Sugarloaf Hill Trail

A little hard to find as some of the blazes aren't clearly marked. went on a summer day, so all the trees made it hard to see the Hudson, but lovely slice of nature.

We did 11 miles on several different trails starting at Castle Rock (blue), heading toward Sugarloaf, winding up on Osborne Loop toward Manitoga. Even the start of this hike is gorgeous with a beautiful green field and panoramic views of the colorful foliage across the river. All together, this hike is awesome. The directions on the nynjtc.org website were impeccable and led us exactly where we needed to go. Parts of the red emblazoned trail became extremely steep, but the view from the top could have been amazing had it not been for the obstruction from the trees. Still worth it, though. The hike is not for beginners in my opinion. Overall, loved this hike. Took only 4.3 hours to complete. Lots of cool things to see during this trip!!

I will give Sugarloaf the benefit of the doubt, but Castle Rock trail is boring and confusing.

The map on the parking lot is rotten away so there is no way to tell what trails go where. There is a blue, red, and yellow trail.

There is no way of reaching Castle Rock. Apparently is it privately owned and has big "NO TRESPASSING" signs saying anyone entering the property will be arrested and prosecuted.

Also, there is a RATTLESNAKE HABITAT there. No fences or signs around it until you are leaving it. That was a pleasant surprise since I was there with my dog.

Nice trail with varying skill level and you get to see a pretty castle at the end of it!

It's good for a workout, since the trails go up and down several times. But not much scenery. The only place you can see something is Sugarloaf Hills and the view is just ok.

Overall trail is pretty easy. Most of the climbs are gradual and gentle. Major portion of the trail was an old horse carriage, so you can imagine how wide and easy it is. The climb up to Sugarloaf is the only challenging part, but it's only a short 10 minute climb.

This park has many trails, so pick and choose your own trail combination. I parked at the official parking on the northwest side of the park, climbed Sugarloaf first, then followed blue, white, yellow, blue, and red trails back to the car. Check out the GPS track I uploaded or go to this link to see what I did(http://bit.ly/1kVZHUx). You can also follow the official Osborne loop, which I think it's pretty similar to my track. Link below has the parking and trail info.

Lots of bugs on the southern part of the loop, especially near Curry pond, so bring bug spray.

Very good trail overall. A little tricky to find (from 9D, turn on to Wing and Wing at the CastleRock sign), but great for hiking or trail running. I did a little of both, but mostly hiking on the ascents, which are generally moderate in difficulty.

There are some nice views of the Hudson Valley as well as West Point from the trail at various points along the trail.

I went solo, but it appears to be dog friendly, as the trails are generally wide and well kept. Also, no crowds to speak of, but I did go over a holiday weekend, so that may have contributed...

Bottom line is this is an excellent hike / trail run right in the middle of the spectacular Hudson Valley.