Dry Brook Ridge Trailhead - Margaretville, NY
Dry Brook Ridge Trailhead Dog-Friendly Area
Discover the picturesque Dry Brook Ridge Trailhead, a welcoming destination for dog lovers seeking dog-friendly hiking and pet-friendly trails in Margaretville, New York. While not a traditional fenced dog park, this scenic spot offers access to the beautiful natural landscapes of the Catskills, providing you and your furry friend a memorable outdoor adventure surrounded by forested trails and mountain views.
Located at 7176 Mill Brook Rd, this trailhead is ideal for dog owners who want to explore nature together. Remember to keep your dog leashed unless local signage posts otherwise and pack out all waste to preserve the pristine environment. The trailhead does not have built-in dog park amenities but rewards visitors with peace, tranquility, and a genuine upstate New York outdoor experience.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are there walking or hiking trails connected to the park? Yes, Dry Brook Ridge Trailhead offers access to a network of hiking trails in the Catskills.
Reviews
One of the highest elevation trailheads in all of the Catskills leads to a very gentle and mostly gradual climb of Balsam Lake. Its views especially in winter are outstanding.
Beautiful easy trail of about 3 hours and a half! Almost 4 hours accounting for pictures, breaks and snowballs fight. I did it during winter so it was very icy, but I definitely recommend as the views are gorgeous from the fire tower. We had fun along the way and there is a picnic table next to the fire tower if you want to do lunch !
Hike to the Balsam Lake Fire Tower. A little over 6 miles round trip, 3 miles there and then 3 miles back. Wasn’t a busy trail, parking lot can fit about 8 cars, we didn’t have an issue with parking.
Pretty much incline up on the trail with no overlooks n the trail until you get to the fire tower. Good exercise and gets your heat rate up. Loose rocks for most of the trail so you’ll want proper hiking footwear. There is one picnic table when you get to the fire tower. We could walk up the stairs but the top section with the platform was locked.
The trail is more of a really rough road that you take to get to the Balsam Lake Firetower. That trail is on the otherside of the road than the parking area. The view from the firetower is awesome but you can’t get the view unless you at least get above the trees on the tower.
This 6.2 mile round trip trail is the easiest one you’ll find that leads to a Catskills high peak. A majority of the trail is flat or low incline, only the last 1/2 mile or so had any significant elevation gain. The trail is wide and somewhat rocky, very little mud even in April. There’s not much as far as views along the the length of the trail especially when the leaves start to fill in. The boulders and cliffs lining the second half of the trip are of interest for sure though. The summit at 3723 feet is viewless if it weren’t for the fire tower. The scene from up there is incredible and makes up for the lack of them on the trail. A panoramic 360 view of the entire Catskills range is visible.