Giant Ledge — Local services in Town of Shandaken

The Giant Ledge Trail and Overview is located off of Oliverea Road near Big Indian in the Catskills. The trail takes you on a hike through dense woodland leading to a beautiful viewpoint overlooking the Slide Mountain Wilderness in the Catskills mountians. The trail ranges from moderate to challenging in sections as the gradient changes and the surface is VERY ROCKY! Its the type of trail where you spend a lot of your time looking down to make sure that your footing is good due to the uneven surfaces! The trail is well marked with the colour signs on the trees along the trail and it is worth noting that there is a trail "log in" book at the begining of the Giant Ledge Trail Head near the carpark. I cannot stress how important that this is to jot down your name and check IN and check OUT! It may just save your life! They should have these on all trails in my opinion! The trail took us just over 4 miles and a total moving time of 2 and a half hours to complete the round trip. This is not including breaks on the trail and a well earned break at the view point. The view point is really worth the effort as you can see for miles and it was really nice to just listen to the birds and just enjoy the forested mountain tops! Be aware of the animals though as I came across a snake at the top but I am not sure if it was dangerous or not. I would advise good footwear such as boots that braces your ankles. This is coming from someone that has rolled their ankle on many trail. We did see a lot of people on the trail in just sneakers however, I would not advise it. And we seen a few people attempt it in jeans which must have been tough going in the heat and with the gradient of the trail. There is a carpark at the trail head however it is limited as a lot of people attempt this trail so be there early! There are spaces along the road if there are no spaces are available. Highly recommend this trail if you are in the Big Indian area of...

Giant Ledge is a bucket list scenic viewpoint in the Cats, particularly during leaf season. Views are straight east, so get there, if you can, before sunrise. Anticipate that lovely jewel of the sun over distant mountaintops. I dare you to keep a dry eye. Bring a lunch and hit Panther Mountain to the north. Not may views, but it's a 3500' peak. Something to tell your friends. Panther Mountain was formed by an asteroid strike.

There is at least one 'flashed' campsite, or, one that has a circular, yellow, plastic disk nailed to a tree imprinted with a black 'tipi,' and indicates it's an authorized campsite. You're also allowed to camp 150' off trail, and a quarter of a...

Talk about accessible views that only need a short hike! I've hiked about a dozen different mountains in the Catskills and have yet to see better views at an easier hike. I'd even consider this easier than Overlook - though this is a footpath with rocks as opposed to a carriage road. We went during cold weather to maximize on the clear skies (cold air = less humidity haze), and it was totally worth it. Keep trekking on the same path all the way to the top of Panther Mountain if you want to brag about hitting one of the Catskill High Peaks. You're already so close if you're at...