Peekamoose Blue Hole
Crowd level: Mixed. Go early, or pick a weekday
Best season Permit season is 15 May–15 September. Outside those dates DEC says no permit is required. The water is cold either way.
Drive About 2.5–3 hr
General guidance from Midtown. This is a long day, not a two-hour hop. Check a map the morning you go.
Parking. DEC says park only in designated lots. The town tows cars on the shoulder. Buy the permit before you arrive. It is not sold on site.
A cold pool in the Rondout Creek, inside the Catskill Forest Preserve. It got crowded enough that New York now requires a permit in summer. It is not a secret swimming hole.
Insider tips
Permit
From 15 May through 15 September, DEC lists a $10 ReserveAmerica permit, bought at least 24 hours ahead and no more than a week ahead. It is tied to a vehicle, with a 5-person maximum. Hunters and anglers with a valid license are exempt. Rules change. Read dec.ny.gov.
With a group. A summer permit covers at most five people and one vehicle. This is a poor fit for a big family reunion.
Desk note. Written by Quiet Coordinates for this launch. Not a traveler review, and not a paid mention.
Local history
The Blue Hole is a depression in the bed of Rondout Creek in Sundown Wild Forest, Town of Denning, Ulster County. The creek is part of the New York City water supply watershed. DEC created the permit after summer crowds damaged the visit.
Food nearby
A picnic you packed
There is no food at the hole, and phone service is poor. Eat before you leave the last real town. Do not count on a café.
Sports, kept small
No second-tier match is worth the detour. The outing is the walk, the swim, or the town.
Farms and stands nearby
Meat, eggs, vegetables, and dairy for a kitchen you are cooking in, at a rental or a campsite. A family farm, a farm stand, or a producer market.
Phoenicia Farmers Market
A producer market for groceries in Phoenicia, the town on the way, not a stand at the swimming hole. The site updates the vendor list each week. This page does not name a farm that might not be there on your Sunday.
Season. Sundays, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., rain or shine, at Parish Field, past the post office and near the Tanbark Trail. The homepage names an outdoor season, and the outdoor-market page states the rule as the third Sunday in May through the last Sunday in October. This desk did not find a winter indoor market on their site.
Shop in Phoenicia. Phone service at the hole is poor. SNAP and the Fresh Connect match are redeemed at the market table. Leave the spots by the field entrance for handicap parking.
Official page
Staying in Phoenicia – snapshot (lodging only)
Last checked: 2026-10-16. We recommend; you book directly. Prices are nightly, low–high by season, with a source. “From” prices depend on your dates. Items we couldn't verify are marked †.
The quiet base: Phoenicia. The lodge has hammocks on the creek. Peekamoose Blue Hole is the swim nearby, not a place with its own inn on this list.
Inns, B&Bs, farm stays, guesthouses, campgrounds
- Phoenicia Lodge, Phoenicia
- Type.
- Independent lodge and cottages
- Price (low–high).
- Booking city page "from $192.24, 1 night, 2 adults" (plat, search copy, unverified)
- Good for.
- Strong: suite for 2 adults + 3 kids, fire pit
- Book via.
- Booking found: https://www.booking.com/reviews/us/hotel/phoenicia-lodge.html ; Expedia found: https://www.expedia.com/Phoenicia-Hotels-Phoenicia-Lodge.h110982919.Hotel-Information
- Why we like it.
- Hammocks on the creek
Vacation rentals
- Phoenicia Farmhouse
- Sleeps.
- 6
- Price (low–high).
- From $365, average $385 over the next 90 days, +$275 cleaning (manager calendar, search copy) unverified
- Good for.
- Sleeps 6, trampoline
- Book via.
- Red Cottage (direct)
- Why we like it.
- Sleeps 6, trampoline
Know before you book: The lodge price is a Booking search copy and is unverified. The farmhouse price is a manager-calendar search copy and is unverified.
Some links may earn us a commission.
Classical nearby
No verified concert hall on file for this listing.
A church nearby
No lesser-known church checked for this listing.
A bath nearby
No nearby bathhouse checked for this listing.
Go there
These open a public search for stays and small-group tours. No affiliate ID is attached in this build. The desk note is not an ad.
