GOVERNOR ANNOUNCES 496 ACRE EXPANSION OF THACHER PARK

Property to Extend NY-NJ Long Path, Includes Frontage Along Escarpment

In celebration of Earth Day, Governor George E. Pataki today announced an agreement with the Open Space Institute (OSI) to purchase 496 acres to expand John Boyd Thacher State Park. The property will increase the size of the park to 1,844 acres, and includes more than a half-mile of frontage on the Helderberg Escarpment, one of the richest fossil-bearing formations in the world.

"By expanding this magnificent State parkland, we are providing Capital Region families and visitors with more opportunities to enjoy its scenic vistas, hiking, mountain biking, skiing, birdwatching and picnicking, while preserving the best of our outdoor heritage," Governor Pataki said. "I can think of no better way to celebrate Earth Day than to ensure lasting protection and public access to this unique and significant property for generations to come."

The Open Space Institute, a non-profit conservation organization dedicated to the preservation of the open space resources of the Hudson Valley, began acquiring portions of the escarpment through its nonprofit acquisition affiliate, the Beaverkill Conservancy, five years ago.

Joe Martens, OSI President said, "The Open Space Institute is delighted to protect this unique and beautiful segment of the Helderberg Escarpment and make it available to the public. Thanks to the dedication and support of Governor Pataki and the State of New York, another of New York's dramatic landscapes is protected forever, for everyone to enjoy."

The acreage, located in the Town of Knox, contains a mix of hardwood and evergreen forests, open meadows and wetlands traversed by a number of woods, roads and old stone walls. The escarpment, a north-south range of limestone ridges and cliffs, is the defining feature of landscape of the western Hudson River Valley in the Capital District. The area contains a number of crevasses and caves as a result of the interaction of water with the limestone formations.

The new acreage will extend the Long Path, a popular hiking trail stretching nearly 300 miles between New York City and Albany County, northward beyond Thacher Park. The Park safeguards six miles of limestone cliff-face, rock-strewn slopes, woodland and open fields, providing a marvelous panorama of the Hudson-Mohawk Valleys and the Adirondack and Green Mountains. Interpretive programs are offered year round, including guided tours of the famous Indian Ladder Trail. There are over twelve additional miles of trails for summer hiking and mountain biking, and winter cross- country skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, and snowmobiling.

Carmella Mantello, Executive Director, Hudson River Valley Greenway Communities Council said, "Thacher Park is the end point for the Long Path, one of New York State's important long distance hiking trails. The Path begins at George Washington Bridge and when completed to the Mohawk River, will help link the Hudson Greenway Trail System to the Erie Canal Trail through the Catskills. Thanks to Governor Pataki's leadership in open space and trail land acquisition, this is an important piece of a growing statewide trails network."

Neil F. Woodworth, Counsel to ADK and the Trail Conference said, "Today, the Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK) and the New York - New Jersey Trail Conference celebrate this major expansion of Thacher State Park. With its dramatic cliffs and sweeping views from the Catskills to the Adirondacks, Thacher Park is very popular with our Capital District members and is an ideal setting for an extension of the 350-mile Long Path hiking trail. This purchase hastens the day when a hiker will be able to walk a continuous footpath from the Palisades to the Adirondacks. This very beautiful portion of the Helderbergs will be a memorable part of that hiking experience."

David J. Miller, Executive Director of National Audubon Society of New York State said, "Governor Pataki's protection of an additional 496 acres of land around Thacher State Park is critical for the habitat of migratory birds. Audubon has designated Thacher State Park as an Important Bid Area because it not only hosts a multitude of raptors, but also has a great diversity of migratory songbirds traveling through each spring."

Andy Beers, Deputy Director of The Nature Conservancy of New York, said, "We salute Governor Pataki, Commissioner Castro, and the Open Space Institute for securing this important addition to Thacher State Park. Thacher Park is one of the gem's of the State Parks system. This purchase will help protect the park's unique cliff and forest ecosystems and expand recreation opportunities for all New Yorkers who enjoy the outdoors."

DEC Commissioner Erin Crotty said, "Governor Pataki's outstanding commitment to open space preservation has allowed us to acquire more than 300,000 acres of land throughout the State for public use and natural resource protection. Today's announcement of an additional 496 acres to expand John Boyd Thacher State Park helps build on that legacy and will provide additional opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy this unique, natural jewel along the Helderberg Escarpment."

OPRHP Commissioner Bernadette Castro said, "The Governor deserves thanks and praise for his unwavering dedication to the preservation of New York's environment. State Parks is proud to be the steward of such a unique and valuable natural resource as this property offers. Capital District residents and visitors alike will greatly benefit from the new trails, scenic overlooks and unique geographic features of these new parklands."

In 1914, Emma Treadwell Thacher gave 350 acres of wilderness to the state of New York in the name of her husband, former Mayor of Albany and New York State Senator John Boyd Thacher. Six years later, she donated an additional 50 acres on Thompson's Lake. Both parcels are now all part of the Thacher and Thompson's Lake State Parks.

The State will acquire the 496-acre property from OSI with approximately $750,000 from the State Environmental Protection Fund. The land will be managed by OPRHP and will expand John Boyd Thacher State Park to the north.