NY 212 begins at an intersection with NY 28 on the banks of Esopus Creek in the town of Shandaken. The two-lane route initially runs north along the creek, serving the hamlet of Mount Tremper before curving northeast into a narrow, wooded valley surrounding Beaver Kill, a tributary of Esopus Creek. While inside the gully, the highway winds its way along the southeastern base of Mount Tremper itself, crossing into the town of Woodstock in the process. The valley widens slightly at the small hamlet of Willow, where NY 212 and Beaver Kill both make a turn to the southeast. Not far from Willow, Beaver Kill reaches its source at a point west of Cooper Lake, the main reservoir for the city of Kingston to the southeast. Past the lake, NY 212 picks up the Saw Kill, another tributary of the Esopus, as it heads through a small, isolated community named Shady.