Home⎟Hikes & Wanderings⎟New York⎟Hudson Valley⎟Cascade Lake Park to Prospect Rock

Distance: 2 miles out and back

Time: 1 hour

Difficulty: Easy

Elevation Gain: 300 feet

Dog Friendly: Yes.

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Trailhead Directions: From the NYS Thruway, take exit 15A and veer left onto Route 17 North. Continue 7.3 miles to the exit (left) for Route 17A. At the top of the ramp, turn left onto Route 17A and continue 10.7 miles to turn left on Cascade Road. Continue 3.3 miles to Cascade Lake Road and veer left and continue to the Cascade Lake Parking Lot at the end of the road.

Hike Directions: From the Cascade Lake Parking Lot, face the lake and walk to the left on the blue blazes as they run parallel to the lake on its northern end. Once past the lake, the trail heads downhill past the dam and cascading falls and continues straight as it soon reaches a four-way intersection. Continue straight through the intersection, then continue straight through a second intersection. At a third intersection, veer to the right and uphill along a washed out, eroded trail area. Keep veering to the right and uphill on a rocky, moderate grade. At the top of the hill you’ll reach a fourth and fifth intersection of carriage roads. Keep to the blue blazes as they veer left into the woods on a narrower path  at the fifth intersection. The path soon comes to a sixth intersection, crosses and continues uphill. The blue blazes turn left at a rock conglomerate and climb through the rocks to where the path meets the Appalachian Trail’s white blazes. Turn right onto the white blazes and walk across the ridge rock up to the Prospect Rock overlook, marked by an American Flag. Standing to the left of the flag you can see Greenwood Lake, New Jersey, Sugar Loaf Mountain, Sterling Forest, and on a clear day, New York City.

Scenery: 7/10