Adirondack Sports October 2023

BICYCLING
OCTOBER 2023 15
▼ MILLBROOK ROAD.
Minnewaska
State Park Preserve
Carriage Roads with Scenic Views
to Extend Your Season
By Dave Kraus
Whether you are a dirt riding
newbie or an experienced
“graveler,” there’s a perfect
place in upstate to ride on well-maintained,
unpaved roads while enjoying
some of the most spectacular scenery you
will find anywhere.
Located in Ulster County, Minnewaska
State Park Preserve perches on almost
22,000 acres of pristine parkland on top
of the Shawangunks Ridge between the
Hudson River and the Catskills. The
“’Gunks” rise gradually to Sam’s Point
on the south end, while farther north the
main park visitor center overlooks Lake
Minnewaska, just off NY Route 44/55 that
snakes its way over the ridge from New
Paltz to Kerhonkson. The park was opened
in 1993 after the state bought the property
in 1987 to protect it from urban development.
Since then, the park has been
enlarged with significant assistance from
the Nature Conservancy and Open Space
Institute. OSI also helped fund the new
Minnewaska Visitor Center that opened in
2020. For more info: parks.ny.gov/parks/
minnewaska.
The Shawangunks Ridge is both geologically
and biologically distinct from
the Catskills to the west, hosting an ecosystem
that includes plants and animals
rarely found elsewhere in New York State.
Chestnut oak forests and pitch pines are
common, and the pines shrink to dwarf
size toward the south end to create a miniature
forest that’s also covered with blueberry
bushes that turn a fiery red in the fall.
Best of all, the park’s 35 miles of carriage
roads give cyclists access to some incredible
scenery including lakes, waterfalls,
fall foliage, and spectacular views of both
the Hudson Valley to the east and Catskill
peaks to the west. As fall temperatures and
foliage work their way south, riding in the
Shawangunks is a great way to extend your
cycling season for several more weeks after
colors peak in the Adirondacks.
Minnewaska has an entry fee of $10
per vehicle at the main park entrance on
Route 44/55. You can also get in with your
Empire Pass, and on weekdays any senior
over 62 can enter simply by scanning the
QR code on the back of your New York
driver’s license. There is a connecting carriage
road to adjacent Mohonk Preserve
and you can ride from one to the other.
If so, you will need to pay a separate $20
per person day use fee and the trails are
actively patrolled in that private preserve
run by a non-profit organization. The trails
at the Mohonk Mountain House are open
only to guests of that for-profit resort.
This Minnewaska 13.5-mile beginner
counter-clockwise gravel loop allows a
first-time rider at the park to visit some
of the most stunning viewpoints, while
skipping the toughest climbs on the carriage
road network. You will start from
the Minnewaska Visitor Center that has
See BICYCLING 17 ▶
▼ CASTLE POINT ROAD.
▲ CLIFF TOP VISTA.
PHOTOS AND MAP BY DAVE KRAUS