Driving instructions:   

This route includes the following airports (or fields): Freehold; Greenville-Rainbow; Westerlo; Heldeberg; Duanesburg; Middleburgh; Middleburgh soccer fields; South Kortright Fields; Maben Airport; Cave Mountain Airstrip; Hunter Mountain Airport; Private Landing Strip near Lane Park; Fields near Brooksburg; Point Lookout Gap; Clem’s Airstrip; back to Freehold. 

Note:  For private airports, contact the owner before visiting. 

From Freehold Center:

1.  Greenville Rainbow Airport 1H4 -- public (west side of golf course).

From Freehold Center:

a. North on 32 4 miles to Greenville – stop light

b. Turn right (east), go 1 mi (take the left Y up the hill on Rte 26, one mile to Rainbow Golf Course.  Airport is on west side, you must walk thru the golf course to get there.

Owner:  Walt Birmann – find him in the office of the golf course.

2. Westerlo Airport (private) 4B5. – Rte 412 near Westerlo

            From Greenville Rainbow:

a.  Go back (west) 1 mi. to Rte 32 at traffic light in Greeville. Turn right on 32.

b. Go 6.5 mi. north on 32 to intersection of 142, with sign for Westerlo.  Turn left on 142 toward Westerlo.

c. Go west on 142 about 3.5 miles to Westerlo.  As you approach Westerlo, the S. end of the runway is close on your right, up a hill.

d. Take first right in Westerlo (on the edge of the Hannay Reel factory; the Hannay family owns the airport), and

e.  immediate second right puts you on Rte 412 going east.  About 1 mi to airport.

3.  Heldeberg Airstrip NY81 (private) – just east of East Berne on Rte 443

From Westerlo Airport:

a.  Go back (west) on 412 to meet 143 again at the Hannay Reel factory.

b.  Turn right onto 143, going west. 2.6 miles to:

c.  Turn right on 85; 0.7 miles to

d.  Turn left on Joslyn School Road; (or, continue on 85, turn left on Rte 443),  3.5 miles to:

e.  Turn left on 443. Go about 1.5 miles ..

f.  On your left is Heldeberg Marble and Slate (they own the airport). 

g. Just beyond Heldeberg Marble and Slate is the airport, on the right, probably marked by a couple of antique tractors and a dark-red firetruck.  If you find yourself in downtown East Berne, you’ve gone a little too far.

Owner:  Paul Giebitz (Sr. and Junior); Heldeberg Marble and Slate

4.  Duanesburg Airport 4B1 (public) – 12 mi, 25 minutes

(According to Yahoo)

Start on THACHER PARK RD  0.4

Turn Left on WARNERS LAKE RD  0.9

Continue on KNOX CAVE RD  7.3

Turn Right on WEST WIND RD  0.8

Bear Left on BOZENKILL RD  0.2

Continue on CROW HILL RD/CROW HL  0.7

Turn Right on SCHOHARIE TPKE 0.3

Turn Left on WEAVER RD  1.0

Turn Right on DUANESBURG RD  0.8

5.  Middleburgh, NY (no airport here) – approx 18 miles

Get on I-88 at Duanesburg (this probably requires going east from the Duanesburg airport).

Get off at the next exit, exit 23, and follow signs for 30 south (Middleburgh)

Follow 30 south till you see hints of a junction with Rte 145 and Middleburgh

Stop on shoulder on right.  There are farm fields there, and about 2500 west, a big blue silo.  There is a field here that had only low vegetation all last summer, but approach toward the west is over trees.

6.  Middleburgh soccer fields – about 4 mi sw of Middleburgh

Proceed SW on 30, passing the intersection of 145, where a left turn would take you across the river to Middleburgh.  Go about 4 miles, watching for ..

Soccer fields on your left.   Enter the soccer fields.  Note the NW-facing cliff across the river.

7.  South Kortright via Stamford  (NYS Airport Directory says Grace’s Landing Strip, a private airport, is at S. Kortright; there’s no airstrip there, but there are fields)

a. From soccer fields: proceed S on Rte 30 about 10 mi just past North Blenheim to intersection of County Road 2 (North Road).

b. Turn right onto County Rd 2 for 2.2 miles, to intersection with Blenheim Road / County Road 12 (Road names are from Mapquest, I don’t guarantee them) for 4.5 miles.

c.  Turn slight left onto CR-10.  You should reach Stamford in about 4 miles.

d.  Continue on CR-10 through Stamford to the SW.  – 8.5 mi.

(Middleburgh – Stamford: 24.61 miles, 49 minutes)

(Stamford – S. Kortright 8.5 mi, 16 minutes)

e.  Possible adjustment to hit Grace’s Landing Strip with GPS (go west a coupla miles?)

f.  There is no landing strip here – but the valley has a large flat floor and many enormous flat fields.

