Things to Do in Beacon

East Fishkill Golf Center's 26-acre, multisport facility awakens the sportsmanship of every visitor regardless of age or athletic prowess. The grounds cater to ball-strikers of all stripes, whether protecting the strike zone in 1 of the 11 batting-cage stalls, avoiding the waterfalls and elevation changes on the 19-hole miniature-golf course, or aiming for displaced UFOs on the 35-stall lighted driving range. A 12,000-square-foot indoor facility carpeted with astroturf houses a regulation softball infield complete with pitching mounds and a spectator viewing area.

A lifelong rider, instructor Patricia Hohmann spent years competing in high school and college and brings that experience to her students when teaching English- and Western-style riding lessons. She specializes in working with beginner adults and children and helps them get confident in the saddle while having fun and staying safe. This means pairing riders with horses that are friendly, sane, and thereby incapable of plotting world domination. Saddle captains as young as age 3 learn during Pony Pals lessons, which give them a private introduction to horseback riding while the horse remains safely under Patricia’s control via a lead line.

The staff of Pocono Segway Tours leads groups of up to 10 sightseers on segway-propelled escapades through the scenic Pocono Mountains. A battery-powered personal transporter, the segway allows recreationalists of all shapes and sizes to navigate the gyroscopic machine along wooded paths and roadways while taking in the area's picturesque vistas during guided, multimile excursions. With two locations, the company gives tours in mountainous Split Rock; in Shawnee Inn, which presents views of the Delaware Water Gap.

Spring Valley Equestrian Center has been family owned for four decades. Current owners Marie Cotton and Chuck McWhirter spearhead instruction in both English and Western horseback-riding techniques on the scenic ranch, which abuts the Appalachian Trail Ridge. A large indoor arena complements the center's three riding rings, allowing horses to gallop comfortably throughout the year and eliminating the need for them to fly south for the winter. Spring Valley’s saddle shop allows equines to suit up onsite. In addition to group and private lessons, the center hosts summer horsemanship camps that include a week of lessons and conclude with a student horse show.

The Great Divide Campground lures campers out of their tents and cabins with diversions such as fishing in an onsite private lake, swimming in a heated long-course pool, and dethawing marshmallows over crackling fires. Each of the 270 campsites adds to the natural greenery of its surroundings with a fire ring and picnic table. The campground staff peddles ice and firewood and delivers it for free, unlike pack mules that always demand tips. A private lake hosts boating and paddleboating. Other amenities include everything from a basketball court and horseshoe pits to a laundry facility, restrooms with flush toilets, and free showers.