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At least once a month, usually on a Thursday, we will meet for a guided hike of one or more of the Catskill high peaks that are required for 3500 Club membership. This year’s hikes include a selection of moderate and more difficult hikes, including some bushwhacks.

The 2024 planned Catskill High Peak group social hikes are listed below.   Click the links for more information about the hikes and how to register.  Please read the hike descriptions and gear requirements before registering. There is no charge for these hikes but you will need to sign the typical liability waivers. 

Most of these hikes are being led in conjunction with the Adirondack Mountain Club and the Catskill 3500 Club. We strongly encourage you to consider joining these worthy organizations.

• Thursday January 11 – Halcott Mountain
• Thursday February 8 – Burroughs Range – Slide, Cornell, Wittenberg – See Photos
• Thursday March 7 – Panther Mountain
• Wednesday April 10 – Balsam Lake Mountain and Millbrook Ridge
• Wednesday May 8 – Rusk, Hunter and Southwest Hunter
• Wednesday June 19 (new date) – Table and Peekamoose Mountains
• Wednesday July 10 – Windham High Peak – See Photos
• Wednesday August 14 – Fir and Big Indian Mountain
• Wednesday September 11 – Balsam Lake Mountain and Millbrook Ridge
• Wednesday October 2 – Westkill Mountain
• Wednesday November 13 – Balsam Lake Mountain and Millbrook Ridge
• Wednesday December 4 – Blackhead Range – Blackhead, Black Dome and Thomas Cole Mountains

Hike with a Guide

This is a great chance to hike with a guide and meet fellow Catskill hiking enthusiasts. Along the way we’ll learn about the history, geology and plant life of the Catskills as well as some basic navigation skills. 

Get Introduced to Local Hiking Clubs

Many of these hikes are offered through the Adirondack Mountain Club and Catskill 3500 Club.  Both are non-profit hiking clubs that do great work in New York State and I’m a proud member of both organizations. The Catskill 3500 Club awards a patch and membership to hikers who summit all 35 of the Catskill high peaks plus four more that have to be hiked twice with at least one of the hikes during the winter.  It’s a lot of fun and a great motivator.  You can find more information about the Catskill 3500 Club and the Adirondack Mountain Club on their websites:

http://catskill-3500-club.org/membership.php

adk.org/chapter-events/

I hope you’ll be able to join for one or more of these hikes.  Drop me a note with any questions via the contact form or use the phone number or email listed on the contact form. You can also use the contact form to join the mailing list for our “HerdPath” newsletter:

We’ve got a great set of hikes lined up for the 2023 installment of the Catskill high peaks social series.  Each month, usually on a Thursday, we meet for a guided hike of one or more of the Catskill high peaks that are required for 3500 Club membership. This year’s hikes include a selection of moderate and more difficult hikes.

The 2023 planned Catskill high peak group social hikes are listed below.   Click the links for more information about the hikes and how to register.  Please read the hike descriptions and gear requirements before registering. There is no charge for these hikes but you will need to sign the typical liability waivers. 

• Friday February 10 – Balsam and Eagle Mountain See Photos
• Thursday March 16 – Blackhead Range See Photos
• Thursday May 18 – Panther Mountain See Photos
• Thursday June 8 – Bearpen and Vly Mountain See Photos
• Thursday July 6 – Indian Head and Twin Mountain
• Thursday August 10 – Fir and Big Indian Mountain
• Thursday September 14 – Blackhead Range
• Thursday October 12 – Balsam Lake Mountain and Millbrook Ridge
• Thursday November 16 – Wittenberg and Cornell Mountain
• Thursday December 7 – Plateau Mountain
• Friday December 8 – Balsam Lake Mountain and Millbrook Ridge

Hike with a Guide

This is a great chance to hike with a guide and meet fellow Catskill hiking enthusiasts. Along the way we’ll learn about the history, geology and plant life of the Catskills as well as some basic navigation skills. 

