Mountain Top Arboretum
At a Glance
- Best for: An easy, flat morning that isn't a hike: meadows, wetlands, and a 150-year-old hemlock forest across four self-guided areas
- Difficulty: Easy: soft, flat paths (not stroller or wheelchair friendly on most of them, per the Arboretum's own guidance)
- Time: 30–45 minutes per area, 2+ hours to see all four
- Admission: $5 suggested donation (free for members)
- Hours: Gardens and trails open dawn to dusk, every day. Education Center open 9am–4pm, Tuesday through Saturday.
- Worth knowing: Dog rules change by area: not permitted in two of the four, see below before you bring one.
What you're actually going to see
Mountain Top Arboretum is a real public garden and nature preserve, not a park: a working plant collection alongside genuine Catskills habitat, four minutes away from Main St. in Tannersville. There's no single trail and no summit. Four distinct areas, each 30 to 45 minutes, each with its own character: open meadow, deer-fenced woodland, a working wetland, and a 150-year-old hemlock forest with real glacial history underfoot.
This is the place we send people who did a real hike yesterday and want something easier today, or came up with someone who doesn't want to hike at all. Flat, soft paths the whole way: easy on the knees, easy with kids, nothing technical.
The four areas
There's no set route here: four connected areas, each worth its own visit. Here's what's actually in each one.
1. West Meadow
Through the stone pillars at the entrance, wander through a rain garden, the Bird Cove (planted specifically for native birds and pollinators; the Arboretum is a real birding hotspot, 60+ species depending on the season), a spiral labyrinth, and dwarf conifers. The real standout: exposed bedrock dating back roughly 375 million years, part of an ancient streambed that once fed the Catskill Sea.
Dogs are not permitted in West Meadow.
2. Woodland Walk
A deer-fenced area on three connected loop paths, built to preserve the native habitat of the northern Catskills. Spring brings trillium, jack-in-the-pulpit, and trout lily along the upper path; mountain laurel blooms in late June. There's a Fairy Garden where kids are encouraged to build with natural materials, and an outdoor amphitheater that's just a good place to sit for a few minutes.
Dogs are not permitted in Woodland Walk.
3. East Meadow
Down Maude Adams Road and through a pine allee, out into a meadow bordered by a hedgerow planted for four-season interest. Past the Pump House, a working piece of the New York City water supply system, a boardwalk crosses a wet meadow of spirea, asters, and sedges, with some of the best birding on the property.
Dogs are permitted on leash in East Meadow (and on Maude Adams Road).
4. Spruce Glen
The wildest of the four, and the one that feels the least like a garden. The Hemlock Trail winds through 150-year-old hemlock, spruce, and fir, past a fen (the Hidden Marsh) supporting sundews and native wildflowers you won't see elsewhere on the property. The terrain here traces old glacial moraines. Stay on the trail; the ecosystems along it are genuinely fragile.
Dogs are permitted off leash on Spruce Glen trails, the only area on the property where that's true.
From the shop
From the shop
The wetter sections (East Meadow's boardwalk, the fen in Spruce Glen) are exactly where ticks like to be, so we'd spray up before you go. Don't forget the binoculars either: the Arboretum is a real birding hotspot, one of the stops on the New York State Birding Trail, along with North-South Lake and the Mountain Top Historical Society just down the road.
Good to know
- This is a public garden, not a public park: no picnicking, food, smoking, drones, or sports on the property.
- No swimming, and stay on the marked trails in Spruce Glen and Woodland Walk; the ecosystems there are fragile.
- Carry in, carry out. There's no trash pickup on the trails.
- Dog rules genuinely vary by area: not permitted in West Meadow or Woodland Walk, leashed on Maude Adams Road and East Meadow, off leash in Spruce Glen. Plan your route accordingly if you're bringing one.
Camp Catskill is on Main Street in Tannersville, a few minutes from Maude Adams Road. Stop in before or after for water, a layer, or just to ask what's blooming this week.
Get Directions to Camp Catskill →