Solitude
These hikes offer the best chance of scoring a rare commodity: seeing nobody else at all
“We enter solitude, in which also we lose loneliness. True solitude is found in the wild places, where one is without human obligation. One’s inner voices become audible… In consequence, one responds more clearly to other lives. The more coherent one becomes within oneself as a creature, the more fully one enters into the communion of all creatures.”
— Wendell Berry
“Silence is not the absence of something but the presence of everything . . . It is the presence of time, undisturbed. It can be felt within the chest. Silence nurtures our nature, our human nature, and lets us know who we are. Left with a more receptive mind and a more attuned ear, we become better listeners not only to nature but to each other. Silence can be carried like embers from a fire. Silence can be found, and silence can find you. Silence can be lost and also recovered. But silence cannot be imagined, although most people think so. To experience the soul-swelling wonder of silence, you must hear it.”
― Gordon Hempton
“What business have I in the woods, if I am thinking of something out of the woods?”
— Thoreau
![ticetonyk](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Overlook-156-460x300.jpg)
Bushwhack Ticetonyk South Ridge
A steep bushwhack through old farmland, dotted with stone fences, to excellent unique views.
![Israel Wittman Sanctuary, Woodstock, New York](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Israel-Wittman-Sanctuary-2023-460x300.jpg)
Israel Wittman Sanctuary Hiking Trails
Newly expanded with the addition of Loop C, this sanctuary secures its place as a forever favorite.
![wooden boardwalk in spring forest](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Hodge-Pond-Mongaup-Nazgul-Loop-9171-460x300.jpg)
Hodge Pond 3: The Nazgûl Loop
A route that combines so many strange and disparate elements, it’s unforgettably weird!
![broken trail sign on huckleberry loop](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Huckleberry-Loop-Catskills-6878-460x300.jpg)
Huckleberry Loop, Catskills: a Mile-by-Mile Guide
Is Huckleberry Loop Trail the most beautiful hike in The Catskills? This mile-by-mile guide walks you through it all.
![scenic view from Cross Mountain Meathook](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Cross-Mountain-Meathook-5039-460x300.jpg)
![hiker in summer forest](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Mombaccus-Mountain-1216-460x300.jpg)
Mombaccus & Ashokan High Point
This steep, difficult double-peak hike is so rewarding on so many levels.
![sunrise](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Overlook-176-460x300.jpg)
Best Camera Settings for Photographing Sunsets & Sunrises (40+ Tips)
Plan, prepare and shoot the perfect sunrise or sunset photo. Here’s everything you need to know.
![small waterfall, long exposure](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Silver-Hollow-from-Willow-2223-460x300.jpg)
Secret Hike: Winter Views, Giant Quarry, Waterfalls, Ruins
I had no idea what I’d find on this unsung trail. I was blown away.
![sunset view](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Pakatakan-7318-460x300.jpg)
Pakatakan Lookout & Shelter
A short steep hike past dramatic rock formations leads to a sweet view over the Pepacton Reservoir.
![sunset view from Tremper Mountain fire tower](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Tremper-Willow-4708-460x300.jpg)
Tremper Mountain Fire Tower from Willow
A much quieter and more interesting route to Tremper Mountain Fire Tower
![wintery waterfall](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Eagle-Seager-7768-460x300.jpg)
Eagle Mountain from Seager
Not many people hike this way to Eagle but it’s the most beautiful route. The Seager Big Indian trail which passes along Dry Brook is uniquely challenging and magical.
![green ski lift building in snow](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Belleayre-c0006-460x300.jpg)
Belleayre via Lost Clove
This challenging out and back begins with one of the steepest trails in the Catskills, passes over two sub-peaks and visits two lean-tos on the way to a ski resort with a scenic view.
![orange canister on tree trunk](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Lone-4571-460x300.jpg)
Rocky and Lone via Fisherman’s Path
Due to the remoteness of its two mountains, the ruggedness of the terrain, and the skin-shredding forest, this is widely regarded as the toughest hike in the Catskills.
![sunset over mountain](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/LA-3254-460x300.jpg)
Little Ashokan
The bushwhack to Little Ashokan is one of the steeper and sketchier routes I’ve hiked in the Catskills: craggy ledges, loose dirt and rocks, lots of blowdown. But the summit is magical, and the view it affords it is startlingly beautiful.
![mountain view at sunset](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Slide-Cornell-Witt-1839-460x300.jpg)
Hike Slide, Cornell & Wittenberg
This is my favorite tough-but-beautiful Catskills hike. Long, rugged, technical and remote, it brings you over three summits to some of the most stunning lookouts in the Catskill Park.
![two painted blazes on tree trunk](https://mountain-hiking.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Ginseng-Hayden-973-460x300.jpg)
Ginseng & Hayden: Quiet Northern Catskills
A very quiet and peaceful section of the Northern Catskill Escarpment / Long Path, free of Classic Catskills crowds.