Massive straight trunks of very tall old trees in a rich forest

Old-Growth Forest

Green Lakes State Park has some of the oldest forest in Central New York. The State Parks blog says the New York Natural Heritage Program maps roughly 130 acres of the park as old growth, with trees from 100 to nearly 400 years old. The best-known stand is the Tuliptree Cathedral, south-west of Round Lake, where a tuliptree measured 147 feet tall in 2011. The orange-marked Old Growth Trail, 2.9 miles on the NYS Parks map, is the way in.

At a Glance

The Old Growth at a Glance

Mapped old growthAbout 130 acres (NY Natural Heritage Program, via State Parks)

Landmark forestAbout 20 acres beside Round Lake

Tree ages100 to nearly 400 years

Tallest measuredA 147-foot tuliptree (2011)

WhereTuliptree Cathedral, south-west of Round Lake

Forest typeMaple-basswood rich mesic forest

TrailOld Growth Trail, orange, 2.9 miles

SpeciesTuliptree, bitternut hickory, sugar maple, hemlock, basswood

What "Old Growth" Means Here

The National Natural Landmark at Round Lake is described as including about 20 acres of "virgin mesophytic forest." The State Parks blog is careful about that word: "virgin" usually means a forest that has never been cut, which is not quite true here, but this forest has had very little cutting over the past few centuries. "Mesophytic" means plants of rich, moist, well-drained soil. The Natural Heritage Program classes it as a maple-basswood rich mesic forest and, in 2018, named it, together with the park's meromictic lakes, a natural community of statewide significance.

The Tuliptree Cathedral

South-west of Round Lake is the stand the State Parks blog calls the Tuliptree Cathedral, a name it got after detailed surveys of the old growth in 2001 and 2002. The tallest trees here are tuliptrees, along with bitternut hickory, sugar maple, hemlock and basswood. The largest tree measured in the stand was a 147-foot tuliptree in 2011.

The Old Growth Trail

The Old Growth Trail is marked orange and runs 2.9 miles on the NYS Parks trail map (December 2025). It starts near the west side of Green Lake, runs past the north side of Round Lake and the Rolling Hills Camping Area, then heads south toward the golf course maintenance area, where it meets the Powerline Trail. A short Old Growth Connector (0.3 mile) links it to the Green Lake area near the Pine Woods Camping Area. Unlike the lake trails, the map does not mark it foot only.

Expect more climbing than on the lake trail. The park sits on steep glacial slopes, and the trail leaves the lakes for the upland. Leaves and roots make it slick after rain.

How to Visit the Old Growth

Shortest look: walk the Round Lake Trail (0.9 mile). The landmark forest comes right down to the lake.
Longer walk: follow the Old Growth Trail from Green Lake, then come back by the lakes. See the trail map for the junctions.
Best season: late spring, when wildflowers cover the forest floor before the canopy fills in, and October, when the maples turn.

Look, Don't Touch

These trees and the soil they grow in are the reason for the landmark. Stay on the trail, leave plants and fungi where they are, and keep dogs on a leash of 6 feet or less. NYS Parks runs self-guided fungi walks along part of the lake trail in October; check the park's events page.

Good For

Hikers who have done the lake loop and want something longer.
Tree lovers and photographers. Overcast days are easier for photos under a tall canopy.

Maybe Skip If

You need a flat, short walk. Stay on the Green Lake Trail.