Platte Clove Information and Photography


Location Information: Platte Clove is a wild, untamed, stupendous mountain pass that is breathtaking to behold from roadside and from the trails along its rim, but dangerous if you attempt to descend into its depths. In Hiking the Catskills, Lee McAllister describes the clove as one of the most rugged areas in the eastern United States. An article written in Harper's New Monthly Magazine in 1883, entitled "The Catskills," states: "the cloves are many, and I think that known as Platterkill is the wildest and most picturesque, but only hardy walkers should attempt its ascent. Eighteen waterfalls may be counted in a walk up this clove. There are many precipices and vertical heights. most of the main waterfalls are formed on the Plattekill. Plattekill is divided into two distinct sections: the upper and the lower. In the upper, waterfalls are tall, the terrain is more chiseled, and the side walls are nearly vertical. In the clove's lower, or bottom section, the stream has become more placid and the terrain less formidable, with a number of waterfalls, but none greater in 25 feet in height. (Source: Catskill Region Waterfall Guide by Russell Dunn)

About the Photographs: I took the above pictures on 2 hikes I made on consecutive days. I parked the car at the bottom of Platte Clove Rd along the 6 foot fence. The early part of the trail is very easy and one can reach 4 or 5 waterfalls within an easy 30 minute walk. The waterfalls range in size from 3 feet to nearly 20 feet. After this flat section, the mountainous ravine closes in and it becomes very difficult at parts. The boulders are tremendous and there are many. The last photo in the series above is a waterfall about 40 to 50 feet in height. It took me nearly 1.5 hours to get to this point- which is only 1.5 miles. I did take some breaks to take photos. I used my GPS receiver to get waypoints and distance to the Devils Kitchen parking area which is located on upper portion of Platte Clove Road. According to my GPS receiver I made it to within .2 miles of where the parking area is located. The parking area is another 400 feet up and at sections the ravine becomes nearly vertical. There is a waterfall that can be seen from Devils Kitchen that may measure taller than Plattekill Falls (80 feet). At this time I do not know the name of this waterfall. The hike was amazing and it is somewhat like hiking in Utah. My trip took place before all the heavy Fall rain of 2005 so the creek was a bit sluggish. Photo 16- Waterfall height well over 45 feet- GPS: 42.130796, -74.082598 <see Google Satellite Image>



Related Catskills Links on this Website: Catskill Park Index Page Catskill Park Photography Portfolio Ashley Falls Bastion Falls Becker Hollow Devils Kitchen Diamond Notch Falls Hunter Mountain Fire Tower Kaaterskill Falls Mount Utsayantha Platte Clove (lower section) Platte Clove Preserve Plattekill Falls Spruceton Trail Red Falls New York State Waterfalls GPS Catskill Park Weather Catskill Park News Catskill 360: Devils Kitchen 360 Hunter Mountain Fire Tower 360 Kaaterskill Falls Trail 360 Mount Utsayantha 360 #1 Mount Utsayantha 360 #2 Newmans Ledge 360 Plattekill Falls 360 #1 Plattekill Falls 360 #2 Plattekill Falls (video) Spruceton Trail 360 Purchase Catskills Photographic Prints: Devils Kitchen, NY Related Web Links: (links will open in new window) http://www.mths.org/landmarks/platte_clove.html CatskillSearch.com- Plattekill Falls	Your browser does not support inline frames or is currently configured not to display inline frames.


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