Get Introduced to Local Hiking Clubs

Many of these hikes are also being offered to Adirondack Mountain Club and Catskill 3500 Club Members.  Both are non-profit hiking clubs that do great work in New York State and I’m a proud member of both organizations. The Catskill 3500 Club awards a patch and membership to hikers who summit all 35 of the Catskill high peaks plus four more that have to be hiked twice with at least one of the hikes during the winter.  It’s a lot of fun and a great motivator.  You can find more information about the Catskill 3500 Club on their website:

http://catskill-3500-club.org/membership.php

I hope you’ll be able to join for one or more of these hikes.  Drop me a note with any questions via the contact form or use the phone number or email listed on the contact form. You can also use the contact form to join the mailing list for our “HerdPath” newsletter:

We’re continuing the popular tradition in 2022 of monthly Catskill “social” hikes.  The turnout in previous years has been tremendous with registrations for hikes filling up well in advance.  Each month on a Thursday we meet for a guided hike of one or more of the Catskill 3500 peaks. Although we’ve tried to keep things relatively simple, most of these hikes have some challenging sections.

Below is the list of Thursday Catskill group social hikes scheduled for 2022.   Click the links for more information about the hikes and how to register.  Please read the hike descriptions and gear requirements before registering. There is no charge for these hikes but you will need to sign the typical liability waivers. 

• Thursday January 6 – Twin Mountain See Photos
• Thursday February 10 – Panther Mountain See Photos
• Thursday March 10 – Blackhead Range See Photos
• Thursday April 7 – Rusk Mountain
• Thursday May 5 – Table and Peekamoose See Photos
• Thursday June 9 – Balsam Lake Mountain See Photos
• Thursday July 7 – Kaaterskill High Peak See Photos
• Thursday August 11 – Windham High Peak See Photos
• Thursday September 15 – Big Indian Mountain See Photos
• Thursday November 10 – Balsam Lake Mountain See Photos

Hike with a Guide

This is a great chance to hike with a guide and meet fellow Catskill hiking enthusiasts. Along the way we’ll learn about the history, geology and plant life of the Catskills as well as some basic navigation skills. 

Get Introduced to Local Hiking Clubs

Many of these hikes are also being offered to Adirondack Mountain Club and Catskill 3500 Club Members.  Both are non-profit hiking clubs that do great work in New York State and I’m a proud member of both organizations. The Catskill 3500 Club awards a patch and membership to hikers who summit all 35 of the Catskill high peaks plus four more that have to be hiked twice with at least one of the hikes during the winter.  It’s a lot of fun and a great motivator.  You can find more information about the Catskill 3500 Club on their website:

http://catskill-3500-club.org/membership.php

I hope you’ll be able to join for one or more of these hikes.  Drop me a note with any questions via the contact form or use the phone number or email listed on the contact form. You can also use the contact form to join the mailing list for our “HerdPath” newsletter:

April’s featured Catskill Social Series hike is Westkill Mountain.

Westkill Mountain is the 6th highest peak in the Catskills and the highest point on the Devil’s Path trail (nearby Hunter Mountain is taller but the trail doesn’t pass over it’s summit). This trek is a great introduction to the Devil’s path on one of the gentler sections of the famous trail.

Join us on April 8 as we hike past waterfalls and great views to the evergreen clad summit. There may still be snow and ice in places and we’ll need appropriate footwear and traction devices.

This is a mostly moderate hike despite the lofty summit at less than an arms length shy of 3900 feet. There are one or two tricky ledges, especially if ice persists.

Reserve your spot for Westkill Mountain

Contact

See the full schedule of the Catskill Hikes 2021 Social Series

2021 social series

The COVID-19 impacts on hiking include the universal disruption of plans, including ours. 

Like lots of people, I’m going more than a little stir crazy due to the COVID-19 outbreak. I’ve been taking local hikes to get some fresh air and exercise and this really does help. It’s been a challenge to keep up with constantly changing COVID-19 impacts on hiking activities.    Active guiding is on hold for now and near-term trips that were planned have been canceled.  Longer term everything is tentative, although we are still taking bookings for guided trips.  These will be dependent on both public health policy and local rules as well as common sense regarding COVID-19

Officially, we are still encouraged to get outside, but there are important common-sense guidelines.  Below are some key takeaways regarding COVID-19 impacts on hiking and camping, my personal thoughts and interpretations regarding access and safety considerations, and some links you can use to keep track of rapidly changing guidelines for outdoor recreation