Hunter Mountain is the second highest mountain in the Catskills and part of the Catskills 3500 club, if you are working on your list. There are some spots where the trail gets steep, but the entire trail is a wide horse trail free of rocks or boulders, that you could essentially drive a vehicle up. 3.41: 3,812’ Return back to Trail Junction for summit loop : 5.40: 1,792’ DEC Parking lot where your car is … Colonel’s Chair Trail (1.7 miles, ascent 457′ to Spruceton Trail, yellow markers) An interesting trail that starts at the Colonel’s Chair on the Hunter Mountain Ski Center. I walk slowly and walked for 5 hours. 28 West to Shandaken. Diamond Notch Falls via Diamond Notch Road, Hunter Mountain via Spruceton Horse Trail, Southwest Hunter Mountain via Spruceton Road, Hunter and Leavitts Peak via Devil's Path, Devils Path Hike: Spruceton Road to Prediger Road, Westkill Mountain via Diamond Notch Trail (Blue, Rusk Mountain and Evergreen Mountain Bushwack via Devil's Path Trailhead, Southwest Hunter Mountain via Devil’s Path, Hunter Mountain and Southwest Hunter Mountain Loop via Spruceton Road, West Kill Mountain, Soutwest Hunter Mountain, and Hunter Mountain Loop. Decent amount of vertical gain on first half of trail second half gets a little harder. Definitely muddy is some spots. The Trails: Spruceton Road. You will have to find logs and rocks to cross. Amazing views the whole way up and even better from fire tower. Virtual Tour of Spruceton Trail. The trail the continues to decline, mostly rocky with stream run off in multiple areas. We kept a fast pace down the mountain which would have been faster except for the many small stones strewn on the trail. The trail extends south from Spruceton Road through Diamond Notch, and descends down to connect with Diamond Notch Road. The area at the lean to is also very swampy and weedy. The Spruceton Trail to Hunter has several areas that usually have ice flows that cover most of the trail. Hunter Mountain via Spruceton Horse Trail is a 9.1 mile heavily trafficked loop trail located near Hunter, New York that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as difficult. At the top there is a Fire Tower, picnic table and caretaker’s cabin. Hunter Mountain via Spruceton Horse Trail is a 9.1 mile heavily trafficked loop trail located near Hunter, New York that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as difficult. Colonel's Chair Trail (1.7 miles, yellow markers) The ascent via the Spruceton trail is moderate 7 miles. Take rt. Scary walk up the tower leading to amazing panoramic views of the area. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash. After passing the lean-to, you will go past the SW Hunter herd path. To follow this approach, park at the end of Spruceton Rd. Definitely do it counter clockwise. I had considered doing the loop to Southwest Hunter but I decided against it for the sake of time. You‘ll hike along a river and towards the beginning you can take a small detour to cross a bridge and climb onto some rocks where the waterfall is. Going up about 5 miles but coming down around 3.5 miles is great!! Diamond Notch is beautiful, but heavily populated. The way down is indeed a fire road and can be a bit steep in some spots! This hike goes straight up and straight down with only a bit of plateau at the summit. Hunter Mountain Fire Tower via Colonel's Chair. If you are completing your 3500s, you may as well do that too while you are here. Dogs and horses are also able to use this trail. I ended up clocking 8.4 miles. Great hike. Continue straight ahead to the devil's Acre lean-to and spring. At 1 mile, the trail passes Diamond Notch Falls and the intersection with the Devils Path. You’ll pass a few other parking areas for trails but this one is literally at the end. Spruceton Trail (3.4 miles, blue markers): The Spruceton Trail extends from the Spruceton Road Parking Lot to the summit of Hunter Mountain. get of off Kingston exit or rt. Of all the trails on Hunter Mountain, the Spruceton Trail and Diamond Notch Trail are most suitable for mountain biking. Going straight continues you to the Devils Path. The Spruceton Trail is not technically difficult but the gradient gradually increases to 20%. Terrain is easy and there isn’t much variation in it throughout the trail. A short distance passed this is … The trail itself is a beautiful wooded trail up to the top of Bear Mountain, then continuing north, the trail is a fire road with nice foliage all the way back to Spruceton Rd. 42. It was a long day. If you aren’t climbing the fire tower you probably won’t see much at the top. Awesome trail. You will pass the John Robb lean to and break off to Colonel's Chair. The forest is located in Greene County in the towns of Hunter, Jewett, and Lexington. Completed 2/21/20 through snow. Hunter Mountain “ A forest road climb to a fire tower and ranger station on the the second highest peak in the Catskills. Follow the yellow Colonels Chair trail up 1.1 miles to the intersection with the blue Spruceton trail. Some parts are covered with driveway gravel. Oh... Great views from the firetower!!! Make right onto rt. It’s a wide trail the whole way up. Definitely a challenge. Following Diamond Notch, you can continue west to go towards West Kill, or follow the horse trail out, similar to the one you took up Hunter, back to Prediger Road. Following Hunter, you will follow a trail down to the Devil's Path that is a little rock with stream run off. Ended up clocking about 13 miles. Just before the Devil's Acre Lean-to, the yellow-blazed Hunter Mountain Trail departs to the north. Great hike and I agree with others that suggest doing this hike counter clockwise, which is the way I approached this hike. Not very technical but some nice incline to get the heart rate up. The lean-to is heavily used and is it a bit disrepair, it could probably be fixed up soon. This trail follows a wide dirt road which provides access to the fire tower at the top of the mountain. 