Monthly Hiking Recommendations.

Welcome to our newest feature, hiking NYC.

The goal of this monthly post is bring awareness to the beautiful hikes that be accessed so close to New York City. Hanuman Health Club is about promoting movement to enjoy life and for us, getting out in to the forests and away from the city is our favorite way of doing so.

This month we will be looking at the Western Mass, New York border, just a short 2 hour drive from New York City.

Two hikes for the price of one.

First up Bash Bish Falls in Massachusetts

Bash Bish falls are spectacular and incredibly accessible. Just a short 1.2 mile stroll from the car park and you can be at the base of these ever cascading chutes.

Swimming is not allowed, however, go during the summer and you’ll find it is a loosely policed rule….as far as my experience has been anyway. The bad news though, because these falls are so easily accessible it makes this less of a hike and more of a stroll. Great if you have little kids or don’t feel up to an arduous slog. The downsides of course are this place is usually thronged! I find going in winter is a little more peaceful. In fact I have been there on winter weekday and had the falls all to myself, which is breath taking.

Technically the falls are in Massachusetts but there are carparks in both New York and Mass, as it is right on the border. The trail from the Mass car park is a little more challenging with a steep decent down to the falls. The trail from the New York car park is really more of an easy footpath, it is not a hike by any stretch of the imagination.

If you want to turn this into a real hike, then I suggest finding the South Taconic Trail (white blazers) from the New York carpark and following that trail all the way up to Alander Mountain. This is a very steep assent, not a scramble but there is no let up in the elevation gain. About a mile up the trail there is a look out that might be perfectly sufficient as the end point of your hike. It will be over two miles until you reach Alander mountain but the views are stuninng as the trail runs along the ridge between Bash Bish Mountain and Mt Alander. I think the hike up to Alander is on the mid to upper end of moderate.

Sunset Rock , Taconic State Park New York

From the same parking lot as Bash Bish you can cross the road and be in New York. Taconic State park to be exact. I found this hike on the ‘All Trails’ app. I was in the area late in the afternoon, with only a few hours of daylight Sunset Rock seemed the perfect choice.

This beautiful little looped hike was about 4 miles in total, a slight assent but nothing too crazy. I would put it at the mid to low range of moderate or higher end of easy, depending on your experience level. I completed the loop counter clockwise, following the blue trail as it criss crossed over Cedar Brook a handful of times. The Brook crossings were not too daunting, never that wide and always plenty of stones or branches to step on, if you worry about your balance though, then maybe not for you.

The trail gets pretty steep when it links up with the white blazed South Taconic trail but the reward is worth the effort once the exposed mountain side shrubbery opens up to reveal sunset rock. I got there just as the watery winter sun was dropping and the light was spectacular. Pack some snacks and spend some time up here, it is a beautiful place to be still.

Bash Bish and Taconic State park are a wonderful destination with hikes for all levels. Absolutely worth a visit but the falls are the cream on top. Explore the area by grabbing a nice dinner in the very charming towns of Hudson on the NY side or Great Barrington in the Mass side. Both are equidistant in opposite directions from the falls and both boast many cozy and welcoming bars and restaurants.

Grab some friends, rent a car and off you go.