Harriman-Bear Mountain Trails

January 4, 2016: The bridge over the New York State Thruway on Arden Valley Road in Harriman State Park is now open to traffic. Bridge repairs are complete; access to the Elk Pen trailhead parking is restored.

December 15, 2015: The Fawn Trail in Harriman-Bear Mountain State Parks has been extended to continue from its former terminus at the Appalachian Trail. It now connects with and follows a section of the Doodletown Bridle Path, continuing eastward to the Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail. The Fawn Trail, now 1.5 miles in length, provides a direct connection from the Anthony Wayne north parking lot to the Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail, and thereby also provides more choices for loop hikes in the area. The Fawn Trail includes some hills, though without excessively steep inclines or rock climbing, and is thus less severe and provides a less challenging hike than most other trails in the vicinity.

Major construction work is being done on the Popolopen Gorge Bridge on U.S. Route 9W that connects Bear Mountain with the Fort Montgomery Historic Site. The bridge remains open to vehicular traffic (one narrow lane in each direction), but it is closed to pedestrians for the duration of the construction. The trailheads for the 1777W/1779/Timp-Torne and the Popolopen Gorge Trails on Route 9W remain open during construction, but hikers cannot cross the Popolopen Gorge Bridge on Route 9W to complete a loop hike. Hikers who wish to proceed back to Fort Montgomery from the Popolopen Gorge trailhead should follow the road to the northern end of the Bear Mountain Bridge tollgate, from where a red-blazed trail leads downhill to the blue-blazed Twin Forts Trail. Turn left onto the Twin Forts Trail and follow it across the pedestrian suspension bridge over Popolopen Creek and up to the Fort Montgomery Historic Site.

Hikers should expect to find the trail in this area impacted by construction as the park moves utility lines. The trail is open with the possibility of occasional short delays when the work is in progress. The trail will be rehabilitated by joint efforts of the park and the Trail Conference upon completion of the project. Timetable is unknown.