Monsey Glen County Park

Monsey
Rockland County,
New York

Hiking Trails:
Monsey Glen Trail: White blaze

Total Time: 20 minutes
Estimated Distance: 0.7 miles
Level of Difficulty: Very Easy
Points Of Interest: Sandstone cliffs and caves
Pros: Historical valley and caves
Cons: Very urban feeling surrounded by busy roads, highways, and power lines

Google Map of Parking:

View 2013 Hiking Locations in a larger map

This is more of a walk in the woods than a hike. The area is right near my office, and I had a few extra minutes during lunch to do this short hike. I would not even list this in the blog because it is more of a walk than a hike, but the snow made it prettier than usual so I decided to post it with the photos.

Monsey Glen is an historical area where there are naturally formed caves have formed in the sandstone along a steep embankment on the sides of the Saddle River. Ancient Native American artifacts such as arrowheads have been found in these caves. Though the area is preserved, it is right outside a busy area, surrounded by Route 59, the Thruway, and Saddle River Road. There is a constant noise of trucks from the Thruway throughout, diminishing the tranquility. There is also heavy construction of multi-family homes immediately west of the park, which are clearly visible from the top of the stream embankment and take away from the natural area.

The trails in the park are all blazed white, and this trail can be taken as a loop through the park. There are some central cutback trails as well that are also blazed white. This hike is very short and easy.

Map of the Route

Beginning of the Trail at the Parking Area

Evergreen Mountain Laurel Along the Trail

 

View Across to some of the Caves

View of some of the caves with the multi-family
home construction just outside the park

Interesting Carved Step in the Sandstone

The Saddle River, with a downed tree from Sandy

A Sandstone Cave