Panther Mountain (Catskills)

Panther Mountain is one of the Catskill 3500 high peaks, and is located in the Slide Mountain Wilderness. It sits at 3,720 ft. elevation. It is among the most travelled of the high peaks, and considered by some to be one of the best hikes in the area.

Popular Routes

By far, the most common approach to hike Panther Mountain would be from the Giant Ledge Trailhead along route 47 in combination with Giant Ledge. This is the most direct route to Panther at only 6.3 miles with under 2,000 ft. of elevation gain, done as an out and back. The popularity of this route also comes from access to Giant ledge, with stunning views and camping opportunities only a few miles from the trailhead, and great opportunities for sunset vistas. Another approach for Panther would be from the Fox Hollow Trailhead. This route is longer at over 9 miles and almost 3,000 total ft. of elevation gain, and does not pass through Giant Ledge, but instead approaches form the North. Panther is sometimes added to a Woodland Valley Loop to further extend the hike, which includes the Burroughs Range.

Summit and Views

The Summit is mostly wooded with a partial view between a clearing of trees. Nearby the summit there are various boulders and viewpoints, one slightly to the north of the summit on the trail, and a few to the south. These views are all dwarfed by the views from Giant Ledge, which offers about a dozen different ledges and rocky outcroppings with panoramic views of the Woodland Valley and Burroughs Range. The summit itself has no marker or canister and often causes confusion for hikers without a GPS to confirm where the summit is.

Water

When approaching from the Giant Ledge Trailhead, hikers will immediately cross water which is a smaller, feeder branch to the Esopus Creek. There is also a spring along this approach which can be somewhat unreliable or difficult to extract water from depending on the season. Similarly, form the northern approach, hikers will start along the Fox Hollow Creek which will provide immediate access to water. There is a spring and small creek along the Fox Hollow Lean-to, but there is not much more to speak of along this route. The summit itself has no water, as with most of the other high peaks in the Catskills.

Camping

The rules for camping are the same as for the rest of the Catskill Wilderness, meaning no camping above 3,500 ft. elevation (except in the winter), and no camping within 150 ft. of a trail, water source, or lean-to shelter (unless marked with camping discs). Giant Ledge has over a dozen designated campsites, though because of the popularity of the site, many who camp here do so illegally at non designated sites, either because of lack of available sites, ignorance, or confusing no camping markers with camp here markers. Ticketing by rangers is common in the area. Approaching from Fox Hollow, hikers will have access to the Fox Hollow Lean-to which has a small spring and creek nearby.

Meteor Impact Site

It is widely believed that the larger Panther Mountain is actually the site of a meteorite impact millions of years ago. This discovery started when examination of the map and GPS imagery around the mountain showed creeks surrounding the mountain on all sides, which is atypical and sometimes a signal of an impact crater. The crater is thought to be 7 miles in diameter.