Landscape Information
Part of Palisades Interstate Park, this 5,067-acre, topographically varied site is situated on the west bank of the Hudson River in the Hudson Highlands and anchors the northern terminus of the Palisades Interstate Parkway. Mined in the nineteenth century, the land was donated in 1909 by philanthropist Mary Harriman. Developed by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission (PIPC), alongside the adjacent Harriman State Park, it opened one year later.
Between 1912 and 1914 Major William A. Welch, PIPC’s chief engineer, laid out curvilinear roadways (including Seven Lakes Drive), bridges, viaducts, and dams, and established campgrounds utilizing local stone and timber harmonizing with the landscape. In 1923 a section of the Appalachian Trail was established by conservationist Raymond Torrey. Eleven years later the Civilian Conservation Corps built a 40-foot high, stone observatory (Perkins Memorial Tower)—accessed by a curvilinear drive—at Bear Mountain’s summit, which affords panoramic views.
The park’s recreational core, established by the Commission on an elevated plateau at the eastern base of the mountain, includes a rectangular, turf athletic field framed by another curvilinear drive, parking areas, and the rustic, Bear Mountain Inn (Tooker & Marsh, 1915). North of the inn is a heavily canopied picnic area that slopes downward to the 44-acre Hessian Lake, which is surrounded by a paved, looped trail. A modest, graded slope to the east screens views of the nearby roadway and facilities, including Trailside Museum and Zoo (1927) and a swimming pool. The latter is nestled into a woodland edge and framed by rocky outcroppings. Forty-five miles of trails provide access through the park, traversing densely canopied terrain characterized by oak, maple, and other deciduous species.
Bear Mountain Inn was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2002 and the park is located within the Maurice D. Hinchey Hudson River National Heritage Area.
