catskills fire tower challenge
- upper esopus fire tower, catskills visitor center
challenge complete! ✨ a goal of mine in 2024 was to complete the new york state department of environmental conservation (NYSDEC)’s catskills fire tower challenge. this requires hiking to each of the six fire towers in catskill park within the calendar year - five on mountain summits, and one on the grounds of the catskills visitor center. i’m stoked to announce that as of december 2024, my partner and i were able to finally complete the challenge!
historically, the catskills have been home to over a hundred fire towers over the last century. offering sweeping views of the surrounding area from the top of incredible mountain summits, the towers were formerly used to detect forest fires. although they aren’t used for that purpose anymore, many have been restored to allow visitors to enjoy the unmatched panoramic views of catskill park (read more about the catskill fire tower project here).
as someone who lives only 2.5 hours away from the catskills, this is a challenge that i’ve wanted to complete for some years now. i feel very fortunate that my partner and i were able to make the time this year to do these hikes and experience the stunning scenery that the catskills offer - not only through hiking, but even just in driving through quaint catskills towns, visiting woodstock, and appreciating the incredible display of fall foliage during our october visit. we completed two towers as standalone day hikes and the other four during a four-day camping trip.
i decided to write up a little review of our experience for anyone else planning on completing this challenge in 2025, or who might just be curious about the kind of hikes involved for a challenge like this! my personal ratings are based on being someone of average fitness, who hikes fairly regularly throughout the year but still struggles on her cardio. the distance and time logged are based on my actual stats tracked during the hikes - i do use alltrails for mapping, but as someone who is consistently personally victimized by that app, i never trust their mileage or time estimates lol. if you have any questions about this challenge please don’t hesitate to ask here, and if you'd like to see more photos from these hikes check out my portfolio here!
upper esopus fire tower
date completed: october 14, 2024
location: mount tremper, ny
difficulty rating: easy
distance logged: 1 mile
time logged: 25 minutes
overall rating: ★★☆☆☆
located at the catskills visitor center, the upper esopus tower is easily accessible for anyone unable to or uninterested in hiking up a mountain to see a fire tower up close. the flat, one-mile loop around the visitor center grounds is honestly optional - the fire tower is just a short walk away from the parking lot. i only gave this tower 2 stars because, compared to the adventure of the other 5 tower hikes, it is quite boring and doesn’t offer great views from the top. however, i’m super appreciative that the park has one tower accessible to all, regardless of physical ability. it’s also super easy to knock two towers out in one day by visiting this one after your hike at nearby tremper mountain. when you go, be sure to go inside the visitor center to learn more about catskill park and its natural history - the volunteers inside are super friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful!
on alltrails: catskill center interpretive loop
overlook mountain fire tower
date completed: march 10, 2024
location: woodstock, ny
difficulty rating: easy-moderate
distance logged: 4.85 miles
elevation gain: 1,391 feet
time logged: 2 hours 28 minutes
overall rating: ★★★★☆
this was our first fire tower hike of the challenge, and honestly it is the perfect hike to get your feet wet in catskills hiking. at 3,140 foot elevation, overlook’s fire tower offers stunning views of both the nearby mountains and the hudson river valley. the trail is mostly wide and well-maintained, and although it is pretty consistent in elevation gain, it isn’t too steep or tricky terrain. we went at a time of year when the start of the trail was warm and dry, but as you gained elevation there was still snow and ice, which was really cool to experience for the first time (even if we were unprepared for ice lol). although there’s not much in terms of views on the way up, there are some old ruins of the 19th century overlook hotel open to explore. just be careful - rattlesnakes call this old hotel home during the warmer months!
on alltrails: overlook mountain trail
balsam lake mountain fire tower
date completed: october 11, 2024
location: hardenburgh, ny
difficulty rating: moderate
distance logged: 6.42 miles
elevation gain: 1,224 feet
time logged: 3 hours 14 minutes
overall rating: ★★★☆☆
at an elevation of 3,723 feet, this doubled as our first completed hike for the catskills 3500’ peak challenge! this hike is fairly sustained in terms of elevation gain, but other than one steep section in the middle of the hike, the rest isn’t unbearable in terms of grade - it’s pretty standard for what a hudson-region hike is for mileage & elevation gain. this tower is unique to the others because while most of the hike is through deciduous forest (which was lit up with bright fall colors since we went in october), the peak and area surrounding the tower is full of evergreen trees. this lead to a really awesome view from the top of the tower, with an immediate wall of green treetops giving way to rolling orange hills down below. there are three ways to get up this mountain, and we actually took a different trail than we intended to because we got confused on the drive down from our campsite. if you plan on completing this hike, definitely weigh out which trail would be best for you!
