The Catskills began existence as a river delta 350 million years ago. Streams flowing off the then-mighty Taconic Mountains deposited sediment where the river met a sea (now the Allegheny Plateau. Eventually the Taconics eroded to their present size and the waters dried up, leaving a mostly flat plain.
During this time period, a meteor is believed to have struck the area. Panther Mountain is the remains of its crater.
Two hundred million years ago, as continental drift pushed up the Appalachians, the delta region rose almost uniformly into a plateau rather than breaking up into smaller mountains. Streams that formed over time eroded gaps and valleys, leaving today's "mountains."
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