We like going hiking as a family, and have recently been exploring some of the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy preserves. The Bennett Hill Preserve is one of their more popular preserves, located in Feura Bush, NY.
The hill towers over Clarksville and stands only a short distance from the base of the Helderberg Escarpment. Although the top of the hill is only 400 feet above the surrounding land, it offers striking views of the Helderbergs to the north and west, and Albany to the east.
It is easy to get there, and we had no problem locating the preserve using Google Maps.
There is a decent size parking lot here, but if it is full, there is a sign advising you to try another trail. The lot was actually overflowing on our last attempt, so we went to Keleher Preserve instead, which was a wonderful hike only a few miles away.
There is also a trailhead with information. However, when we went, there was no trail map. I always save a trail map on my phone before we leave, so that I have it on me at all times.
You can check out the full trail map online here. There are a couple loops you can take, which add up to about three miles. We took the green trail, staying to the right, doing the outer trails, and finished at 2.9 miles.
The trail starts on the green trail, which hugs the side of the preserve, with views of farmland and cows.
The trails are clearly marked here, with lots of trail markers.
There were lots of logs placed along paths where the trail was prone to mud.
There is some ascent to this hike, mostly along the green trail as we approached the yellow trail.
We saw the bathtub spring that we had heard about before the hike. The water was a bit low this time of year.
I think my favorite thing about this preserve is that there are a variety of different landscapes here. Starting off on the green trail, it is flat and travels alongside farm fields, then there is an ascent from deciduous forest to a plateau of pine trees with a mossy forest floor.
At one point there was a neat grove of birch trees as well.
We saw a neat Jack in the Pulpit on our walk.
We had a lovely time at the preserve, exploring the different trails and scenery. We haven’t been doing strenuous hikes lately, and it was nice to have a little bit of an ascent on this trail. While there were some steep sections, I still consider this a kid-friendly hike.
Check out the Bennett Hill Preserve on the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy page:
https://mohawkhudson.org/our-preserves/bennett-hill-preserve/
Check out our other local hikes:
This looks like a really fun trail to go on. It really looks so relaxing.
What a great place to explore with the family. We love going on hikes at places like this!
Love it! Everything looks so green. This is my kind of place. I could gather my thoughts here.
The last two pictures are so beautiful! As always, you’re inspiring me to go for a walk. 🙂
This looks like an incredible place to go and visit – what beautiful views to have just an inspiring place to walk.
This looks like an awesome place for a fun hike/walk with the family. Thank you for sharing.
What a lovely area. I’ve never seen Jack-in-the-Pulpit. It doesn’t grow in our area.
Sounds like a great place to hike. Thanks for sharing!
This is such a beautiful spot for a hike! Now is the perfect time of year for a family hike. Thanks for sharing this gem.
We actually went here last year! It was such a wonderful experience.
Those mushrooms look amazing. Do you have black bears in your area? We do here so I’m not sure if I’ll have the guts to hike. LOL.
This sounds like a beautiful place to hike. I’d love to visit this spot some day.
My kids are to young for a hike but this looks like a good place to do some walks and to be reconnected to the nature again.. It’s beautiful!
That looks like a really fun trail to hike. It has been too long since I have done this.
I love those birch trees! I need to get out to our favorite trail now that’s it has opened back up. I love being outside with nature.
What a lovely trail. I bet the girls had a fun time exploring Bennet Hill Preserve.
Hiking can be such a great form of exercise! Looks like there is lots of nature to explore there!
This place looks gorgeous. We love going for hikes too. We’re up in Canada on the west coast (temperate rainforest) and we have some really beautiful parks and forests to walk in.
We love hiking as a family, too. It’s so nice to get out and enjoy the fresh air, and get a little exercise at the same time. This looks like a fun hike!
What a wonderful family activity is hiking! So glad you’re able to have this experience with your children. They’ll never forget the beauty or time spent with you.
What a beautiful place to hike. The kids will enjoy the sunny skies and trees! What a wonderful activity for the whole family.
Greeneries makes a place fresh, and it seems like you and your girls had fun with the place
Oh wow. This is great! My hubby always mentioning we need to do something like this. We’re in GA so it’s definitely not difficult to find some where and hike (together as a family).
Look at the greenery…Wow this place is so beautiful.
Looks so beautiful. Love the bathtub. Great pictures!
This looks like such a great place to spend outside. I would love to take my family here and check it out.
Beautiful photos. This looks like a fun place to explore!
There are a lot of good tips here for exploring! The variety is so nice, and it is very pretty, too. There aren’t too many places around here, and with Covid, they get filled up and closed off very early, so it it good to start early, or have a “plan B” if it is filled up already!