The Little Known Cave In New York That Everyone Should Explore At Least Once

If you’ve taken the time to explore New York, then you know that some of our state’s shortest trails just so happen to be our sweetest. In fact, you'll often be surprised at how little effort it takes to get to some of our most breathtaking outdoor attractions, leaving you full of energy to explore your final destination on the trail. A small-town gem that only opened to the public back in 2002, Dover Stone Church in Dover Plains, NY is a unique aboveground cave in New York that is pretty special, and surprisingly overlooked! It just takes an easy stroll to reach.

Hidden down in the small town of Dover Plains, you can find an adventure that begins at a historical marker between two houses.

Greeting you with a runway of trees within a wide-open field, you'll walk down a set of stairs and begin your magical journey to Dover Stone Church.

As you begin to make your way through the forest, you'll come across this sign that gives you the history of this small town natural wonder and pointing you in the direction of the trails.

Before you even start your hike, you'll cross a quaint bridge that goes over Stone Church Brook.

Once you see these trail markers, the adventure begins! Stay to the right and follow the brook if you want to go explore New York's aboveground cave.

Your quick adventure begins as the trail follows the brook, surrounding you with jaw-dropping greenery that will make you feel like you're in another world.

Before you know it, you'll see the opening of Dover Stone Church and hear the quiet roars of the cascading waterfalls along the brook.

Named after the fact that it resembles the shape of a church, when the water is low enough you can walk right into Dover Stone Church.

Obviously, this gorgeous spot is smack in the middle of nature, so there are no tours here. Keep it clean, please!

An adventure that's great for all ages, once you step inside the cave you'll be able to look back at the trail that now has a unique framing to it.

As if this cave wasn't already magical enough, you'll quickly discover that there are gorgeous waterfalls inside here too!

It's an incredible view.

Open every day from dawn till dusk, there's no better time than now to go and explore Dover Stone Church for yourself.

While hiking to this aboveground cave is an adventure that's beautiful to experience no matter what time of year it is, the scenery here looks exceptionally stunning when New York's gorgeous greens are showing off for the spring and summer. Just off of NY-22, visitors can drive between the two houses where the historical marker is to see if there's space at the tiny parking lot or find plenty of parking spaces at Dover Stone Elementary right across the street when school's not in session.

Did you realize this unique cave was hiding in plain sight? New York is full of natural wonders, and this fantastic spot is just the start! Share your photos of Dover Stone Church with us in the comments below and tell us your favorite part of this beautiful New York hike.

For more amazing cave explorations, read about the epic cave boat tour you can only take here in NY! Or, head underneath NYC for a different side of New York's underground world.

https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/new-york/cave-boat-ny/