WaldenWallkill Rail Trail

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Coordinates:

413428N 741052W

WaldenWallkill Rail Trail

The WaldenWallkill Rail Trail, also known as the Jesse

McHugh Rail Trail, is a 3.22-mile (5.18 km) rail trail between
the village of Walden, New York and the neighboring hamlet of
Wallkill. The two communities are located
inOrange and Ulster counties, respectively, in upstate New
York.
The trail, like the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail to the north, is part of
the formerWallkill Valley Railroad's rail corridor. The land was
purchased by the towns of Montgomery and Shawangunk in
1985 and converted to a public trail. The portion of the trail in
Shawangunk was formally opened in 1993 and named after
former town supervisor Jesse McHugh. Plans to pave the trail
between Walden and Wallkill were discussed since 2001, and
the route was finallypaved between 2008 and 2009. The trail
includes an unofficial, unimproved section to the north of
Wallkill, and is bounded by NY 52 and NY 208.
Contents

A section of the rail trail in the town of Shawangunk.

Length

[hide]

3.22 mi (5.2 km)

Orange County, New York

Ulster County, New York

Walden

Wallkill

Location

1 History
2 Route

3 See also

4 References

5 Bibliography

6 External links

Trailheads

Use

Walking, jogging, bicycling and dog walking

Hiking details

Sights

History[edit]
Hazards

Shawangunk Ridge

Wooster Grove Park

Borden Estate

Paved section may be unsuitable for horseback riders

The original Wallkill Valley rail line, stretching from Montgomery to Kingston

Stretching 33 miles (53 km)[1] from Montgomery to Kingston,[2] the Wallkill Valley Railroad operated from 1866[3]until
its last regular freight run on December 31, 1977.[4] In the 1980s, Conrail, then the owner of the Wallkill Valley line,
attempted to sell the former rail corridor. The towns of Montgomery and Shawangunk in Orange and Ulster
counties, respectively[5] purchased their sections of the rail line to allow "development of a commercial corridor [as
well as] utility easements and access" to a local reservoir.[6]
The Montgomery section consisted of 2 miles (3.2 km) from the village of Walden to the town line with Shawangunk,
and the Shawangunk section ran 2.3 miles (3.7 km) north from the town line to Birch Road. The purchases were
completed in August and October 1985, respectively.[7] In November of that year, the New York State Department of
Correctional Services bought 1.4 miles (2.3 km) of the former corridor in Shawangunk's hamlet of Wallkill, near

the Wallkill Correctional Facility. This portion extends from Birch Road to the town line with Gardiner.
[8]
The Shawangunk Correctional Facility was built at that location.[9] South of Walden, the corridor remains an active
rail line operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway.[6][10]
North of the prisons, the former corridor continues as the separate Wallkill Valley Rail Trail. [5] Rail trail enthusiasts
have been trying to find a way to combine the two rail trails since the 1990s, [11] and in 2004 the town of Shawangunk
commissioned an open space study that identified possible ways to accomplish such a connection. [12] A 2008 Ulster
County transportation plan included projects to connect the trails, [13] and the town of Shawangunk is currently
considering plans to connect the trails by diverting the corridor along Birch Road. The original route of the corridor is
40 feet (12 m) within the prisons' perimeter fence.[14]

The winding but ADA-accessiblepath from the street to the trailhead in the village of Walden

