Ledges: You will definitely want to hike the
Giant Ledge and
Panther. There are several viewpoints on the Giant ledge and at the twin summits of Panther. Take some time to explore the short unmarked paths on the Giant Ledge. Many of the best views are a short distance off the trail. The 2005, 3rd edition of the ADK Club
Catskill Trails guidebook does a good job of describing many of the unmarked viewpoint paths throughout the Catskills.
There are very nice ledges on an unmarked path just east of the summit of
Overlook. There is also a fire tower, ranger cabin (open on weekends), and the impressive ruins of the
Overlook Mountain House. The short trail up from Meads (near Woodstock) is fairly easy, heavily travelled, and somewhat boring. A longer, more interesting approach to Overlook starts from the Platte Clove preserve. The trail starts over a recently built king post bridge and proceeds through an interpretive nature trail. After which much of the trail follows a Revolutionary era road. You can make scenic stops at Codfish Point and Echo Lake, and a bushwhack over Plattekill is an option either on the way in or out. There is also an attractive waterfall at the Platte Clove preserve. A cautionary note. There are copperheads at Echo Lake and the summit of Overlook. But they rarely pose any problem.
A loop on the Escarpment Trail and Mary's Glen at
North Lake State Park will pass many historic ledges with views of the
Kaaterskill Clove and Hudson Valley. If time permits you could also take a side hike from North Point up to
Stoppel Point for a nice view of the Blackhead Range from the second of two viewpoints. You could also visit the
Kaaterskill Falls and
Ashley Falls on the hike.
If you climb
Sugarloaf and/or
Twin on the Pecoy Notch trail, there are views, rock furniture, and ramparts at
Dibble's Quarry (bluestone). There are smaller collections of rock furniture at Codfish Point and the Palenville Overlook. And if you like those kind of rock constructions you might check out
Opus 40 in Highwoods. It is not a hiking location, but an a very interesting visit with nice views of the Catskills.
The best known
bog in the Catskills is on top of
Balsam Lake Mountain a short distance from the fire tower. It is a short hike from either of two trailheads. Or there is an attractive full day approach from Alder Lake over the Mill Brook Ridge trail.
If you interested in Catskill bogs, an authoritative information source is
The Catskill Forest, A History by
Dr. Michael Kudish, a recently retired forestry professor from Paul Smith's College. The Catskills have been his
primary research subject. He has probably studied every know bog in the Catskills, and discovered quite a few of them. The book is available from Amazon or the publisher.
Peekamoose and
Table are nice mountains. Each has off-trail viewpoints near the summits which are listed in the ADK guidebook. It can be approached from the attractive Neversink valley. However, the southern approach from the Rondout valley is one of my favorite hikes in the Catskills. There are raspberries along the trail and a wide open view at 3500'. For an after hike swim, walk a short distance east along the road from the trailhead. You will see a well trodden path that leads to the Rondout Creek and the
Peekamoose Blue Hole. It is one of the most attractive swimming holes in the Catskills. Also a short drive east from the trailhead is Buttermilk Falls, another nice place to cool off after a hike.
Ashokan High Point is another favorite. There are fine views of the Burroughs Range from meadows west of the summit. But perhaps the best views are from Little Ashokan High Point, a 2800' knob a short bushwhack down and east from the main summit. There are blueberries and huckleberries on both summits.
August is the start of blackberries season and some of the best are on
Bearpen. The mountain sees a lot of ATV traffic on weekends, but during the week it is quiet, and there is a good chance that you will see one of my shy bruin friends among the berry patches. There are wide open views from the top of the former ski slopes, and some interesting gnarly trees amongst ferns near the summit. An interesting historical side trip after a Bearpen hike is a short climb to the
Pratt Rocks. There is also a nice view from the top of the rocks, on an unmarked path from the west side of the rocks.
Here are
four virtual hikes which are among the hikes I mentioned above.
If you are spending a week in the Catskills. You might want to consider spending a day in the
Shawangunks. Although not as high as the Catskills they have many interesting cliffs and rock scrambles. Admissions are charged at the Mohonk Preserve and Resort, Minnewaska State Park, and Sam's Point Preserve. Of these Minnewaska is the most economical as it charges by the carload vs. individual fees at the others. The loop of
Millbrook Mountain and
Gertrude's Nose from Lake Minnewaska is one the most spectacular cliff top walks in the northeast IMHO. A loop of
Castle Point, Lake Awosting, Murray Hill, and
Hamilton Point is another possibility. Several impressive waterfalls (Awosting, Rainbow, and Sheldon), can also be included on various hikes.
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