Site #18 Platte Clove

Introduction by 2016 Cole Fellow Casey Monroe

Distinguished by its steep cliffs and deep ravines, Platte Clove drew the attentive eyes of artists Thomas Cole and Asher B. Durand. In the summer of 1840 Cole wrote to his friend and famed poet, William Cullen Bryant, imploring him to visit “the delicate morsel.” One 19th century tourist, Lucy Lillie, remarked that Platte Clove’s untrammeled wilderness may go another fifty years before succumbing “to the imperious claims of man.” Today, over 150 years later, Platte Clove remains a pristine wilderness area preserved by the Catskill Center since 1975. The Clove’s many lofty cliffs, carved by rushing torrents from melting glaciers, have earned this immediate area such foreboding names as “Devil’s Kitchen” and “Hell’s Hole.” As such, we ask that visitors please take the utmost care in navigating the terrain around Platte Clove.

This site was prepared for New York State Water Resources Institute and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Hudson River Estuary Program, with support from the NYS Environmental Protection Fund

Plan Your Trip

Contact
Visit their Website
845-586-2611

Admissions
Free 

Parking
Free Lot 
More parking available at Huckleberry Point Trail head parking lot.

Restroom
No

Accessibility
Somewhat Accessible 
Meets few ADA standards and has significant barriers. Most visitors with disabilities will need assistance

Hours
Open all seasons 
Sunrise to Sunset

Distance: 0.1 miles 
Elevation gain: 35 ft 
Hike time: 5 minutes

Map & Directions

Driving Directions: We recommend Google Map . Site coordinates: 42.133094 Lat., -74.085437 Long.

Photography / Painting Credits

Asher B. Durand, The Catskills, 1859, Oil on canvas, 62 1/2 in x 50 1/2 in. The Walters Art Museum.

Asher B. Durand, A Sycamore Tree, Plaaterkill Clove, c.1858, Oil on canvas, c.1858, 24 in x 17 1/2 in. Yale University Art Gallery, 1929.152.

Casey Monroe, Platte Clove, 2016, oil on canvas. Thomas Cole National Historic Site.