At Palisade Avenue, the Long Path comes down a flight of steps, turns right, then turns left at the corner and climbs another set of steps. Right beside it is where the yellow-blazed Dyckman Hill Trail used to start down the face of the Palisades to the Englewood Boat Basin. Across the river you can see the Henry Hudson Bridge over the Harlem River, Inwood Hill Park, and the Cloisters.
That trail is closed. So is Dyckman Hill Road, the Englewood Cliffs park entrance at Parkway Exit 1. It has been closed to vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians since Hurricane Ida damaged it in 2021. Five years on, the borough's link to its own riverfront runs one way. The clifftop starts at the edge of town. To get to the shoreline below, you go out to one end of the park and come back along the water.
Two Entrances, Neither in Town
The Palisades Interstate Park now sends visitors to two places instead. Englewood Picnic Area is reached through the Edgewater park entrance, and Undercliff Picnic Area through Exit 2. The Edgewater entrance is on the Edgewater–Fort Lee border, at the southern start of Henry Hudson Drive. Exit 2 is the Alpine park entrance on Route 9W, joined to the Drive by Alpine Approach Road, which is about 1.25 miles long. Henry Hudson Drive runs eight miles between those two entrances. Any trip to the shore below Englewood Cliffs now uses part of that eight miles.
The calendar matters too. From May through November, the Drive is open to motor vehicles and bicycles. From December through April, the stretch from Dyckman Hill Road north to Alpine Approach Road is closed to motor vehicles.
The boat basin is an independently operated public marina next to Englewood Picnic Area. When the Drive closes north of Dyckman Hill in December, Englewood Picnic Area can still be reached from the Edgewater end. Undercliff loses its car access until spring.
The Stretch of Park You Can Walk to From Home
Up on the clifftop, nothing is closed. Section 1 of the Long Path runs north from the George Washington Bridge, and the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference's guide to it, updated in March 2026, follows the cliff edge straight through Englewood Cliffs. Mile markers from the Trail Conference's guide:
- Mile 2.95, Allison Park. The trail follows the iron fence around the park to its entrance. The park was developed by the trustees of the estate of William O. Allison, who was born and spent his life nearby. It has paved walkways, benches, lawns, and seasonal restrooms and drinking fountains.
- Mile 3.65, Palisade Avenue. These are the steps where the old Dyckman Hill Trail splits off, with the Cloisters across the river.
- Mile 4.30, High Tom. Where the Long Path turns left, an unmarked trail straight ahead goes out to the High Tom promontory and its views up the river.
- Mile 4.80, Rockefeller Lookout. Soon after comes Clinton Point, a short walk to the right, which the guide calls one of the best viewpoints on the route. After another stream crossing, the trail reaches the Greenbrook Sanctuary fence.
Drivers can also stop at Rockefeller Lookout. It is a pull-off at 400 feet, about a mile north of Parkway Exit 1, reachable only from the northbound Parkway. It faces Spuyten Duyvil, is open 24 hours, and has no restrooms or other facilities. Allison Park has restrooms, and they close from November through April, although the grounds stay open all year. Park areas are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. If you come by bus, the closest stop to Allison Park is Route 9W, also called Sylvan Avenue, at Charlotte Place, on the Rockland Coaches No. 9 line.
Once the restrooms close in November, the walk is the same but has fewer facilities along it. Of all the borough's access to the Palisades, the October stretch of the Long Path is the most complete.
What the Repair Schedule Says So Far
On March 5, 2026, the Palisades Interstate Park Commission posted an update. After several years of engineering assessments and coordination with FEMA and State of New Jersey officials, it said, it had secured the funding to go ahead with repairs. The commission said construction was not expected to affect the upcoming season and was planned to begin "next winter," in two phases.
- Phase one stabilizes and repairs Dyckman Hill Road. It is the phase that reopens the Englewood Cliffs entrance at Exit 1.
- Phase two is a wider restoration of Henry Hudson Drive from Edgewater to Alpine, including drainage improvements, road rehabilitation, and repairs to the eastern parapet walls.
The commission said it would share updates once construction dates are confirmed. The update gives no dollar figure, no contractor and no length of construction. It also does not say how phase two will affect the Drive, the boat basin or Undercliff. The order of the work is clear, though. The entrance at Palisade Avenue comes back first. The restoration of the Drive itself, the road residents have relied on since 2021, comes after. Until the commission posts confirmed dates, "next winter" is the only timing on record.
Another closure is still in place a little farther north. The Giant Stairs are closed to all use from Peanut Leap Cascade to Forest View after a slide. In a statement dated June 4, 2026, the commission said it was still assessing the hazards and gave no reopening date.
The Fall Calendar Along the Top
Most of this season's scheduled events are on the clifftop or at the ends of the park, which matches how access works right now. In date order:
- Saturday, October 3. The Palisades Parks Conservancy's Half Marathon and 6K, rescheduled to this date, start and finish at Ross Dock Picnic Area at 9 a.m. The same day, "Revolutionary Seeds," a public art installation and participatory program, runs on the grounds of Fort Lee Historic Park from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Sunday, October 4. Visitors Day at Greenbrook Sanctuary on Green Brook Road in Tenafly is an open house for nonmembers, with guided short walks and talks from noon to 3 p.m. RSVP is requested.
- Sunday, October 11. A History Hike at Greenbrook runs from 10 a.m. to noon, about three miles on moderate trails. The park commission's calendar says nonmembers may attend but should arrive on time because the gate closes at 10.
- October 17 and 18. The Autumn Art Festival is at Fort Lee Historic Park, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. The visitor center there is closed for maintenance through October 9.
- Sunday, October 25. The ninth annual Englewood Cliffs 5K and Fun Run is at Witte Field, 39 Johnson Avenue. The Fun Run starts at 8:30 a.m. and the 5K at 9 a.m. on borough streets.
- Sunday, November 1. The Hallowe'en Hike with "Eeric" Nelsen and Mrs. Kearney's crew meets at Kearney House at 4 p.m. It covers about three miles.
- November 7 and 8. Beaver Moon Fest is a market at State Line Lookout, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Lookout kitchen closes at 4:30 p.m. daily. Because of staff shortages, the park asks visitors to call 201-750-0465 to confirm it is open.
Back on the borough's own streets, public works lists leaf pickup from mid-October through the end of November. North-side pickup is Monday and Tuesday, and south-side is Thursday and Friday. The park's dates follow a similar pattern. Metered parking at Englewood Picnic Area ends October 31, Allison Park's restrooms close in November, and on December 1, Henry Hudson Drive closes to cars north of Dyckman Hill Road.
At The Luberto Group , we keep track of practical Bergen County details like the Dyckman Hill timetable, because they shape day-to-day life in a town as much as any listing does. If you'd like to talk through what the Palisades repairs could mean for your part of Englewood Cliffs, Contact Us. We'll share what we know and update you as the park commission confirms dates.