Best Catskills motorcycle rides

Route 23A drops from Haines Falls to Palenville through Kaaterskill Clove, a run of switchbacks past Kaaterskill Falls, the highest cascading waterfall in New York. It is the signature Catskills ride: tight, steep, and walled in rock. Take it early, before the day-trip traffic builds.

Route 214 threads Stony Clove Notch between Phoenicia and Hunter, a narrow pass near 2,220 feet with the slopes rising straight off both shoulders. It runs past the Devil’s Tombstone campground and ties directly into Route 23A, so most riders take the two as one loop.

Platte Clove Road climbs one of the steepest paved grades in the Catskills, with hairpins and long drop-offs on the east side. The road is seasonal and closes through winter, roughly mid-November to mid-April. Save it for a dry day and ride it slow. It earns the caution.

Route 28A loops the Ashokan Reservoir in open sweepers with long water-and-mountain views, an easy counterpoint to the clove roads. The paved Ashokan Rail Trail runs alongside for a stretch of the legs at the stop. It is the ride the chapter points newer members toward first.

Route 28 is the Catskills’ main artery, running from Kingston up through Mount Tremper and Phoenicia toward Belleayre. It flows fast and wide, feeds into both cloves, and Phoenicia makes an easy group stop for fuel and food. Good, forgiving miles for a first chapter ride.

Put Route 23A and Route 214 together and you get the loop the Woodstock chapter runs most, past the Devil’s Tombstone campground. From Woodstock it climbs both cloves and circles Hunter and Phoenicia before dropping home. It is the classic Catskills day ride, and better with a group.