- Mike on Great Swamp: Thank you, Kirk! You would indeed expect significant mosquito traffic in a place called the Great Swamp, right? I have visited in February, October, and August, and only noticed them during our early-morning August hike. It wasn't so bad -- I didn't wear bug spray, and a head net would…
- Kirk on Great Swamp: Hey Mike - Awesome write up. Thanks! Given that it is THE great swamp how bad are the mosquitos on a random summer day? On a scale of "no problem" to "If you take a nap you'll need a transfusion if you ever regain consciousness" where would you rate it?…
- Mike on Kaaterskill Falls II (upper trailhead): Mike, THANK YOU SO MUCH for the follow up! I swear I updated Step 16 back in the day, but the record sure suggests otherwise. Perhaps I accidentally trashed the changes? In any event, thanks to you, the problem is now rectified. Step 16 is properly updated with the advice…
- Mike Conmy on Kaaterskill Falls II (upper trailhead): Thank you so much for this...we were sure to pick up some trash left behind by other inconsiderate hikers (trying to pay it forward.) I felt obligated to comment that "step 16" has not been updated to include the other vantage point! This stops at "Sunset Rock." Go the extra…
- Mike on Mohonk Mountain House: Labyrinth and Lemon Squeeze: Hi, La Nissa! Here's a blurb from the Mohonk hiking page: "Hiking is permitted during daylight hours, between dawn and dusk." Looks like your plan will work out -- have a great day out there!
- La Nissa M Dyman on Mohonk Mountain House: Labyrinth and Lemon Squeeze: I have a 2.5 hr drive I'd like to get there early like start hiking at 7 or 8 am. What are the hours? Thank you
- Mike on Harriman State Park: Lemon Squeezer to Lichen Trail: So sorry Uber had to get involved with this one, Lauren! That's never a good thing when you're on a hike. I've updated the sentence you mentioned to start the parenthetical a little earlier, containing the "pay it no mind" part within the same sentence. Hope that helps to keep…
- Mike on Storm King Mountain: Hi, Gabriel! Glad you're all primed to make that right turn! (Left is also a popular option there for some reason.) Camping on Storm King is indeed not allowed, and I'm afraid I don't know of any spots within backpacking distance. Harriman State Park isn't too far from there, and…
- Jenn Colucci on Depot Hill: Hello Lindsay! I have to ask.. is that Brad from AHS ‘98?! I just happened on this site from an article in HVMagazine - Depot Hill caught my eye and I’ve been wanting to get my kids outside doing something fun and together! Lol Can’t wait to go for it…
- Mike on Croton Gorge Park: Thank you so much, Shi! Glad you and your band of hearty adventurers had a great day out there! Enjoy making more memories and taking more pictures together :-)
- Gabriel on Storm King Mountain: Hi! Excellent guide, I plan to hike this in a few weeks. I will be sure to turn right. I’m wondering can anyone tell me if there are any decent campgrounds within backpacking distance of Storm King? (Assuming dispersed camping isn’t allowed on the area.) Thanks!
- Mike on Storm King Mountain: Erin, this comment made me smile when I initially read it, and I apparently neglected to reply back then. But I come from the future to say: THANK YOU! And glad you had an awesome day out there. I bet you're prepping for your hikes in no time these days…
- Mike on Storm King Mountain: Thank you, Nancy and Lou! Glad to hear you all made use of the Google Maps GPS track, too - I feel like that may be an underutilized resource on this site. I also just updated the driving directions to tell people to use the exact search term you recommended,…
- Mike on Storm King Mountain: That's awesome to hear, Mark! Thank you so much, and here's to many more wonderful adventures to you! I'll have to bust out some some new trail guides soon to keep up with you :-)
- Mike on Storm King Mountain: Michael, thanks so much for the nice feedback! Glad you had a great hike out there! I've updated the instructions above to advise people not to use "Storm King trailhead" as a search term in Google Maps ("Storm King State Park parking lot" does the trick, though). Hope that helps…
- Mike on Storm King Mountain: Thank YOU, Richard!
- Mike on Bull Hill (Mt. Taurus): Lee, I was already having a really nice Fourth of July, but reading this comment was the icing on the red, white, and blue cupcake. Thank you so much for the kind words! Very much appreciated. Glad you found the money spot, too!
- Michael Rosenfeld on Storm King Mountain: Your notes and advice for this hike were absolutely spot on, including intersecting trails, where the climbs were, and most important, where the views were. We are over 60 and not mountan hikers (we live in a flat place hundreds of miles to the west), but we took it slow.…
- Shi on Croton Gorge Park: This was a perfect description! I hiked with my 3yr old sons and mother. Following your guide helped us reach the top successfully! We have great memories and photos for life.
- Vacation in Upstate New York with Kids - Feeding the Soil on Bash Bish Falls: […] Taconic State Park (Bash Bish Falls): This hike is relatively easy and ends in a beautiful waterfall area with fun bouldering! […]
- Connie on Anthony’s Nose: Ha! We were wondering where we would’ve landed! Didn’t go to far and it was a nice addition...love rock staircases!
