Schunemunk Mountain State Park

My husband and I came here to hike. As usual, we looked up hikes on the ‘Hike The Hudson Valley’ website, which in my opinion is the best, most accurate, well described trail guide for the Hudson Valley. We followed a hike that started on Taylor Road and followed the Sweet Clover Trail to the Jessup Trail to the Megaliths then back down the Dark Hollow Trail back to the Sweet Clover. The hike took us about 4 hours with a couple of short stops to take in the views and have some snacks. The Sweet Clover trail starts out somewhat strenuous but gets much more difficult as you go up. You will be rewarded with a stunning view of the Hudson Valley. Now, you are further from the river so you will see views of the valley between mountains with the river in the northern distance. It’s all quite breathtaking. We did this in the late fall so lots of leaves were on the ground. Just be careful because they get quite slippery. The Jessup Trail terrain is very different and a nice respite from climbing up the steep Sweet Clover trail. You climb across enormous boulders left from the glaciers. This will take you to the Megliths. There is a white sign painted on the ground to direct you towards them. They are very flat, large rock formations that gives you phenomenal views. We took the Dark Hollow path back down which is very steep and covered in leaves. This was a bit difficult because it was so slippery. You walk through the forrest and it is very peaceful and beautiful, especially when you come across the various creeks. This is a tough hike but you get wonderful views and it is absolutely worth it.

I came here with a group of hikers for a hike. Let me tell you the hike here is no joke, very steep climb. It was so bad I couldn’t complete the hike and had to throw in the towel and quit before my group was ready to go and ended up coming back down by myself. We took the white path not sure if they have easier trails here.
I do have to say this is a beautiful mountain with great views.
This isn’t such a popular place like Bear Mountain but the parking is free and if you love to hike and are in good shape totally worth it.
Maybe I will come back when I’m in better shape.

I’m surprised more people have not written a review of this hike but the views were beautiful. The only reason I chose four stars is because the maps and trails weren’t very clear but that can simply be my fault as I am not an avid hiker. Other cars were parked by us but it seemed like there were many other trails in the area because we only saw a handful of people on our trail.
The landscape was well kept and beautiful. I would love to come back and explore more of the trails.

Tough hike.
1) This place is no joke. We took the yellow trail up to the megaliths and then used the yellow trail down.
2) It is steep climb up and steep going down.
3) The megaliths are worth a visit. But getting there is extremely difficult.
Do your research before coming.

This is a great hike, lots of views and cool points of interest. Only problem I had were the trail markers and it’s relation to the map. I started off in the otterkill parking lot going up the white blazed trail. This portion is the steepiest ascent and if hiking in the winter is a little slippery so some crampons are advised for this portion. I took this to the red trail which was supposed to be followed up by the yellow but I ended up never seeing the intersection or it’s non existent, who know’s. The red trail followed the ridge through some awesome views and a cool miniature pitch pine forest. I then took the white trail (Sweet clover) to the intersecting red trail and thought this would just take me back to the parking lot. It gets a little funky when it intersects with the yellow trail, the red trail starts to go back up the mountain and go in the opposite direction of where you want to go. I thought this isn’t right so I back tracked back to that intersection and hiked the yellow trail which follows a creek down hill. This trail took me to the railroad tracks where the red trail starts up again which inevitably took me back to the parking lot. So remember take the yellow trail to the rail road tracks, saves you from climbing back up the mountain. Also if you wanted to you could just walk along the tracks back, just remember it’s still an active track so watch out for trains! Oh yeah bring your snowshoes and crampons in the winter time when there’s 2 ft of snow on the ground, it’ll definitely help!

