Sam's Point Preserve

The name derives from a folktale in which a noted Spanish settler named Samuel Gunsalus, pursued by Indians, jumped off the cliff to avoid capture and miraculously survived the drop with the trees breaking his fall, around the time of the French and Indian War.From Niagara to Montauk: The Scenic Pleasures of New York State by C. R. Roseberry SUNY Press:1981 {{ISBN|0873954963}} pg 225 Roads throughout the preserve were built as fire roads in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

The land was once owned by the nearby village of Ellenville to protect its watershed and partly by a company which offered tours of the ice caves. The Open Space Institute, working with The Nature Conservancy bought it with assistance from the Lila Acheson and Dewitt Wallace Fund for the Hudson Highlands, after the village considered selling the land to developers.

In 2005, the Preserve opened the Sam’s Point Conservation Center with education facilities, exhibits and a gift shop. A parking fee of $10 per vehicle is charged.

Management of the preserve was transferred to the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the Palisades Interstate Park Commission in April 2015, after having been managed by The Nature Conservancy since 1996. The preserve is currently managed as part of Minnewaska State Park Preserve.{{cite web |url=http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/newyork/places-preserves/eastern-sams-point-preserve.xml |title=Sam's Point Preserve |website=Nature.org |publisher=The Nature Conservancy |access-date=February 6, 2016}}

File:Smoke from 2016 Sam's Point wildfire over Shawangunks.jpg

In late April 2016, a fire of unknown origin burned {{convert|2028|acre|km2}} of the park and nearby woodlands. Emanating from the Verkeederkill Falls trail the fire quickly spread northwest across the plateau as well as adjacent terrains. Containing the fire required nearly a week of effort from over 300 responders from local and state agencies; no structural damage and only minor injuries were reported.{{cite web |url=http://www.recordonline.com/news/20160430/human-activity-in-gunks-questioned-in-wake-of-sams-point-fire |title=Human activity in 'Gunks questioned in wake of Sam's Point fire |newspaper=Time Herald-Record |date=April 30, 2016 |author1=Loviza, Amanda |author2=Nani, James |access-date=January 13, 2017}} Although much of Minnewaska State Park reopened soon after the blaze,{{cite web |url=http://www.dailyfreeman.com/general-news/20160430/minnewaska-reopens-a-week-after-sams-point-blaze |title=Minnewaska reopens a week after Sam's Point blaze |newspaper=Daily Freeman |date=April 30, 2016 |author= |access-date=January 13, 2017}} the Sam's Point section remained completely closed until Memorial Day weekend; at that time, only selected trails at Sam's Point were re-opened to the public to prevent the introduction of invasive species to the recovering landscape.{{cite web |url=https://nysparksnaturetimes.com/2016/08/02/rebirth-after-fire/ |title=Rebirth After Fire |website=Nature Times |publisher=NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation |date=August 2, 2016 |access-date=January 13, 2017}}

As a historically fire-adapted ecosystem, much of the vegetation at Sam's Point responded positively in the wake of the fire. However, an abundance of fuel due to reduced fire frequency in recent years led to an intense, fast-moving blaze that did not completely burn through accumulated debris, which may inhibit the regeneration of the park's pitch pine.{{cite web |url=https://palisadesparksconservancy.org/newsDetail.php?news_id=54 |title= Sam's Point Ecosystem Begins Slow Recovery After Wildfire |publisher=Palisades Parks Conservancy |date=June 23, 2016 |access-date=January 13, 2017}}

The Ellenville Fault Ice Caves is the largest known open fault in the United States with corresponding ice caves. As a result of the cool microclimate, ice is present throughout the year and more northern plants such as black spruce, hemlock, mountain ash, and creeping snowberry, and bryophytes such as Isopterygium distichaceum are able to survive.[http://training.fws.gov/library/pubs5/web_link/text/skr_form.htm Significant Habitats and Habitat Complexes of the New York Bight Watershed: Shawangunk - Kittatinny Ridge] It was designated a National Natural Landmark in November 1967.{{cite web |url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nnlandmarks/site.htm?Site=ELFA-NY |title=Ellenville Fault-Ice Caves |website=National Natural Landmarks |publisher=U.S. National Park Service |access-date=January 13, 2017}}

There are hiking trails to the ice caves which are open in the summer, but a permit is required to visit the area.{{cite web |last1=Hendler |first1=David |title=The Ellenville Fault Ice Caves – A National Natural Landmark |url=https://nystateparks.blog/2018/07/31/the-ellenville-fault-ice-caves-a-national-natural-landmark/ |website=New York State Parks Blog |access-date=17 August 2019 |date=31 July 2018}}

The Long Path long-distance hiking trail crosses it, eventually reaching VerKeerderkill Falls. A branch leads to Sam's Point (with a view of land for many miles, sometimes as far as High Point in New Jersey), and another to the ice caves, with solar powered lights. Visitors who want to get to Sam's Point have to go through Cragsmoor.

Image:SamsAccessRoad.JPG|Looking down the access road, just under the Point

Image:SamsFireRoad.JPG|A portion of the CCC fire road

Image:Hiking_to_Ice_Caves.jpg|Hiking to the Ice Caves

Image:SamsViewSE.JPG|View from the Point, looking to the southeast

Image:SamsIceCavesTrail.JPG|Along the trail to the Ice Caves

File:Inside the Sam's Point Ice Caves.jpg|Ice inside the Ice Caves as seen in June 2018

File:Verkeerderkill Falls.jpg|Verkeerderkill Falls

File:Abandoned cabin at Sam's Point Preserve.jpg|Abandoned berry picker cabin

• List of National Natural Landmarks in New York

{{reflist}}

• [http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/newyork/preserves/art12207.html Nature Conservancy page]
• [http://www.osiny.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Shawangunks_Sams_Point Open Space Institute page]
• [http://www.nynjtc.org/park/sams-point-preserve=Sam's Point Preserve - Sam's Point Dwarf Pine Ridge Preserve Trail Details and Info]
• [http://www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/newyork/files/samspointguide.pdf Trail Map to Ice Caves]
• [https://www.openspaceinstitute.org/news/sams-point-ice-caves-re-opened-to-public Sam's Point Ice Caves Re-opened to the Public]

{{Protected areas of New York}}

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Category:Protected areas of Ulster County, New York

Category:Shawangunks

Category:Wawarsing, New York

Category:Nature reserves in New York (state)

Category:Nature centers in New York (state)

Category:Nature Conservancy preserves in New York (state)

Category:National Natural Landmarks in New York (state)

Category:Show caves in the United States

Category:Ice caves

Category:Civilian Conservation Corps in New York (state)

Category:Caves of New York (state)

Category:Landforms of Ulster County, New York