Peekamoose Blue Hole: How to Actually Get In (Permit, Parking, and What to Bring)

Every summer, someone asks us about the impossibly blue swimming spot in our photos, and every summer the answer is the same: it's Peekamoose Blue Hole in the Catskills, it's as good as it looks, and no — you can't just show up anymore. Here's the actual how-to, from people who keep going back.

A word for what this place is

A swimming hole is a naturally formed pool in a river or creek — not a pool, not a beach, just water and rocks that nature happened to arrange perfectly. Peekamoose is the most famous one within reach of New York City, a spring-fed pool on Rondout Creek that stays bracingly cold even in a July heat wave.

Step 1: The permit (don't skip this)

From May 15 through September 15, you need a day-use permit — every day of the week, no exceptions:

$10 per vehicle, covers up to 5 people
Book online through ReserveAmerica (search "Peekamoose Blue Hole") — up to 7 days in advance, and same-day if anything's left
No walk-ins. If the site says sold out, it's sold out — nobody at the gate can help you
Summer weekends genuinely sell out, so book the moment your plans firm up

Step 2: Parking and getting there

There's one 60-car lot, and you show your permit to get in. Roadside parking is prohibited and enforced — cars along Peekamoose Road get towed. No trailers or vehicles over 20 feet.

From the parking area it's an easy walk of about 0.6 miles to the water.

Directions: from Grahamsville, take Route 55A east about 2 miles, continue onto Sundown Road for 3.3 miles, and it becomes Peekamoose Road. Coming from the Kingston side, take Route 209 to Route 42 south, then turn onto Peekamoose Road. Download offline maps before you leave — there is no cell service in the valley. None. Tell someone where you're going.

Step 3: What to bring (and what to leave home)

Water shoes — the creek bed is all rocks, and the entry is slippery
Drinking water and snacks — there's nothing to buy for miles
No glass containers (rangers do check), and everything you carry in, you carry out
A towel you don't mind sitting on stone with, and a dry layer — the water is COLD, gorgeous-day-in-July cold
It's day-use only: half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset, and there are no lifeguards — kids need real supervision here

Our honest tips

Go on a weekday if you possibly can. Go early — the light on the water mid-morning is the postcard version, and the lot pressure is lower. And the 0.6-mile walk filters the crowd just enough that even on a busy day, the water itself stays worth it.

My nephew Aaron's review, after his first jump in — straight from Florida, where "cold water" means the AC is on: one full-body flinch, a yell that echoed off the rocks, and then he refused to get out for the rest of the afternoon. That's the Blue Hole experience in one sentence.

What's your swimming hole — the one you'd almost rather not tell people about? Tell me in the comments (or don't — I get it), and subscribe for more Hudson Valley summer guides.

Tags: Peekamoose Blue Hole, swimming holes, Catskills, Hudson Valley summer, day trips from NYC, permits, cross-cultural life, miguktv

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