New York State Route 296

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NY Route 296

Length:

7.90 mi^[1] (12.71 km)

South end:

NY 23A west of Hunter

North end:

NY 23 in Hensonville

Counties:

Greene

New York State Routes
< NY 295		NY 297 >

New York State Route 296 is a short state highway located entirely within both the Catskill Park and Greene County. It connects NY 23A at its southern end, near Hunter with NY 23 at the Windham hamlet of Hensonville.

Despite its brevity, it offers plenty of scenery to the driver as it climbs up from the Schoharie Creek valley and descends again into the Batavia Kill watershed.

1 Route description
2 Communities along the route
3 Major intersections
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Route description

From the oblique angle at which it intersects Route 23A, 296 climbs almost immediately past tiny Hunter Airport, offering a view of the rarely-climbed north side of Rusk Mountain, one of the Catskill High Peaks, as it does. After a couple of miles it levels off through a mix of woods and fields.

In this section, views of the Blackhead Range, the rooster-comb signature of the northern Catskills, begin to offer themselves to the northeast. The offices of Black Dome Press, a small publisher of local-interest books which takes its name from the highest of the three peaks, are located along the highway. The only intersecting road of note is Greene County Route 23C, which leads back through East Jewett to 23A at Tannersville.

A mild descent takes the road to a junction with Barnum Road, which leads steeply up to the trailhead at the west end of the Blackheads and a common starting point for hikers trying Thomas Cole Mountain. Bicyclists also favor 296 due to its relatively light automotive traffic, scenery and challenging hills.

After Barnum, the road squeezes past Van Loan Hill and begins to descend more sharply, making several large switchbacks into Big Hollow. Windham High Peak, the northernmost Catskill High Peak, can be seen through the trees at some points across the valley. Upon reaching the bottom, the road passes through the tiny hamlet of Maplecrest, crosses the Batavia Kill and turns northwest to Hensonville, where it ends at 23.