I'm going to take the family bike riding on the rail trail this weekend, and was wondering what sections are most recommended for interesting scenery or things to do along the way? We've done the section from River Road in Tillson to the Rosendale RR bridge- that was pretty cool, with the view from the RR bridge and the ruins of the cement factory. How are other sections in the Gardiner and New Paltz areas? We're not going to cover more than a handful of miles since we'll have the kids. We'll need a parking lot to start from.

Jannette

Personally, I like the stretch that goes over the abandoned Walkill River bridge. It's a nice out and back trip from New Paltz. The bridge was originally a rail road bridge, and now is a tranquil spot on the Wallkill with benches at midSpan. I'd say it's about a 4 mile (or less) ride from New Paltz. You can also get there by parking about 100 yards from it just off of Springtown Road. You know you're there when you see a pedestrian crossing sign on Springtown.

The other rail trail that you might consider checking out is the one between High Falls and Hurley. There is a parking area on 209 just south of Hurley (on the North(east)bound side). It ends at another lot on Leggett Road, just off of Lucas Turnpike.

-em

I have never heard about this trail, between Hurley and High Falls... is it a bit trail or paved? is there any online info about it?

The trail is similar to the carriage roads at the Preserve. I don't know of anything about it online...guess it's gonna be up to me.

The trail going Northeast from Hurley towards Kingston IS paved, and you'll see people (who would never set foot on a gravel path) walking, roller blading, biking, etc on this paved section. The trail is eventually supposed to take a detour onto Hurley Mountain Road, and come out at the base of Jockey Hill (by Kenko) on Route 28.

From High Falls, you can cross Route 213 (by the old Rail Road Station) and ride the trail back to Accord. Then there's another section between Accord and Kerhonkson.

-em

I ran this trail in June as a 20-miler. I first ran north from near the 299 bridge (downhill from R&S) for two miles to a road crossing just after a railroad bridge and shooting range (on the east side of the trail). The trail was not paved in this seciton, but was quite nice with not much to see as it's mostly wooded and, in sections, has alarmingly steep embankments that could see a nasty tumble for anyone losing control of a bike. I then turned around and ran to the southern end of the trail, 8 miles past 299 again. This had great views of the Nears and Millbrook in some sections, passing nice farms...at one point on the way back (somewhere between Gardiner and NP), I thought I saw an ostrich or emu walk across the trail. I chalked it up to it being mile 17 or so, but when I got to where it walked and looked through an opening, there it was wandering around a field. Oh, and I almost tripped on a HUGE tortoise sitting in the middle of the trail. The southern terminus is well past Gardiner proper. But if you're taking the kids, it may be nice (and I thought of this for my cousin's 10 yo) to bike south from NP to Gardiner and eat at the pizzeria right off the trail in Gardiner. I seem to think it was about 5 miles from NP to Gardiner on the trail and it cruises along the edge of the wallkill valley here and can offer sweeping views in some sections.

The southern section was all unpaved and was a mix of hardpack dirt through grass (my fav!) and not so nice railroad ballast in other sections. All of it nicely bikeable. There is parking at the Otter (not sure if allowed) for starting in NP and parking at the pizzeria in Gardiner. There was a b&b near the southern end, south of gardiner and a small pull-out for cars well off the b&b property.

The thing to do is hit Barnes & Noble or Borders and get your beta from the NY Rail Trail guides (there's more than one). This is what I did and it was very useful.

Joe

I would say that parking at the Otter is not "kosher" for an outing on the rail trail. On a weekend, their lot is plenty full, and there are two better options. Both of these options begin as you head downhill on Main Street, heading toward the Wallkill Bridge: [list]

1) Immediately after the Otter, hang a right onto Hugenot Street and about 300 yards your first left, is the parking area for the Water Treatment Plant and Community Gardens. There are spots for about 40 cars, and it's nearly always empty. Parking down the lower driveway at the community garden is also a great picnic spot by the river.

2) If you got left immediately after the Otter and before the Bridge, you'll come to a stop sign about 100 yards down a curve. Hang a right here and you find the new, New Paltz Boat launch about 1/8 of a mile down the street. It's adjacent to the rail trail, and is similarly scarcely used.

Both these spots are also good alternatives for cross country skiing in the winter.

-em

Thanks for all the tips. We took the New Paltz south trail. Was a bit rough for my 8 year old on her first big tall bike with gears and hand brakes. The size of the gravel on the trail made it pretty bumpy in spots, definitely not as smooth as the River Road north to Rosendale section we did last year. We only got in about 30 minutes because the slight uphill grade (which was pretty much undetectable until we coasted back) was making it hard for her to ride her new bike. She wanted to turn back earlier than we had planned. But there were some beautiful farm views looking towards skytop. I took a picture of this gorgeous scene from a small bridge on the rail trail:


We hope to go back someday when the kids are a little more used to their new bikes and get a bit further. Here is Ariel with her new pretty purple bike.




Jannette

Nice pic of Ariel. That new bike looks pretty cool, but you really should get her a helmet that fits. The one she has on will do little to protect her is an over-the-bars fall (note how much of her forehead is exposed).

It is a nice trail, for sure.

T

i was wondering if anyone knew anything about single track anywhere on the Rail Trail? i've heard mention of it from several people but no one really goes into any detail. i've seen numerous offshoots from the trail but always figured it led to someone's backyard/property so i didn't investigate. any help would be appreciated.