Places to relax in

* Cherry Plain State Park, located 19 miles southeast of Grafton and seven miles north of Stephentown, just off Route 22. It is on Black River Pond, which was dammed in the 1930s and has 176 acres of hiking trails, campsites, picnic facilities, boating, fishing, hunting and, in some places, swimming.

* Grafton Lakes State Park, located on the forested mountain plateau between the Taconic and Hudson valleys, is 12 miles east of the city of Troy on Route 2. This popular park offers 2,357 acres of hiking, fishing, swimming, camping, biking, horseback riding, and, in the winter, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing.

There are four ponds, including the Martin-Dunham Reservoir. On Long Pond, there is 1,200 feet of sandy beach and public swimming facilities. (PP)

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