Hi friends, welcome back! As you may know, I have been quarantining in a one-bedroom NYC apartment for over four months now. In NYC, we are able to move about freely, but I personally have not been more than a few miles from my apartment. I have ventured out mainly for walks and food, but I am itching to get out of the city and get lost in nature hiking (figuratively of course ;)). There is so much of New York that I have yet to explore in this diverse state, and I can’t wait to do so once I have a car. I created this New York Hiking Bucket List as inspiration for myself, and I can’t wait to share beautiful pictures once I complete these hikes! Disclaimer, none of the pictures in this post besides Breakneck Ridge are my own.
New York Hiking Bucket List
- Storm King Mountain: this hike is listed as a moderate 2.6-mile trail with a rocky terrain and beautiful views of the Hudson River. This hike can be accessed from public transportation on the Metro North via the Hudson Line from Grand Central Station, or about an hour and a half drive from Lower Manhattan. Storm King Mountain is right across the Hudson River from Breakneck Ridge, and I’d highly recommend stopping at Moo Moo’s Creamery for some well-deserved ice cream afterwards 🙂
- Watkins Glen State Park: I have seen so many pictures of this trail on Instagram and have been dying to experience it for myself on day! It is about a four-hour drive from NYC, so definitely not a day trip. The waterfalls are beautiful, but the reviews all so to go early or during a week day to avoid crowds. There are a few trails, all rated moderate, and none are longer than 2.5 miles. Waterfall hikes are my favorite!
- The Buttermilk Falls Gorge Trail: this 1.6-mile trail is located in Ithaca, NY about a four-hour drive from NYC and near Watkins Glen State Park. This trail is listed as beautiful and moderate. The main attraction is a large waterfall, beautiful rock formations, and places to swim.
- High falls Gorge: this 30 minute, 1-mile hike in Lake Placid is another that I have admired on Instagram for quite some time. The hike is listed as easy, but an overpriced tourist trap. I still think these views are worth visiting!
- Rainbow Falls: another Lake Placid Hike, Rainbow Falls is listed as 5.9 miles and moderate difficulty. This hike may be one of the most famous in NY State for the stunning views at the top. This is rated one of the best hikes in the Adirondacks and one of the hikes I’m most excited about on this list. UPDATE: I completed this hike in August 2020, you can read about it here.
- White Face Mountain: this is another hike in Lake Placid that measures 9.6-miles and can take up to 7 hours. The hike is difficult and long, so I will save this for when I have some endurance 🙂
- Cascade Mountain: this Lake Placid Hike is 4.5-miles and can take up to 4 hours complete, but per the All Trails reviews, hikers are rewarded with incredible views at the top. The hike is rated hard with a steep incline and some rocky scrambles that can be a bit crowded.
- Verkeerder kill Falls Hike: this hike is located in the Catskills about two hours away from NYC, easily doable for a day trip. The hike is a moderate 8.3 miles, one of the longer on the list, but there are beautiful views at the top and a large waterfall.
- Kaaterskill Falls: an easy 1.7 mile hike in the Catskills with some beautiful waterfalls. There was even a comment that there are a lot of dogs on the trail…count me in!!
- Overlook Mountain View and Hotel Ruins: this hike is also located in the Catskills and measures 8.5 miles long. This hike is unique because there is an old hotel ruins you can walk through. This hike is rated hard and includes a steep incline, but beautiful views!
An honorable mention is Breakneck Ridge, I would add it to my bucket list, but I’ve already completed it – or should I say survived it?? It is definitely not for the faint of heart! The hike is full of beautiful views, steep rock scrambles, and fresh air! This hike is rated 10/10 difficulty for a reason, and I would highly discourage it without the proper shoes, especially with all of the rock climbing. I would recommend attempting the because you will feel so empowered once you’re done. I picked this hike out because it’s easily accessible by public transportation from NYC, not for its difficulty. You can read all about it here.
This is awesome!! I’ll be moving to upstate ny eventually and am always looking for new hiking destinations. Thanks
Thanks!! Hopefully you will be able to hike some of these 🙂
Fabulous scenery!
Thanks Sheree!
Thanks for dropping by my blog! Love reading your posts, especially as a fellow new-New Yorker. Tagging a few of these for an upcoming vacation!
So fun!! I’m heading to Lake Placid soon and can’t wait to try a few 🙂
Such a timely post. We are considering making a road trip to chase some waterfalls in upstate NY this summer 🙂
That sounds awesome! Let me know if you make it to any of have recommendations 🙂
Fingers crossed it’ll happen.
Great hikes and scenery. I can’t wait to read the posts.
Thanks! You won’t have to wait too long 🙂
Love this list! Gorgeous pictures! I pinned them on like four different boards because I always have trouble remembering where I pinned things.
Thanks!! Too funny – I always forget where I pin things too 🙂
I hope you can check out Watkins Glen sometime. It’s a great place for hiking.
Thanks! I’m excited to hike there one day 🙂
They all look amazing!!
Great outing…
This looks so much fun!! I’ll keep this in mind for my boyfriend & I to do one of these days.
– B 🌿😊
Overlook Mountain near Woodstock is a nice hike. Not too hard. You get nice views from the top. There is even a short hike from the top to Echo Lake. The Lake Placid area is gorgeous. I hope to return later this week for a few days. Kayaking in the area is great.
It’s so gorgeous up here! We ran out of tome to kayak sadly, but definitely will next time! I’ll add those hikes to the list, we did Indian Head and it was exhausting! But the views were amazing!
I know! That’s a great area. So many mountains to climb and so many lakes and ponds to kayak!
So true! Maybe one day I’ll climb all 46… A long weekend was definitely not enough time to be up there.
Lake Placid has high peaks scratch offs. Scratch off the mountain after you hike it.
Great idea, thanks!!
I’ve been to upstate NY a couple of times and couldn’t believe how beautiful and green it was! Love your photos!
Thank you! I was amazed how beautiful and green it was just 5 hours outside the city!
I can see why you want to have a New York hiking bucket list. The pictures are gorgeous. Thank you for sharing them.
Thank you! I have crossed one off the list so far 😀
This was beautiful. I live in the city and we don’t venture much outside but I will definitely tell my children about these places so they could check them out!
These are great! Glad you got to get out of NY for a bit. I needed a list like this from someone who lives in NYC.