The portion of the former corridor running through the center of Wallkill was converted to a road, Railroad Avenue. [6]
[11]
The southern part of the route, running from Wallkill to the MontgomeryShawangunk town line, was officially
opened[11] as the Jesse McHugh Rail Trail on June 5, 1993. [15] Jesse McHugh was a former Shawangunk town
supervisor.[6] The northern portion of the Shawangunk section, which stretches to the border of the prison grounds, is
maintained by the town but not officially part of the trail. [11]
In 2001, Shawangunk, Montgomery and the Walden began applying for over $600,000 [16] in TEA-21 grants to create
a paved, ADA-accessible trail between Walden and Wallkill.[6] The total cost of paving the trail was expected to be
$750,000,[16] though it eventually ballooned to $1.5 million. [17] The decision to pave the trail was vehemently opposed
by horseback riders who felt it would endanger them, [18] and protested at several public meetings by the Mid-Hudson
Horse Trails Association.[19] The decision was also opposed by nearby homeowners who believed an increase in trail
use would threaten their privacy.[20]
In October 2003, Walden, Shawangunk and Montgomery acquired the $600,000 grant needed to begin paving the
trail.[21]Two months later, Bob and Doris Kimball, a couple in Montgomery, donated 20 acres (8.1 ha) of their land to
create a park by the trail near Lake Osiris Road. [22] The park is expected to be developed once funds are available to
do so.[6] Nearly $200,000 in funding to complete pavement of the trail was lost when the outgoing 109th
Congress did not approve a 2006budget bill.[23] In February 2008, Congressman Maurice Hinchey announced the
appropriation of $351,000 to complete the project. [24] Construction began on September 22, 2008, [25] and the paved
3.22-mile (5.18 km)[26] trail opened on May 2, 2009.[6] Flooding from hurricanes in 2011 caused a cave-in along the
Montgomery section of the trial.[27] The storms eroded much of the ground beneath the trail, causing the ground to
sink. As of July 2012, no repairs have been completed; the cost of fully repairing the trail was estimated to be
$214,000.[28]

Route[edit]

The trailhead in the village of Walden

The trail begins at the 9.4-acre (3.8 ha) Wooster Grove Park in the village of Walden, near NY 52.[15][26][29] There is a
visitor center for rail trail users at the park. The park also contains Walden's former train station, which has since
been renovated as a recreational facility.[26]
The trail continues 1 mile (1.6 km) north from the trailhead before reaching Lake Osiris Road, continuing
another 1 14 miles (2.0 km) to the MontgomeryShawangunk town line. [15] Once in Shawangunk, the trail passes by
the Borden Estate,[30] a mansion built in 1906 by the granddaughter of Gail Borden. In 1854, Gail Borden patented
the process for creating condensed milk; the Borden family subsequently owned a series of milk companies. The
mansion is now used by the School of Practical Philosophy for philosophy classes.[31]

The trailhead in the hamlet of Wallkill

About 34 mile (1.2 km) from the town line, the trail reaches its Wallkill trailhead bordering NY 208, directly across the
street from the Shawangunk police station.[15]The paved section between Walden and Wallkill is flat, with only a
3% grade.[6] A portion of the former corridor in central Wallkill has since been converted to a road. [11]
An unimproved northern section in Wallkill extends 1 12 miles (2.4 km) from the intersection of Railroad Avenue and
C. E. Penny Drive to Birch Road. [5] Birch Road marks the border between the former corridor and two state prisons.
[11]
This section passes through private hunting grounds [15] and is "unmarked and has no signs" but is "arguably ... the
most scenic" portion of the former Wallkill Valley rail corridor, featuring "splendid" views of the Shawangunk Ridge to
the west.[5]
While the total length of the trail is officially only about 3 miles (4.8 km),[26] the inclusion of the northern section
increases its length to about 4 12 miles (7.2 km).[32] The trail is used for walking, jogging, bicycling and dog walking. [5]

References[edit]
1.
2.

Jump up^ Mabee 1995, p. 40.

Jump up^ Mabee 1995, pp. 5051.

3.

Jump up^ Mabee 1995, p. 10.

4.

Jump up^ Mabee 1995, p. 135.

5.

^ Jump up to:a b c d e Perls 2003, p. 343.

6.

^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h "Rail Trail". Town of Montgomery. Archived from the original on 2011-07-26.
Retrieved 2010-12-26.

7.

Jump up^ Mabee 1995, p. 142

8.

Jump up^ Mabee 1995, pp. 140, 142

9.

