| Park Description: |
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The Bear Mountain Trail Project is the biggest project in Trail Conference history.
To learn about it and how you can be involved, click here.
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The variety of trails looping across the rugged landscape, draped upon the Highlands, is a major part of the appeal of Harriman-Bear Mountain State Parks. Covering nearly 52,000 acres, this network of practically infinite trail combinations is unmatched in the area surrounding metropolitan New York. The hiker may choose to climb through the crevices of the Lemon Squeezer, savor the views of the Hudson from high on Dunderberg Mountain, or ramble on old woods roads past sleepy swamps and abandoned mining villages. The Bear Mountain Inn area [the Inn is closed for renovations] is itself a destination for many families to enjoy its numerous attractions, including access to several hiking trails.
For a history of the park and a complete guide to marked and unmarked trails, see Harriman Trails-a Guide and History, by William Myles [New York-New Jersey Trail Conference, 2d ed. 1999]. [Since Harriman and Bear Mountain State Parks are so intertwined, a nearly identical on-line description can be found at Bear Mountain State Park.]
Bear Mountain State Park official website
Harriman State Park official website
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| Trails Overview: | With more than 235 miles of trails, approximately fifty
marked trails, and three-dozen plus woods trails not to mention unmarked
trails, it seems best to feature just a few major trail access points with
parking areas.
- Reeves Meadow
Visitors Center: One of the most popular trails in the
park, the Pine Meadow trail [5.5 miles; red on while] leads to the north
shore of Pine
Meadow Lake. A 0.2-mile hike east from the parking
area towards Sloatsburg on Pine Meadow Trail connects to Seven Hills Trail
[blue dot on white]; 300 feet east
of the visitors center on Pine Meadow Trail is the trailhead [on the right] of the Reeves Brook Trail
[white].
- Bear Mountain Inn:
The large parking area [though it
becomes full in good weather, or on special holidays] is an access point
to several trails, including the Appalachian [white], Anthony Wayne [2.8
miles, white], 1777E [red "1777" on white], Suffern-Bear Mountain
[23.5 miles, yellow], and Cornell Mine Trails [2.5 miles, blue]. Also the Twin Forts Trail, a short path
connecting the sites of the historic Fort Clinton and Fort Montgomery
[including the modest Fort Montgomery visitor center] and also leading to
the Timp-Torne [11.2 miles, blue] and Popolopen Gorge trails [4.5 miles,
red on white].
- Significant
improvements are underway for trails in this section of the park;
volunteers are welcomed to join the NYNJ Trail Conference's Bear
Mountain Trails Project.
- Anthony Wayne
Recreation Area: The
mid-point of the Anthony Wayne Trail [2.8 miles; white] forms a loop with
the Popolopen Gorge Trail [red on white] at Turkey Hill Lake and the
Timp-Torne Trail [blue] on the west end of West Mountain.
- Elk Pen Parking Area: On the western side of the park, there is
access to the Appalachian Trail,
Arden-Surebridge Trail [6.3 miles, red triangle on white] and Island Pond.
The Appalachian Trail
[18.0 miles, white] traverses the northern section of the park, extending from
the Bear Mountain Bridge at the Hudson River
west to NY 17. On the way, it intersects
or runs jointly with eleven other marked trails, and it can be combined with
these trails to make a variety of loop hikes.
This section of the Appalachian Trail
in the park was the first of the 2,160 mile-long A.T. to be completed, and much
of it still follows the original route. Improvement
are still being made to the A.T. on Bear Mountain which is the focal point of a
multi-year, multi-agency trail building and rehabilitation project being led by
the Trail Conference. Learn more about
the Bear Mountain Trails Project.
- Before
proceeding west on the A.T. from Bear Mountain Inn, hikers may wish to
follow the trail east, through a pedestrian tunnel under US 9 W, into the Trailside Museum and Zoo, which features
native plants, animals, reptiles and birds. A sign on the A.T. as it passes through
the museum marks the lowest point on the entire trail from Maine to Georgia - 124 feet above sea level.
- Both
ends of the trail in the park are readily accessible. See Directions below to either Bear
Mountain Inn or Elk Pen Parking Area.
Doodletown
near Bear Mountain, an isolated hamlet surviving for 200 years but a
ghost town since the mid-1960s, is a popular destination for hikers. Click for more information
For a collection of detailed hikes go to the “Find a Hike” page, scroll down to “Harriman State Park” and “Harriman-Bear Mountain State Park.”
Hunting is allowed is allowed in season in the section of the park west of NY Route 17.
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| Directions: |
- Reeves Meadow Visitors Center: From NY 17 in Sloatsburg take Seven Lakes Drive 1.4 miles
- Bear Mountain Inn: From the Palisades Interstate Parkway [north or south], get off at exit 19 [Bear Mtn. Park] and take Seven Lakes Drive for 3½ miles to the Bear Mountain Circle. At the circle, take the second right. Follow the signs to Parking Lots. If you miss exit 19, take the Parkway to the Bear Mountain Bridge Circle. At this circle, make the first right onto 9W south and go to the traffic light. Bear right and go up the hill. Parking fees apply.
