Short Limekiln Mountain Loop

Harriman State Park
Rockland County,
New York

Hiking Trails:
Tuxedo-Mount Ivy (TMI) Trail: Red blaze
Limekiln Mountain Trail: Unmarked

Total Time: 1:00 hours
Estimated Distance: 2.0 miles
Level of Difficulty: Slightly Difficult
Level of Recommendation: Highly Recommended
Points Of Interest: Good climb in very remote part of park and excellent view

Hiking Partners:
Shimmy Rosenberg

Google Maps of Parking:

View 2012 Hiking in a larger map

Limekiln Mountain is one of my favorite short hikes. Its close, relatively short, has a solid climb, and affords and excellent view at the top. There are no official trails to the top, but a well-blazed unofficial trail which is very easy to follow. We started at the Tuxedo-Mount Ivy Trailhead on Diltzes Road in Pomona, right off Route 202. We took the beginning of the trailhead below the power lines, and then just as the TMI Trail leaves the power lines and into the woods, that's where the unmarked Limekiln Mountain Trail begins on the right side, climbing the hill on the right and then continuously up the mountain. Once it hits the top there is an expansive view east and south. You can see the Hudson River at Haverstraw, High Tor and South Mountain, much of Rockland County, and the Manhattan skyline in the distance. From the top instead of taking the same trail down, we did a bushwack along the south ridgeline and then headed down into the valley to the TMI Trail down by the brook, and then took the trail back to the trailhead.

Map of the Route

View from the Viewpoint Facing South over
the Rockland County lowland.

View from the Viewpoint Facing Southeast.
The mountains to the distance are the Palisades

View from the Viewpoint Facing East,
Facing the Hudson river and High Tor.

Me at the Expansive Viewpoint

View along the Ridgeline Before Heading Down Into the Valley.
Facing South Toward Panther Mountain and the Mahwah River Swamp.