most of the hike is the open.
The Hike
The next hike in the Hudson Valley to check off my list is Sam’s Point. I anticipated great views but there was much more to this hike than I thought. Until I researched recently, I didn’t realize a waterfall was part of the hike. Veerkeerderkill Falls is the tallest waterfall in the Shawangunk Mountains at 180 feet. And, there are even ice caves on this trail. Sam’s Point is part of Minnewaska State Park, but the parking is located at a different location than the park’s entrance. We left early in time to beat the 9am opening and there were already quite a few cars in line. Once parked, there is a kiosk to pay for parking and there is a visitor center at this lot, where there are 2 restrooms.
After packing up our gear, we headed toward the trailhead. Walking around the gate took us on the main trail, Loop Road. There is an intersection almost immediately to choose from, veering right will take you to Sam’s Point. The other option is the Huckleberry Pickers’ shacks. Tempting but we will pass on that. Heading up the fragmented road, there is a slight incline as altitude gains up the switchbacks. In short time, we came up to a massive rock with a cliff above, which we learned later is the top of Sam’s Point. At about a half mile, the first view was on our left on top of a rocky platform.
Loop Road will even out and we had an option to keep straight toward the waterfall or turn left toward the short trail to check out the view from Sam’s Point. It was pretty crowded and I just wanted to beat everyone to the waterfall so we saved Sam’s Point for the end. A short distance off Loop Road, we saw signs on our left to head toward Verkeerderkill Falls on the aqua blazed trail. If you wanted to check out the Ice Caves, continue straight from here. We couldn’t fit those in today, so we headed toward the waterfall.
I did not anticipate the cool landscape we would be hiking through on this hike. Strolling along the trail you will the see rare dwarf pine trees offering very unique scenery. In addition, there are wide views of the Northern Shawangunk Ridge along this part of the trail. The trail will head downhill slightly. This isn’t terrible but the fact that it gets rockier, makes it a bit more challenging. As you get closer to the waterfall, there is a steep descend down.
Eventually, we came upon a stream above the falls. Depending how high the water is on a given day, you may have to follow upstream to cross. We made our way to the cliff overlook and we were greeted with a large crowd. Then, I turned around and saw the amazing view of Verkeerderkill Falls! The water was flowing pretty well on this day. This is nice spot to take a break and relax. However with the crowd and popularity of the hike, we absorbed the fall briefly and started retracing our steps back.
We finally made our way over to Sam’s Point. The views are outstanding. From the cliffs, you can see the Shawangunk Ridge and Wallkill Valley. Lots of space to take in all the scenery, grab a snack, or take a selfie. There were lots of selfies going on around us. Before we left, I had one thing left to do. I was waiting for the perfect moment. Mostly, I was waiting out the 20 plus Cub Scout group that were yelling and running around. In addition, there was this one kid (like in his 20s) with his mom who kept taking selfies and would NOT leave until he got the perfect one for Instagram. Come on dude. Once they left, I saw my opening and proposed to my amazing girlfriend! Even though I made her trek 6 miles on her birthday and endure 20 minutes of freezing wind atop Sam’s Point, she said yes. I didn’t realize how packed this overlook would be at all times. Sorta risky move. No backup plan. But in the end, everything went as planned. Then, we joyously made our way back down to the parking lot.
This hike has a lot of meaning for me going forward but this was a dynamite hike. When you can explore different landscapes and come across multiple features that this trail offers, there is not much more you can ask for in a hike. This is a great place to visit to spend the day.
MORE PICTURES BELOW:
HIKING FOR DONUTS
Hi, I’m Mark. I live in Connecticut. I take new trips every change I get. A good trip has a great hike, great food, and something fun to do. My goal is to search out new trips and share them to inspire others to try something new and exciting.
If you are looking for posts in a particular place, search City or State here.
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Ninham Mountain Fire Tower Hike
Ninham Mountain Fire Tower Trail Guide (Carmel Hamlet, NY)
Hiking Ninham Mountain Fire Tower in NY. Another great Hudson Valley, NY hike. Easy hike, beautiful views.
Trail Description: Ninham Mountain Fire Tower is a short hike that provides an amazing 360 view of rolling hills, lakes, and reservoirs from the top. A glimpse of the Catskills can be visible with clear skies.
Trail Info:
Where: Ninham Mountain Fire Tower, Kent, NY Distance: 1.3 miles (1 hour) Difficulty: Easy Trail Type: Out and Back Features: Fire Tower, Lake, Views, Rolling Hills, Reservoir
How to get there:
As always, do your research on hikes. I read that finding the trail parking was an issue for some hikers. Luckily, I saw that and made sure we had the right directions. We found it pretty easy. It is in the middle of nowhere. The GPS I would enter is Mount Nimham Ct, Carmel Hamlet, NY 10512. This took us on the Taconic State Parkway. Once we were on Gypsy Trail Road, we made another right onto Mt. Nimham Ct. You will see a sign for Ninham Mountain Multiple Use Area. Follow this all the way down until you see the parking lot.
Hiking Tips
Finding the parking lot can be tricky.
The old stone chambers are directly across the parking area. This may be covered by bushes.
The Hike
Traveling through the Hudson Valley area once again, I was in search of a shorter hike. Always need to walk off the beer and donuts from weekend activities. I have a huge list of hikes to do in the area, but my girlfriend and I had some time constraints driving back to CT. Thankful for other hiking bloggers, I came across Ninham Mountain Fire Tower in Kent, NY. The hike was more of a walk with an incline, but the views were fantastic from the fire tower.
Wonder Lake.
Look for these signs at the entrance.
Where the Trail head starts. Parking area is to your left.
The trail head will start behind the gate. Before you even start, don’t miss the old stone chambers directly across the parking lot behind you like we did. We didn’t notice until we were ready to leave. The only reason we had these on our mind was that we read this area was full of paranormal activity. I took my pictures and walked away. I’m no ghost hunter.
Old stone chamber.
Now, onto the hike. Just continue up the gravel road. The trail is uphill but it’s not bad at all. Nothing too difficult but still a good workout. This seemed to be a popular trail for mountain bikers as well. It took us about 15-20 minutes to reach the fire tower.
pretty easy gravel road.
all the way up.
Ninham Mountain FIre Tower
The 360-degree view at the top of the tower was amazing. It was beautiful weather and a clearly visible day. You will see rolling hills, lakes, and reservoirs. The Catskills are also visible in the distance. After you have soaked it all in, you will come back down and walk the same path to your car. Pretty quick and easy. There are some trails you will see off the path but I can’t speak to those.
clear skies and rolling hills.
the money view.
Rolling hills a little closer.
Little overcast on this side of the tower.
Round trip and going up & down the fire tower, this is a total of 1.3 miles. This took us less than a hour. I am glad I came across this spot in my research. If you want the most bang for your buck, this jaunt checks all the boxes including a spectacular view.
HIking for donuts models.
HIKING FOR DONUTS
A blog for the outdoors foodie enthusiast
Hi, I’m Mark. I live in Connecticut. I take new trips every chance I get. A good trip has a great hike, great food, and something fun to do. My goal is to search out new trips and share them to inspire others to try something new and exciting.
If you are looking for posts in a particular place, search by city or state here.
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