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The Copake Falls Area of Taconic State Park is a state park located in Copake, a town in Columbia County, New York. The park is one of two subdivisions of the main park, the other being the Rudd Pond Area. This section of Taconic State Park is located on New York State Route 344, and offers several different attractions for the visitors. The park is open all around the year, with hours of sunrise to sunset and can change due to weather. The park hosts a campground, which is only open from May to December, and a cabin area, which is open year-round, with access to nearby skiing areas.
Attractions
The Copake Falls Area of the park services several different attractions. These include a beach for swimming, a wading pool, cabins, camping sites, hiking trails, the Iron Works Museum, a visitor center, picnic tables, scenic overlooks, snowmobiling trails, waterfalls, biking trails, playground equipment, fishing and hunting, a pavilion for parties and picnicking, and winter activities such as cross-country skiing.
The primary swimming site is a 40-foot-deep (12 m) flooded ore pit on the western side of the park. The hamlet of Copake Falls (formerly Copake Iron Works), just outside the park, was an iron mining and smelting center during the 19th century and several smaller ore pits dot the vicinity. A portion of the former New York Central Railroad right-of-way that runs through Copake Falls has been converted into a paved bike path that winds through forest and farmland south of the town.