Hiking Rock Rift Trail at Mohonk

Our next hike at Mohonk Preserve was going to the be the the Mountain House, but instead we ended up hiking Rock Rift Trail. When we came to the Mohonk Mountain House Parking lot we were told that our free pass was not accepted. We either had to pay $35 per person or go to Spring Farm Trailhead parking and hike from there. So, we turned our car around and went back to the other trailhead. Paying seventy dollars for a short hike was not in the budget for the day.

Unlike the last time we were at Spring Farm parking lot where we were first to enter, this time it was almost 80% full. We parked our car, crossed the road and instead of heading up to the left like last time, we went right this time. We soon realized that we should have walked further down towards the entrance. The trail would have taken us directly to the carriage trail but going through the field got us there as well. After a short hike up the trail we were on the carriage road. This was a nice, open, pretty flat trail that led us to the Mohonk Mountain House trail parking lot.

Rock Scramble at Rock Rift Trail

While there were a few other hikers and runners on the trail, they quickly all disappeared into the woods and we were once again alone. Even though the lot was packed with cars, we had the trail to ourselves. After crossing the second bridge, we took the trail to the left at the intersection. Following AllTrails we came to Rock Rift Trail to the right of us, a short distance into the hike. This is where the fun began. The rock scramble was mostly squeezing ourselves through quartz-rich rocks or over them, to get into different crevices. Towards the end I saw a layer of ice and did not think we could get through. Well, as usual, we did get through and no one was hurt.

Once we were out of the Rock Rift Trail we were back in the woods on a trail. The red trail was short and led us to the carriage road again. We were surprised to see the closure sign on this end of the trail. Either there was no sign on the other side of it or it is still dangerous to enter from the carriage road, hence the sign. Anyway, once of the carriage road we were able to enjoy the North views of the Catskills and surrounding area. After a little more walking on this trail we came to an intersection where we took the trail to the left. We ended up crossing the street, going into the woods, only to head back down through the woods and to the parking lot.

Overall, this was a very easy hike minus the Rock Rift Trail scramble. The initial hike was supposed to be to the mountain house and around the lake, which would have been around six miles. We had to do something afterwords so we needed to do a short hike. Well, just to get to the second parking lot it took over two miles. We still ended up hiking a little over six miles, and by the time we got to our car the lot was packed! So if you’re thinking of coming here on a weekend, make sure to come early and get your spot. Hopefully we will be back again soon to complete the loop around the lake and Mountain house.