Hook Mountain State Park, together with the adjacent Nyack Beach, Rockland Lake and Haverstraw Beach State Parks, is one of my go-to local recreation spots. The Mountain itself is about 700 feet tall and part of the Palisades, a string of cliffs along the western shore of the Hudson River that begin further south in New Jersey.
In the past I have used it more as a spot to launch my kayak into the Hudson or to ride my bike but this year I decided to spend more time hiking there instead, as a way to improve my endurance and overall fitness — sort of a challenge to step it up a bit.
