APRIL 2024

The Gunks

Where:  eastern New York State

Directions: New York State Thruway (Interstate 87) to Exit 17 or 18. West onto Route 299

Good to Know:

* Make a parking reservation - required on weekends from April until November.

Why so good:

The Shawangunk Mountains are one of America’s true hiking treasures. And your dog is invited.

THE MINNEWASKA STATE PARK PRESERVE.
If your dog could talk you would hear about this hike for a looooong time. The state park on the dramatic Shawangunk Mountain ridge is where feuding brothers Alfred and Albert Smiley opened competing vacation houses in the 1800s. When they made nice again the Smileys built a network of carriage roads between the hotels. These wide, carefully graded road-beds are where you will be doing most of your hiking with your dog. The early steps lead to a swimming beach at cliff-fringed Lake Minnewaska. If this was as far as your dog went it would probably be a four-star hike. The Millbrook Mountain Carriage Road then moves through mixed forests onto the open cliffs and Patterson’s Pellet, a glacial erratic perched improbably on the edge of a cliff. The carriage road joins Gertrude’s Nose Trail, a narrow footpath that will eventually spend much of its 2.7 miles poking along flat, open clifftops. There are so many mind-blowing views around Gertrude’s Nose they actually become ho-hum after awhile. Take heed of the red blazes - when they lead inland they are taking your dog away from potentially dangerous crevices in the Shawangunk conglomerate. An occasional rock scramble adds interest to your dog’s hiking day, regardless. Pine trees in all shapes and size decorate the clifftops. Multiple options close the 7.5-mile loop; water-loving dogs will vote for the one that leads back to Lake Minnewaska for a well-earned doggie dip.

SAM’S POINT PRESERVE.
Like Russian nesting dolls, this is a special place inside a special place. Nestled on the highest point in the Shawangunk Mountains you’ll find at Sam’s Point pitch pine barrens, ice caves, one of five sky lakes in the Gunks, cliff trails and a 187-foot waterfall. Arrive early or on a non-peak day.