D & H Canal Park

Lots of parking, small swimming area, playground/ park, polinator habitat, dog friendly.

A nice little community park with a playground right near the Neversink River. A popular spot for fishermen, a nice walk along the canal, and swimmers. Keep your eyes out along the river for the damage to trees by beavers.

You can easily split this review in two parts so I will.

The park itself is large and spacious built around the remnants of the old D&H canal. It has the typical basic 'park' amenities such as a playground, picnic tables, benches and a large parking lot. In addition, it also has a picnic shelter, visitors center/museum and fishing by the stream. A few porta potties were spotted though I would imagine indoor bathrooms exist if the center is open. Everything appears to be well maintained here by the staff. The place however doesn't offer much more in regards to any ball fields, soccer fields, tennis or the like.

The old canal path however can be summed up with the old phrase, "Okay folks there isn't much to see here so move it along". Finding the entrance on Hoag Rd can be a little challenging as it's on the other side of the road of the park, a hundred yards down and across from a private house. It really isn't well marked though it isn't terribly hard to find if you look. I've included a picture to help point out the entrance.

The first part of the walk from here is along a dirt/gravel path with what looks like the remnants of a dock and stone moorings used by the canal boats from the previous century. There's also a large, tired looking gazebo. Following the path until reaching the first street crossing doesn't provide much to see as most of the river bed is now dried out and at times you're back into civilization walking past the back of a Dollar General. If you continue on by crossing Oakland Valley Road, the path converts to an old worn out asphalt that's rather beat up and overgrown with weeds. During this small section of the trail, there is nothing to see and you quickly come across the next road to cross (rte 209). Not feeling the love anymore, I made a U-turn and headed back. I'm sure you can insert some chicken-crossing-the-road joke somewhere in here.

I'm guesstimating the walk to this point and back was in the 45-50 minute range. Definitely not worth going out of your way for but if you're like me and will check out anything you can walk and explore, then feel free to kick it's tires. Just keep your expectations on the lower end of the spectrum.

Today is a chilly yet beautiful day for a walk. The D & H Canal Park has an easy trail to explore. The path rests next to the old canal and there's a gazebo to sit. There are benches along the trail in case anyone is interested in a picnic. Overall, The D & H Canal Park is a relaxing location.

Nice little park, rich history and great views! Visited during winter so the museum and store wasn't open but I'll be back in the spring with a packed lunch & hiking boots for further exploration!