Strict new regulations at Blue Hole
ALBANY – Because of the increased popularity of the Blue Hole and Peekamoose Valley recreation area in the Town of Denning, the state Department of Environmental Conservation has implemented emergency regulations.
Those new rules are designed to increase public safety and reduce impacts to the environment of the popular swimming area on Rondout Creek in the Sundown Wild Forest.
Popularity of the Blue Hope, a large, deep and very cold swimming hole in Rondout Creek, just upstream of the camping area, grew like gangbusters in the summer of 2015 resulting in rampant human waste, refuse, fires, broken glass and an overwhelming of parking areas that spilled out along Peekamoose Road.
DEC Acting Commissioner Basil Seggos said implementation of the emergency regulations for the property “is necessary for the preservation of public health, safety and general welfare of both users of the property and nearby residents.”
The emergency regs will restrict hours that the area is open to one half hour before sunrise to one half hour after sunset; will require the use of a portable restroom facilities for human waste disposal and a dumpster for all other waste; will prohibit camping, all fires including charcoal and wood fires, gas grills, propane stoves or other portable stoves, and the use of portable generators at the Blue Hole. They will also limit parking to designated areas and prohibit glass containers, radios and other audio devices.
The emergency regulations, which began on May 25, will be in effect for 90 days.
