By Charles Shack, Senior Reporter

FABIUS, N.Y.. Forty-five minutes south of downtown Syracuse, the road climbs into a 2,759-acre stretch of reforested hilltop that locals long ago nicknamed the “Adirondacks of Central New York.”

Highland Forest, the oldest county park in Onondaga County, was carved out of abandoned hill-country farmland during the Great Depression. Today it spans more than six square miles in the towns of Fabius and Spafford, with terrain that ranges from roughly 1,550 to 1,900 feet in elevation. Its high point is Arab Hill at 1,946 feet, the named summit at the center of the park and the highest ground in the Onondaga County park system.

For a park this size, it remains under-the-radar. Admission is $2 per vehicle. The Skyline Lodge sits at the top of the hill with a panoramic view of southern Onondaga County. On a winter weekend the parking lot fills with cross-country skiers, snowshoers and families queuing up for horse-drawn sleigh rides. The park reported about 35,000 visitors a year by 1939 and roughly 100,000 a year by 2000.

By The Numbers

How It Got Here: A Depression-Era Reforestation Project

The land that became Highland Forest was first cleared for farming around 1795. By the late 1920s most of those hill farms had been abandoned. In 1929, the New York State Legislature passed a law offering counties money to reforest abandoned farmland. Two foresters, Nelson C. Brown and F. Franklin Moon, convinced Onondaga County to take the offer.

Beginning in 1930, the county started buying up the failed farms around Fabius. By the end of the decade Onondaga County had assembled roughly 2,000 acres and planted close to 2 million trees on the property, a scale of public reforestation rarely matched in Central New York since. The plantings included white pine, red pine, cedar, spruce, larch and mixed hardwoods.

The park has grown beyond that original footprint. Today it covers 2,759 acres, more than six square miles of conifers, hardwoods and meadow. During World War II, Syracuse China used the property as a test site for ceramic land mines, an unusual footnote in the park’s history.

The Trail System: 20-Plus Miles, Year-Round

Highland Forest publishes more than 20 miles of mapped, year-round trails. The Onondaga County Parks system describes it as offering trails for hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

The signature route is the Main Trail, a popular 8.7-mile loop with about 1,213 feet of cumulative elevation gain, according to AllTrails data. A separate four-mile Arab Hill Loop circles the named summit. Other named trails include the Tom Brown Trail, the Otter Trail and a self-guided Nature Trail recommended for first-time visitors. Free paper maps are available at the Skyline Lodge. Hiking and snowshoeing trails are marked with square blazes; biking and skiing routes use diamonds.

More than four miles of the North Country National Scenic Trail run directly through the park. That same corridor doubles as the Onondaga Trail, a 39.9-mile branch of the Finger Lakes Trail System. From inside Highland Forest, a long-distance hiker can step onto a footpath that ultimately connects the Finger Lakes to the Adirondacks.

Trail Network at a Glance

The Skyline Lodge

The 10,000-square-foot Skyline Lodge opened in late 2003 after a roughly $2.5 million construction project. It sits on the highest ground in the park and replaced an earlier 1932 community house that had itself been converted from one of the original Fabius-area farmhouses.

Inside, a soaring ceiling and stone fireplace anchor the main hall. The full lodge can host up to 160 guests. For smaller events, the building splits into the Limestone Room (capacity 80) and the Kenyon Hollow Room (capacity 50). Whole-lodge reservations may be made up to two years out, while individual rooms are available up to six months in advance, according to Onondaga County Parks. White Linen Hospitality is the lodge’s official caterer for weddings and private events.

The lodge is also the warming hut for skiers. During peak winter weekends it offers food service and is the pickup point for trail maps and rental gear.

Winter: The Park’s Best Season

Highland Forest is one of Central New York’s premier Nordic skiing destinations. The county began developing the cross-country trail system in 1976, and by 1989 it was ranked the second-best Nordic skiing area in New York State. Today the park grooms roughly 20 miles of track-set trail open to all skill levels, plus skate-ski loops, all monitored in part by the volunteer Highland Forest Nordic Ski Patrol.

Day-pass pricing is straightforward: a $10 cross-country ski day pass for adults and $5 for children 15 and under, with $30 adult and $20 child season passes. Snowshoeing is available across the broader trail network, and rentals are on-site.

