Manitou Point Preserve, Garrison, NY

May 7, 2013
Distance: 3.8 miles
Time: 1 hour 58 minutes
Year to date miles: 93.5

Map: East Hudson Trails Map

Parking: Mystery Point Road, Garrison, NY, parking lot has room for around 8 cars
Restrooms: None
Post hike dinner:  None

Directions: Manitou Point Preserve

Notes: The hike passes an empty mansion and goes along the Hudson River. I really enjoyed the views. There is a lot of train noise on the hike, as it passes the Metro North line. The trail right next to the river is very narrow with a steep drop off. If you have any issues with vertigo, you might want to skip this bit. A sign warns about the narrow path right before it gets bad. Since my partner does have vertigo, we had to backtrack a bit and ended up bushwhacking our way up to a ridge. We saw some cairns and a bench above the trail, which made it look like someone was considering re-routing the trail, but they ended. At the end of the ridge, we descended back down to the trail. Next time we'll just skip the blue trail next to the water and take the red trail.

Sign off of Route 9 for Manitou Point

Trailhead at parking area

Stopping at a stream. Warm day today.

After walking on the trail for a mile, you turn right onto a gravel road.

Follow the gravel road with a marsh on your left. Metro North train in the background.

An arched bridge crosses over the tracks. I believe that is Sugarloaf Hill in the background. Hudson River to the left.

Glen checking out the mansion, which is mentioned as the headquarters of Outward Bound. But, it's empty.

An unmarked trail (yes, this is the right one), heads towards the river (from the mansion's driveway).

The trail goes all the way down to the Hudson.

Columbine on the trail



Wisteria next to the mansion.

We ended up behind the mansion with a large wall of rhododendrons on the left, and the river on the right.

A bench with a lookout over the river.

The trail gets narrow, and the drop off is steep. This is not the worst of it.

Returning along the gravel road again, passing an abandoned roofless building.

Turning left on the yellow trail. The trails here have lots of cairns. I love cairns.