Posted in New York August 17, 2017 by

The Incredible Hike In New York That Will Lead You To An Abandoned Plane Crash

Recently we talked about how if you’re planning on going hiking in the Empire State, that there are five amazing hikes that are worth tackling first. But if you’ve been exploring New York for awhile now, you may be ready to take on something that’s more unique and above an easy difficulty level. Bringing you down into the Catskill Mountains, you’ll be surprised at what you’ll find on one of the tallest mountains in the region.

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Head to the adventurous area of Greene County and you'll find what was once believed to be the tallest mountain in the region, Kaaterskill High Peak.
dan Kong/Flickr
The mountain is one that's considered to be difficult to hike, with a length of 8-miles round trip and generally taking anywhere from 5 to 6 hours to complete.
Thomas Perry/AllTrails
And while the view from the summit won't allow you to see too much, it's what you'll find along the way to the top that keeps drawing hikers to this spot.
Thomas Perry/AllTrails
Throughout this hike you'll discover an old Mohawk Indian Camp and not one... but two plane crashes.
TheTurducken/Flickr
The most popular plane crash ruins to visit on the mountain can be found just south of Kaaterskill's summit, along the trail you'll take to get to Hurricane Ledge.
TheTurducken/Flickr
Back on May 26th, 1983 a man from Watertown by the name of Rex Miller crashed his plane into Kaaterskill High Peak. Unfortunately while Miller was trying to make his way back home from Poughkeepsie, he encountered bad weather while flying and would crash into the mountain roughly 3,400 feet above the ground. Today the remains of Miller's plane (and supposedly even one of his shoes) can be found roughly 500-feet away from Kaaterskill's summit on the way to Hurricane Ledge.
The second crash is one that's a bit harder to reach, but can be found towards the beginning of the hike.
Thomas Perry/AllTrails
Apparently the 80's was a bad year for flying through the Catskills, because on June 25th, 1987 another plane crashed into Kaaterskill High Peak. Down on the mountain if you follow the Snowmobile Loop Trail you'll discover the remains of a cargo plane that crashed into the mountain. The cargo plane had two passengers aboard that did not survive the crash, they too were flying on a cloudy night that had less than ideal weather conditions. Those who wish to see this plane crash will have to trek through muddy areas and even prepare themselves for bushwhacking.
With so much history waiting for you on Kaaterskill High Peak, it's not hard to see why so many people are curious to explore these trails for themselves.
Thomas Perry/AllTrails
Who's ready to climb up to the top of the 23rd tallest mountain in the Catskill Region to discover some fascinating and slightly eerie pieces of the past?
Thomas Perry/AllTrails
To get a more in depth look at what it'll take for you to reach these ruins and make your way to the top of Kaaterskill High Peak, click here.

Would you ever take on this hike? To experience more unique and somewhat spooky trails, check out these 7 Other Trails In New York That Will Lead You To Extraordinary Ruins!