Hike Reviews
November 11, 2020
Don't Tell Anyone
My wife and I took this hike a couple of weeks ago. It was absolutely horrid! The trails was a mess, the description is totally wrong! The noise from I-84 is deafening. Do not take this hike!!!
But seriously, we did this on a beautiful autumn Sunday and encountered only 11 other hikers. This hike is a well kept secret. Great views. Some fascinating rock formation along the way. The power line right of way is about halfway and a perfect spot to rest and have a lunch while viewing the farms in the Neversink valley below and the hills beyond. On the outbound part you can hear the traffic on I-84 but it's not too bad. We had no problem following the blazes and the description is quite accurate for one that is currently 4 years old.
September 17, 2016
Nice hike!
<p>This was my 5th hike in 5 days, so I was looking for something challenging, but not too crazy. This fit the bill. There were areas that were a bit overgrown, but not too bad. I met some local hikers on the trail and they mentioned there is usually a bald eagle on top of a power line pole. We not only saw one, but two bald eagles on top of pole #4 as you look out to the beautiful farmland view from the rocks. </p>
September 04, 2016
overgrown
<p>Did this hike a week ago and it is a great hike. The only issue is lack of hikers. The 2nd half of the trail was a bit overgrown. We had to cut thru the brush and vines to see the path trails. Great views and a somewhat streneous hike. Overall a great hike experience. Just make sure you have a knife to cut thru.</p>
August 12, 2015
Diamond in the rough!
<p>really surprised to find this great trail so close to home. Really nice views, intriguing trails and extremely well marked. The vistas were just fabulous. I only wish that on the trail back (red) that there was an excursion down to that lake and back. I almost made my own way down there but thought maybe the trail would wind down there and by the time I realized it didn't it was too late. i highly recommend this trail - ESPECIALLY if you are local. The trail does have a lot of uphill ascensions so it's definitely a work out. A hiking pole would come in handy here. LoveD this. Thanks for posting about it. </p>
<p> </p>
June 23, 2015
Lenape Ridge/Minisink Trail Loop
<p> </p>
<p>We are very sorry about your lousy hiking experience. The gps coordinates were indeed very wrong; no idea how that happened.</p>
<p><span style="font-size: 12.1599998474121px;">Most of your other problems were caused by the fact that we just finished reblazing both trails. The white-blazed Lenape Ridge Trail now has red DEC markers, while the previously red-blazed Minisink Trail now has yellow DEC markers. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 12.1599998474121px;">Again, we are really sorry that we were not more diligent in providing updated information immediately.</span></p>
<p>Jakob</p>
June 23, 2015
Needs serious updating!
<p>Today myself and my best friend decided to give this loop a shot. We set out with my twins and her five month old in a carrier. hiking isn't new to any of us. Even the baby, but this was almost a disaster and caused us all to come out very, very crabby. First the coordinates posted here are incorrect and brought us well over a mile from the trail head and we had to pack everyone back up and drive around To find it. Then, the rail is completely lacking markers until you run into the Orange blazed trail, which has overtaken the red trail. There are no white markings to be found but about a million smaller trails to get lost down, which we did get a bit off track on the way back. We didn't even complete the loop, being unsure of it actually being the loop we were looking for, but turned around. Very disappointing. </p>
August 21, 2013
Similar to others
<p>I hiked the first half of this trail, and returned the same way due to time constrictions. Nice views, lovely path. Thanks to all who helped make it available. Parking is tight, as mentioned.</p>
February 18, 2013
A friend and I went hiking
<p>A friend and I went hiking on this trail Sun 2/17/13. We took the Lenape Ridge trail (W) to where it meets Minisink trail round trip -about 6 miles. It was beautiful and not too hard. I found it pretty easy to follow and a great workout. We did not venture around the west part of the mountain trail due to the Wind. It was 32 degrees with a wind chill of 0. I look forward to going back an completing the loop. I parked on lime kiln and old greenville trp- minisink corner, plenty of room. :)</p>
December 25, 2012
parking
<P>Glad to hear you enjoyed the hike. Parking is indeed a bit tricky in that location, but there is no problem parking at the trail entrance. It is not posted and no traffic is supposed to go there.</P>
<P>I have often parked at the nearby corner of the Old Greenville Turnpike and Lime Kiln Road. There is room for a few cars in that location</P>
December 24, 2012
Nice Hike Careful About Parking
<p>Took the two boys to the trail for the first time as it is close to our house. It is Christmas eve and I needed to get boys out of Moms hair. We have hiked all of the Appalachian Trail in NYNJ and this is a really good hike. The views are nice and there are many greatbreak spots. We even saw a train from above and it really excited my son Nick who has autism and does not speak. The red trail is a little more difficult and I think it would be challenging if a person were to go against the conferences loop route. We plan on doing the red trail outt to ro ute 6 with Mom dropping and picking us up at both ends. The trail was very well marked and did remind us of the AT. The problem we had was parking. My car would have totally blocked the entrance so we parked at a pullout across the street. When we arrived back there was a note informing us that we had parked on private property an next time would be towed. There was also a sign that was not there before stating the same. It may have been the children's books in the backseat or pity for the Jets tire cover or most likely holiday spirit but I will not be parking ther again. Overall it really is a good hike and about two miles to the intersection. thanks Flippertree for Autism</p>
December 30, 2011
Delightful Walk!
