Very cool visitor's center with a lot of info and taxidermied animals. If you are hiking,…read moredefinitely bring waterproof shoes or crocs in sport mode because the path to the waterfall crosses a stream. Unfortunately, there's no man made bridge over it on the way. I'd recommend wearing long pants even in the summer because there's a lot of bushes that may scratch your legs on the way. Seems like the paths through the woods are pretty narrow. Maybe I'll come another time when it's blueberry season. Amazing views, just don't fall off!

Boyfriend and I wanted to come here for over a year now. Last year we went to a different spot of…read morethe Minnewaska, and the view did not disappoint. Since the parking lot isn't big (more or less 60 cars), you need to make a reservation to get in. And they are strict about this. We wanted to come in one time and they made us turn around. I am not sure if you need a reservation if you are visiting during the week, but you definitely need one for the weekend visit. Making a reservation is relatively easy. You go to the park's website (newyorkstateparks.reserveamerica.com) and just find or enter the park, or google this park and the top link should get you there directly. The reservation is $10 per car (plus tax/ optional donation). You can choose either 9am-2pm or 2pm-evening slot. My boyfriend is not an early riser, so I booked us the 2pm slot. I don't know how fast the reservations sell out, but I booked our slot 6 days in advance just in case. When you get there, you need show your reservation to the employees. I think it is until a certain hour, because when we were back from our hike and leaving around 430-5pm the employees guarding the entrance were gone. There is a building where you can get a free map and brochures, a little gift shop (pins for pin collectors and stickers), bathrooms, water refill area, and a big room full of facts about the area and a table with a topographic 3D map of the hikes. There is over 15miles of trails to hike available. The map is interactional, you press a button with a hike you're interested in and the map lights up with the path. Pretty cool! My boyfriend isn't an experienced hiker or does not like to hike all day as I.... so we choose the 3miles loop. The path wasn't paved, but it was smooth enough for strollers to go on. We started from the direction of Sam's point and continued by the water and cell phone towers back. Once you come in you are walking up (not very steep) path in a forrest. about half a mile I think you see the rock formation where people go on to see the view. We found some rocks below that formation and took some photos there. We were all alone, so it wasn't embarrassing to set up a tripod and take as many photos and as funny ones as we wanted. About another .2miles you go up to the official "Sam's Point" overview. It was semi crowded, so we were grateful we found a non populated spot a little below. Same view. Continuing you walk through the path and on both sides you have not so tall (maybe 8-12 feet) trees and other greenery. Everything has a placket, which labels the type of tree/ plant that grows nearby. There is an area with dead trees, which combined with some dark clouds that passed up at the same time - looked pretty eerie! Like from a spooky movie. Then you pass a body of water. We saw mama and baby ducks swimming past us. Then you just walk through other various sights, like forrest with a some ferns, forrest without them, passing by what is left of Berry Picker Cabins, and the cell phone towers, until you reach the exit. I am definitely coming back! My boyfriend and I been here for 2 years in a row, so we are probably going to make this our new annual trip. The view of the mountains is truly incredible, especially for someone living in the middle of NYC haha. It is always a great joy to get out and see something this amazing that nature formed. Loved every minute of it!

There are a few trails here that circle around the marshland. We took the yellow trail, which was…read morean easy shaded walk. My family loved that this was a different experience from our typical hikes in the woods, as we were able to take in the beauty of the Marshlands.

This is a brand new trail that opened on June 5th. I don't know if it's still a secret or if it was…read moretoo hot but there weren't many people for a Sunday morning. There is currently an Enchanted Forest art installation along the main trail which is very cool. The red, green, and yellow trails are well marked with frequent flares and give amazing views of the otherworldly beauty of the marshland. Most of the 1.5 miles of trails are easy, gentle, and well shaded by forest. Parking is along the road or driveway. I imagine it could be a challenge if crowded. The yellow trail head is to your right from the parking area. The red trail is the main one which turns into the green loop. Overall, I'm impressed and it was worth the drive. This is exactly what a new trail should be like.

New Paltz / Gardiner, NY - I have hiked and biked through the Mohonk Preserve many a times over the…read moreyears, in all seasons, and it is one of my favorite wild places! Some of the trails I love the most are the Bonticrou Crag & Table Rocks (breathtaking views; the rock scramble is fun and challenging but there is an easier way up via the Bonticou ascent path), Labyrinth & Lemon Squeeze, and Sky Top Trail by the Mohonk Mountain House. On weekends and in the warmer seasons/good weather especially, the parking lots fill up early (like by 8:30-9am). There are 5 main trailheads, and the day use fee is at current writing $15 for hikers or $20 for cyclists/climbers/horseback riders (children 15 & under are free). At the heart of the preserve lies the Mohonk Mountain House, which is actually a private property. The area around the mountain house is amazing but unfortunately it is rather arduous to visit for many due to the parking lot distance, as it's a bit of a hike in from the preserve's trailheads (pleasant & easy, but about 4.5 miles in so that's ~9 miles roundtrip), unless you're a paying guest at this all-inclusive resort property and are allowed to park in the on-site lot. I've done it both the hard & easy ways, so to avoid sweat if not tears, I'll let my Yelp community in on some hacks of less strenuous ways to see the mountain house and its surroundings (short of paying $1Kpp as an overnight guest)... 1. $ - You can buy a $35 hiking day pass, to park at the "closer" parking lot at the Gatehouse, which is still 2.1 miles out from the mountain house (4.2 miles roundtrip, but better than 9 miles). 2. $$$ - Be a day guest and book a dining or spa experience at the property, and you can park on site. 3. $ - Visit during their special annual events like the gingerbread house competition in December or the tulip festival in April-May, passes for which are a much more affordable $15-$35 (2025 rates). This allows you to park at the mountain house and not have to hike in. So there! Mohonk Preserve is one of the most beautiful places in the Hudson Valley, with so much incredible scenery (including fall foliage!) and things to do - hiking, biking, rock climbing, cross-country skiing, horseback riding, row boating, and even a via ferrata though that's only for hotel guests - and is a dream for outdoor lovers!

