Date visited: 9/10/2022
See Also: Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow, Croton-on-Hudson, Peekskill
The Westchester RiverWalk is a 50+ mile multi-use trail in Westchester County that runs along the east side of the Hudson River. It's not all complete yet, but 32.9 miles of it is open. We walked the section of the trail that the All-Trails app calls "Tarrytown Waterfront". This section runs from just north of the Cuomo Bridge to Kingsland Point Park in Sleepy Hollow. It's very popular and busy trail. Unfortunately a section of the trail in Sleepy Hollow was closed, and a make shift trail through a construction yard was created next to it. Obviously this section wasn't the best. Also, the lighthouse was under renovation, which was disappointing. The pictures below are from the Sleepy Hollow section of the trail. The pictures from Tarrytown can be seen here.
Date visited: 2/11/2023
I was very surprised that dogs were allowed here because it is a cemetery, but there were "Pets Must Be Leashed" and "Pick Up After Your Pet" signs. The Sleepy Hollow Cemetery is a National Historic Site, so it is a tourist attraction. There were a few others walking their dogs on the grounds as well. My only knowledge of the "Legend of Sleepy Hollow "comes from that silly Fox TV show that was on a few years back, so I am not well versed on the historical significance of the place. The architecture of the buildings is unique, and the grounds are very well maintained. We also visited the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow which is situated in front of the cemetery, as well as the statue of the Headless Horseman which is just across the street.
Date visited: 2/11/2023
We tried to visit here earlier in the year, but the parking lot was full, and we had to go somewhere else. This time we were able to get in. They charge a $6 parking fee year round, and the parking lot was just about full when we arrived. There are multiple sections of the park. We barely scratched the surface. We hiked two routes that I found using the All-Trails app. The first was the "Swan Lake Loop". This was an easy loop trail around the lake. The path was a wide stone dust road that is closed to traffic. The second loop featured a hike up to a Glacier Erratic. We hiked about three miles total here.
Date visited: 2/26/2023
We hadn't been on an adventure in six days. Our wonderful February weather this year finally took a turn of the worse, and it was rainy and cold all week. It was warmer and sunnier in Westchester County New York, so we headed to this place. This is a really neat park that straddles the town line between the Valhalla section of Mount Pleasant and North Castle. There is an open grass area, and a promenade of sorts, in front of the very large dam. The west side of the park features a playground, while the east side of the park includes "The Rising", a 9/11 monument that honors the victims from Westchester County. Obviously, the main feature of the park is the dam. There are stairways on both sides of the dam, so we climbed to the top. There is an old road that runs right across the top of the dam that is closed to vehicular traffic. It is now just a pedestrian walk way. There are nice views from the top of the dam. I have to admit, climbing the stairs was a good workout. The climb is over 20 flights of the stairs. The dogs didn't really seem to have much issue with the climb. We did this after walking four miles on the Bronx River Pathway, that starts at this park. Needless to say, we made up for not being able to get out of the house in six days. Below are the pictures from the Mount Pleasant section of the park. Visit the North Castle page for pictures from that section.
Date visited: 11/2/2024
After a few days of summer-like weather, it was back to the fall for this adventure. This park is on the site of what used to be the Rockwood Hall mansion, home of William Rockefeller. Now there are a series of walking trails with scenic views of the Hudson River and the Marion Cuomo Bridge. Even though there are some hills, this was an easy walk. The loop trail we walked was just over three miles.