Lots of parking in the back. We are very close to the Reed Memorial Library and the Putnam/North County Bike Trailway.
Putnam County (7miles) & North County (22 miles) Bike Trailway
(My favorite bike and roller blading trail)
The Putnam County Trailways spans 7 miles and the North County Trailway spans 22.1 miles in Westchester County, from Eastview in the Town of Mt. Pleasant, to Baldwin Place in Somers. It is a gentle off road, black top paved bicyle ride that now continues for about 7 more miles from Balwin Place to Lake Gleneida in Putnam County.
If you are coming from the south, once the bike trail ends, follow Lake Gleneida for about 200 feet and the Thai Golden restaurant will be before you hit the Reed Memorial Library. I love this trail and how the The North County Trailway has expanded every year. This paved bicycle and pedestrian path was a former Putnam Railroad Division of the New York Central Railroad. It's old tracks wanders thru apple orchards, meadows and reservoirs. It is a really delightful safe car-free bike ride.
A little history...
The Putnam Railroad once served 23 stations in Westchester to bring food supplies and commuters to NYC, some of the stations still stand today. The most beautiful is the Tudor-revival style Briarcliff Manor Station, which is now used as a public library. Other former stations can be found along the trailway in Millwood and in Railroad Park in Yorktown Heights. Most of the former station locations have historic marker plaques to explain some history.
North County Bike Trailway
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Close Up of Pleasantville Metro North Area |
x1=suggested entry point by Metro North bikers,
about 1 mile easy ride from train station, but on car filled road
x2=suggested entry point by car drivers,
easy parking.
Yorktown Heights has (next to the bike path) a biker-friendly Starbucks
with bathrooms,
an italian american bakery with excellent napoleon cakes, bike shop (for
emergencies).
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I can't say enough good things about this trail...
The trail itself is mostly a gentle paved off-road leisurely bike ride with no car traffic. BE AWARE: In a few places it does intersect with public roads or driveways at several points, some with high-speed vehicle traffic -- so special care is required and NEEDED in detecting, approaching, and crossing those. (These intersections are pretty well marked, and usually the locals, like me, will stop, let you pass and wave to you...) Also at least one section is in the shoulder of a high-speed vehicle road. (This is my least favorite part of the trip.)
BE ALSO AWARE, there can be lots of non-motorized users on the path: walkers, runners, skaters, bicyclists, baby strollers, dogs on or off leashes, cats, small fuzzy animals etc -- sometimes at high speeds, sometimes oblivious to other users, sometimes not following rules or going the wrong direction. The path is usually about eight to ten feet wide, but Please be aware of children, animals and cell phone talkers, take seriously the risk of interactions and collisions with them.
For more info about connecting Bike Trails:
Putnam County (not all trails on map completed yet)
http://www.transalt.org/files/resources/putnam.pdf
North County Trail Info
http://www.westchestergov.com/Parks/pdfs/Brochures/NorthCountyTrailway.pdf
South county to North county trailway
http://www.westchestergov.com/parks/pdfs/Maps/Trailways/SCTrail.pdf
The South County Trailway is a paved bicycle and pedestrian path located primarily on right-of- way lands of the former Putnam Division of the New York Central Railroad. The “Old Put,” as it was fondly referred to by commuters, provided freight and passenger service from 1881 to 1958 between the Bronx and Putnam County. Freight service continued to operate sporadically from Elmsford south, with the last freight train making its final run in August 1982.
The Putnam Railroad once served 23 stations in Westchester, some of which still stand today. The former Elmsford station is the only remaining station structure along the South County Trailway. It now houses a restaurant. Historic markers plaques have been placed at most of the former station locations.
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THAI GOLDEN RESTAURANT >>> 5 Seminary Hill Road - Carmel, NY 10512
(Directly across from Lake Gleneida - Intersection of Route 6 & 52)
PHONE: 845-225-2722
Open 7 days/week ---- Monday-Thursday:11:30-9:30, Friday:11:30-10, Saturday:Noon-10, Sunday:5-9:30
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