Johnsontown Road, Sloatsburg
Click Here for Park Map

Directions:  Route 17 to Seven Lakes Drive. Make a left on Johnsontown Road.  Parking is at end of Johnsontown Rd. Enter Kakiat Trail located off of Johnsontown Road.

Description:  350 Acres - The Park, which is located in the New York/New Jersey Highlands, is heavily wooded with steep inclines and rocky slopes and consists of a number of mountaintops and valleys, crossed by several small streams.  Orange and Rockland transmission line traverses the Park.  A view of the Village of Tuxedo, The New York State Thruway, and Orange County may be seen from the high elevations, some rising 940 feet above sea level.  The Park contains eight federally designated wetlands.

History:  Dater Mountain Nature Park has many local family histories.  The Munsee Indians once inhabited the property.  It is the westerly part of the Spence Patent.  Dater crossing brought the locality into contact with Route 17 and Tuxedo.  The area was extensively logged in the later 1700's and into the 1800's; trees were burned in pits to produce charcoal for the smelting of iron ore.  Many of these pits can be found throughout the property.  The land was acquired in two phases.  In 1981, 150 acres was obtained through tax delinquency.  Phase 2 included the acquisition 235.5 acres of land in 2004 as part of Rockland County's Open Space Acquisition Program.

Present Use:  Hiking, Nature and Geologic Study

Future Plans:  Construct a parking area off Johnsontown Road and create a trail system connecting trail to State Park.

Wildlife:  Endangered Northern Cricket Frog and the Allegheny Woodrat, Timber Rattlesnake.  Common to the area are White-tailed Deer, Red and Gray Fox, Woodchuck, Porcupine, Raccoon,  Weasels, Mink, Squirrel, Chipmunk, and Opossum.  There are more than 41 species of birds including a large number of Hawks and Turkey Vultures.

Rest Rooms:  No      Handicapped Accessible:  No