ETA: I have since learned that the $35 is to park at the mountain house which is apparently more…read moreexpensive than parking at the preserve. :)

This is an extremely good walk/hike. "Easy" in terms of difficulty, this trail starts off on an…read moreeasy 1/4-mile walk down a meandering crushed-gravel path to a wooden gazebo, then down some grassy hills to the Hudson River "lookout" point. From there, you can venture into the woods for a 3/4 to a mile "easy hike" surrounded by trees, trickling stream & a few furry animals, like squirrels & chipmunks, collecting acorns. Kid friendly, this is a great walk/hike for the whole family.

Dreamy any walk you choose to start on during any season. Beginner's level. Nice view of the Hudson.read more

Really cute park with lots of easy hiking trails at a former apple orchard…read more The views are really pretty especially for sunset time and it's located at the highest point in Poughkeepsie. I love that throughout the trail you have little signs explaining fun facts about the animals you find there and insects such as frogs and fireflies. Really cool to learn while you walk. Came here in November for some photos but there wasn't too much foliage. Can't imagine how beautiful the park must be during spring with their apple blossoms and being able to Apple pick too! The cool thing is this park is run by a nonprofit, The Friends of Peach Hill and they're always looking for volunteers to help maintain this beautiful place. Porta potties available and beware of ticks. Signs are posted everywhere when you first walk in and I took my very first one home from just walking around and being in low cut grass area. That's the only downfall and main thing I can't evennnnnn deal with in the north east. Other than that, cute park with lots of picnic tables and areas where you can enjoy creation.

Beautifully maintained local treasure! 5 options for hiking…read more Easy to moderate difficulty for this almost 70 yo F. Great views, plenty of foraging for berries, apples and other edibles: know your plants of course!! Lots of rest stops along the way, picnic tables, benches- and it's dog friendly!! Perfect for a day time hike with a friend.

Such a beautiful trail with a great view! I completed the labyrinth course of a rock scramble…read more There is a walking trail for those who are looking for a calmer hike to the top. One of the best rock scrambles I have done! Bring bug spray!!!!

Beautiful park with plenty of open space, clean paths, and peaceful surroundings. Great spot to…read morerelax, walk, or enjoy time with family. Well-maintained and perfect for a quiet escape outdoors.

5/21/21 This hot and…read moremoggy day brought us to this trail, with an endless amount of shade along the way. We started on the 9G end and walked toward Route 9. There are not a lot of views in the distance you'll get along the way but will notice turns and hills with endless views of the woods. The main trail is on a gravel path followed by two additional dirt trails indicating yellow and red. Both of these trails end up back at the gravel trail if you choose to go that way. We had a great experience going round trip enjoying the scenery. The name of the main trail is called the Hyde Park Trail which connects with other trails along the way, which a matter of fact connects with River Front Park (see my other review). Please, I strongly encourage you to bring bug spray because we screwed up. It's very bad along the whole journey. Also, check for ticks.

We really enjoyed our afternoon hike at Roosevelt Farm Lane Trail. This park came to my attention…read morewhen I was doing a search for local parks with carriage roads. Not only are the roads here in good condition, but most of the road has great shade from the trees, so even if it is hot out you are not suffering too much. I am not a tree expert or anything, but I think there are a lot of pine trees in these woods because the smell of pine was strong throughout our hike, which was really nice. Located in a few places on the trial were information plaques with QR Codes, so make sure you have a QR reader app installed on your phone before you visit so you can scan the code and listen to the guided tour on your phone.

For awesome sounds of nature and views all around, this is a great trail to stop at. Hopeland…read moreTrails is part of Norrie State Park. Getting here is not difficult at all while it's not hard missing the exit. There's plenty of parking to fit cars. The word trails indicate there are 5 in this trail park that does a big loop with multiple of them within it. It's awesome to see the layout of it as its filled with mainly gravel and also some grassy areas in some places. Luckily it's not too fully over grown to make it challenging, but do check for ticks after the hick. One minor turn off on the walk I saw is, there is no sign showing the yellow trail for Songbird Lane, so I thought maybe we went off the path for a section until reaching the other connection. There's no sign showing the red trail at the split (see my map photo for a full explanation). An update on the map would be very helpful. The website has it updated. Plan a stop here at Hopeland.