A nice side view of the Falls
More Mushrooms!
The classic first view of the Falls
The view from above the Falls
Right in front of Stony Kill Falls
The Stony Kill taking a plunge!
Stony Kill Falls, which is easily accessed from Kerhonkson, is located in the western zone of Minnewaska State Park. With a single drop of almost 90 feet, Stony Kill Falls is the highest in the Shawangunks. The road leading to the parking area is used for access to the aqueduct from the Rondout Resevoir.
At only about a half mile, this is one of the great easy walks in the Hudson Valley. Although, there is not a maintained trail. The walking at first is through open grounds. It looks as if there was a mine here possibly. There are numerous structures, including an asphalt area that looks as if it is a helicopter landing pad. The walk then heads into the woods and it feels like you're in the wilderness. Different herd paths and unmaintained trails can be found on both sides of the Stony Kill.
Most people stay on the right as that happens to be where the parking lot is located. The Falls come into view and wow! How beautiful it is! Recently, with all the rain the Falls have been flowing nicely and the area around the Falls are a lush green. Someday, I'm going to have to check out waterfalls in Hawaii.
A great spot to chill is right behind the Falls. I did this for a bit then decided I'd like to check out the view from above. Considering how wet it was, the paths going up were not too bad. The trickiest section had a miniature waterfall pouring down on it. At this point I got fairly wet.
The views from on top were great, but not like those on the bottom. But, I love getting a different perspective. And only at the top do you get a feeling of how high the waterfall really is. Also, what may be the best swimming hole can be found a top the Falls. It's exactly why so many venture up the sometimes tricky path.
Dogs know a great swim hole when they find one.
Lots of water on this day!
What a magnificent place. One of my favorite destinations when the 3 HHHs take hold in summer. Have you hiked there via the path near Lake Awosting? I wonder what that path looks like now, after Irene. Might be a mess, given that the trail intersects the Peter's Kill.
ReplyDeleteIt was nice to see the tea colored waters in your video. Def one of the best swimming holes in NY. Guess it wasn't warm enough to swim. No Indian summer?
You know, it was warm enough. Probably in the 70s and humid. There were a few people there. I passed. Don't really know why. In the future during a hot, humid summer day, I will not hesitate to venture this way.
ReplyDeletesnakes? Did you see any
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