Hiking
Hiking in the Shawangunk Mountains (the Gunks) is filled with a wide range of hiking experiences. Some of the popular areas are the River to Ridge Trail with views of Skytop, Minnewaska State Park Preserve with 4 different waterfalls to discover, Mohonk Presererve with a 100 miles of carriage and single track trails, and finally the Mohonk Mountain House ($35 per person day pass) Your host is an experienced Trail Runner and knows all the trails.
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Biking
Biking the Wallkill Rail Trail is great fun. The trip North takes you across the New Paltz and Rosendale train trestles and the brick kiln ruins are a bit further. South you have views of apple orchards on the way to Gardiner NY. Bikes can be rented from New Paltz Biking on Springtown Road or Springtown Cycles. Rentals are not available at the State Park or the Preserve. A great ride is from the Visitors Center at the State Park to Lake Awosting for a swim in the crystal clear waters.
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Kayaking
The Wallkill River, which uncommonly flows from South to North is a tranquil river and perfect for leisurely kayaking. You can rent from New Paltz Kayaking and launch from Sojourner Truth Park or bring your own Kayak and explore Ulster County area.
If you would rather just sit back and relax, check out the Hudson River Cruises in Kingston NY. |
Climbing
New Paltz is the climbing capital of the East Coast with amazing bouldering and rock climbing with many routes. Connecting with a Local Guide Service is a good starting point and Rock & Snow has a list of Guides
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Winter Activities
Climate Change seems to have made our snow fall and temperature highly variable. When the conditions are good the Mohonk Preserve and the State Park have groomed Cross Country trails that make for great skiing.
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Historic Sites
The weather does not always cooperate, but we have no shortage of historical sites and fun activities. A short list would include;
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