A few months ago when I came upon this listing of Waryas Park, I brought up the subject of going…read morethere myself. I hadn't been there when my brothers had been (in 2017) to attend the 4th of July fireworks, and due to the vicinity of my normal Uber visits, I tried to work my way over there on several occasions. I've stopped there every once and awhile, but every time I kept forgetting about writing this review. But when I got here just today, I had this review on my mind and had to write it tonight. I'm sorry it was the end of March and it was a balmy 54 degrees - a little cold for sitting on the benches here, but I can just about picture these benches and this park crowded with people enjoying a sunset o'er the Hudson River. There might not be much of a "park per se" (except an unattached playground a long walk away) and a smaller docking point at about the same distance. And if you walk the other way, you arrive at the Ice House. There are a couple of benches here, which makes the scenery nice (with both the Mid Hudson Bridge and Walkway over the Hudson widely in-view. But I'm not very crazy about the plan for this park. Except a few boulders at the cliff near where the Hudson begins and this park ends, there's a walking path, but I don't feel safe being that close to the water. There's a patio a bit further back and there's little signage. The patio has - no tables, no benches, no signage - no nothing. I'm a little shocked. While I don't find myself coming here very often, I also find it completely amazing that this place really doesn't have much parking at all, except the small parking lot for the restaurant nearby, as well as the few spots around the roundabout at the end of Main Street. This park needs more parking spots for those wishing to enjoy this park more. It also needs publicity. During my time here, I spotted only a small handful of people here, and with the 50+ degree temperature day, I would've assumed more people should have made it here that felt should've came that didn't. (I might not have sat on the benches, but with the temperature and balminess of the wind, I felt that to be an impossibility.) There are no signs up on any of the roads that there is a park nearby that overlooks the 'River. And no matter who I see at the nearby train station (almost next door), no one seems to know that this park does exist.

Beautiful Park with amazing view of the bridge. Great space for outdoor events and concerts…read more Dedicated playground, picnic tables and path along the river. Free parking on nonevent days.

Beautiful. Go alone and sit on a bench&reflect or take in…read moreall the color. Go with others & stroll thru, either way, just go. A lovely place for picture taking also,so keep that in mind. I went on a sunny beautiful Sunday,and also got plenty of action in the sky as the airshow was this weekend & the jets were flying around. Win win

Beautiful landscape, beautiful flowers, beautiful vibe. The arboretum is such a glorious place to…read morevisit.

Great views and accessibility…read more Picked a relatively easy walk around the Hessiman Lake trail. Beautiful views and many spots for picnic / grilling

I really love this state park. Parking is $10. There is an area to bbq, an area to rent pedal…read moreboats, a hotel, a pool, area to purchase food and hiking trails. I usually go just to hike and enjoy the views. What I like is that the trail is always clean with clear signs on where to walk up which creates a safe hike. There are different levels of difficulty of trails so you can either select a moderate trail or challenging one. There is a large grass area where you can sit and enjoy a picnic or take a walk around the lake.

Does everyone know that you can catch the Walkway Tram at any point on the Walkway?…read more Flag down the Friends of the Walkway volunteers and hitch a ride to the other side or one of the Tram pick up spots (marked with an A frame.) The ride over is such a fun way to experience the views of the city and the river. Signed, The Mocktail Madam

This was my first time attending the "Walkway at Night," and I have to say it was a nice evening…read morefor $5 per person. Dim lighting, soft conversations, friendly laughter, families, and their pet dogs all in costumes. Can't forget the dogs in baby strollers!! Love to see the cuteness!! Nice night to have a hot cocoa in hand and stroll the bridge with your honey, too!! The view is really pretty during the day and even more so at night. If you enjoy photography, I highly recommend bringing your camera. The staff was friendly and welcoming when we arrived and when we left. They have food trucks, outdoor seating, and restrooms are right across. Everything was clean, but be cautious when approaching the railings. Be watchful of little hands, as there were lots of cobwebs with spiders waiting for a yummy treat! They did look pretty, though. It gave that special Halloween ambiance. The bridge path had lighting but some spots weren't fully lit and made some spots hard to see. I would also really like to see more bench seating between the bridge entry and the center of the bridge for people with disabilities. Word of Advice: If you visit next year, wear a hoodie, but bring a coat just in case. Many wore coats, hats, and gloves, and I agree that I should've done the same. BRRRR, it's mighty chilly in the Hudson Valley lately!!

This is a nice little hike to get to see some cool things. However, you do have to pay $5 per…read moreperson and sign a waiver because it is a private owned hike. The hike itself is fairly simple and shouldn't take more than an hour. It is more of a nice walk to get to an awesome view of the surrounding area. If you are up for a little more adventure you can explore the rock formations and caves that are right next to the view. This is definitely a good place for beginner hikers to go but still has a view that all skills would love to see.

A short hike up the hill leads to breathtaking views. I'm told there's sometimes a fee to hike up…read morewhich may be a weekend thing because the entrance was not manned on Wednesday afternoon. "No littering or smoking!" It's unfortunate this is something that needs to be posted but humans love to leave their trash and destroy all things natural and beautiful. Needless to say, whatever you bring up with you should also return down with you. The hike up is only 10-15 minutes depending on your speed with a few moderately steep areas. Closer to the top there are larger steps (rocks) requiring a little bit of climbing to hoist yourself onto the very tip top of the overlook. Very peaceful and very few people on the weekdays.

