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New DEC parcels protect Overlook Mtn.

By Jim Planck

HUNTER — A popular hiking and mountain bike route on the south side of the Town of Hunter has had Forest Preserve lands near its southern terminus on Woodstock’s Overlook Mountain increased.

The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has acquired three significant parcels on Overlook Mountain that will not only help protect the mountain, but may serve to make it a more attractive destination for hikers and bikers using the old Overlook Turnpike from the head of Hunter’s Platte Clove.

DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis announced Tuesday that the state has purchased a total of 330 acres on Overlook, for a total of $784,000.

“As one of the most recognizable landmarks on the eastern escarpment of the Catskill range that provides stunning backdrops to the Town of Woodstock,” said Grannis, “Overlook Mountain has long enjoyed a prominent place in America’s natural and cultural history.”

“DEC will continue to partner with local governments and land trusts to protect precious properties like Overlook Mountain throughout the Catskill Forest Preserve,” said Grannis.

The acquisitions mean permanent protection for the lands, which have been added to the Catskill Forest Preserve’s Overlook Mountain Wild Forest Unit.

The Department has been working to increase its holdings on Overlook for some time, and the goal was identified in the 2006 New York State Open Space Conservation Plan.

“Large, unfragmented areas of forest land in the Catskill high peaks area are excellent candidates for addition to the Forest Preserve,” it states.

“Priority should be given to protecting individual large parcels that border, connect, or provide better access to existing State land.”

It notes that for lands within DEC’s Region 3, “Priority should be given to properties identified in the Overlook Mountain Wild Forest Unit Management Plan.”

“Land acquisition (on Overlook),” it states, “is important to create a usable and viable wild forest in an area that has long influenced painters, writers and musicians, and played a prominent role in creating America’s perspective on nature and wilderness.”

Helping DEC in the acquisition process was the Open Space Institute (OSI) and the Woodstock Land Conservancy.

OSI’s Jennifer Grossman, Vice-president of Land Acquisition, noted, “Overlook Mountain has enjoyed a prominent place in America’s natural and cultural history, and is considered by many as the birthplace of the Hudson River School of Painting.”

“Now, due to the successful partnership OSI has forged with DEC and the Woodstock Land Conservancy,” said Grossman, “this eastern escarpment of commanding panoramic views will forever provide unique natural habitat for threatened wildlife and unmatched recreational opportunities for current and future generations of New Yorkers.”

For years a local campaign entitled “Save Overlook” has been active in trying to preserve lands on the mountain, and former Woodstock Land Conservancy president Michael DeWan, who led that campaign, noted, “This announcement is the culmination of years of hard work, and thanks are due to the hundreds of Woodstockers and folks from all over who responded to our call to protect our beloved Overlook.”

“We are immensely grateful to be able to realize this long-held dream, now a reality, and for the people of the State of New York and beyond to enjoy its wild, rugged beauty forever.”

The new parcels are contiguous to existing state lands within the Overlook Mountain unit, and nearby are those that will soon be procedurally removed from the unit and added to the state’s forthcoming new land classification for an Overlook Turnpike Primitive Bicycle Corridor.

“There is historic bicycle use of this corridor,” states the 2008 draft Catskill Park State Land Master Plan, “and the Department recently entered into an agreement with the Town of Hunter to maintain an extension of Prediger Road until it meets Forest Preserve lands, to allow motor vehicles to access a new 25-car parking lot on Forest Preserve lands, thus allowing for bicycle use.”

“The corridor is about 4.5 miles long and 100 feet wide, covering about 55 acres,” it states.

“It is bounded on the south by Overlook Mountain Wild Forest and traverses through the Indian Head Wilderness Area,” it adds. The latter range of mountains runs from Hunter’s Stony Clove to Platte Clove.

While the 330 acres just added to the Overlook Mountain Wild Forest do not include specific lands within the new bike corridor, the three acquisitions do enhance and protect the overall integrity of both the Overlook unit and the Overlook corridor.

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