Catskills Mountain Sweep · part 1

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Harriman exit fuel

   Harriman is a village you notice mostly from the highway, and its role in a riding day is simple: it is the exit. The New York Thruway runs past here, and the exit ramps lead to a cluster of fuel stations, fast-food places and a very large outlet shopping centre, which draws buses from all over the region. It is the last chance for easy fuel and coffee before the Hudson Highlands, and an early-morning stop here is a sensible way to start a ride out of the city, since prices in the small towns beyond tend to be higher and the opening hours shorter.

   Read the complete Harriman exit fuel write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Harriman exit fuel is where the day begins. Next is Roscoe trout town.

2. 2. Roscoe trout town

   Roscoe calls itself Trout Town USA, and it has the credentials to back the claim. The village sits in the western Catskills at the meeting of two famous fly-fishing streams, the Beaverkill and the Willowemoc, which join a short distance away at a spot called Junction Pool. Anglers have been coming to these waters since the nineteenth century, and the tradition of American dry-fly fishing took shape in these valleys, with local fly tyers developing patterns that are still used today. A fly-fishing museum a few miles up the road in Livingston Manor tells the story.

   Read the complete Roscoe trout town write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Roscoe trout town is where this day stops to eat. Next is Pepacton Reservoir.

3. 3. Pepacton Reservoir

   Pepacton Reservoir fills a long, bent valley in the western Catskills, a deep blue lake many miles long, built in the early 1950s to supply drinking water to New York City, a hundred and thirty miles away. The East Branch of the Delaware was dammed at Downsville, and the rising water drowned four villages, including Pepacton itself, along with farms, roads and a good many orchards. The old foundations, it is said, still lie beneath the surface, and in dry years the water drops enough to show a few of them.

   Read the complete Pepacton Reservoir write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   The route ends here after 147 km.