- Mike on Anthony’s Nose: Connie, thanks for the helpful feedback! I've updated Step 4 above with a link down to this comment to help others avoid making the same mistake, and to advise folks that the blazes in that area may be different now. Hope you didn't wander too far in the wrong direction…
- Mike on Anthony’s Nose: Sonya, I come from the future to thank you for your update (and to apologize for not thanking you sooner). I updated the trail guide many years ago based on your comment, but should have also thanked you. Better late than never, I hope! Thank you!!!
- Mike on Kaaterskill Falls II (upper trailhead): Aw, that makes me happy, Susan -- glad to hear that someone besides my mom thinks I'm funny! (My wife is still on the fence. ) Sounds like a North-South Lake campout with a Kaaterskill excursion would be perfect, and it sounds like an awesome trip that you're on! Enjoy…
- Mike on Kaaterskill Falls II (upper trailhead): Thank you, Yolanda! Hope you all had a great trip!
- Connie Bricker on Anthony’s Nose: Hey...so the picture you have of the blue/white we did not see. We saw a tree with 2 blue circles. Of course that should have been fine but we went left partly because I was only reading every other word and partly because I was going by the pictures. Thought…
- Chris on Indian Head Mt. and Twin Mt.: So I did it yesterday. Only had to lift him up one time to get to the bottom part of the steep rock face (step 9). Otherwise easy breezy for super dog . I also made the wise choice to go from west to east over the summit. He’s a…
- Mark on Storm King Mountain: Thank you so much for your time and energy in this site!! I have become virtually obsessed with hiking because of this site. I did this hike today and if it weren't for your detailed directions I would have turned back because there was about 20-30 minutes of hikeing that…
- Lee Baker on Bull Hill (Mt. Taurus): Just another thank you for this amazing site. You serve as an amazing conduit for so many people like myself to have wonderful adventures in nature. I truly appreciate your compiling all this with such great detail. Friends and I celebrated fourth of July with an early morning climb and…
- Mike on Indian Head Mt. and Twin Mt.: Chris, I agree with Ivan’s advice. I wouldn’t expect an athletic dog to have too much difficulty on this hike. The part you mentioned in Step 9 is the main reason I didn’t bring my dog, but I suspect she would have scampered right up without my help. The rocks…
- Ivan on Indian Head Mt. and Twin Mt.: As far as I remember, rumors are a bit exaggerated. I did the hikes along and around Devils Path multiple times, summer and winter with my Border Collie and have never had to turn around when I was alone with the dog - he would scale that "drop" in 3…
- Chris on Indian Head Mt. and Twin Mt.: Thanks Ivan. But are the 4 foot rock steps only on the out and back i.e.. from Jimmy Dolan Notch trail to Indian Head and back or for the whole loop going JD east to Indian Head and coming down Indian Head? Reason I ask is because there’s supposed to…
- Ivan on Indian Head Mt. and Twin Mt.: Hi Chris, you shall be fine for as long as you can lower your dog from a ~4 foot rock step in a place or two.
- Christopher D Buck on Indian Head Mt. and Twin Mt.: I have a very athletic Vizsla dog. In addition to the Catskills I've hiked all over the White Mountains with him. I really wanna tackle Indian Head with him but have seen all the warnings about it not being dog friendly. Is there a preferred direction (from the east or…
- Dan on High Falls Conservation Area: Thanks so much for posting these recommendations. We followed them to the letter and were rewarded with beautiful views of both waterfalls! I look forward to a return visit.
- Kevin on Schunemunk Mountain: Just did this route today and it was a lot of fun! The megaliths look so much bigger than the pictures and are very impressive in person. I do have a couple notes that you might want to add in: 1. The beautiful field pictured in this guide is (as…
- Kirk on Harriman State Park: Lemon Squeezer to Lichen Trail: Really appreciate all of the pictures your shared throughout the hike. Great way for this guy stuck in a cubicle and procrastinating for a moment to pretend to be outside just for a moment. Thanks for the encouragement to get out this weekend!
- Mike on Sam’s Point: Oh no, I'm so sorry to hear that, Stephanie! I've updated the "Background" section above with a warning and a link down to your comment. Thank you for helping others to avoid the same fate! I hope your beautiful pooch is feeling better now!
- Stephanie on Sam’s Point: Hi -- I just wanted to leave a PSA regarding the trail to the waterfall. This trail has almost no shade cover (I think due to the forest fire not long ago). If you are planning to take this trail, please be careful with your dog. We left early in…
- Marissa on Bear Mountain State Park: I did this hike solo (and for the first time!) today and was very grateful for this post! I used this as my reference guide and trail map. You nailed it, thanks very much!
- Lauren on Harriman State Park: Lemon Squeezer to Lichen Trail: Also forgot to mention that we do find this blog SO valuable! Great for choosing hikes and we’ll eventually get our act together and it will be great for not getting lost I just downloaded the app everyone is talking about.
- Lauren on Harriman State Park: Lemon Squeezer to Lichen Trail: I have hiked all over the country, even took off a year to do so. I’ve never been lost. UNTIL I came back to NY and have been lost on every hike since. My husband and I both read your guide before doing a hike and follow it as we…
