Visited July 1, 2022

Parking:  I used Google Maps to get me headed toward Waterman Conservation Education Center, Hilton Road, Apalachin, NY.  The map would have had me turning right off of Route 434 to get onto Hilton Road if I had actually gone to the Center.  (Its website looked lovely, by the way, but we were visiting family and they wanted to show us this trail.)  Shortly before we would have turned right onto HIlton Road, we pulled into a gravel "pull off area" to the left of Route 434.

On the website for the Waterman Center, they post the address for the trail as: 

Apalachin Marsh, 5400 Route 434, Apalachin, NY

Directions: Apalachin Marsh is located between the east and west-bound lanes of Route 17. Access to the site is from Route 434, about one-half mile west of Hilton Road. Turn right and walk through the opening in the fence under Route 17.

65 degrees 2:50-2:50 PM

No bathrooms at the trail

There is no admission fee 

Trails are open dawn to dusk.

No signage disallowing dogs.

The trail is clearly marked.  I remember seeing where the blue and yellow markers indicated the trail junction, but looking at the map, I now realize that I did not pay close enough attention to tell if I stayed on the yellow or turned on to part of the blue.  I do know I did a counter-clockwise loop and that we walked 1 mile.  (In my defense, I was with family and a very sweet three-year-old who reminded me of the joys of balancing on fallen logs and who enjoyed the nature scavenger hunt her mom had printed off the internet for her.)

Most of the trail was single file but there were areas that widened to allow two people side by side.  

I would not recommend a stroller for this trail.  There were two downed trees.  One was easy to step over.  (I included a photo.)  The other was huge and quite a scramble was required to get over as we could see no clear way around.  I did not get any photos of this tree without including my travel mates and I am trying to respect their privacy.  

This trail had a variety of plants and trees.  It was level (except the climb over the fallen tree).  This was a very enjoyable place to explore for ages 3 to 51.  The tunnel at the beginning is a great place to enjoy shouting and making noise before entering the sanctuary of the trees.

There was a bird blind that appears to be well placed but it is in disrepair and a sign said it was closed.

The trail has a natural surface and a few sections of wooden "bridges".  I always recommend long pants.  The signs recommend water proof boots but we had a dry summer so regular shoes worked for everyone.  I wore my usual waterproof hiking boots.

There is poison ivy at the trail edge.

We did not see any other people on the trail.  We did meet a person and dog entering the trail as we left.

I did not see any trash except at the parking area.

The mosquitos were not bothering me with my long pants and hat.

Parking: Gravel lot with room for 5+ vehicles depending on how they park.

I heard many birds and we saw a very large bird at a distance across the marsh.  It may have been an osprey but we had not packed the binoculars. Of the four-legged creatures, I saw a chipmunk.  There were mosses, ferns, mushrooms/fungi, goldenrod, aster, poke weed, teasel, multiflora rose, cat tails, burdock, Virginia creeper, poison ivy, and a variety of tree species including shagbark hickory, cherry, oak, pine, and maple.

Trail Map:

https://www.watermancenter.org/_files/ugd/81a2e5_a871d15ad89740b1a85f340b996aa66d.pdf

Nearby: 

https://www.watermancenter.org/