Mohonk
Preserve &
Mohonk Mountain House
Hiking
in Mohonk | Climbing
in Mohonk
ohonk
exists today solely because of the inspiration of
Alfred and Albert Smiley. The brothers purchased a
parcel of land adjacent to a lake on top of the Shawangunk
Ridge and created what became the most important of
the great mountain resorts, Mohonk Mountain House.
Mohonk was conceived and
created as a part of the "natural aesthetic" movement
that became an important philosophical phenomena after
the Civil War. It was believed that nature and its
influence had a civilizing effect on people; that
immersing yourself in natural surroundings and the
beauty of nature would provide both an intellectual
as well as healthful benefit.
The Smiley's pursued
the idea with a passion. Of all the great Mountain Resorts
of New York, Mohonk stood above the rest for its setting,
implementation and realization of the ideal. Others,
like the Catskill Mountain House, may have had more
spectacular views or grander accommodations, but Mohonk
was possibly the most sublime and definitely the most
picturesque.
Mostly, this can be attributed
to the Quaker background of the Smileys. Alcohol and
games of chance were not allowed at Mohonk. At Mohonk
you arrived to enjoy the simple pleasures of land,
water and sky. At Mohonk you were in intimate contact
with the natural world, it pervaded your entire experience
and provided a restful escape from urban strife.
But rough
and rude were not the order of the day. Accommodations
at Mohonk were deluxe, if spartan, and your experience
of the natural world surrounding the resort was, and
remains, filtered through the lens of an aesthetic ideal.
The aesthetic called for immersion in the splendor of
nature, not the squalor of underbrush; your inspiration
came through the appreciation of dramatic vistas and
idealized landscapes, not fighting your way through
brambles and bogs.
Mohonk
provided these developed experiences in abundance.
Over several decades the Smileys continued to acquire
adjacent sections of land and pursued the expansion
of their idealized landscape, both separately and
in tandem. They constructed miles of carriage roads
winding throughout the mountains, roadways leading
the visitor away from the hotel and into nature and
trails taking the hiker off into the best the Shawangunks
have to offer.
The Smileys had an
unparalleled environment with which to work. The Shawangunk
Ridge is a unique geologic construction situated at
a particularly strategic location. To the south lie
the Ramapo and Appalachian Mountains, to the east the
Hudson River and Berkshire Mountains and to the north
and west the Catskills; all at a distance, all seen
across plains stretching away from the Shawangunks.
And the nature of the Shawangunks was especially important
as well. The Shawangunks contain towering cliffs and
dramatic ravines and are capped by a series of "sky
lakes."
As
the carriage roads were expanded, vistas were opened
up, easy access to the precipices was developed and
gazebos and constructions were completed, all to heighten
your experience and focus your attention. Eventually
a maze of carriageways, trails and paths were created
leading the visitor through the landscape and providing
the visitor with specially selected and developed
visual experiences.
 The
legacy of this development today constitutes the three
properties of the Mohonk Mountain House Resort, Mohonk
Preserve and Minnewaska State Park Preserve.
In the 1960s the Smiley
family created the Mohonk Preserve out of the majority
of their land holdings to insure its continuing preservation
and place the stewardship into the hands of like minded
environmentalists. The Mohonk Preserve consists of
over 4,000 acres of land and encompasses some of the
most environmentally fragile and important parcels
in lower New York. Unique ecosystems flourish atop
the Shawangunk Ridge protected by the Preserve.
In addition to conservation,
the second and equally important purpose of the Preserve
is to provide access to the public, to allow visitation
and heighten the appreciation of this unique and special
place. Because of the earlier development of the landscape,
access to the Mohonk Preserve is especially easy.
All of the many miles of carriageways and trails remain
in place providing easy strolling and challenging
scrambles. Visitors to Mohonk Preserve can select
from a wide range of experience and skill levels.
Walk the carriageways as they wind up to the summits
of the mountains, hike the trails through dense forests
and open meadows or scramble up the rock falls and
find yourself perched atop a boulder with the Hudson
Valley stretching away before you as far as the eye
can see.
For the more adventuresome,
Mohonk Preserve contains one of the most important
technical and rock climbing locations in the world.
Focused on Route 44/55 are the areas of the Trapps,
Near Trapps, Millbrook and Sky Top. On any pleasant
day there may be hundreds of hardy people dangling
from the cliffs challenging themselves against gravity
and the rock face. For us more mundane strollers,
looking up watching these adventurers provides hours
of pleasure and moments of dizzying terror.
There are two primary
points of access into Mohonk, through the new Trapps
Visitor Center of the Mohonk Preserve located on Routes
44/55 and through the main gate as a day pass visitor
into the Mohonk Mountain House Resort property located
on Mountain Rest Road, (County Route 6).
However you enter Mohonk, cooperative arrangements
between the two properties allow you free passage
across all carriageways and trails. You can wander
the many miles of trails and roadways unencumbered.
If you follow the rules:
- Both Mohonk Preserve
and Mohonk Mountain House are private lands and
daily access fees are charged for entry.
- Day use access visitors
are not allowed into the Mountain House.
- Bikes are only allowed
on carriageways and helmets must be worn at all
times.
- Horses are allowed
only on selected carriageways and advance permission
must be obtained.
- Inside the Mohonk Mountain
House property, rock and cliff climbing is a privilege
that may be generally or individually revoked at
any time, and is an activity which you pursue at
your sole risk. Mohonk Mountain House does not maintain
the rock face and does not sanction climbing on
its property.
- Inside the Mohonk Preserve
property, rock and cliff climbing is an unsupported
activity, you do so at your sole risk. Mohonk Preserve
does not maintain the rock face and does not sanction
climbing on its property.
- Camping and fires are
not allowed anywhere in either the Mohonk Preserve
or Mohonk Mountain House properties.
- Visitors must remain
on the trails and carriageways. Located within the
properties are extremely fragile ecosystems that
can be irreparable damaged.
- Radios and tape players
are not allowed.
- Glass containers are
not allowed.
- Anything that you take
in you must take back out with you.
- You must be respectful
of other peoples experiences and activities, especially
on the Mohonk Mountain House property where day
use visitors mingle with paying guests.
- Visitors must obey
rangers and resort personnel directives.
Mohonk is extremely user
friendly and is exceptionally handicapped accessible.
Visitors of all abilities can access the splendors
of the Shawangunks and revel in the extraordinary
landscapes. The carriage roads provide wheel chair
access and special parking areas are provided for
the disabled. If needed, the Preserve can arrange
for Rangers to assist disabled visitors to access
the paths and carriageways. Immediately adjacent to
the Trapps Visitor Center is the "Sensory Path", a
very special trail designed for the visually impaired.
When you obtain your day
pass at the Trapps Visitor Center you will be provided
with exceptionally good trail maps covering the Preserve
and Mountain House properties. Volunteers at the Visitor
Center are happy to talk with you and discuss your
options and point you into directions that will provide
the best experiences for you at your skill level.
Additional
Coverage of:
Hiking
in Mohonk
Climbing
in Mohonk
For more
information, contact:
Mohonk
Preserve
PO Box 715
New Paltz, NY 12561
(914)255-0919
E-Mail
www.mohonkpreserve.org
Mohonk
Mountain House
1000 Mountain Rest Road
Mohonk Lake, NY 12561
(914)255-1000
(800)772-6646
New
York - New Jersey Trail Conference
156 Ramapo Valley Road
Mahwah NJ 07430
(201)512-9348
E-Mail
www.nynjtc.org
Overview
Map of Mohonk Preserve & Mountain House
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