New York trails · Duck Hole Via Preston Ponds Trail

Duck Hole Via Preston Ponds Trail

A 4.6-mile out-and-back in New York, with 604 ft of climbing. Reaches Hunter Pond and other lake destinations.

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Length

4.6 mi

Elevation gain

604 ft

Difficulty

Moderate

Max grade

23%

Steepest mile

+362 ft

Tread at ≥10% grade

0.9 mi

Shape

out-and-back

Surface

Ground

Bikes

Horses

Elevation profile

The climbing leans toward the middle third: 49% of the ascent falls between mile 1.5 and mile 3.1. It gives back about 446 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.

3-D terrain

USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5

Reaches

Hunter Pond (lake)
Lower Pond (lake)
Preston Ponds (lake)
Duck Hole (lake)

Heads up

Stream ford: expect at least one unbridged crossing.

Terrain graded T2 (SAC scale).

Daylight at the trailhead

On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:40 a.m., the sun rises at 7:09 a.m. and sets at 6:14 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 6:43 p.m. (EDT) — 11 h 05 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 9.2-mile round trip takes roughly 4 h 01 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 11:10 a.m. — 7 h 04 min before sunset.