Hike Dover's Stone Church

Dover Stone Church has been a beautiful and popular destination in the Hudson Valley for some time, and recently the park purchased a new parcel of land and added three trails through the nearby woods. But the gem of the park is, and always will be, the impressive cave with the creek and waterfall flowing through it.

There is no designated parking lot for the park, and you definitely cannot park at the trailhead, but there are any number of options for public parking. Personally I park at the elementary school just a little bit south and across the street from the trail. The beginning of the trail is fairly easy to miss, though it does have one of the blue and gold landmark signs at the main road. Follow the dirt road between the houses and you'll come to a large sign that designates the beginning of the trail.

Head down the first set of stairs and cross the open field between two rows of trees, so that you can go back up another set of stairs. If you're doing this in winter and there's plenty of fresh snow, snow shoes can be a huge help through this area. After the stairs you'll head along the creek, pass an informational board about the history of the Dover Stone Church, and cross the stream on a well built foot bridge. This is where your time in the park becomes a choose your own adventure.

Just past the bridge is where the three new trails break off of the original path that ends at the cave, marked as Red, Yellow, and Blue. Blue is a 1.5 mile round trip up back, the most challenging of the three trails. Not difficult by any means, but a slight and steady uphill that ends with an open rock which is home to gnarly dwarf pines and farmland views. Yellow is a 1 mile loop that actually shares some length of trail with Blue. You can take Blue to the end, begin your way back, and then loop around Yellow for some extra mileage which is my personal favorite. Yellow winds through the woods and teases you with light through the trees that might open up to views but at this time none do. Red is a very level 1 mile loop that has one small look out with a view of... McDonald's. Keep in mind that these trails are new (as of July 2015) and while they are extremely well marked they're still not very worn so just keep an eye on the markers and you'll be good to go!

As nice an addition as the new trails are, the real payoff is the Stone Church itself. The stone path following the creek is beautiful enough on its own, but strolling straight into the mouth of the cave and rock hopping your way to the waterfall in the back truly a glorious experience. Watch your footing in winter obviously because ice can build up but the moving water usually keeps it to a minimum. Unfortunately in summer there's not usually enough water to swim, but the temperature difference in the cave is a refreshing change of pace. If you go during peak times be prepared to share the cave with plenty of others but it's worth waiting your turn. This short hike with an amazing payoff is a great place to bring kids and new hikers to get them truly excited about the beautiful places they can find with a little bit of effort.