What a fantastic hike! I’d give this closer to 4.5 stars. Before I go further with the review, some very important information for potential hikers.
Important Information:
1) This hike will really take at least 6 – 7 hours. It’s not an exaggeration.
My group started from the north end, headed down the white trail, slight east on red trail, south on red trail, crossed south east on blue trail, back north on yellow trail, north east on black trail, followed the train tracks for a while alongside the red trail, then hopped back on the red trail where it intersects yellow, took some fantastic photos on top of the bridge near the connection to the white trail, and finished off on white trail. 7 hours.
2) There is NO information center and NO restrooms. Print your trail map online in color before attempting the trail.
3) The trail markers for the red path are a bit confusing. It starts out as a deep red, but later becomes orange. Orange trail markers are actually red!
4) The train tracks are live Metro North tracks. So be careful when walking along the tracks.
Pros:
1) Decently strenuous without being overbearing
2) Well blazed paths with fellow hikers providing markers
3) Very little visitors when I went. In 7 hours we saw one person
4) Really enjoyed walking along the giant boulders on the mountain tops
5) Expansive views on the mountain tops
6) Very pleasant hike. One of the best I’ve been on
Cons:
1) Some trailer markers were hard to distinguish (see Important Info above)
2) No waterfalls or rivers, though I expected that. There was a small stream
3) No information center or restrooms
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this hike. I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a long but fun hike. There was a good deal of variety which kept the hike interesting.

I’ve hiked multiple variations and combinations of the many trails here and every time has been an amazing time out with nature. The sweeping views and varying terrain keeps you on your toes (I had a friend sprain his ankle with 2 miles to go, not fun). I’d recommend looking up trail conditions on
for up to date information on potential markers being knocked down or poorly visible. I learned this the hard way by getting lost for about an hour before running into more elite hikers (the guys with GPS terrain plotters and all) whom were also lost by the same marker I eventually found downed. It wasn’t too scary but there were a couple rattlesnake encounters which kept me more focused than a ninja. Highlights for me is cracking open a beer with my packed sandwich and soaking in the scenery on the massive Megaliths.

Oh wow I can review a mountain on Unilocal!
I’ve been up this mountain several times with some trails being very steep and others moderate to difficult for the «average» person. If you’re an experienced hiker you may very well find this an easy hike.
If you visit I’d recommend the side where you enter on Taylor Road so that you can make your way up to the «Megaliths» because the view is amazing. If you enter the mountain trails from Clove Road you’ll be on the wrong side of the mountain for the Megaliths (that route put me directly across from the Mega so I’m not even sure if it’s accessible from that side).
If you have a GPS you can make the hike even more fun if you like the idea of GeoCaching (
) because there are over a dozen hidden caches on the mountain which makes the hike all the more enjoyable. Bring your best hiking shoes, plenty of water and some snacks because it’s a great hike. I’ve seen young kids on the trail but I’d figure out which trails are least difficult before bringing the young ones.
Elevation starts at about 400FT (if I remember) and peaks at over 1,500FT.

Hiking is fun. You get fresh air, exercise, blah, blah, blah…, until you see your hiking buddy in front of you slip and fall on her ass, three times (yes I kept count, and after the second fall I started a friendly little wager against her butt.). She was a sport about it though, she made it look like fun., almost made me want to slip and fall on my cute little ass just to see what it felt like.
I went on the (I don’t remember what they call it) hiking trail with several hiking buddies. It took a lot of walking to get to the top of the mountain, but this was one of those times where it really was worth it. The view was incredible, and we timed it perfectly with lunch time.
From a purely visual and sensual point of view, this was one of the best places that I have eaten this year. My lunch (sardines, hard boiled tea-​leaf eggs, plus trail mix) wasn’t lavish or extravagant (unless you’re a squirrel), but the overall experience was unforgettable.
This is a really good hiking trail. You get loose jagged rocky trail ways, and then during this time of the year the leaves that have fallen end up covering the aforementioned loose, slippery, jagged rocks. It’s a good challenging hike, a challenge to stay afloat…, During the hike, we ventured off path a little to do some brief rock climbing, some cliff-​leaping, and some caving as well. This is natures gym work out, no disclaimer, no fine-​print waivers., basically, no safety net, just your own discretion to guide you through. And? I can’t believe I made it back with all my fingers and toes intact.