BPL Northeasterners? Looking for hikes within reasonable distance of NYC

[Yoyo]

I moved recently to the NYC metro area and am looking to plan some trips this spring/early summer.  Does anyone know if there is an active meetup group for BPLers around here?  I am thinking of starting out with the Catskills, given that it’s only 2 1/2 hrs away.  I’d also like to check out the Adirondacks and White Mountains at some point, though.  Anyone?

[Chris T]

I just saw this and saw no one has responded yet.

Welcome to NYC man! I live in Queens. Where are you coming from?

So far the two places I go to consistently are the Catskills (when I have the car) and Harriman/Bear Mountain Park. There are many places you can get to in the Catskills by bus, but its easier to park at a trail head. Some of the trailheads can be pretty far from the highway. So if you are doing a weekend trip, sometimes it helps to drive up after work and camp at the trailhead. There are lots of loops in the Catskills, but I find more often the peaks you want to do (not just for bagging, but for the best views and leantos/campgrounds) are usually out and back affairs. But those are always easier to get back without a car or bike spot. There are some great end to end hikes in the Catskills (Borroughs Range, Panther/Giant Ledge, the whole Escarpment Trail and Devil’s Path) but they are nearly impossible to do solo and a ride back to your car can be $50-$60.

I have been to Harriman a couple times now. A couple of weekends ago I did the Ramapo Dunderberg through hike. If you cut off to Suffern Bear mountain trail at the very end you can go from one Metro North train station to another. It was about 6000 elevation over 20 miles so not gonna kill you but still a reasonably good place to gain some hiking legs.

The Dacks are a bit harder to get to if you don’t have a car. And can be a long drive with one. I’m going on a trip to Pharaoh Mountain this summer though. The trailhead isn’t too far from the highway. I’m also doing a Northville Placid thru hike after labor day. It involves no peaks, but looks like a lot of fun!

Next year I may start tackling the high peaks of the Dacks. Some of those can be tough climbs.

[James Marco]

I have done most of the High Peaks, the Northvill-Placid Trail, Northern Forest Canoe Trail, Large sections of the North Country trail through NY (living in Ithaca, this is a natural.) There are more than 2000mi of hiking/canoeing in NY. Get a set of maps from National Geographic. Most are similar, some are fairly different. ADK’s are about 5 hours from NY, depending on where you want to go. I worked at Indian Point for several years as a programmer and know the route well. I live in Ithaca, and it now takes about the same to get to Blue Mountain Lake. Rt 10 has a lot of good trail heads. As does 28, 30, 73 and 3. Anyway, exploring this area is fun. Enjoy!

[Bob Moulder]

Harriman is great for starters — nearby with plenty of rocky trails so you’ll feel like you’ve definitely done some hiking at day’s end. Can be cool to camp someplace like West Mountain and see the Manhattan skyline from your camp.

The only downside to Harriman is that you’re almost never away from road noise. At night you can hear Harleys and jake brakes and police/fire sirens, and of course airplanes and helicopters, from most places in the park… sometimes distant, but still annoying. I use ear plugs.

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