LOCATION
Our church property is located at 170 State Route 32N, New Paltz, NY 12561. If you are trying to find us by GPS, sometimes using 170 N Chestnut Street works better! We are less than a mile North of the village of New Paltz, 10 minutes from Rosendale, 13 minutes from Gardiner, 15 minutes from Highland, and 20 minutes from Kingston.
Scenic Beauty
New Paltz is located in the beautiful and serene Wallkill River Valley. The Wallkill River flows north to meet the Rondout Creek, and this creek flows into the Hudson River at Kingston, NY. To the west of New Paltz, about five miles, is the Shawangunk Mountain escarpment. These high cliffs beckon thousands of mountain climbers each year. Rappelling is a popular sport here. At the top of the Shawangunk Ridge is the Mohonk Mountain House, a historic hotel with phenomenal views, delightful walking trails including the labyrinth through majestic rock formations, a natural lake for swimming and boating, and gorgeous flower gardens. Related to the Mohonk Mountain House is the Mohonk Preserve which offers hikes and nature study programs. Also on the Shawangunk Mountains, about ten miles from New Paltz, is the Minnewaska State Park Preserve. It too has a mountain lake for swimming and boating, tables for picnics, and walking trails on the high cliffs overlooking the lake and environmental programs. New Paltz is also beautiful in the spring and the fall because of the apple orchards. In the spring thousands of apple trees burst into bloom and in the fall the trees are laden with red and yellow apples. Many visitors come to New Paltz to purchase apples and other fruits and vegetables grown in the area which are sold at roadside stands.
Historical Heritage
New Paltz boasts of the place that has the "oldest street in America with the original houses." New Paltz is the location where the French Huguenots settled in the latter years of the 1600s. The Huguenots were French Protestants who had fled to Germany from persecution in France and then came to settle here in New Paltz overlooking the Wallkill River. Their houses still stand, and tours are offered regularly throughout the summer by the Huguenot Historical Society.
Educational Opportunity
New Paltz is the location of the SUNY (State University of New York) New Paltz. The New Paltz campus has about 7500 students and is a rich resource of fine and performing arts in the Mid-Hudson Region of New York State. The college maintains an internet site where information on the educational programs is available. There is a map of the college and a list of current activities including concerts and recitals.
Area Connections
New Paltz is a community in Ulster County, and the county maintains a good internet site. A search option is provided under tourism to locate services in the various areas of the county. Accommodations, attractions and recreation in the New Paltz area are listed here. The City of Kingston, fifteen miles north of New Paltz, is the largest community of Ulster County and the county seat, and it maintains an internet site of that area. About fifteen miles east of New Paltz and across the Hudson River is Dutchess County and the City of Poughkeepsie. Dutchess County is known for the stately mansions of the Vanderbilts and others and the residence of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Dutchess County maintains a good internet site. Covering the entire state is the New York State internet site. All of the sites above are worth investigation.
New Paltz Websites
There are several great websites relating to New Paltz. These include the the New Paltz Chamber of Commerce, the Village of New Paltz and the Town of New Paltz.
A volunteer group continues working to develop a comprehensive and enduring website for the Community of New Paltz which features village history, business establishments, community organizations, town and village governments, and recreational opportunities.