- Anthony Wayne Recreation Area: From the Palisades Interstate Parkway, take Exit 17
- Elk Pen Parking Area: Take Route 17 north through Southfields, NY, turn right [east] onto Arden Valley Road, pass under the NY State Thruway [no access], then turn right on Elk Pen Road. From Route 17 south, Arden Valley Road is two miles south of the Harriman train station. [Google Maps: "Rt 17 and Arden Valley Road, NY 10975" The satellite view will show the parking area.]
- Public transportation: Short Line buses from the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal to the Bear Mountain Inn also stop, if requested, along US 9W at Tomkins Cove and Jones Point. Short Line buses and Metro-North trains to Suffern, Sloatsburg, Tuxedo, Southfields, Arden, and Harriman give access to trails on the west side of the parks.
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| Contact Information: | |
| Walk Book Region: | Harriman-Bear Mountain State Parks |
| Fees: | Some times and places; check with park |
Western End of Major Welch Trail Closed.
Crews are at work this summer building a new stretch of the Appalachian Trail on the south side of the mountain, which will incorporate the views of the closed section of the Major Welch Trail. The focus is on relocating the Appalachian Trail off of Perkins Memorial Drive and into the woods, providing a more "backcountry style" of trail. Trail workers aim to complete this project in early September and open it to the public soon after.
Source: Official TC newsrelease
Winter Road, Parking Closures
Date: 2010, January 6
Source: John Mack, West Hudson South Trail Chair
Though Route 106 in Harrimian State Park is reopened (see news item), we remind trail users that several roads in the Harriman/Bear Mountain Parks regularly are closed in winter. These include Tiorati Brook Road, Lake Welch Drive, and Perkins Memorial Drive. (Winter road closures are identified by bold, black astericks on our trail maps.) These roads were closed on December 1. They are scheduled to be reopened April 1, though inclement weather and road conditions at that time could prompt a delay.Also currently closed is the south parking lot at the Anthony Wayne Recreation Area. Official dates for this closure are not available. Note that many trails remain accessible from the north parking area.
The ramps leading from the Palisades Interstate Parkway to the Recreation Area and back to the Parkway in both directions remain open.
Route 106 Reopened in December
Hunting in some sections of Harriman Park
Hunting in Sterling Forest and Harriman State Parks have been expanded to include essentially all park areas west of NY Route 17. The regular (firearms) hunting season began on November 21 and ends on December 13, 2009. Bow season will resume December 14 to December 22 (as was published in the November-December Trail Walker).
Trail updates
From the October 2009 Trail Walker newsletter:
Victory Trail
Several hikers have reported that a section of the Victory Trail, which is a utility road, was barely noticeable until recent work. Construction of a road accessible to large utility trucks was begun by the park after the utilities advised that without the road development, the lines to park facilities would not be serviced. As of the September 2009 deadline for this newsletter, clearing and construction of a widened dirt road over the trail, extending from a short distance north ofLake Skenonto
The Trail Conference has requested that low spots be filled in and the road and adjoining surfaces be made as neat as reasonable before departing the project. During an early September field trip to the site, the Victory Trail remained blazed adequately to follow. Maintainers Seth Schwartz, Janet Waegel, and Wayne Miller planned to attend to the trail by the end of September.
We thank the several hikers who reported and questioned this major trail disruption. Trail users are often the first to be aware of trail issues and we encourage your eyewitness reports. To report a trail issue or problem go to our website, click on the Community tab and choose Report a Trail Problem; or call 201-512-9348.
Blue Disc Trail
A large number of the blue disc-on-white trail blazes were removed this past summer by persons unknown, who not only damaged and removed blaze tags, but hacked off painted blazes from the trees. Re-blazing has been accomplished for the eastern two-thirds of the trail and, as of September, is adequate to follow the entire trail length.
Nurian Trail
As of late September, the bridge over theRamapo River , between Route 17 and the Southfields Pedestrian
Bridge
Also on the Nurian Trial, of the two low bridges across Stahahe Brook, the more eastern one had collapsed and Trail Conference volunteers have removed it; at this time the park is unable to provide materials to replace it. The almost adjacent western bridge has sagged but is currently crossable though slippery. Both stream crossings are quite easily achieved without use of the bridges.
Parking Note: Parking is not allowed at the defunct Red Apple Rest or on surrounding private property. Parking is available about 0.8-mile northwest of Route 17 onHall Drive
Route 106 remains closed betweenLake
Kanawauke 7-Lakes Drive Lake
Kanawauke Island Pond Road
Camping in Harriman
hike to a campsite
On July 26th, 2009 miharbio asked:
Hello, I am looking to bring a few inexperienced friends on a hiking/camping trip. Basically I'd like to have the group hike for most of the day and camp at our final destination. I'm looking for at least two to three miles and it would be great if the hike back to the car the next day was a different trail. There seems to be a great number of trails to chose from, but I'm not sure if we'll be able to set up camp on all of them, can anyone provide some information as to how that works? Thank you