8.  Maben Airport (public) (SE of Prattsville)

a.  From S. Kortright, go back to Stamford 8.5 mi to intersection with NY 23.

b.  Turn right on NY 23 12.7 mi to Prattsville.

(S. Kortright – Stamford: 8.5 mi, 16 min; Stamford – Prattsville: 12.7 mi, 23 minutes)

(Note: as you approach Prattsville, you have been passing the SW edge of the Schoharie Reservoir, the long wiggly one you see from the air).

c.  At the south end of Prattsville, take 23A to the South (DO NOT take the left turn onto 23.) Go approx 1.5 miles; sideroad ‘Airport Road’ comes in from the left.

d.  Turn left on ‘Airport Road’ (Delorme says it’s CR 23C),  climb the hill about 1 mi, Maben Airport is very close and visible on your right.

9. ‘Cave Mountain Airport’ (according to Delorme). (Not listed in the NYS Airport Directory)

a.  From Maben Airport, go right (east) on the road you arrived on, about 6 mi Beaches Corners and the intersection with Cramer Road on left.

b.  Turn left on Cramer Road.  Watch carefully the houses on the right (east).  The airstrip runs along behind the houses toward the north (far) end of Cramer Road.

c.  You will ‘T’ into an intersection of CR 14.  Take a right turn and stop.

d.  ‘Cave Mountain Airport’s North end is visible on your right.

10.  Hunter Mountain Airport.

a.  From ‘Cave Mountain Airport’ proceed east on CR 14 approx. 1 mi to intersection with NY 296.

b.  Turn right onto 296.  You are going S toward Hunter Mountain Ski Area. Go approximately 2-3 miles and look VERY VERY CAREFULLY on your left for a dirt road, with a well-kept but very small sign that says “Hunter Mountain Airport”.

c.  Left on Hunter Mountain Airport Road, go about ½ mile to the runway.

11.  Dennis Hitchcock’s Private Airstrip, and Clarence D. Lane Park.

a.  From Hunter Mountain Airport: go back to NY 296

b.  Turn right (north) on NY 296.  Go about 6 mi to Hensonville. 

c. You go right on CR 40, Maplecrest Road, about 2 miles.

d.  Take the left at the intersection.  Go about 1.5 miles.  On your left is Clarence D. Lane Park, with a lake with a dam on the SW side.  Dennis Hitchcock’s private airstrip runs from the road NE to the foot of the dam, at the NW end of the dam.  It goes through a cut in the trees.

12.  Fields just SE of 23 near Brooksburg.

a.  Go back west from Clarence D. Lane Park.  After 1.2 miles,

make sure you …

b.  turn right in Maplecrest, so you are now going west, back along the road you came on (CR-40, headed west, not south).

c.  after another 2 miles, you are in Hensonville.  Take CR 65 to the right.

d.  There are fields on the left and right.  These fields dip down bowl-like, but there aren’t many other fields around, so take a close look at these.

13.  The East Windham/Point Lookout Gap.

a.  From the fields in the valley on CR 65: continue north on CR 65.  About ½ mile gets you to the intersection of NY 23 in Brooksburg.  (If you turned left, NY 23 would take you through Windham, NY, and back to Prattsville (see item 8 above).  [You should drive the Brooksburg/Prattsville stretch some time, to look over the fields along the river valley.]

b.  Turn right (NE) on NY 23.  Go about 4 miles.  Watch carefully for fields (there aren’t any), wires (there are lots), width of the roadbed, obstacles on the side of the road and whether the road can accommodate a 50-foot wingspan.  Note the too-too gentle slope down to the SW on NY 23 towards Windham Ski Area.

c.  Turn left into the parking lot of the Point Lookout Motel, and enjoy the vista to the north.  See if you can spot 1I5.

14.  Clem’s Airstrip (I’ve never been there, I’m winging it).

a.  From the Point Lookout parking lot:

b.  Turn left (east) on NY 23. Go about 13 miles to the traffic light, marked for Ross Ruland road.

c.  Turn left (north) on Ross Ruland road, go about 1000 feet, wiggle left on 23b, wiggle right on .. Ross Ruland road again.

d.  Take next right, Garcia Lane.

15.  Back to Freehold Airport, 8 miles.

Other Airports you should visit:  South Albany, Wayne Delp, Kingston, Strip-in-the-Woods (I haven’t looked for it seriously).

Other airports I’ve seen or sorta seen from the air:  Mohawk Valley, Esperance/Hogan (private blacktop + turf), Sharon, Cooperstown; Ellensville.

Distances