Trail Links

From TrailRunner.com, there are a number of Westchester trails in New York, including North Salem and Somers

Trail Runner Magazine

This is a bit more hard-core than the trails we have in Southern Westchester. It sponsors a Trophy Series of trail races nationwide (which includes the VCTC’s Apr. 2 Urban Environmental Challenge and it sponsors a trail forum, which includes a thread for New York City Trail Running. It also has some interesting links.

Run The Planet

This site, which has runner-submitted runs from all over the world, has links to trails and trail races, including one for should you find yourself in Mongolia in June.

Trail Running Elsewhere

Here are some links, most external, for other places for trail runs:

Sag Harbor

Hiking

These sites have a hiking orientation, and many are national in scope. In many cases, they are a good source for trails to run when you’re on the road. But note that while you can always hike on a running trail, you can’t always run on a hiking trail. (I don’t think the Bolder Boulder involves a lot of Bouldering.) A number of the hiking sites have slews of information.

Catskill Hikes

I’m not a hiker. Susan and John, a couple of hikers based in Wurtsboro, NY (off Route 17) set up a really nice hike-site for hikers, with loads of nice info bits, including comprehensive basics and tips and loads of other stuff. It also has some nice links

SlackPacker

Another nice site for the more hard-core hiker. Has pages on Lexicon, Geology, Bouldering, and a Gear Guide as well as Trail Links by State.

Hudson Valley Greenway

This is a PDF file that has information about various trails and various trail uses from New York City up to around Albany.

Trails-to-Rails Conservancy

For this site, plug in a state and region and you get a list. Westchester is in the “Hudson Valley.” It also has a link for Trails Around the World.

Outdoor Club in New York

This site has a number of interesting-looking hikes in Westchester, including on some of the trails that I describe. It seems territorial about its schedule, so I won’t list any, but click through to find them.

NY/NY Trails Conference

This site seems focused on the more serious hiker. The Westchester trails it discusses are around the Appalachian Trail.

Federated Conservationists of Westchester County

A group of Westchesterites who share concerns about the County’s environment. It has a nice desription of the parkland along The Hutch

LocalHikes.com

I have mixed feelings about this Site. It consists of volunteers putting TONS of information about hikes, with pictures, terrain maps, weather links, and more. My problem is that it doesn’t include anything in Westchester, although it does have many hikes across the Hudson. Also, you plug your Zip code in and it gives you a list of hikes, but the distance to the hikes seems roughly equivalent to crow-flying. It is also closed to adding new reporters of places. That said, I contacted Jim Zucker, who runs the Site. He told me, “We are updating our site this spring and hope to dramatically increase the number of hikes on the site.” Come springtime, I’ll revisit it. It could be an awesome resource. While hiking trails are not necessarily good running trails, they bear examination, and sites such as LocalHikes can give you information about whether to venture to them.

Westchester Trails Association

This site doesn’t seem to do very much.

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Westchester Mountain Bike Ass’n

Entering Graham, May 7.

Mountain Biking isn’t as easy as it looks, especially if you’re clipped into your pedals. The go-to site is the Westchester Mountain Bike Association. I took advantage of an offer by Jaime Bogner (he’s in orange in the picture), an experienced rider, to take beginners out at Graham Hills (entrance is the dead-end at the upper left). I did a lot of walking. But after a while, I was at least confident enough to cross small logs and rocks. It’s all about shifting weight and trusting that the bike will go where you want it to go. There’s a lot of “if he can do it, so can I.” Although there were times when I baled, pulled my foot from the pedal and walked. All the guys Steve S. and I met up at Graham were very nice and helpful. They seem friendlier than road bikers. I found out about the ride from the WMBA Forum.

Graham Hills Trail, May 7.

In Westchester, there are a limited number of place where one can ride. And Mtn. Bikers are always fighting to gain access to more trails while preventing renegades from riding where they shouldn’t, which is not only bad for the trails themselves but makes it more difficult to get the County to expand where the bikers can ride. The WMBA has a list of common-sense Trail Rules, many of which apply to runners as well. Its members also spend time on maintaining the trails. It had its Fat Tire Festival at Blue Mountain on June 8, 2008.

Graham Hills, which is right off the Taconic after it crosses the Saw Mill, is narrow and hilly. (You can get there from the City via MetroNorth to Pleasantville (map), from rear of platform, up Bedford Road/Route 117 (turn left at Getty Station) to a big Graham Hills sign (on the left)), about 1 mile.) I rode on the Blue trail. Some limited stretches where it is smooth, but not many. Log-jumps of varying heights and some rocky stretches. The experienced guys had no problems. I did. It was fun.

Biking is not permitted on Nature Study/Twin Lakes and into Saxon Woods nor, so far as I understand it, on the Leatherstocking Trail. You may note no-biking logos on the new signs for the Colonial Greenway. I was at an event recently at which some bikers took umbrage about the inclusion of that notation. But bikes are not permitted. I was told as well that people have been riding bikes on those trails for years and don␁t care that they are banned, they continue to ride. When I found out they were not allowed, I stopped using mine.

