Camp Smith

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Camp Smith is a training site of the New York National Guard. Camp Smith is located on 2,000 acres of property. Approximately 85 percent of this is rugged mountainous terrain with the remaining 300 acres former farmland sitting on a plateau overlooking the Hudson River. Camp Smith is in Westchester County on the border of Putnam County. It is accessed from Route 6 immediately north of the City of Peekskill, three miles south of the Bear Mountain Bridge, five miles south and across the Hudson River from West Point Military Academy.

Camp Smith remains a valuable asset for small arms weapons training and military accademy and youth training. Recently the National Guard Bureau has classified the camp as a Collective Training Area (CTA) or an official Annual Training (AT) site for Battalion sized units. Due to terrain restrictions the camp caters mainly to Light Infantry, Signal, and Maintenance units. Camp Smith is also a major testing ground in the field of simulations and high tech training.

West Point Cadets participate in Air Assault Training at one of two locations -- Camp Smith, NY and Ft. Campbell, KY. Camp Smith Air Assault School is a lock-in course. This means all students stay on Camp Smith for the duration of the school. All POVs are secured in a designated parking lot and all vehicle registration is done IAW West Point policy. The purpose of Military Individual Advanced Development (MIAD) training is to provide each West Point cadet with a motivational and confidence building experience. In addition to this primary goal, MIAD provides each cadet an opportunity to learn a usable military skill, observe the military in a training environment, and develop leadership skills.

The New York State Academy of Fire Science Annex is located at the New York State Military Reservation Camp Smith in Peekskill, NY. From this location the Office of Fire Prevention and Control is delivering many courses that were only available at the Academy of Fire Science in Montour Falls. Now, Camp Smith also houses Academy of Fire Science programs as well as many technical rescue training courses. NYS Department of State Office of Fire Prevention and Control courses in the residential training program are conducted at the Senator Frederick L. Warder Academy of Fire Science in Montour Falls, New York, and at Camp Smith in Peekskill, New York.

Pistol Team Matches are held annually at Camp Smith, New York for all Military Units in New York State. These include: The US Army National Guard, The Air National Guard, The Naval Militia and The New York Guard.

During July 1999, over one hundred inner city youths spent a week at Camp Smith, a military camp located in the mountains of Peekskill, New York. On July 7, 1999, several FBI employees volunteered as mentors and friends, explaining and stressing drug deterrence, safety, the importance of education, and how law enforcement can play a positive role in their lives. "FBI DAY" at Camp Smith has become an integral part of the COP in the New York Office.

The Camp Smith Trail traverses Anthony’s Nose and Manitou Mountain in the extreme northwest corner of Westchester County, overlooking the Bear Mountain Bridge. Until a few years ago, working further south along the east bank of the Hudson River was impossible because Camp Smith, an Army Reserve site, was strictly off limits. Now, however, hikers can swing onto the Camp Smith Trail after a night at the Hemlock Springs campsite.

In 1999, Governor Pataki announced a $500,000 grant to the Town of Cortlandt for the restoration of the historic Bear Mountain Bridge Toll House in the Town of Cortlandt. Since then, the Town developed plans to rehabilitate the Toll House, incorporating the latest environmental standards of design and operation, to serve as a welcome center, offer interpretive displays, and encourage access to the Camp Smith Trail. New York State has had jurisdiction over the land on which the Toll House, the Camp Smith Trailhead and adjacent parking lot are located since their purchase in 1940.

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