Local Walks: Home

A blazing summer sunset

An August sunset as seen from Riverwalk. 

Same sky, 4 minutes later

The new bridge

Officially the Governor Mario M Cuomo Bridge, to the locals it will always be the Tappan Zee.

On this day, the LED lights were blue, in honor of #WorldWishDay. For the past 35 years, Make-A-Wish Hudson Valley (@MakeAWishHV) has been granting life-changing wishes for children throughout the lower Hudson Valley, including Rockland and Westchester. 

Red and White for the class of 2021, Sleepy Hollow High School and Nyack High School.

Visit The Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge  to find out about the bridge lighting, the nesting peregrine falcons, and the walking path. There's also information on the official Twitter account, @GMMCB

The bridge in rainbow lights for Pride weekend

Purple and gold for Women's Equality

Teal bridge with crescent moon

Teal for Suicide Prevention Awareness

The Tarrytown Lighthouse, built in 1883

Read about the upcoming restoration here

Looking south from Kingsland Point

Looking north from Kingsland Point

Tarrytown Lakes

The Upper Lake as seen from the parking area

Lower lake in winter

A view of the lower lake on a winter day

Golden Hour, Lower lake

Early summer sunset

There are all sorts of surprises in the woods around the Tarrytown Lakes

There's a trail map near the parking lot. The side trails are fun, though they are best in spring or in fall after a hard frost. They can be a bit overgrown in summer. It feels wild, but you're never more than a few hundred yards from civilization, so it's a great place to walk with kids. As always, beware of poison ivy and ticks!

Off the Green Trail at the Lakes

Vernal Pool near the Tarrytown lakes

These pools of snow melt and rainwater are an important part of the amphibian life cycle. Frogs and salamanders lay their eggs here, where they can develop safe from the fish and other predators that would eat them in the lake. After breeding season, these pools often dry up without a trace.

The Old Croton Aqueduct Trail

The Old Croton Aqueduct State Historic Park is maintained by New York State. The trail begins at the Croton Dam in Cortlandt.  With a few interruptions, the trail is walkable to Van Cortlandt park and beyond. The Old and New Croton Aqueducts meet at Tibbets Brook Park in Yonkers.

The original terminus of the aqueduct was at Bryant Park in Manhattan, at a large reservoir where the New York Public Library now stands.

The hound follows his nose along the OCA trail.

This trail is popular with dog walkers, runners, and bikers. It's wide and flat, and though it's unpaved, it's easily manageable with a jog stroller. The packed dirt can be muddy after a rainy stretch of weather.

A field at Rockefeller Preserve

Rockefeller State Park Preserve has 45 miles of carriage roads over 1700 acres. Leashed dogs are welcome, and no bicycles are allowed, but you may see equestrians, who always have the right of way.

A view of the Hudson from Eagle Hill

The Pocantico River in Rockefeller Preserve

A Rockefeller Preserve guardrail

Many of the carriage paths located along steep backs are lined with these "guardrails" of boulders.

Beech tree arching over the carriage trail along the Pocantico River

The local beech trees are suffering from a new disease, believed to be caused by a nematode. Not much is known, and there's no treatment yet. Viewed from beneath, the leaves show dark patches, and they start to turn brown and shrivel up. Without the leaves, the trees can't produce the energy they need to grow.

A trace of the past

An old hydrant, nearly hidden by vegetation is a reminder that this area of the park was populated before it became the playground of the Rockefeller family.

Glacial Erratic at Rockefeller State Park Preserve

A glacial erratic is a piece of rock that differs from the size and type of rock in the surrounding area and appears out of place. They are believed to have been carried by glacial ice over long distances. This erratic was deposited during the last ice age, about 10,000 years ago. This erratic is about 20 feet high, has a circumference of about 65 feel, and is one of the largest in the Hudson Valley.

--from the informational sign provided by Boy Scout Troop 12, Pleasantville