Lake Awosting is the largest and most remote of the four glittering "sky lakes" strung along the quartz-white cliffs of the Shawangunk Ridge in Minnewaska State Park Preserve, high above the Hudson Valley near Kerhonkson, New York. A sky lake is fed almost entirely by rainwater rather than streams, and Awosting is the purest example in the park: the water is startlingly clear and clean, a deep blue-green held in a basin of white conglomerate ledges and pitch pine. At roughly a mile and an eighth long, about three times the size of nearby Lake Minnewaska, it is big enough to feel like wilderness, and its designated swimming beach ranks among the most beautiful in the state.

Earning it is central to the experience. There is no parking at the lake itself; you reach the beach only on foot or by bicycle along the preserve's wide, nearly level carriage roads, a trip of roughly three to five miles each way from the main parking areas off Route 44/55. The most direct route follows the Upper Awosting Carriage Road, while many visitors make a longer loop that also passes Lake Minnewaska and Awosting Falls, a graceful sixty-foot cascade near the park entrance. Bring water, food and sun protection, because there are no concessions at the lake and the white rock throws back a lot of light.

Swimming is allowed only at the designated beach and only during the summer season, typically mid-June through Labor Day, with staffed hours around 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; outside those dates and hours, or anywhere off the beach, swimming is not permitted, so it is worth checking the park's current schedule before making the long walk in. The reward is a cliff-rimmed swimming hole that feels a world away from the crowds: cool, crystalline water and sun-warmed slabs of white rock to stretch out on.

The setting is what sets Awosting apart. The same Shawangunk conglomerate that draws rock climbers from around the world rings the lake in pale cliffs, and miles of carriage roads and cliff-top footpaths spider out from the shore toward overlooks like Castle Point and the Hamilton Point cliffs, so the swim can be the centerpiece of a big day of hiking or riding. Sections of the carriage roads occasionally close for restoration, which can lengthen the approach, and the preserve charges a per-vehicle entry fee at the gate and enforces a carry-in, carry-out policy. For clear mountain water, white cliffs and a genuine sense of effort and reward, Lake Awosting is one of the finest swimming destinations in the Northeast.