The Highlands Trail:
Goose Pond Mtn. State Park (NY) to Passaic County 511 (NJ)
Distance: 18.3 miles
Trail Alert: Sterling Forest Closure Due to the closure of Sterling Forest, hikers should be aware that this section of the Highlands Trail is currently inaccessible. While a general alert is posted on the Trail Conference home page, we are providing this HT-specific alert for clarity. Until the closed section is reopened, hikers are encouraged to shuttle from the Sterling Ridge Trail trailhead on NY 17A in Tuxedo Park, NY, to the HT trailhead on Route 511 in New Jersey. Using such a shuttle during the closure will be considered a legitimate HT through-hike.
Detailed Trail Description
Goose Pond Mountain State Park to Passaic County 511
Leaving Goose Pond Mountain State Park, turn left onto Bull Mill Road for a short distance, then left onto Laroe Road and follow it for .4 miles to Trout Brook Road. Turn right on Trout Brook Road and follow it for .7 miles to a sharp left bend where it becomes Camp Monroe Road. Follow this for .3 miles to Lakes Road (CR 5). Turn right onto Lakes Road, and follow it for 1.7 miles to where the Appalachian Trail (white) crosses the road 32 miles from Cornwall. Parking is available at this spot.
There are no Highlands Trail blazes along the Appalachian Trail, from Lakes Road to Mombasa High Point.
Turn left to follow the northbound Appalachian Trail (white) for 1.5 miles, past Fitzgerald Falls, and steeply up to the junction with the Allis Trail at 5.6 miles, just before Mombasa High Point. The Allis trail is blazed with blue rectangles and is only sporadically co-blazed with HT teal diamonds. Turn right onto the co-aligned Allis and Highlands Trails, following them to NY 17A at 9.7 miles. Along the way, the Doris Duke Trail (white blaze with yellow “DD”) joins for about a mile before turning off. Parking is available in a lot across 17A.
Cross 17A, pass the parking area, and continue on the co-aligned Sterling Ridge (blue on white) and Highlands Trails for 8.6 miles, passing the Sterling Fire Tower, crossing into New Jersey, and coming to the junction of East Shore Road and County 511 (Greenwood Lake Turnpike) at 18.3 miles, where there is parking.
