Taconic Mountains

The Taconic Mountains are a north-south mountain range in the northeastern United States, spanning parts of eastern New York, western Massachusetts, southwestern Vermont and northwestern Connecticut. The range consists of forested ridges, escarpments and upland plateaus that contrast with adjacent river valleys.

Outdoor recreation is a common reason to visit the Taconics - there are hiking trails, forested viewpoints and state-managed natural areas and parks along the ridgeline. The landscape supports mixed hardwood forests and seasonal lookouts across its higher slopes.

Geologically the range is associated with the Taconic orogeny of the Late Ordovician, an ancient mountain-building episode that produced the folded and faulted rocks exposed along the ridges. Over subsequent geological time the range has been eroded into the current system of ridges and valleys.

Within Massachusetts the Taconic ridges form part of the western highland zone of the state and adjoin the Berkshire hills to the west and other upland systems to the north and south.

• Geographic extent: The range runs roughly north-south along parts of eastern New York, western Massachusetts, southwestern Vermont and northwestern Connecticut, forming a continuous set of forested ridges and escarpments.
• Geologic origin: The Taconic Mountains formed during the Taconic orogeny in the Ordovician and are a distinct geological belt in the northeastern United States.