Catskills Visitors Center - Happy 50th Anniversary!

By Tom O’Grady

Located in Mount Tremper, the Congressman Maurice D. Hinchey Catskills Visitor Center is about 60 miles south of Albany. The 2019 season is a big one for the CVC as it celebrates the 50th anniversary of a partnership between both the Catskill Center and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation. 

The reason behind creating such a center and collaboration is evident in one of the quotes from former Congressman Hinchey, “For too long the Catskill Park was one of the only major state or national parks in the county without an interpretive center. I was determined to change that. It’s critically important to have a place where residents and visitors can learn about our unique natural, historical and cultural resources.” In addition to the NYS DEC and CVC donors, the center now also receives support from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and Catskill Watershed Corporation. 

Visiting Catskills Visitor Center – Upon arriving it’s easy to see why CVC is billed as a gateway to the Catskill Region. It’s location at the base of Slide Wilderness area on the eastern edge of the park gives it a great view of the park’s highest mountains. For those who are just passing through, the CVC offers public restrooms and trail condition updates. Because there’s little or no cellphone service in the area, if you forgot a map it’s also an opportunity to pick up maps of area hiking, fishing, biking and driving areas. 

For individuals looking to spend most of their time at Catskills Visitor Center, it’s located on 60 acres of forest land. There are three walking trails of 0.5 miles that allow you to walk a total of 1.5 miles along easy trails. Each trail was created with a specific intent and were designed and built with Americans with Disabilities Act standards in mind, so they’re accessible to all.

The Interpretative Loop circles the visitor center and you can enjoy the informational panels that provide background information about CVC and the Catskill Region. The Upper Ridge Trail ascends a short way up the incline behind the visitor area. This trail includes a picnic area and showcases NYNJ Trail Conference building techniques used throughout the Catskills on various trail maintenance and renovation projects. Finally, the Esopus Creek Trail takes you along an accessible walk to the banks of the Esopus. This provides a view of both the creek and the mountains.

Catskill Fire Towers – The Catskills Visitor Center, through the Catskill Fire Tower Project, is an important part of preserving the history of fire towers in combating forest fires in New York. The project currently manages the five remaining fire towers in the Catskill Park for public access and interpretation. Each of the towers is fully maintained by a group of volunteers who work with CVC and NYS DEC. The duties of these volunteers are to ensure the towers and their accompanying ranger cabins are maintained, and to also provide educational and historical information to hikers on the weekends and holidays during spring, summer and fall. 

New to the interpretive center is an 80-foot fire tower that was newly erected this summer, after serving over 60 years as a lookout in South Venice, Fla. Plans to purchase and ship the decommissioned tower from Florida to the CVC were finalized earlier this year. The reconstruction effort is expected to be completed by late September (call to confirm). This will allow visitors this fall to be among the first to visit the new attraction. At 80 feet, this tower is higher than the other five towers that summit the Catskills, and for the first time makes the Catskills Visitor Center visible above the tree line from NY Route 28.

The Catskill Fire Towers received a big promotion this summer as part of Governor Cuomo’s “See the Catskills Like Never Before” campaign, which highlights the Catskills Fire Tower Five Challenge. The aim is to encourage experienced hikers to visit the region’s five fire towers: Overlook Mountain in Woodstock, Hunter Mountain in Hunter, Red Hill Mountain in Denning, Balsam Lake Mountain in Hardenburgh, and Tremper Mountain in Shandaken.

Hikers are invited to email selfies of themselves hiking with their hiking party at each of the fire towers along with dates and stories about their hikes to catskillschallenge@dec.ny.gov. The first 500 people to complete this task by Dec. 31, 2019 receive a special patch, a free NYS Parks ‘Empire Pass,’ and are eligible for a commemorative Catskills license plate. For details, visit dec.ny.gov/lands/76620.html. The Catskills Visitor Center has Catskill Fire Towers patches for those who have been working on their fire tower challenge.

For those interested in hiking one of the five fire tower mountains the Catskills Visitor Center is located less than 15 minutes from the primary trailhead used to access the summit of Mount Tremper. Mount Tremper is often overlooked because it is the lowest elevation-wise, at 2,720 feet, of the five mountains in the Catskills with a fire tower on its summit. What the mountain lacks in elevation is made up for in its character. A round-trip hike is 6.2 miles and requires a climb of 1,900 feet to reach the summit. The length and elevation gain of this hike makes it a respectable day hike in its own right, and requires more climbing than each of the other Catskill Fire Towers, except for Hunter Mountain. 

Enroute to the summit hikers will pass an old rock quarry known to house the timber rattlesnakes that have occasionally been seen on the mountain, a spring that usually provides a water source for thirsty hikers, and a lean-to for overnight trips. During my visit to the mountain as a summit steward on July 4th weekend, I spotted a black bear for the first time in the Catskills, approximately 100 yards off the trail.

Catskills Visitor Center Events – Several of the seasonal events have wrapped up for the summer, however they do host a weekly daytime program series for children. The Catskill Mountains Kids fall session will start on October 10, with an aim to celebrate the nature, history, and culture of the Catskills. Every session includes focused learning, hands-on and outdoor activities aimed at children ages 4-7.

Catskill Mountains Scenic Byway Tour – If you visit the Catskills Visitor Center and enjoy the walking options there, but would like to experience the rest of the Catskills without leaving your car, the center has an option for you as well. The Catskill Mountains Scenic Byway audio tour is a driving tour that takes passengers along the winding Catskill roads and treats them to the expansive views these roads provide. Along the way, the audio tour allows passengers to listen to stories of Catskill Mountain Region history, landscape and culture. The self-guided tour can be downloaded via instructions on the CVC website: catskillinterpretivecenter.org. 

With the fall season, it’s a perfect time to check out the Catskill Visitor Center, and help it celebrate its 50th season as a jumping off point to enjoy the Catskill Region!

Tom O’Grady, PhD, MPH (thomas.james.ogrady@gmail.com) of Slingerlands is an avid runner, hiker and lover of the outdoors.