Friday, November 23, 2012

Great Day Hikes for Kids in New York State

Mount Tremper Fire Observation
Station on Phoenicia Trail
With thousands of miles of hiking trails in New York state – from the famous Appalachian Trail to those crisscrossing the Adirondacks and Finger Lakes areas – you’ll have no trouble finding a great place for you and your children to put the boots to the dirt. Here are five great Empire State trails that you’ll want to day hike:
g Baxter Mountain summit trail – The summit trail to one of Adirondack State Park’s most famous mountains runs 2 miles round trip through a forest of pines and boulders left by glaciers during the last Ice Age.
g High Falls Gorge – Crossing a bridge over the Ausable River, the trail passes an anorthosite boulder to where the waterway falls over ancient granite cliffs.
g Mashomack Preserve’s Green Trail – Hikers can follow the 6-mile round trip Green Trail to white sand beaches on the Atlantic Ocean’s Smith Cove.
g Phoenicia Trail – This 2.75-mile trail in the Catskills takes you to a lookout tower atop Mount Tremper with Esopus Creek flowing below.
g Morton National Wildlife Refuge beach trail – More than 300 birds, including the threatened Piping Plover, make their home along or near the 3.5-mile beach trail.

Read more about day hiking with children in my Hikes with Tykes guidebooks.