Memorial Day marks the start of the busy season in the Catskills. Local Main Streets rouse themselves from their spring slumbers and get ready for the summer tourist season with parties, parades, sales, events, shows and festivals.
This year's Memorial Day weekend is extra special. For the first time, the vast Pepacton, Neversink and Schoharie Reservoirs will be open to the public for recreational boating, joining a boating program that has been running on the Cannonsville Reservoir for several years. Four of New York City's six west-of-Hudson reservoirs now allow boating from Memorial Day through Columbus Day weekend.
To help you get out on the water smoothly, we've prepared a special boating section that maps the new access points, lists the new outfitters and guides cropping up around the region, and explains the rules and regulations. We also put a spotlight on a new route that is now open for the first time: A roughly 30-mile paddle from the headwaters of the East Branch of the Delaware River all the way down to the foot of the Pepacton Dam.
It's also a big summer for another favorite Catskills pastime: Cycling. Our meandering highways and rolling hills are catnip for bikers, and there are a few new events this Memorial Day weekend to celebrate them, including the inaugural Tour de Pepacton. We offer a quick guide in our biking section.
We also have a list of Memorial Day parades happening throughout the Catskills, and a special guide to Memorial Day weekend events.
Whether you spend the weekend out on the water, rolling along on a sun-dappled Catskills road, or on Main Street watching the parade go by, have a glorious weekend.
