For me, the most challenging aspect was wanting to understand the course mentally before I started it. But I couldn’t approach it that way. I could just clip in, one feature at a time, and think about each aspect as I came to it. My son shouted advice back to me after he completed various sections: “Mom, don’t brake on this zipline; you won’t need it.” “To remain stable on these logs, keep your standing leg straight.”
I marveled about how we were both involved in the same ropes courses, but we were each having our own experience. We would come together to share or process, then we’d resume being on our own again. I loved that we were not part of a group, waiting for every person to complete a course before the next person could begin.
Our waiting times varied, depending on who was in front of us, such as families with younger children requiring assistance from parents at each end of the elements. Most of the time, we didn’t wait at all. We could just take our time, rest whenever we liked and pick up where we left off. When we were at the trapeze spot, where you hold onto a large beam while walking across a cable, the woman in front of us decided to get down. She wasn’t in crisis; she just didn’t think that she could do that particular element. But she needed help unclipping to get down. With the marvelous staff stationed at various points around the Park, it wasn’t long before she was hoisted back down safely to the ground.
My favorite part of the course was the Green trail of ziplines back to the lodge. These long stretches of cable were relaxing to me, like a reward after doing great work. Some people find the longer spans anxiety-inducing, but I think that it’s the perfect ending to the experience. If you’ve been to Catamount Aerial Park in years past, you may be happy to know that they now have an exit zipline to the lodge for ages 10 and under.
One of my favorite parts of doing this ropes course, and the thing that makes me want to return every year for more, is seeing our son navigate the courses. The way he made decisions about how to proceed, the way he shouted advice back to me, his independence in doing some of the trails on his own: I feel like there’s really no comparable experience with all of these physical and mental challenges, and I get a center seat to watch, whether I’m up in the trees with him or I’m watching from the bench by the ice-water cooler down below.
This kid is growing up, yet where else can he exercise his own judgment and be so independent, where I can get a glimpse of it? And with so many ability levels to choose from, I see us chipping away at these courses a little bit every year, as he navigates his growing body, developing mind, collective experience. I can’t wait to come back next year.
If it were up to me, I would have stopped after completing the Yellow series. But when he asked to go on one more Green trail before leaving, I knew that we could do it. I crawled on my knees or walked on logs or cables that shook and wobbled, and it felt like any other time that I had stressed over something in my parenting was released. These were physical manifestations of challenges in my own daily life that feel more mental than physical.
Experiencing this ropes course felt freeing. It felt like looking through a window into myself, discovering abilities that I had no idea I had. It felt thrilling because, as challenging as it was, it always felt entirely safe. I left that ropes course feeling transformed, knowing that I’d be back. It just feels like an important passage to experience with our son, and eventually our daughter. I wish that everyone would head up there this fall, whether as a family, as a group of youths or adults, and try it for yourselves.
Here are a few additional details for you: The Park thoughtfully has ice water available at the main platform, so it’s easy to stop and get a drink every time you complete a course. Participants are not allowed to wear backpacks while on the ropes course, but you can hang them up on the pegs near the ice water, or you can rent a locker at the lodge before you hike up. You can also bring coolers with your own food, or take advantage of the snack bar in the lodge.
Before I did this ropes course, I had no real reference for the pricing. Now that I’ve done it and seen how much we got out of it, I think that it’s a much better value than some of the amusements that we’ve done this summer. Rich Edwards, director of marketing of Catamount Ski Area and Catamount Aerial Adventure Park, told me, “Since we are reasonably priced and considerably less than a typical guided canopy tour, our visitors are provided with a more affordable way to enjoy this great outdoor family activity.”
I feel incredibly grateful that Catamount created this park, powered by your own body. No long lines for passive carnival rides; this was a chance for me to rely on and connect with my body in an entirely new way, with new discoveries to come. I wholeheartedly agree with Edwards: “As the Northeast’s largest self-guided aerial adventure park, our 12 challenge and zipline courses provide great variety for all abilities from age 7 to adult.” I saw that entire age range out in the trees, all enjoying at their own levels.
You can experience it for yourself on weekends this fall through October 28, or organize a group of 20 or more and schedule a midweek visit in fall or spring. The park is open from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., weather permitting, and ticket sales end at 3 p.m. Admission is $51 for adults ages 12 years and older; $42 for youth ages 10 and 11 years; and $33 for children ages 7 through 9 years. Tickets are valid for three hours.
The Catamount Aerial Adventure Park is located at 2962 State Highway 23 in Hillsdale, about 55 minutes from the Kingston traffic circle. For more information, call (518) 325-3200 or visit www.catamounttrees.com.
Declan zooms through the tree canopy at Catamount Aerial Park, a ropes and zipline course set in the trees of the Catamount Ski Area.