on alltrails: balsam lake mountain via dry brook ridge trail (2)
red hill fire tower
date completed: october 14, 2024
location: denning, ny
difficulty rating: moderate
distance logged: 3.94 miles
elevation gain: 1,066 feet
time logged: 2 hours 23 minutes
overall rating: ★★★★★
although this is one of the shortest fire tower hikes, the elevation gain is sustained and a bit steep the entire way up red hill, with a few flat runs for breaks. the trail is rocky at parts and because we did this hike in the rain, it was muddy and slippery, giving us a little challenge on the steeper parts. however, at an elevation of 2,990 feet (one of the lowest of the five mountains) this tower actually offered some of my favorite views of this entire challenge and i took a few of my best photos here, so the struggle was well worth it! sundown wild forest is stunning, and the area around the tower was uniquely pretty compared to the others with fern-surrounded picnic tables and log benches to rest on. i highly recommend this trail for fall!
on alltrails: red hill fire tower trail
hunter mountain fire tower
date completed: december 1, 2024
location: hunter, ny
difficulty rating: difficult
distance logged: 4.87 miles
elevation gain: 2,247 feet
time logged: 3 hours 28 minutes
overall rating: ★★★★★
deciding on the most difficult hike in this challenge was a bit of a challenge in itself. hunter mountain truly is a climb and is one of the steepest hikes i’ve ever done. completing this in december also meant 6 inches of powder, which we weren’t fully prepared for - we don’t actually own snow shoes! armed with our diamond grip spikes, we expected ice, but not the challenge of post-holing (bad trail etiquette) with nearly every step and trekking pole placement. however, this hike in the snow was well worth the effort, and sitting to slide down the steepest parts brought out my inner child while making the descent just a little easier than it should have been. at a 4,040 foot elevation, the panoramic view was absolutely breathtaking and we ticked off a second peak for the catskills 3500’ challenge. i didn’t think i would enjoy a snowy hike as much as i did - even if i disassociated through the worst parts of the incline. definitely check trail conditions before taking on this hike, bring plenty of water, and plan time for extra breaks if you’re not used to steep inclines. this is a beast of a hike, but is super rewarding to finish!
on alltrails: hunter mountain via becker hollow trail
tremper mountain fire tower
date completed: october 13, 2024
location: shandaken, ny
difficulty rating: difficult
distance logged: 7.41 miles
elevation gain: 2,185 feet
time logged: 4 hours 39 minutes
overall rating: ★★★★☆
i was honestly surprised that this ended up being the most difficult hike to complete during this challenge. the 2,740 foot elevation makes this the lowest of the five mountains, and given its mileage i expected the elevation gain to be easier than it was. i think this was mostly due to it being a consistent back-and-forth between really steep parts and short flat runs, followed by the last mile or so being an unrelenting mid-grade gain to get to the tower. between that, and alltrails absolutely lying about the mileage of the trail (the amount of “the tower has to be right around this bend… oh nope those are more trees” killed me inside lol), we were just exhausted by the time we made it to the top. but, mt. tobias wild forest is stunning in the fall, especially because we went on a drizzly and foggy day (my favorite hiking vibes), and the views from the tower were incredible. just plan on this hike taking longer than you expect!
on alltrails: mount tremper trail
i had a ton of fun completing these hikes and feel so accomplished finishing out my first official hiking challenge. if you plan on completing the challenge this year, don’t forget to check out the 2025 rules and how to log your hikes, be bear safe as the catskills are black bear country, and always follow leave no trace principles!
i would love to hear your thoughts on these hikes and this challenge! find me on instagram and tiktok to connect and talk about the fire towers, hiking in the stunning catskills, or anything else relating to photography & the great outdoors :)
- ari x
- NYSDEC’s commemorative fire tower patch