Hiking and Biking at Nyack Beach State Park

I parked at the entrance of Nyack Beach State Park for $6 and started off my hike by following the bike path.  It's a lovely gravel path between the ridiculously high cliffs of the Palisades and the glistening water of the Hudson (if only the water wasn't so disgusting).

Along the path there are picnic tables and bar-b-ques so definitely a place I would recommend for a picnic day.  When I reached a hill on the bike path I continued up and came across part of an old building.  As someone who loves finding such things in the woods I, naturally, snapped a bunch of pictures.  The building had what looked like raspberry bushes growing out of it, but I won't pretend to know anything about fauna and vegetation.  If I was Alex Supertramp, otherwise known as Chris McCandless (from Into the Wild), I would have eaten the wrong plant, or part of a plant, long before he did and met the same terrible fate.  I enjoy all of nature, but I know nothing about most of it.  Sad, really.   

Anyway, I continued on my way and when I came to a Y in the path I went right.  On this trail I came across a few more foundations of buildings, but I also realized I was just following the river and not ascending the cliff at all, so the first opportunity I had to go left I did.  This brought me up to where I would have gone had I taken a left at the Y.  Right when I came out on the Landing Road (which is no a usable road-much like Old 9w by Stateline Lookout on the Palisades) there was a male deer stare straight at me from the woods.  I snapped a few pictures of him and his antlers and continued on my way.  From there I turned off the road onto the Long Path and FINALLY got into the woods.  Before I entered, however, I stopped to read an informative plaque. 

So that explains the buildings I had seen, and would continue to see.  As I made my way on the Long Path I realized that I had already taken this trail in the past, only from the other side of Hook Mountain.  That was about three or four years ago and it was in March so this July hike was a bit different.  It was simple enough, except for the lack of coverage once you reach the top.  Unfortunately it was a very sunny and hot day and I was sweating away at the top of the mountain.  Luckily, however, there are gorgeous views to make it worth it.

After the beautiful views you can turn off the Long Path onto the Yellow to parking on 9w (which is where I parked last time I did Hook Mountain), but this time I continued on the Long Path until I met the White path.  You are literally right next to, and a little bit under, 9w for a little bit before you reach the White trail.  I made a left onto White and pretty much walked in a thin section of woods between houses.  I came out of the woods onto North Midland Ave and turned left to follow the road.  The Marydell Life and Faith Center was on my left.  

North Midland Ave brought me to North Broadway which I made a left on and the entrance to Nyack Beach State Park was right there.  There are some gorgeous, huge, and crazy expensive houses along that road which I took some pictures of and convinced myself I would one day buy...ya know, when I'm a millionaire.  Sighhhhhh.  

And then I grabbed my bike out of my trunk and took an enjoyable bike ride along the Hudson only to go home and go swimming.  I had my very own triathlon!