The Best Hikes
The Best Hikes in the Catskills, Hudson Highlands, Adirondacks, and beyond
This hand-curated selection of the most rewarding hikes you can do for scenery: the best trails, the best bushwhacks, the best views, and the most fun.
Below, youโll find a mix of hiking trails and routes that cross a variety of terrain. Most of the hikes are fully trailed, a few are bushwhacks. Some you can tackle solo.
Others should definitely be undertaken with a partner or as part of a group hike.
Wherever you plan to hike, this list guarantees an awesome time, every time.
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Hike Windham High Peak from Cross Road
This might be my new favorite way to hike WHP. The easy first mile and the hemlock-rich woods at the start of this route make it such a pleasant way to begin and end this beautiful day hike.

Red Hill Fire Tower Classic Trail
This short, easy hike up beautifully-maintained trail in bucolic New York leads to dramatic views of the Southern and Western Catskills.

Tremper Mountain Fire Tower Classic Hike
Tremper Mountain Fire Tower offers incredible 360ยฐ views of dozens of classic Catskill mountains.

Blackhead & Black Dome via Batavia Kill
This route crosses some of the most beautiful hiking trails in the Catskill Mountains. I think this is the best route for hiking Blackhead.

Twin from Roaring Kill
Twin from Roaring Kill is one of the most entertaining trails in the Catskills โ but it also contains what might be the Catskillsโ most challenging trail section.

Hike Balsam From Rider Hollow
A truly delightful Catskills hike. Climb Balsam Mountain by hiking up Mine Hollow and down Rider Hollow. One of the most picturesque hikes in the Catskills.

Sloan Gorge Preserve
Sloan Gorge Preserve offers an absolutely delightful, short, and family-friendly nature walk.

Ashokan Quarry Trail
A short, super-easy hike almost anyone can do with fantastic terrain and scenic views โ and a superb set of ruins to explore.

Kelly Hollow Loop
Short, easy and thoroughly absorbing, Kelly Hollow Loop is one of the most beautiful hiking trails in the Catskills. It came highly-recommended and it absolutely delivered.

Plateau via Daley Ridge
Daley Ridge is rugged, densely wooded, and absolutely charming. Many long-time Catskills hikers feel this is one of the most beautiful hikes in the Catskills.

Best Day Hike in the Catskills: Wittenberg, Cornell, Slide
As rugged as I suspected โ but more beautiful than I imagined.

Hike Sugarloaf & Twin from Roaring Kill
Any hike that includes Twin Mountain is a great hike. From either side, Twin offers some the funnest ascents in the Catskill Park. But the western side of Twin, with its steep talus field and a section of technical open rock face, is perhaps the toughest 0.7 mile youโll hike on any Catskill trail.

Friday, Balsam Cap & B-25 Crash Site
A long, tough, rewarding hike that follows woods roads and herd paths, and ends with a true bushwhack to the wreckage of a WWII military bomber.

Indian Head & Twin (Sunset Hike)
This is my favorite hike in the Catskills. It has everything the Catskills can give you: classic Catskills forests, rugged terrain, excellent scrambles, and jaw-dropping scenic views.

Hike Kaaterskill High Peak & 2 Plane Wrecks
KHPโs summit is a Catskills classic with a spectacular view from Hurricane Ledge. This route takes in two eerie plane wrecks, and there is much to see on the long trek in and out. This a tough, muddy, rewarding hike.

The Catskills 6: Friday, Balsam Cap, Rocky, Lone, Table, Peekamoose
Tackling this route as part of a group hike makes it a fantastic experience.