Hiking: Huyck Preserve | Rensselaerville, NY | June 29, 2012

The Huyck Preserve is located in the village of Rensselaerville, which is just over 25 miles southwest of Albany and about 15-20 miles north of the Catskill Mountains.  The Preserve is home to about 12 miles of hiking trails that make for pleasant walks of many different lengths.  Along those trails you can visit a waterfall, walk along lake shores and enjoy quiet walks in the forest.

The Preserve is located at 5052 Delaware Turnpike in the village of Rensselaerville.  Parking is available in a number of different areas and you can make several different hiking loops on the trails.  The Preserve has a Hiking Trail Map that provides info on the trail system.

Hiking the Preserve

For my hike around the Preserve, I parked at the Visitor Center parking lot at the southern end of the Preserve.  From here, the Falls Trail follows Ten Mile Creek upstream and quickly comes to the base of a series of waterfalls. The trail crosses the creek and then comes to a trail junction.  At this junction I stayed to the left, climbing up hillside and soon reaching the shore of Lake Myosotis on the Lake Trail (West).  The Trail follows the shoreline and then goes back into the woods before reaching Pond Hill Road, which is about 1.7 miles from the visitor center.  From here, I crossed the road and followed the trail around Lincoln Pond to its northern end, at which point the trail is closed and I walked back down to Pond Hill Road.

I followed Pond Hill Road to the east for a few tenths of a mile until I reached the Lake Trail (East).  The trail leaves the road and drops gently down to the eastern shore of Lake Myosotis.  The eastern side is more open than the western shore and the walk is gentler.  The trail follows the edge of the lake and passes the beach and picnic area that the Preserve maintains.  The trail then reaches the spillway of Lake Myosotis before starting to descend along Ten Mile Creek.

At the top of the waterfalls, the trail crosses Ten Mile Creek and rejoins the Falls Trail that you climbed at the start of your trip.  There is a nice view at the top of the falls, from the bridge across the stream and from a small viewing platform that gives you a bird’s eye view of the falls.  From Pond Hill Road to the junction with the Falls Trail, the trail is about 1.4 miles.

Following the Falls Trail back, I was quickly back to my car at the Visitor Center’s parking lot.

The total trip I took was about 3.85 miles and was a nice loop to spend a few hours on.  There are larger loops available with an extensive network of trails continuing north of Pond Hill Road.  There are three different loops available to the north which could extend your hiking from a few hours to an entire day in length.

For More Information

Huyck Preserve Website