New York trails · Pole Hill Pond Trail
Pole Hill Pond Trail
A 5.8-mile network in New York, with 1,159 ft of climbing. Reaches Pole Hill Pond and other lake/summit/viewpoint destinations. Managed by the state.
Elevation profile
The climbing leans toward the first third: 48% of the ascent falls between mile 0.0 and mile 1.9. It gives back about 1,419 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Pole Hill Pond (lake)
- Pole Hill (summit)
- Bear Knob (viewpoint)
- Walnut Ridge (viewpoint)
Getting there
Pole Hill Pond Trail access — parking nearby. About 1 h 03 min drive (43 mi) from Saratoga Springs. 43.61451, -73.62221 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:38 a.m., the sun rises at 7:07 a.m. and sets at 6:13 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 6:42 p.m. (EDT) — 11 h 06 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 5.8-mile route takes roughly 2 h 43 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 9:49 a.m. — 8 h 23 min before sunset.
Loop options
- Unnamed trail + Bear Knob trail (yellow) + Pole Hill Pond Trail — 1.3 mi loop, 428 ft gain
- Pole Hill Pond Trail + Pole Pond Loop Cutoff — 4.1 mi loop, 1,048 ft gain
- Pole Hill Pond Trail + Pole Pond Loop Cutoff — 5.1 mi loop, 1,087 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Tongue Mountain Range Trail — 4.7 mi
- Short Swing Trail — 17.9 mi
- Elk Lake To Dix Mountain Trail — 29.8 mi
- Elk Lake To Marcy Trail — 29.8 mi