C A T S K I L L S
HIKING TRAILS & CAMPGROUNDS MAP
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Hiking

Hiking opportunities abound in the Catskill Park. There are approximately 300 miles of marked, maintained hiking trails on public Forest Preserve land. Stewardship and development of these trails is shared by the New York State Forest Rangers and local chapters of hiking clubs such as the New York/New Jersey Trail Conference and the Adirondack Mountain Club. There are 35 Catskill peaks boasting heights greater than 3500ft elevation, and people who hike to the summits of each of these peaks earn membership in the Catskill 3500 Club. Five Catskill peaks, Hunter, Overlook, Tremper, Balsam Lake, and Red Hill, have fire towers on their summits; remnants of an era gone by. The Catskill Fire Tower Restoration Project restored these towers, making them safe so that the excellent views and educational aspects of the towers can now be enjoyed by the public. For more information about the Fire Tower Restoration Project, contact The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development at (845)586-2611 or visit www.catskillcenter.org/towers. An excellent set of trail maps for the Catskill region has been produced by the New York/New Jersey Trail Conference; they can be purchased at many regional bookstores, through The Catskill Center, or by calling the NY/NJ Trail Conference at (212)685-9699 (http://www.nynjtc.org/~trails/) Some of the popular Catskill hiking trails can be viewed online at http://www.catskillguide.com/hiking.htm.

Camping

Both primitive and amenity camping opportunities abound in the Catskills. Primitive camping is allowed in the Wilderness and Wild Forest areas of the Catskill Forest Preserve, so long as you follow certain guidelines designed to protect sensitive summit forest communities and water quality of the streams. Wilderness camping rules include not camping within 150ft of a trail, stream, or pond, and not above 3500ft elevation except in winter. Three-sided, roofed ‘lean-to’ shelters have been constructed on several Catskill backwoods trails. The NYSDEC maintains seven public campgrounds in the Forest Preserve; North/South Lake, Devils Tombstone, Kenneth Wilson, Woodland Valley, Mongaup Pond, Little Pond, and Beaverkill. These campgrounds have tent and trailer sites, restroom facilities, and other amenities varying by location. Numerous private campgrounds are scattered throughout the Catskills. For more information regarding Forest Preserve Camping opportunities, contact the DEC in Region 3 (Sullivan and Ulster counties) at (845)256-3082 or -3083, and in Region 4 (Delaware and Greene counties) at (607)652-7364.