Backpacker Magazine – September 2010

Local Hikes: New York City, NY

The best hikes near New York, as selected by the Big Apple's best hiking clubs.

by: Casey Lyons

Tags:
• New York
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• Destinations
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Your Guides
New York Ramblers (nyramblers.org); Shorewalkers(shorewalkers.org)

Your Hikes
» Hook Mountain, Hook Mountain SP Share Hook’s 728-foot summit, the area’s second highest, with soaring broad-winged hawks, then descend the Long Path to Rockland Lake and return to Upper Nyack, New York, for a six-mile loop. “Rockland is a pristine lake,” says Shorewalker Marvin Malater, “with Canadian geese all around.” Miles from city center 35; Trip ID 775317

» Timp-Torne Trail, Harriman SP From Jones Point, pass skyline views of Manhattan (35 miles south) as you roller-coaster over the Timp, West Mountain, and Popolopen Torne, a trio of thousand-foot peaks “There’s a memorial on the Torne,” says Rambler Lee Ruelle. “West Point cadets will climb up with a rock from the bottom and add it to the six-foot-high cairn. Some paint the stones with insignia for units fighting terrorism.” Take the Popolopen Gorge Trail to finish the 11-miler at Fort Montgomery. Miles from city center 45; Trip ID 775322

» Breakneck Ridge Trail, Hudson Highlands SP Take Metro North from Grand Central Station and start this 8.3-mile point-to-point by cranking up 1,000 feet to cross-Hudson views of Storm King Mountain’s whalelike prow. Scramble up granite slabs to an exposed ridge (or take the X-blazed bypass) and follow the Notch Trail—with vistas of bucolic dairy farmland and crumbling, Scottish-style Bannerman Castle, which was once home to a 19th-century arms dealer. Finish the day with an easy meander into Cold Spring. Miles from city center 60; Trip ID 775324

» Sugarloaf to Osborn loop, Hudson Highlands SP This seven-mile hike departs from the Manitou railroad station and climbs 1,000 feet to a flat ridgeline with views of Bear Mountain. Take the AT and Osborn Loop to the Manitoga Point Nature Preserve to add a mile of walking along the Hudson for a perfect blend of woods and water. Miles from city center 60; Trip ID 775325



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