Sunset, Seven Lakes Drive in winter. Photo by Rob Gross)

“It’s so close to the thruway that it’s hard to believe such a pristine park is as near to civilization as it is.” — Dave M., Brooklyn, NY

Harriman State Park may still be a mystery to you, but let us change that.  Less than 50 miles from midtown Manhattan is a 46,000-acre expanse of forested slopes, balds (or “tornes”), rivers and streams, bogs and 31 man-made lakes and reservoirs, dense woods, myriad lakes, caves and old abandoned mines.  Beautiful in every season, Harriman spans both Rockland and Orange Counties in New York State.

Harriman State Park is bounded on the north by Bear Mountain State Park and the United States Military Academy of West Point, New York, at Highland Falls.  Sterling Forest State Park — also with great hiking near New York — folds around the bottom of Harriman to the south.

Scenic roads weave through a network of group camps in the backwoods and offer great opportunity to view the scores of resident wildlife, ride a bicycle to a vista or vantage point, or walk on a wooded shoulder.  The park’s swimming beaches, fishing sites, public camping areas and a large recreation area at Anthony Wayne are some of the park’s major attractions.

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