Catskill Park

Designated a state treasure in 1904, Catskill Park spans Ulster, Green, Delaware, and Sullivan counties. It encompasses 700,000 acres of public and private land, and some of the wildest country south of Maine, with bears, coyotes, foxes, and other creatures. About 60% of the land is privately owned; the nearly 300,000 acres of state land within the park is called the Catskill Forest Preserve. The park has 200 miles of marked trails, campgrounds, ponds, lakes, and mountains; 98 peaks rise above 3,000 feet. At 4,190 feet, Slide Mountain is the highest of the Catskill peaks.

In summer, hikers, climbers, bicyclists, kayakers, canoeists, and tubers fill the streets of many small towns; in winter there's an influx of skiers from the New York City area, as well as a considerable number of snowmobilers, snowshoers, and ice climbers. The visitors mix well with the dreamers, visionaries, artists, writers, poets, and musicians who still come to the mountains seeking a corner to call their own, and a community with which to share their talents.