Four-Mile Point Preserve is a Scenic Hudson property on the Hudson River in the Town of Coxsackie, and it has enough going for it on paper - preserved shoreline, a trail network, a quieter approach than a busy ramp - that we can see why it shows up in paddling recommendations for Greene County. It also has something most of those recommendations do not spell out clearly: a meaningful carry from the parking area to the water.
The carry question
Paddling recommendations for Four-Mile Point often mention Hudson River access without making the carry distance explicit. Our desk research points to a walk with your gear from the parking area to the put-in that is real enough to matter when you are loading a kayak. This is not a park-next-to-the-ramp situation.
The practical implication is that Four-Mile Point requires more planning than a developed launch: you need to think about carry logistics, boat weight, and whether the math works for your party before you commit to the drive out. A loaded solo kayak is different from an empty rec boat, and a large tandem canoe is different again.
We currently label the Four-Mile Point guide with experienced skill level and Low confidence. The Low confidence exists specifically because the put-in access - the exact carry, the launch surface, and whether the access is practical at different tide stages - has not been confirmed in person.
The river still applies
A long carry does not change the water you end up on. Four-Mile Point is tidal Hudson River: tide, current, wind, and boat traffic all shape the day, the same as they do at any other Hudson launch in Greene County. A significant carry plus open tidal water is part of what earns this spot the experienced skill level and the "scout or launch" note on the Paddle Greene map.
If you are looking for a more developed Hudson River launch to plan around while this one gets field-reviewed, the Coxsackie Riverside Park launch guide is the nearest field-visited option. The Hudson River guide covers conditions and safety planning that apply across all local Hudson launches.
What a field visit would confirm
When we or a reliable community contributor gets out to Four-Mile Point, the specific things worth pinning down are:
- The carry distance and surface from the parking area to the water
- Whether the put-in is a beach, a rocky shore, a muddy bank, or something else
- How the access looks and feels at different tide stages
- Whether the surrounding area and put-in logistics are realistic for a day trip
- How the Hudson conditions at this stretch compare to the more developed launches nearby
Until that happens, we are treating Four-Mile Point as scout or launch content: worth knowing about, worth researching, but not yet verified enough to send someone there with confidence.
Help us get there faster
If you have accessed Four-Mile Point by water, scouted the carry on foot, or have recent firsthand information about the access, any detail would help us move the guide from Low-confidence desk research to something more reliable. You can send an update. Even a short note about the parking area or the carry distance from the lot to the shore is useful. The current desk-researched write-up is in the Four-Mile Point Preserve guide.