Ulster County officials celebrated the opening of a new swimming hole in Sojourner Truth State Park on Friday.
The state-funded swimming hole is located in an old rock quarry. The water is emerald green and surrounded by limestone cliffs and newly-planted greenery. It’s been christened Lake Sophia, after the legendary civil rights activist’s daughter. As a crowd gathered before the ribbon cutting, a group of teenage boys — Dominic Stiles, Matthew Klitzner, and Matthew Noble — already had their shirts off.
"I can't wait to jump in," said Dominic.
Shortly after 10 o'clock, Joshua Laird, Palisades Regional Director for New York State Parks, kicked off a press conference. Speakers lauded Governor Kathy Hochul for allocating some $83 million to the buildout of the swimming area. After the rock quarry was decommissioned, a group called Scenic Hudson bought the land, and started cleaning it up. Now the state has built out accessibility ramps, lifeguard towers, and something called a swimming crib — a shallow pool area with natural quarry water that filters up through a basket-style floor. People — including Kingston Mayor Steve Noble — have been swimming here for years, although prior to Friday, it was technically trespassing. "I may have been one of those people who jumped in this lake maybe not so legally back in the day," Noble told the crowd.
But Lake Sophia is now on the up-and-up. After the press conference, dozens of swimmers took the first state-sanctioned dip.
Dominic and the two Matthews emerged dripping and grinning. "I think it's awesome," said Dominic.
A woman in sunglasses gave one of the Matthews a hug. Her sunglasses fell off when she jumped in, but he saved them. "Community quarry swimming is all about having people who help each other. Thank you, Matthew."
"You're welcome," he replied, and then jumped back in the water.
