autumn hiking in the hudson valley/catskill area
 

HI,
We're looking for some great hikes within an hour or so of nyc that are moderate (some steeps, not too easy) and somewhat short (under 2 hours) and that are close to a quaint town that we can stop afterwards to walk around and shop and maybe have dinner. We will have dogs with us also so we wouldn't be able to do any rock climbing on the trails. Thanks!

The Rockefeller grounds are the best in Sleepy Hollow/Tarrytown. The trails are extremely dog friendly and so is the town of Tarrytown, which has cute antique shops and lots of fun restaurants.

We like to start at Blue Hill @ Stone Barn (on Rt. 448), you have to pay $5 to park in the lot there and hit the trails, there a good loop down and around the lake and back to the "barn" (where's there's a nice cafe for snacks or lunch), that walk is easily under two hours.

Perhaps a better starting point for hiking at the Rockefeller property is the entrance off Route 117 in Sleepy Hollow, about a mile from the Stone Barn mentioned above.

The Shawangunks just above New Paltz is an option.

There is a nice hike around Lake Minnewaska - no long distance views but it's a pretty lake and nice walk.

Plenty of parking in the state park

There is also the undercliff/overcliff trail that loops around the rock climbing face. This is a very popular destination for rock climbers and parking is limited. The plus is you get spectacular views of the Hudson Valley on the the eastern face and equally nice views of the Catskills on the West side. Here's the GPS coordinates of the parking area. 41.736425,-74.199049

You will drive past the rock climbing area if you go to Lake Minnewaska. My recommendation would be to see if you can find parking at the rock climbing area, then proceed to Lake Minnewaska if there are none. You can still get great views from the car, and there is at least one pull off area.

Village of New Paltz has a few nice restaurants, and some shops. I like the Village Tea Room for lunch or dinner.

Another suggestion is Cold Spring. The trailhead is about a 20 minute walk from the MetroNorth station. We've done the hike more than once, if you do the full hike it's about 4 hours (at a very moderate pace), though we have done a partial hike. The town of Cold Spring has some decent restaurants and some cute 'antique' shops.