Granite Mountain Preserve

Hiking the Preserve

The Town of Putnam Valley recently donated 28 acres of land to HHLT, which will allow for the expansion of our Granite Mountain Preserve. We look forward to sharing updated maps and further information about the new addition to the Preserve later this year.

A detailed trail map can be found in the Resources section below and is available at the trailhead kiosk. Our trail map can be used with the mobile app Avenza Maps, which shows your location in real time during your visit. Learn how to use Avenza here.

We also offer occasional guided hikes and volunteer opportunities at the Preserve. Please contact us if you are interested in receiving information about future hikes.

Please see the Regulations document for a list of activities that are permitted and prohibited during your visit to Granite Mountain.

Thanks to our all-star volunteers, Stephanie and Paul of PS Photographics, for filming their hike through the Preserve and creating the video featured above!

Getting to Granite Mountain

The main entrance to the Preserve, marked with a “Welcome to Granite Mountain Preserve” sign, is located opposite Jeanne Drive and across the street from 500 Peekskill Hollow Road in Putnam Valley. Be sure to input “Granite Mountain Preserve” into Google Maps as just “Granite Mountain” will lead you to the wrong location. The new access area and parking lot is located inside the main gate.

Update on Public Access

With generous grant and community support, we have completed several improvements within the Preserve to make it more accessible to the public.

A new welcome sign near the main gate on Peekskill Hollow Road was installed and a new parking / access area just passed the main gate was completed at the end of 2018. Joshua Uchetel, a scout from Putnam Valley Boy Scouts of America Troop 41, designed and constructed a new informational kiosk beside the parking lot, which will be stocked with trail maps and other helpful information to help guests plan their visit.

Our land team has also made several improvements to the trail system that will better protect the property’s natural resources and enhance the visitor experience, like constructing new sustainable trails and rerouting some existing trails. The upgraded trail system is now fully blazed and marked, and a trail map is available in the Resources section below and at the trailhead kiosk.

About Granite Mountain Preserve

In 2017, we acquired three land parcels on Granite Mountain in Putnam Valley to permanently conserve 358 acres, creating a new Preserve that protects vital wildlife habitat and drinking water, while serving as a recreational resource for the community. In late 2018, we announced the expansion of the Preserve to 400 acres with the addition of an adjacent parcel. In 2021, the Town of Putnam Valley donated 28 acres of land to HHLT, which will allow for the expansion of our Granite Mountain Preserve. And that same year, HHLT entered into a Cooperative Management Agreement with Putnam County so that 91 acres of County Land adjacent to the Preserve will be stewarded in alignment with its Management Plan.

Granite Mountain is located within the watershed of the Peekskill Hollow Brook, part of both the City of Peekskill and Town of Cortlandt drinking water systems. It provides important habitat for wildlife, and was listed in the 2007 Town of Putnam Valley Comprehensive Plan as being “of significant interest to the community.” Granite Mountain is also an important part of the Croton-to-Highlands Biodiversity Area, identified by both New York State and the US Forest Service as a conservation priority.