Lakes of Harriman Park and Stony Point Trip Reports 

Ken's story:  

Sharon and I had enjoyed the lakes and downhills in this area from other explorations -- like for the NYC to Bear Mountain Adventure, so we decided to create a much shorter route which focused mostly on those.  We first rode the complete loop around 1996.  KenR, August 2010:

Checked out all the roads, some by bike, some by car -- almost all sections in good condition.

all reports below (before August 2010) are based on an older route (not the current routes) which combined Stony Point Lakes + River with NYC to Bear Mt Variation X and section

C.Charles, August 2009:

I just got in from riding the Seven Lakes to River Loop and here is what I found:

1. The Jones Point dirt road is in rough shape. I rode it on my touring bike that has 700x32 tires and it was all it could handle. It would not take a lot of money to put it into "cairrage road" shape. Two culverts, some grading and crusher run would do wonders for this important right of way.

2. RC Rt 106 west at 8,6 now has wonderful, wide paved shoulders up to the Palisades parkway.

3. Rt 106 around 11.8 mi - Lake Welch area - has a lot of pea sized gravel on the road that makes for a bad ride and makes the edge of the road unrideable.

4. Bear Mtn inn is still closed.

KenR, July 2007:

On a cool Friday afternoon, Sharon and I rode the route with Variations A + X. The usual pretty views, not much traffic on Seven Lake Drive and climbing Bear Mt, good climbing workout. Seven Lakes Drive between Lake Tiorati and Rt 6:  Some new asphalt repairs which made that long descent more fun and less likely to damage wheels. Asphalt on the Perkins Memorial Drive climb up Bear Mt was good.

Todd, June 2004:

I did the "Seven Lakes to the River" loop today with no variation. Actually, I did it twice—still had some energy after the first loop so onward I went for round 2.

UPDATE: Perkins Drive to the top of bear mountain is closed during weekdays until July 23 for repairs. On the map on this site, it is Variation X.

A very nice ride. The little bypass bike trail that avoids 9W looked a little tattered for my liking so I rode 9W. I would not do this on a weekend but traffic wasn't really that bad (Tuesday afternoon) and the recessed drainage shoulder on much of the ride is a good option. Descent of 7 Lakes Drive to the rt 6/PIP turn is fun but need to pay attention; much of the road is a hodge-podge of bad pothole filling and small potholes - the kind that love skinny tires.

June 2003, Ken:  

I rode the section from Mile 4.3 to Mile 10.0.  Roads were all in reasonable condition, and the riding was pleasant with little traffic -- but the hill on Rt 118 / Mott Farm Rd was longer than I remembered.  Climbing up Rockland County Rt 106, the shoulder was wide up to the north-bound entrance for the Palisades Interstate Parkway, then broken up until bridge across the PIP, then no shoulder after that the rest of the way. 

I also started the route in the reverse direction and climbed from Iona Island directly to the top of Bear Mountain (Variation).  Very nice on a cool weekday.  Climbing was very sustained:  three brief flat sections, but no real downhills.  Pretty views along the way, and then the superb viewpoint below from the summit to the East.

September 2002, Ken: 

On a weekend day, Sharon and Tony and I again rode all of this route except for the road segments from Mile 4.3 to Mile 10.0.  Tony also rode the Variation to the top of Bear Mt.  Beautiful and enjoyable -- no problems.

August 2002, Ken: 

On two different weekdays, I rode all of this route except for the road segments from Mile 4.3 to Mile 10.0.  I also rode the Variation to climb to the top of Bear Mountain.  All the roads were in good condition -- here's some more detail, starting with the climb on Rt 106: 

The big climb up Rt 106 / Gate Hill Rd into Harriman Park went fine, and I enjoyed the curvy descent.  Then very comfortable and pretty riding on Seven Lakes Drive.  I hadn't remembered how good the shoulders were.  I especially enjoy riding past Lake Tiorati.  

Almost no traffic on the Rt 6 East connection.  I dismounted and walked across the Palisades Interstate Parkway, and then was able to ride my bike on the grass beside it, and continued on the grass curving alongside the exit ramp, then got back on the pavement when I reached the full-width park road, and started climbing. 

When I reached Perkins Memorial Drive, I got the urge to climb it to the top of Bear Mountain.  So I did -- the climbing was not as hard as I feared -- one steeper section and the rest a steady grind.  At the tower on the summit, I spent more time looking at the historical photographs inside than the views.  Then I followed the road further, starting down the other (East) side of the mountain -- and that's where I got the most spectacular views, perched over a steep slope above the Hudson River.  Definitely a fine experience for me. 

Riding back down there were some sections of somewhat rough pavement, but they didn't give me any problem -- but it felt like one of my brakes was fading a bit from the need to control my speed.  Once back down to the main park road, the descent East-ward was more pleasant, and I had a big lunch at the Bear Mountain Inn cafeteria.