Catskills or Adirondacks?

[khantroll]

Hello everyone! I am planning my first trip to New York state, and I'm a little lost. Basically, I'm trying to decide between two routes:

Route 1 is to go around the Catskills. This route would zig zag a bit, and let me see Sleep Hollow before more or less following the scenic routes through the Catskills for several days before heading west to Watkins Glen and then on to Niagara Falls and Toronto. 

Route 2 would go through the Hudson Valley and then north on scenic roads to Lake Placid, Plattsburg, and eventually on to Montreal. 

Does anyone have any input on this, or recommendations regarding either area? 

 

Thanks!

[markandkim]

I'm partial to the Adirondacks, since I grew up there.

[Kirk W]

Do you have to choose and only visit one of the areas? NY is a large enough state that you really won't see it well by taking only one route across and if you plan to visit Canada as well you are adding a lot more to see. Better advice could be given if we knew more about the length of time you are planning to spend in NY and perhaps the time of year. 

[Pieere]

I hope the Adirondacks has allowed for  spaying to kill the mosquitoes and gnats as I am from there and left in 1993! Couldn't go fishing unless one had a net suit on and bathed in DEET! I Maybe the Catskills are better!

[khantroll]

Hi all! I am only going to be in the area for a week to 10 days. I am mainly going because A) I have never been to New York state, and they say the fall colors are incredible. So, I'll be there the last week of September most likely.

I want to go to Canada because I don't find myself that far north very often (right now, my work keeps me in the South), and I want to be able to say that I visited. If I go to the Catskills, I'd basically spend a few days traveling the scenic routes before hopping on the interstate and heading to Niagara and Toronto to spend 2-3 days, before having to burn rubber back across the boarder and back east. 

If I went the Adirondacks route, it'd be less of a time crunch because I wouldn't be going to so far west. I could head out roughly parallel to interstate 87, and eventually wind up in Lake Placid. From there I'd head up to Plattsburg and on to Montreal, where I'd spend 2-3 days and then head back down the interstate. 

From what research I've been able to do, it seems to be an apples to oranges comparison: The Catskills has a few historic sites, and some pretty scenery, and some quirky history. The Adirondacks appear to be more of a touristy area, with more activities and bigger population centers. 

For the Canadian side of the jaunt, I know very little about either city. I do know I don't speak French, so I'm not sure how big of a problem that might actually be. As Dr. Strange says, though, I am fluent in Google Translate. 

 

Thanks guys!

[Jim Gell]

I grew up in the NYS and spent 32 years as a State Park Manager there.  I would much rather do the southern route if it were me.  Western NY and the Finger Lakes has great scenic state parks to visit. I would try to add the Ithaca area which has some state parks you may want to visit including Robert H. Treman   (Not Allan Treman) and Taughannock Falls in Trumansburg (215 feet drop) a little north of Ithaca.  I suggest walking up the trail to the bottom of the falls before taking in the view from the overlook above the falls.  On your way from Watkins Glen to Niagara Falls (two great state parks) you may want to visit Letchworth State Park. It's known as the "Grand Canyon of the East".  Other suggested stops include the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport and Corning Museum of Glass in Corning. 

Most New York State Parks and Historic Sites charge a vehicle use fee of between $6 and $10 dollars for day use including all the parks above including the US side of Niagara Falls (the nations first/oldest state park).  For $80 you can buy an annual Empire Passport online at this link.   You can also use the links at the top of that page to research NYS Parks and Historic Sites.   If you decide you are more of a history buff rather than visiting gorges and waterfalls, you may want to visit some historic sites along the Hudson. Some of those are state operated and also honor the Empire Passport.  Many others are Federal, such as FDR's Historic site in Hyde Park and you may be able to use a Federal Senior Pass if you have one.  

Note: As odd as it sounds, the Catskill and Adirondack State Parks are NOT operated by NYS Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation which runs all the areas outside the Adirondacks and Catskills.  Those parks, and all the state run facilities within them, are under the authority of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation.  Both agencies accept the Empire Passport. 

Enjoy your trip!

Jim

EDIT: khantroll, I was typing this response as you sent your previous post.  I feel bad you don't have more time to spend in NYS.  When I think of Adirondacks, I think of trees....lots of trees and not many people.  It is a designated wilderness area. Yes, there are isolated areas with populations like Plattsburg on the edges and some scenic and historic areas, but nothing that compares to the Finger Lakes.  Hudson Valley has lots of history, lots of people, lots of traffic.  If it were me, I would chose a smaller area to visit and not try to do Canada and NYS in 7-10 days.

[khantroll]

Hi Jim! Thanks for the info and the links. I wish I had more time there as well. I'm sure I could easily spend months there. Unfortunately I don't have that kind of flexibility at the moment. 

Given the rarity of my of my trips North, I'm loath to cut Canada. Barring extreme changes in both my work and my wife's work, it'll be at least two years before I am that far North again (and then it'll be on the West Coast). That being said, I have thought about just hanging out in the Hudson Valley. 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Well, if your main goal is fall color, and your time frame is late September, the Adirondacks is your only option.  I'd only expect the color to start in the Catskills in October.  On average, of course it can vary a lot from year to year.   New York State has a Fall Foliage map online every year.

https://www.iloveny.com/things-to-do/fall/foliage-report/

Into American history at all?

The Military Academy at West Point has an awesome museum open to the public.  Washington's Headquarters in Newburgh is where Washington turned down the offer by his officers to make him King.  The Fort Montgomery historic site is nearby.  Saratoga National Battlefield, Fort Ticonderoga, Fort William Henry . . . all doable on an Adirondack swing.