Not even halfway in, this year has been an especially significant one for the Catskill Center and Catskill Park as we greatly benefit from historic levels of funding that Senator Michelle Hinchey helped secure in this year’s state budget. Thanks to her advocacy, it’s the first time the Catskill Park occupies the same funding line as the Adirondack Park. Plus, there’s a new stream of funding just for the Catskill Center and our friends at Catskill Mountainkeeper to expand our Steward Programs.

Catskill Center Executive Jeff Senterman and some of the Center’s stewards joined together for Senator Hinchey’s June 14 press conference during which she celebrated the funding lines. The $100,000 she secured for Catskill Park Stewardship helped the Catskill Center double the number of and strategically place stewards in the high-use areas they are needed most. We now have stewards working at the Peekamoose Blue Hole and Kaaterskill Falls full-time, seven days a week. At Platte Clove, we have a Steward working extended weekend hours. In addition, we have a full-time Ridgerunner hiking the trails in the backcountry of the Catskill Park.

Overall, our Stewards have greeted more than 141,000 visitors to the Catskill Park; 82,000 of which visited Kaaterskill Clove alone since the program began there in 2019. They have removed more than 580 bags (or about 11,600 pounds of trash); removed nearly 500 rock stacks; helped visitors avoid nearly 1,000 parking citations; and greeted more than 2,900 dogs.

We look forward to building on this model of collaborative success as we work with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation at our steward locations to welcome visitors and educate them on how to responsibly recreate. Only through this education and the coordination of park resources can we find a way to sustainably manage the Park’s increasing use, while protecting its natural resources and ensuring residents' quality of life isn’t negatively impacted. Funding for our Stewards Program will help us achieve this. The next step is to advance Senator Hinchey’s bill to create the position of Catskill Park Coordinator in the next legislative session (see previous blog post). The health of the Catskill Park and our economy depend on it.