This park is absolutely beautiful. Great views! It is a must see if in the Hudson valley area. New…read moreYork does have some pretty spectacular mountains. It's a nice clean park. Lots of picnic tables. It's nice to go somewhere and people actually adhere to the no smoking/vaping signs.

I made my Gunks debut yesterday and was pretty impressed despite the very meh weather situation…read more This is about 90 minutes from my HQ so probably right at the limit of a convenient day hike, and somehow I've never really been in this area before beyond travelling past it going up and down the NY Thruway. Definitely returning when the sun is actually out. I did the 8.7-mile Castle Point hike (my gut says it wasn't QUITE that long, but I don't want to argue with my book) from the Awosting parking lot down the Mossy Glen Trail (yellow blazes), making a left onto and up Blueberry Run (blue) to Castle Point itself, and then went basically straight down the cliff on the Scenic Trail (lavenderish and formerly light blue), down the Rainbow Falls Trail (orange) and finally making a right on the Lower Awosting Carriageway back to the parking lot. Wasn't crazy about the $10 fee to park - nature shouldn't cost anything - but it is what it is. It's really a shame the weather was crappy because I could tell that viewpoint at Castle Point is legit - it's sprawling and you can see for miles in almost every direction. That's a very cool spot and easily the highlight of the hike. There are some interesting viewpoints throughout the rest of the adventure, but I'd say they're primarily of rock formations and water features, which have their selling points but nothing beats a view at the top. I'm in decent hiking shape right now, and this was just not particularly challenging for me. The only part where I was even a little out of breath (and it was humid, so grain of salt in that regard) was on Blueberry Run, which was a pretty steady incline up, but really not hardcore at all from my perspective. The drop down from Castle Point on the Scenic Trail IS a little tricky and you really want to spend some time there figuring out where your foot is going to go next. Compared to other parks in the tristate area, this one definitely has more hazards, cliffs you could potentially fall down, etc. But same token, it has a ton of these completely flat carriageways as well. It rained while I was on the Rainbow Falls trail and I DID slip/fall on some of the rocks at one point, but that's on me since I willingly came over here knowing what the forecast was. Wasn't impressed by the Rainbow Falls themselves, and neither were the other hikers who were there at the time. Maybe it was just not an ideal situation for them, but it's been rainy the last few days so unclear when you should take advantage of the optics there. The trail blazes were EXCELLENT, easily some of the best I've ever encountered. Each official trail had an accompanying sign that not only gave you the name of the trail, but a map of the nearby area, the grade profile so you can see what types of inclines/declines you'll experience on that trail and tons of basic facts. Really well done stuff. The bathroom situation was pretty good as well, with ample restroom options in the parking lot albeit without plumbing. You get what you get, but I'll take a clean bathroom situation in a heartbeat, regardless. Okay wildlife sightings. The rain I'm sure kept some of the good quality shizzle away, but I got a cool shot of a black vulture and saw an edgy newt. Worth the trek and will return for further investigation shortly.

Love this spot for fishing and hiking. It has an excellent atmosphere and is usually fairly quiet…read more A little strange to locate but worth it once you do.

A hidden discovery for sure especially in an unexpected location. Getting in was no issue, but for…read morefirst-timers, GPSing would be the best route. There's plenty of parking space to fill each row while providing enough room. It's pretty easy to pessimistic in the lot which shouldn't lead to chaos. Depending on the time of day will determine how crowded it will be. Something that caught my eye was I did not see a map of the park, which is a big turnoff. Finding my way to the path was not hard, thanks to having a color assigned to the trail. One trail leading toward the east will come out to the Wappingers Creek, with it branching to another trail heading south and the other north. The trail running parallel will lead to a dead end. The other park seen is the Wappinger Creek Greenway Trail across the creek. The other trail toward the beginning goes uphill towards the Eastdale apartment buildings. Another trail just before the branch contains a loop trail. There's a total of three trails, green (the main), yellow, and red. Some of the trails have grass in the way. Awesome park and trail, but please provide a map at the physical site to up my rate.

Such a great local gem! Beautiful grounds, beautiful playground, love that they have a children's…read morenature trail with interactive stations throughout! It's so adorable! The lake is also fantastic, maintained, clean, staffed with multiple lifeguards. Even though it's located in pleasant valley, but town of Lagrange, pleasant valley don't get resident rate, we have to pay non resident, and those passes sell out so fast. Would love the option for a daily pass for non -residents.

It's been many years since coming again to Freedom Park, but the number of things to offer here is…read moreendless. The pond is the main go-to, with a big surrounding of water to swim in, and also plenty of room to move around in the sand. There are boundaries in the water that shows where and not to swim. Lifeguards are on duty to help out with it. Coming here has never been an issue. There are also trails to explore, pavilions (and a very large one), a concert hall (YES!), picnic tables, grills, a playground, and a basketball court to name a few. A lot of these names mentioned are why is such a great place to stop at. The website provides more details on what goes on, events, and even swim lessons, lifeguard training, and passes. Freedom is the name indeed! http://www.lagrangeny.gov/Government/Freedom-Park-Lake.htm