HUDSON VALLEY RAIL TRAIL LETTERBOX:
HIGHLAND, NEW YORK
-BIKE IT OR HIKE IT-
Planted: July 17, 2006
Length: Hudson Valley Rail Trail; 2.3 miles
Tony Williams Park to Letterbox; ¾ miles
New Paltz Road parking lot to Letterbox; 0.6 miles
Difficulty: Easy. Flat, paved rail trail.
Directions:
To start from Tony Williams Park; From I-87 (NY State Thruway) take exit 18 to Route 299 east. After about 2 ¼ miles, turn right onto New Paltz Road (Route 12) and travel 0.7 miles to a left hand turn onto South River Road. Turn right into Tony Williams Park. The trail starts to the left past the basketball courts.
To start from New Paltz Road parking lot; From I-87 (NY State Thruway) take exit 18 to Route 299 east. After about 2 ¼ miles, turn right onto New Paltz Road (Route 12). The parking lot will be located next to the right side of the road. You'll see a sign and a large pavilion.
The Hudson Valley Rail Trail runs along the former rail bed of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. The railroad used to cross over the Hudson River via the Poughkeepsie Railroad-Highland Bridge. This bridge, at 6,767 feet long and 212 feet above the river, was hailed as the longest railroad bridge in the world when it was completed in 1888. It served as the only Hudson River train crossing south of Albany, NY until a fire put it out of commission in 1974. The 5 mile section from the bridge west to Route 299 was deeded to the Town of Lloyd. Future plans call for developing the rest of the trail. West out to Route 299 from Tony Williams Park and east to the old RR bridge that is now a pedestrian bridge over the Hudson River. See; WALKWAY OVER THE HUDSON . Future plans also call for connecting the east side of the bridge to the Dutchess Rail Trail. See; DUTCHESS RAIL TRAIL . For more information visit; HUDSON VALLEY RAIL TRAIL .
Starting from Tony Williams Park; This
paved trail heads into the woods with nice views of the rolling hills and
Illinois
Mountain
up to the right. The old rail trail starts across a high berm with steep
drop-offs. At 0.4 miles you come to a signboard on the left for the Black
Creek Water Trail. The Black Creek is a Class A protected
trout stream and access is a fairly easy scramble down the embankment. Next, you
pass by a silver pole on the right along with a bench and an old rail holder.
These were used by the railroad to hold extra rails. Just past this area on the
left at ¾ miles will be another bench and an old railroad signal light. Walk up
to the top of the small knoll behind the signal light and turn right. Then walk
18 paces (2 steps = 1 pace) along the knoll up a small hill. A large boulder
will be to your right, but you head left 14 paces along the edge towards a stone
wall. This should bring you to a double-trunked tree shaped like a V on
the opposite side of the wall. A large rock with white quartz should be on top
of the stone wall. Just below this rock, remove 2 small rocks blocking a cavity
in the wall. Under a flat rock used to keep the box secure is the Hudson
Valley Rail Trail Letterbox. Continuing along the trail, you pass underneath
a concrete bridge at 1 mile and travel through a deep rock cut and then underneath
a railroad trestle. At 1.4 miles you come to the New Paltz Road
parking lot where the trail becomes more open and residential. A red
caboose is located here that you can enter and explore. A fitness
course parallels the trail for a bit and you pass by a nice garden with benches
before the trail ends at 2.3 miles. You can travel another ¼ mile along the
undeveloped rail bed before it ends above a road crossing. I believe the plan is
to put in a footbridge here in the future and connect to the new walkway being
built along the former railroad trestle across the
HH
LETTERBOX LAST VERIFIED ON
SEPTEMBER 14, 2009
TO EMAIL A VERIFICATION
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BIKE IT OR HIKE IT LETTERBOXING