John Ferro

Poughkeepsie Journal

It's time to lace up the hiking shoes and head out to the trails.

The vast majority of the Dutchess-Ulster county area is at peak foliage color, according to the New York Fall Foliage Report.

Autumn color is at its peak

Since 2015, I've asked local scientists, preservationists and other folks who get out a lot to give up their favorite spots.

Combined with my own research, here's my third annual list of 10 less-frequented walks you don't want to miss.

High Banks Preserve, 132 River Road, Ulster Park: This new Scenic Hudson Preserve opened Oct. 15. So only a few have set foot on its 3 miles of trails.

The site used to be a summer camp where, I was told, a young Sandy Koufax once worked as a counselor.

The trails take you past bluffs overlooking the Hudson River and to the shoreline of sparkling Esopus Lake.

Some of the paths are on old camp roads, so you don't need to be a Sherpa.

Pack a lunch and snack there, or take it to nearby Esopus Meadows Preserve, where you can watch the birds swoop over the Hudson River.

John Burroughs Nature Sanctuary, Floyd Ackert Road, West Park: This spot is back for a third year because it offers so much and will always remain comparatively deserted because it's hard to find.

Here, blazed trails pass through rolling forests and alongside a scenic, two-acre pond. And of course, there's Slabsides, the cabin where John Burroughs, the naturalist, wrote many of his works.

The cabin typically is closed, but you can peer through the windows, sit on the porch and let your imagination do the rest.

There is no lot, but you can park on Burroughs Drive or Floyd Ackert Road.

Dover Stone Church Nature Preserve, Route 22, Dover Plains: This incredible site makes my list for the second time in three years.

Last year, officials opened five miles of additional trails.

The trails complement the preserve's centerpiece: a natural, stream-fed cavern that served as a Native American hideout in the 17th century and a popular tourist destination in the 19th century.

And like some of the others on this list, it's a little tricky to find.

Best thing is to park at Dover Elementary School and walk up Route 22. The preserve's entrance is located on the west side of Route 22, just south of the Mill Street stoplight, where a gravel driveway passes two houses.

Buttercup Farm Audubon Sanctuary, 6862 Route 82, Stanfordville: Imagine rolling farmland, marshy woodlands, scenic overlooks and old railbeds.

That's what you get on 6 miles of trails at this 641-acre site.

A scenic overlook offers views of Stissing Mountain and the valley below. Trails on the west side of Route 82 are wheelchair accessible.

There is a box where you are asked to leave a donation.

If you can't make it this fall, come back in May, when as many as 80 species of birds can be spied.

Lime Kiln Trail, Rosendale: The Mohonk Preserve's trails are great, right? But this time of year, they are heavily trafficked and parking can be a problem.

Not this one. The 1-mile in-and-out trail is accessed off of the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail, just south of the Rosendale trestle bridge.

Park at the large rail trail lot on Binnewater Road, enjoy a stroll across the trestle and continue south for a few hundred yards until you see the signs on the right. (Access does require a day-pass or a preserve membership.)

What do you get? Deep forests and dramatic views of the Rondout Valley. Rare plant species and native animals. Old lime kilns from Rosendale’s cement industry. And boulder fields of rock fragments from the Shawangunk Mountains.

Pawling Nature Reserve, 29 Quaker Lake Rd., Pawling: This 1,060-acre wonderland was donated to The Nature Conservancy in 1958.

It's size provides habitat for larger animals — and plenty of solitude on its 10 miles of trails, including one along Hammersly Ridge (elevation 1,053 feet).

Habitats include swamps, overgrown fields, wet meadows and fern glens. And there is an impressive gorge near the entrance.

Franny Reese State Park, Macks Lane, Highland: How do you resist a walk that comes with Hudson River views and creepy ruins? You don't.

Dr. Charles H. Roberts, a Poughkeepsie dentist, built his estate here in the 19th century after discovering a form of painless dentistry. (Then he smartly invested in railroads).

All that remain are stone walls, foundations and 2.5 miles of trails through rolling forest, with views across the Hudson and a head-on overlook of the Mid-Hudson Bridge.

Thompson Pond and Stissing Mountain, 335 Lake Rd., Pine Plains: Yes, the fire tower here offers views from 1,400 feet above the surrounding valley.

But the real treasure is Thompson Pond, which serves as a headwater of the Wappinger Creek.

The pond, according to The Nature Conservancy, was carved more than 15,000 years ago by a melting ice chunk.

The Conservancy says the basin's pond, cattail marsh, swamp and upland forest "support a wondrously diverse array of wildlife." There are several trails around the pond with the loop connected by a bog bridge.

Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary, 140 Huguenot St., New Paltz: How romantic is this ox-bow combo of meadow, forest and Wallkill River frontage?

Well, I proposed to my wife here a quarter-century ago and she hasn't thrown in the towel yet.

The trails are flat, easy and you're just a stone's throw from the stone houses in the Huguenot Street historic district.

There is no parking at the sanctuary. But if you make a right off of Main Street onto Huguenot, there is a parking area two tenths of a mile in on your left. Hoof it from there to the sanctuary.

Orange Trail 2, Thompson Lane at Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park: OK, so maybe the name doesn't move you to tears. But this easy 1.85-mile trail opened just a year ago.

It heads south through forests, wetlands, streams and rock slabs to a stress-melting Hudson River overlook. Two benches here allow you take it all in, including, perhaps, your favorite sandwich.

The entrance can be found in a grassy field that is on the immediate left of Thompson Lane.

10 secret autumn walks in the mid-Hudson Valley

VIDEO: Out there: 10 secret autumn walks in the valley

"Out There" appears every other week in My Valley. Reach John Ferro at 845-437-4816; jferro@poughkeepsiejournal.com; Twitter: @PoJoEnviro