Mohegan Lake

Depending on who you talk to, the roughly three square mile community in Yorktown centered around a 105-acre lake is called either Lake Mohegan or Mohegan Lake. That is, unless you travel north to shopping-deprived Philipstown, where residents refuse to take sides and call it simply “Mohegan.” Philipstown residents often travel to the stores in the Cortlandt Town Center, which is supposedly in Cortlandt Manor; although, according to its zip code, it’s really in Mohegan Lake. Or Lake Mohegan.

The actual lake is only accessible to certain residents (now over 1500 of them), who pay a small yearly upkeep fee for their lake rights. It’s a great community gathering spot in the summer, for boating, swimming and fishing; and in the winter, for ice skating.

A former summer community, Mohegan has many smaller, affordable homes, as well as an assortment of larger and newer ones. There are also condominiums, townhouses and an assortment of rentals. Like nearby Peekskill, Mohegan is more culturally diverse than many of its neighboring Westchester and Putnam towns, and its proximity to Peekskill means there is some nightlife available – restaurants, bars, the Paramount Theatre, and live music venues.

There is no Metro-North stop here, but the Cortlandt and Peekskill train stations are about ten minutes away, and the ride into Manhattan takes between 50-55 minutes.

Mohegan residents can take advantage of Yorktown’s many community groups, recreational facilities, good schools, and fine medical facilities. There are several wonderful parks with hiking trails, from the low-key, hiking-only Turkey Mountain, to the sprawling Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park, where you can picnic, swim, play all kinds of ball, hike, launch your own boat (with a permit), fish (with a license) or simply rent a rowboat and paddle around.

Mohegan Lake feels a bit more spread out than a traditional small towns, but it’s low-key, surrounded by country, has all your shopping needs close by, and has a beautiful mile-long lake to pull it all together.