Above: Early morning at Colgate Lake by Elaine Warfield. This photo was entered in the 2016 Catskills Outdoor Guide Photo Contest.
Saturday, May 7 is "I Love My Park Day" in New York state, and state and local parks across the Catskills region are celebrating by inviting volunteers outside to help clean up and get ready for the summer season.
In the Greene County town of Jewett, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is hosting a cleanup event at Colgate Lake, where the spectacular beauty and primitive campsites have been attracting trash in recent years.
Volunteers, who are asked to bring shovels, rakes, clippers and gloves, will help clean the authorized campsites, break down a few unauthorized ones and improve trails around the lake from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., according to a DEC press release.
"This is the first year DEC has participated in "I Love My Park Day," said DEC Regional Director Keith Goertz in the press statement. “Colgate Lake is a tremendously popular area where people can hike, camp, boat, view wildlife, hunt and fish for trout."
Sign up for the clean-up by clicking here.
Mine Kill State Park in Schoharie County is also hosting a cleanup event on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., where volunteers will clean up trails and trash on the trails around breathtaking Mine Kill Falls. Register by clicking here.
At the Maurice D. Hinchey Catskill Interpretive Center in the Ulster County hamlet of Mount Tremper, volunteers can celebrate I Love My Park Day by planting trees, installing riparian vegetation, removing invasive species and maintaining trails. The event begins at 9 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m. Register by clicking here.
