Many of our past students have successfully commuted from NYC to the Herbal Bear Botanical Medicine Program.
This page is a guide to help you decide if commuting via public transportation is the right option for you.

There are a few things to consider about using public transportation to The Herbal Bear.

The Herbal Bear Botanical Program is located in Grand Gorge, NY (approximately 160 miles northwest of NYC). The only bus that provides service to Grand Gorge is Adirondack Trailways - the trip is approximately 4 hours long. The bus has an extremely limited schedule. There is only one bus leaving NYC on Friday evening. It usually leaves NYC somewhere around 6 p.m. and arrives in Grand Gorge at 10 p.m. These are estimated times only and change slightly from year to year. This means that you must arrange your work schedule so that you are at the NY Port Authority bus terminal - with your bus ticket already purchased by no later than 5:40 pm on the Friday before an Herbal Bear weekend. If you miss the bus the next one will not be available till Saturday morning. You will miss the entire Saturday morning class lectures.

Commuting students have fewer lodging options than students who commute by car. If you are staying at the Herbal Bear (camping, dormitory or in a cabin bedroom), we will meet you at the bus and bring you to our facility. If you are staying in a motel - the only motel that is within walking distance is The Colonial Motel (less than one block from bus station). We will arrange to pick you up Saturday morning and bring you to the Herbal Bear for breakfast before the Saturday class begins and return you to the motel after the program and meal. You will also be provided transportation to the bus station for your return home.

Some things to consider:

• Make sure you have the ability on scheduled Fridays to arrive promtly for the bus departure from NYC.
• Bus ticket lines on a Friday can have extremely long waits. You may purchase your bus tickets prior to the date of use - ask the bus service how long a bus ticket is valid - it may be better to by several tickets at once. Round trip tickets are cheaper than one way.
• Bring something to eat and drink with you for the trip - there are no restaurants open at the time you will arrive in Grand Gorge.
• If you are camping - realize that it will be dark by the time you arrive - and you will need to be able to set up your tent in by lantern light. Famailiarize yourself with your camping equipment before you come.