On any given day in the center of the hamlet of Wallkill
you’re apt to find young mothers with children gathered on the ample grounds of
the public library, which also serve as a large shady playground for the
kindergarten set. Wallkill is one of the few small towns in the area which
offer play spaces inside the town proper and five-star outdoor recreation
activities on its immediate outskirts.
The Wallkill Rail Trail and the Wallkill River Walk
are just two examples of fresh-air diversions on hand for residents of this
town of about 2,500 bordering the Ulster side of the Ulster/Orange county line.
A gateway to the rural pleasures of the Shawangunk Mountains, Wallkill attracts
fly fishermen, rock climbers, kayakers, hikers and backpackers who come to
enjoy the simple pastimes offered by the Wallkill River and the Shawangunk
Ridge, whose cliffs form the western edge of the Appalachian valley.
