NORTH COUNTY TRAILWAY LETTERBOX:
YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, NEW YORK
-BIKE IT OR HIKE IT-
Planted: May 27, 2007
Length: North County Trailway; 20.3 miles
Baldwin Place to Millwood (before the on-road detour); 12 miles
Baldwin Place to Letterbox; 4.4 miles
Yorktown/Somers border parking lot to Letterbox; Drive-by
Difficulty: Moderate. Paved surface along an old rail trail, but some grades could be tough for kids on bikes. The on-road section after Millwood is not
recommended for kids or bike novices. Baldwin Place to Millwood makes for a good family bike outing.
Directions:
To start from
To start from the Yorktown/Somers border
parking lot; Take exit 6 off of I-684
to Route 35 west. When you come to the junction of Routes 118 & 202,
continue straight on Routes 35, 118 & 202. You'll come to the parking lot
where the trail crosses the road at the border of
To start from the New Croton Reservoir
parking lot; Take the Route 100 &
133 exit off the
To start from the Route 117 parking lot; Take the Route 117 exit off the Taconic State Parkway or Route 9A to Route 117 west. The lot is on the left side. An overflow lot is located just west of this lot.
To start from the
The North County Trailway is one of three
interconnected trails, the Putnam County Trailway and South County
Trailway being the other two that currently take you from
The Metro-North Railroad's Harlem Line has a stop in Southeast, which is 4 ½ miles east of Carmel (start of the Putnam County Trailway) and a stop in Pleasantville, which is 1.4 miles from the Route 117 parking lot along the North County Trailway. This gives the hearty biker the option of doing a roughly 30 mile bike trip and then returning to your vehicle via the Metro-North Railroad. This is how we were able to bike so much of the trail without having to backtrack. The route to the stations is on-road and includes a couple of tough hills and thus is recommended for experienced bikers only. For more information visit; Metro North Railroad . If you click on the individual stations, they have available both directions and maps.
Starting from
Note;
The Putnam County Trailway heads north from here (See; Putnam
County Trailway Letterbox ).
Heading south, the trail heads into the woods
along a paved surface that is bumpy in spots from root growth. Also note that
scatted all along the trail are blue "emergency" call boxes. After 1
½ miles, you travel along a high berm, with power lines along your right. Be
prepared for a long downhill, then uphill ride as you pass by a wide open horse
farm. Very scenic. As you pass through some wetlands at 3.6 miles, another
signboard informs you, as well as, showing your location on a map. You reach the
Yorktown/Somers border parking lot after 4 ¼ miles. Next you come to a
bridge at 4.4 miles over a stream. Just before crossing this bridge, head right
down a small gully, then back up to a flat clearing overlooking the stream. To
your right is a sub-station and to your left will be a large tree with thick
black bark. From here, take 18 paces (2 steps = 1 pace) above the stream bank,
passing a group of boulders on your left and some very tall Cedar trees
(reddish, shredded bark) to your right to a second group of boulder on your
left. Spot two Maple trees among the rocks, one with a bend at chest height and
the other with a knotty trunk. Go around the right side of the knotty Maple
(poison ivy to the left) to its base. Remove both the flat and round stone only
to reveal the North County Trailway Letterbox tucked under a boulder.
Please replace the small rock on top of the box as it helps protect it. Continue
across the bridge passing a sewer treatment plant on the right. At 5 ¼ miles,
just before entering Yorktown Heights, keep a lookout for an old Brakeman's
Warning pole. This consists of a rail in the shape of an upside down L,
hanging over the center of the trail. The chains hanging down over the trail
would hit the Railroad Brakeman, who was on top of the train and warn him
of an upcoming bridge or tunnel. *See below for history. Another
informative signboard is located here as well. Next you'll come to
Note; A spur trail at 15.3 miles takes you to the
The trail finally heads
back into the woods at 15 ½ miles, however, you still parallel the roadway.
You'll come to a fork in the trail at 17 miles. Right takes you up to Route 117.
Continue straight underneath Route 117 and another spur trail will take you up
to the Route 117 parking lot.
Note; See above for information on taking the Metro-North
back to the Southeast Station.
Continuing along the trail,
the
*Brakeman
Prior to 1888 when Westinghouse developed a reliable air brake, stopping a train
or a rolling car was very primitive. Iron wheels, located atop cars, were
connected to a manual braking system by a long metal rod. The brakemen, usually
two to a train, would ride on top of the car. On a whistle signal from the
engineer, the brakemen, one at the front of the train and one at the rear of the
train, would begin turning the iron wheels to engage the brakes. When one car
was completed, the brakeman would jump the thirty inches or so to the next car
and repeat the operation to apply the brakes on that car. The brakemen would
work towards each other until all cars had their brakes applied. In good
weather, the brakemen enjoyed riding on top of the cars and viewing the scenery.
However, they had to ride up there in all kinds of weather - in rain, sleet,
snow and ice, as well as good weather. Jumping from one car to the next at night
or in freezing weather could be very dangerous, not to mention the fact that the
cars were rocking from side to side. Today, a train brakeman assists the
conductor by throwing switches, hooking the train cars together and ensuring the
safety of the train, passengers, and freight.
HH
LETTERBOX LAST VERIFIED ON
JUNE 2, 2008
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BIKE IT OR HIKE LETTERBOXING