The park also runs 20-minute horse-drawn sleigh rides through the snowy woods, with reservations required. When the snow is light, the same operator (CNY Carriage Co.) shifts to wagon rides on the same routes. Other winter features include a sledding hill described in park materials as roughly 300 feet long.

Winter Pricing

Summer: Mountain Biking, Horseback Riding, Picnics

In the warmer months the same trail network shifts to a different rotation of users. The park is a long-standing favorite of the Central New York mountain biking community, with a mix of double-track and singletrack, including the well-regarded blue-rated singletrack near Apache Hill, according to Trailforks and Singletracks listings. The Onondaga Cycling Club, a Syracuse-area 501(c)(3) founded in 1972, maintains rides through the park.

Outfitters lead horseback riding trips through the summer, and the equestrian system has its own permit process administered by Onondaga County Parks. Group cabin rentals start around $29 and run up to roughly $140 for youth-group camping, with tenting areas also available, per the parks department.

Annual Programs

Two long-running events anchor the calendar. “Forest to Flapjacks,” held during maple-sugaring season, pairs a horse-drawn wagon ride with a pancake breakfast cooked by the Apulia Volunteer Fire Department and a live maple sugaring demonstration by park staff. The 2026 edition runs across multiple weekends in March. “Valentine’s in the Forest” brings sleigh rides and a winter dinner to the lodge in February, per Eagle News Online’s coverage of past events.

The park also operates a small Pioneer Museum covering the regional history of the area. Originally built in the 1950s by park forester Ray Benson, the museum was renovated and reopened in 1990 with about 5,000 catalogued items. The Fabius Historical Society took over operations in 2006. It is typically open on weekends from June through August.

If You Go

Why It Matters

Highland Forest is the kind of asset that quietly explains a place. It is the oldest park in the county system, the highest, the largest, and arguably the most varied. It is also a public legacy of one of the more ambitious land-use programs Central New York ever attempted, when 2 million trees went into the ground on land most farmers had walked away from.

For $2 a vehicle, that history sits open to anyone willing to drive 45 minutes south of Syracuse on a Saturday morning.

Sources: Onondaga County Parks, Wikipedia (Highland Forest), CNY Hiking, AllTrails, Trailforks, Singletracks, VisitSyracuse, Go Finger Lakes, Eagle News Online, Onondaga Cycling Club, MapCarta, Fabius Historical Society.

Related on CNY Signal: Beaver Lake Nature Center, Old Forge, the Adirondack gateway, and every Central New York town we cover.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Highland Forest park?

Highland Forest is forty-five minutes south of downtown Syracuse, spanning more than six square miles in the towns of Fabius and Spafford. Its terrain ranges from roughly 1,550 to 1,900 feet in elevation. The high point is Arab Hill at 1,946 feet, the named summit at the center of the park and the highest ground in the Onondaga County park system.

How was Highland Forest created?

After the New York State Legislature passed a 1929 law offering counties money to reforest abandoned farmland, foresters Nelson C. Brown and F. Franklin Moon convinced Onondaga County to take the offer. Beginning in 1930, the county bought up failed hill farms around Fabius. By the end of the decade Onondaga County had assembled roughly 2,000 acres and planted close to 2 million trees, including white pine, red pine, cedar, spruce, larch and mixed hardwoods.

How many trail miles does Highland Forest have?

Highland Forest publishes more than 20 miles of mapped, year-round trails. The signature route is the Main Trail, a popular 8.7-mile loop with about 1,213 feet of cumulative elevation gain. A separate four-mile Arab Hill Loop circles the named summit. More than four miles of the North Country National Scenic Trail run directly through the park, doubling as part of the 39.9-mile Onondaga Trail.

What is the Skyline Lodge?

The 10,000-square-foot Skyline Lodge opened in late 2003 after a roughly $2.5 million construction project. It sits on the highest ground in the park and replaced an earlier 1932 community house. The full lodge can host up to 160 guests, splitting into the 80-person Limestone Room and the 50-person Kenyon Hollow Room. White Linen Hospitality is the lodge’s official caterer.

How much does it cost to visit Highland Forest?

Admission is $2 per vehicle. The park reported about 35,000 visitors a year by 1939 and roughly 100,000 a year by 2000. On a winter weekend the parking lot fills with cross-country skiers, snowshoers and families queuing up for horse-drawn sleigh rides. Hiking and snowshoeing trails are marked with square blazes; biking and skiing routes use diamonds.