That said, I was also told that the County is considering opening up a part of Saxon Woods to mountain bikes.In addition to the County parks listed here (Graham Hills, Blue Mountain, and Sprain Ridge), you can ride on the Old Croton Aqueduct (pretty flat and wide). You cannot, however, ride at the Rockefeller.

The following is a report from Steve S., with whom I went, who’ on the runner DL list and was even more of a mountain bike newbie than I am but has since been riding alot:

It was a little bit of a hike to get up there, but well worth it. Free parking for now, but they start charging in May or Memorial day..something like that. A couple riders alluded to a free parking spot that they knew about.

Easier trails on the map, but not particularly well marked. A few extremely difficult sections . . . long, steep up hill…narrow downhills, some water to go thorugh and some logs to jump (some too big to jump, right across the trail. Several riders out there, but well dispersed . . . nobody holding anybody back. The other riders appeared to my beginner’s eye to be quite accomplished and skilled.

I inquired about Sprain Brook Park (off Jackson Avenue west of the Sprain Brook Parkway in Yonkers) on the WMBA forum, and got this response from Luke:

Sprain is a tough nut to crack. The trails that lie on the western side of the access road are a bit less rocky and rooty. If you drive up to the second lot where the busses are parked, you'll find a large rock in the asphalt. There is a trailhead right there. Try that route. You can also venture way down to the southern end of the park. That section is relatively flat as its been cut by quads.

The only other advice I can say is ride Sprain often. It gets less technical as you get accustomed to it.

I was also directed to MTBReview.com, which provides user reviews of biking trails throughout New York State, organized alphabetically by trail name. Thanks to Mike for the info.

Finally, Lets Run directed me to Bikekinetix.com, which has descriptions and nice looking maps of bike trails all over the northeast.

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Westchester County X-C Skiing Yahoo! Group

I don’t cross-country-ski, but for those who do, this is a Yahoo! Group where people arrange to meet, discuss trail status, etc. There is a County Site that lists where you can ski in County Parks; it’s bring-your-own-stuff. (It also lists places where you can skate.) To a recent query there about where to ski in Westchester, NanSkis (Nancy) wrote:

Fahenstock State Park in Carmel (Rte 301 West off the Taconic, in Putnam County) has a nice network of maintained trails. A little closer to home are the trails in the Rockefeller Preserve in Pocantico Hills, or Wards Pound Ridge Reservation. These are not groomed or anything, like at Fahnstock. Pound Ridge is a bit “wilder” than Rockefellers – the trails are narrower and can present some interesting navigational challenges, particularly when there isn’t a lot of snow.

To this, BR adds Saxon Woods (by which I assume she means the portion west of the Hutch and the golf-course there), “the Leatherstocking Trail which requires a good bit of snow to cover the rocks and roots, Pound Ridge and even at the Larchmont Reservoir for a real quickie.” (The Larchmont Reservoir (described with the Leatherstocking Trail) is owned by Larchmont but is in New Rochelle and Mamaroneck, between Pine Brook and Weaver Street, just east of Quaker Ridge Road.)

MrPupSki says on the Yahoo! Group:

Ward Pound Ridge is on Rte 121 Just South of Rte 35. There are several concentric loops of trails, the largest being 5 miles. The trails are often skiable w/ 6 inches of snow because the trails are fairly even and not too rocky. Admission is charged at the gatehouse for use of the trails. This is a nature preserve and not a ski center. The trails are not groomed and if prior hikers and dogs are not considerate you may have post holes and worse in the tracks.

This is a list from Ken Roberts of trails in the Hudson Valley, although none in Westchester.

I posted to the Yahoo! Group asking for advice for a (potential) newbie. You can see the responses on the site. The consensus was to go up to Fahnestock Park where skis, etc., can be rented and give it a shot. It was also suggested that I get a beginner’s book. James Bourne said:

Take a course - with the Appalachian Mtn Club or otherwise - with other newbies and an instructor who can give you some personal attention. Share the adventure of learning with others.

I was also directed to XCSkiWorld, which seems to have a fair amount of useful information.

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Horseback Riding

Among these trails, you are most likely to see horse-back riding on Twin Lakes, although there are horses on other trails. Information about the River Ridge Equestrian Center on California Road, where you park for the trail, is here (official site under construction), with information about it here and here with a 2004 Journal-News article here (The horse and rider in the picture to the right, as well as in this one are the ones pictured in the article.) There are also stables at Saxon Woods and horses at Rockefeller. I found this list: Where to Go Horseback Riding in Westchester County.

A1 Trails OCA

The Central Park Track Club and The Westchester Track Club have comprehensive Links Pages.

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Last edited on ... April 19, 2008