For Release: Friday, September 9, 2005
DEC to Hold the Second Annual Lark in the Park this October
100 Outdoor and Indoor Catskill Park Adventures To Be Offered
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Acting Commissioner Denise M. Sheehan today announced that the "Lark in the Park," inaugurated in 2004 to honor the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Catskill Park, will be held again this fall. The 2005 "Lark in the Park" will be held from October 1-10, 2005, and offers "10 days and 100 ways" to enjoy the Catskill Forest Preserve and Catskill communities.
"Last year's Lark was a wonderful time for individuals, families and friends to learn more about the beautiful and historic Catskill Park," Commissioner Sheehan said. "I am thrilled that we will be working with our partners to showcase the Catskills again this year and I encourage everyone to participate in one or more of the great activities planned."
In 2004, Governor George E. Pataki commemorated the 100th Anniversary of creation of the Catskill Park with a proclamation, land acquisition, and a multi-day celebration of the Park's history and heritage. Including last year's announcement, since 1995 the DEC has preserved more than 3,700 acres within the Catskill Park to add to lands protected in the State Forest Preserve. This is in addition to other lands preserved or in the process of being preserved by other agencies, through state and local partnerships and collaborations with community groups.
This year's 10-day Lark in the Park celebration will celebrate these achievements and the Catskills' importance by featuring more than 100 outdoor adventures and indoor cultural and environmental events throughout Delaware, Greene, Sullivan and Ulster counties and includes free guided hikes, walks, biking, canoeing, kayaking, and fly fishing events, festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, studio tours and craft shows.
This year, several organizations are teaming with DEC in sponsoring the Lark in the Park. They include The Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, the Catskill Mountain Foundation, the Catskill Mountain Club and the Catskill Crafts Collective. Additionally, many other environmental, hiking, historical and cultural organizations are participating in the Lark by sponsoring individual events. They include the Catskill 3500 Club, Adirondack Mountain Club, Frost Valley YMCA, Catskill Park Trail Coalition and Catskill Heritage Alliance.
The roster of walks and hikes has something for everyone from easy to moderate walks including: a hike to Huggins Lake in Delaware County, a hike through the lush land of the former Lundy Estate in Warwarsing, a walk through the Andes Cemetery with its "Coffin Man" headstones, and a sunset walk around Onteora Lake in the Blue Mountain Wild Forest near Kingston.
"Catskill Fire Tower Day" on Sunday, October 9 will feature hikes to all five of the recently restored historic fire towers on Red Hill and Overlook, Tremper, Hunter and Balsam Lake Mountains. There will be hikes of several of the Catskill high peaks including West Kill Mountain, Indian Head, Belleayre and 4,180-foot Slide Mt., the highest in the range. "Extreme" hikers can challenge themselves on a bushwhack up Halcott Mountain and a "triple header" over Van Wyck, Table and Peekamoose Mountains.
Easy paddles can be enjoyed on Lake Wawaka and Big Pond in Delaware County, and a free lesson in the basics of fly-fishing is being offered by The Catskill Center at Pine Hill Lake. Tours of the DEC Fish Hatchery offer the opportunity to see where the Catskills' famed trout get their start. Three biking tours range from eight miles to a 100-mile strenuous ride through the hilly heart of the Catskill Park.
The many fall and harvest festivals going on during the Lark each celebrate a unique piece of Catskill Park history and heritage. The Third Annual Cauliflower Festival in Margaretville commemorates the days when that vegetable was the reigning cash crop in the region. The Fourth Annual Catskill Mountain Ginseng Festival, a salute to the highest quality wild ginseng in North America, offers an expanded menu of workshops and demonstrations this year that include many herbal medicines. Belleayre Mountain will host its 26th Annual Fall Festival and Craft Fair at the DEC-operated ski center where chairlift rides will offer panoramic views of the brilliantly colored autumn countryside.
This year the Lark in the Park incorporates the "Colors and Crafts Festival" sponsored by the Catskill Mountain Crafts Collective in former years. A host of artists and crafters will open their studios for tours and sales of their work which ranges from sculptural and functional pieces of pottery to unique furniture, jewelry, hand-woven shawls, table linens and tapestries. People can watch a glass-blowing demonstration at Sweetwater Glass in Delancey, and watch hand-dyeing and weaving at the studio of Rita Schwab in Mount Tremper.
The "Catskill Park Photo Scavenger Hunt" provides an impetus to explore every corner of the Catskill Park in search of "photo ops" as well as prizes. Persons interested in participating should send an e-mail to info@catskillmountainclub.org before September 23.
The Catskill Park was created by an act of the New York State Legislature and signed into law by Governor Benjamin Odell on April 4, 1904. The Park's 705,500 acres is a combination of both public and private lands in Delaware, Greene, Sullivan and Ulster Counties. The State's Catskill Forest Preserve comprises 41 percent of the Catskill Park, containing more than 300,000 acres of pristine land protected as "forever wild" in New York's Constitution. Within the Park's boundaries are the scenic landscapes that inspired the rise of the first exclusively American art movement, the Hudson River School, and the waterways that gave birth to fly fishing in America.
For a free program guide with a complete listing of all "Lark in the Park" events, call (877) 426-0323, e-mail CatskillLark@aol.com, or view the program at www.catskillpark100.org
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