<p>My son, daughter and I hiked the trail today (December 30, 2011). It was a lovely walk with amazing views. We didn't quite go all the way to the point where the white blazed trail meets the red one. Instead, after Heinlein Pond, we followed the atv road to the west-facing side and enjoyed the spectacular views from a large rock outcroping. We then doubled back to the white blazed trail and hiked out the same way we went in. We truly enjoyed all of the different species of mosses and club mosses. The small ponds were lovely. Thanks to all of the folks who maintain the trail. Our afternoon was a true delight!</p>
November 04, 2010
Scenic Lenape Ridge Trail
<p>
We will forward the comments to the maintainer(s). The white blazes with blue and red crosses are the results of mild vanadalism: somebody has (neatly) painted these crosses in our white blazes. I was early this spring on the trail and thought then that the number of blazes was adequate.
</p>
<p>
The fact that there is not an end-of-trail blaze near Huckleberry Ridge State forest is an oversight, and we will correct it. Sorry for the inconvenience. The plan was to extend the trail to the SRT, but the forest managers blocked this plan for the time being. We will also update our online SRT map to reflect the current route of the Lenape Ridge Trail.
</p>
<p>
I'm glad to hear you think it's a beautiful hike.
</p>
<p>
Thanks for the comments, Jakob Franke
</p>
November 04, 2010
Scenic, but difficult to follow as described.
<p>Admitting first that I am a novice hiker, I would like to comment on this loop.</p><p>First, parking at the trailhead is severely limited. I have a Honda Civic, and it barely squeezed into the small trail opening so it was off of the road. If the "P" symbol on the map refers to some other nearby parking area, it should be described in the driving directions.</p><p>Once on the trail, I found the Lenape Ridge Trail to be inadequately blazed in places, compared to other local hikes that I enjoy. Frequently when we were at one blaze, we had to wander a bit in several different directions before the next blaze came into view. To be clear in what I am saying, there were many blazes from which it was not possible to see the next blaze, not because our view was temporarily obstructed by foliage or something, but because it was simply too far away or around a turn. There are also blazes for what appears to be a third trail (white cross on a red background), which is not mentioned in the description of the route. When we reached the point where the Lenape Ridge and Minisink trails diverge at the southern end of the loop, we chose to follow the loop in the opposite direction from how it is described (<i>i. e.</i> clockwise), because the Minisink Trail appeared to be more clearly blazed.</p><p>When we reached the northern end of the loop, where the two trails converge, we chose to continue east- and northward, following the white blazes, with the Metro-North tracks occasionally visible on our left. The last white blaze we were able to find was close to the tracks, just beyond a deep ravine with a stream at the bottom. According to the map whose link appears above, we were at the westernmost corner of the Huckleberry State Forest. We spent about a half an hour looking for the next white blaze, before we finally gave up and turned around.</p><p>If the Lenape Ridge Trail ends at the edge of the State Forest, then the last blaze should have the traditional "V" shape. It would also be helpful to include on the map the portion of the trail which extends beyond the north end of the loop, for people who would like to lengthen their hike by a couple of miles. If the trail continues into the State Forest, it needs to be blazed more thoroughly beyond the ravine.</p><p> This is an enjoyable hike with several beautiful views, but I found it difficult to follow as described.</p><p>Barbara P.</p>