The Kaaterskill Rail Trail runs on a 1.5 mile section of the abandoned Ulster & Delaware Railroad between the Mountain Top Historical Society property in Haines Falls and DEC land at the end of Laurel House Road. The trail is open to public use for non-motorized, multi-use activities. The current trail starts at the Mountain Top Historical Society (MTHS) and follows the rail bed beginning behind the railroad station on the MTHS property. The trail takes you to Laurel House Road, just above Kaaterskill Falls. A large portion of the trail is along the edge of Kaaterskill Clove, offering multiple views of Kaaterskill Falls.
From there, the Kaaterskill Rail Trail also provides a direct link to the Escarpment Trail and the North/South Lake State Campground with a trail and bridge at the Laurel House site.
Parking at the MTHS is usually readily available, a small fee may apply on weekends. The parking enforcement notice shown below for the Town of Hunter is intended as an alert should parking become full – avoid parking anywhere on Route 23A to stay within the Town’s regulations.
Parking in the Mountain Top Historical Society lot is permitted and recommended. When planning your visit, however, please be aware of parking regulations in the greater Kaaterskill Clove area. Beginning on the weekend of August 8, 2020, The Town of Hunter will be operating a Vehicle impound Lot located at 5748, Route 23A, Tannersville NY (Town Hall). This impound lot will be in operation every weekend until the illegal parking is dramatically curtailed. Any illegally parked vehicle will be ticketed and then towed to the Town Hall Impound Lot which will be manned by a Town of Hunter Police Officer until 9pm. A vehicle owner will only be able to retrieve their vehicle once they have paid the Towing Fee, and the Impound Fee in full, via credit card or cash. Any vehicle not picked up by 9pm will then be towed to the impound lot of the responding Tow operator and will incur additional fees. The Town has authorized the purchase of equipment to enable our Town of Hunter Police officers to associate parking violations to a vehicle registration via the DMV. Town of Hunter Police officers will soon be able to generate and print parking violations that must be answered in Town Court for the owner to renew their vehicle registration. This will replace the hand-written system currently in use.
Town of Hunter Statement on Kaaterskill Clove Parking