3.22: 4,015’ Trail Junction (4-corner) - Go RIGHT : 3.26: 4,006’ Beautiful Ledge looking over Spruceton Valley : 3.30: 4,015’ Return back to 4-corner Trail Junction. This trail intersects the red-blazed Devil's Path after about 1.35 miles. Palenville, NY 3 1.5 mi 2.4 km #2 Hunter Mountain Trail. Take rt. The Spruceton Trail extends from the Spruceton Road Parking Lot to the summit of Hunter Mountain. This is a well-graded trail and has a few moderately steep sections. Right after the spring, you will find a break off for the John Robb lean-to. The trail is primarily used for hiking, nature trips, bird watching, and horses and is best used from March until October. The fire tower was OPEN, so we got to go all the way up and the view was absolutely beautiful. A gentle three mile hike with an ascent of 1,300' from the south of … Lean to has great views as well. Summit of Hunter Mountain & Fire Tower. Very well marked and easy to follow trail. If it were to have rained a day or two before, a few parts of the trail can get muddy and hard to navigate to. NOTE: You are responsible for bringing appropriate gear, supplies, clothing, first aid, and lights. The last stretch was challenging because we were getting worn out, and wanted to finally reach the summit. I appreciated having water on the trail, but other than that there's very little that could be considered a point of interest. The herd path is well defined and easy to follow. From the parking area, follow the blue-blazed Spruceton Trail northward. On the Devil's Path, the trail will run directly infront of the Devil's acre lean-to. There are only two views of note, Diamond Notch Falls and the fire tower at the top of Bear Mountain. Trails in Hunter Mountain - 7. Trail to Hunter Summit is a wide, well graded, horse trail. Here I am starting up the mountain, with trail-less high peak Rusk Mountain in the distance. The trail is open to all who will pay the price of a chair lift ride to the trailhead at the Colonel's Chair. There are some beautiful viewpoints (marked out on the map) along the way. The view from the tower is great. After the fire tower, find the yellow-blazed Hunter Trail that leads to the Devil's Acre lean-to. Palenville, NY Intermediate. Hunter Mountain (Spruceton) is open Year Round. We also spent a good bit of time at the summit having lunch. Loved this loop!! Continue straight ahead at this junction, and in about 250 feet, you'll reach the Devil's Acre Lean-to, just to the right of the trail - … After about half a mile, the trail crosses Hunter Brook on a wide wooden bridge and then makes a sharp right turn. Fast hike to top and easy to run down. Fun hike up. Part of the trail can get really rocky so just beware and bring good foot ware. The Spruceton Trail is 3.5 miles and an accent of 1,900 feet versus Mink Hollow Trail at 2.1 miles and 2,200 feet accent. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from April until October. Micro spikes recommended at this point. Intermediate. Go left on the Spruceton trail (blue) all the way up to the Hunter Mountain fire tower. Dog friendly and easy to follow. Leaving the brook, you will cross a wooden bridge and the trail will begin to elevate. Great day for a hike 1-5 inches of ice/snow depending on where you are on the trail. On the other hand, walking out via the Devil’s Path and Southwest Hunter makes the hike long: 10 miles is 10 miles, and that route includes steeper trail sections. Took four hours round trip with out pushing ourselves and a decent lunch break at lean to. There is also another great spring at the bottom of a short trail. The first 1.8mi were pretty easy, once you reach the sign to turn right up hunter Mountain it becomes steep. Not only counterclockwise, but maybe a better way might have been to go back the way I came after the fire tower - which was closed, but you can go up the stairs to almost the top - I didn't like the carriage trail down too much - the forest on the way up was way cooler - keep an eye out for the 'party' with the grey birch and the pines - lots of good energy in that spot - peace out. "Tom, Peter, Mimi and I met in the Spruceton trail PA to get in a quick romp of SW Hunter and Hunter before the big snowstorm comes arrives. Hunter Mountain Wild Forest encompasses almost 11,000 acres in the northeast portion of the Catskill Park. You may have to wait to view the falls at times. You will hit a steep incline of the trail following this and then will be at the Hunter Mountain summit and fire tower. The mountain gets crowded on the weekends. Mild incline the entire first half then steep incline for around a mile & then the top is flat. Sustained steep climbing. The trailhead for Hunter Mountain is for hiking and no where is stated on the trail board that primitive camping is allowed. Spruceton Trail Shelter Out-and-Back RECOMMENDED ROUTE. At 2.1 miles the trail passes the John Robb lean-to. At 2.2 miles, the trail passes a lean-to and the diamond notch. This is a very beautiful trail. Still was a little snow at the top but easy without any snow gear. Its an easy 35er to complete. Awesome views from fire tower at the top, but felt at least 15 degrees colder at the top of the tower compared to the bottom. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from April until October. When you come down the fire road you do pop out at different parking area and need to walk down the road a bit to get back to the proper parking area. From the parking area, follow the blue-blazed Spruceton Trail northward. 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