Jump up^ Bosch, Adam (2009-06-01). "Wallkill Rail Trail could double in size". Times HeraldRecord (Middletown, NY:Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2010-11-01.

10.

Jump up^ "Railroads in New York State 2010" (PDF). New York State Department of Transportation. 201002-05. Retrieved 2010-12-28.

11.

^ Jump up to:a b c d e f Mabee 1995, p. 144.

12.

Jump up^ Sisson, Angela; Hitchings, Crystal; Clague, Joshua (March 2004). "Town of Shawangunk Open
Space Inventory and Analysis" (PDF). Conway, MA: Conway School of Landscape Design. pp. 6869. Retrieved 201011-01.

13.

Jump up^ "Ulster County Non-Motorized Transportation Plan"(PDF). Kingston, NY: Ulster County
Transportation Council. December 2008. p. 25. Retrieved 2010-11-07.

14.

Jump up^ Rowley, Chris (2010-08-12). "A New Use for Prison Farmlands: Can Prison Lands Serve to Connect
the Rail Trail System?". Shawangunk Journal (Ellenville, NY: Electric Valley Media LLC). Retrieved 2011-02-21.

15.

^ Jump up to:a b c d e Perls 2003, p. 344.

16.

^ Jump up to:a b Snel, Alan (2001-11-23). "Towns paving the way for rail trail". Times HeraldRecord (Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2011-01-26.

17.

Jump up^ Murphy, Meghan E. (2008-02-13). "Funds in hand for completion of Walden Rail Trail". Times
Herald-Record(Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved2010-12-26.

18.

Jump up^ Snel, Alan (2001-11-30). "Group would derail plan to pave trail". Times Herald-Record (Middletown,
NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2011-01-26.

19.

Jump up^ Snel, Alan (2001-12-25). "Horse-backers oppose paving rail trail". Times HeraldRecord (Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2011-01-26.

20.

Jump up^ Sausa, Bianca (2003-01-25). "Walden rail trail opponents gathering steam". Times HeraldRecord (Middletown, NY:Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2011-01-26.

21.

Jump up^ Sausa, Bianca (2003-10-07). "Formalities stunt Walden trail work". Times HeraldRecord (Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2011-01-26.

22.

Jump up^ "Family donates property for park along Walden rail trail". Times Herald-Record (Middletown,
NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). 2003-12-24. Retrieved 2010-12-26.

23.

Jump up^ Brooks, Paul (2007-01-09). "Late budget bills cost region $3M-plus in project funding, Hinchey
says". Times Herald-Record (Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group). Retrieved 2010-12-26.

24.

Jump up^ "Hinchey Secures Final Approval Of $351,000 In Federal Funding For Paved Trail Between Walden
& Wallkill"(Press release). 2008-02-11. Retrieved 2010-12-26.

25.

Jump up^ "Shovels dig in on Walden Rail Trail". Times Herald-Record (Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local
Media Group). 2008-09-16. Retrieved 2010-12-26.

26.

^ Jump up to:a b c d "Park Description and Program Schedules"(PDF). Walden, NY: Village of Walden Recreation
and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-26.

27.

Jump up^ "One year after the storms: Where we are now". Times Herald-Record (Middletown, NY: Dow Jones
Local Media Group). 2012-08-26. Retrieved 2013-05-30.

28.

Jump up^ Coleman, Rachel (2012-07-25). "Rail trail repair has $214K pricetag". Wallkill Valley
Times (Newburgh, NY: Times Community Newspapers of the Hudson Valley). Retrieved 2013-05-30.

29.

Jump up^ "Hit the bike trail". Hudson Valley Parent (The Professional Image Marketing & Public Relations).
Retrieved 2011-01-07.

30.

Jump up^ "Business and Resource Directory" (PDF). Town of Shawangunk. 2008-11-26. p. 35.
Retrieved 2010-12-26.

31.
32.

Jump up^ "A Brief History of the Wallkill Property". School of Practical Philosophy. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
Jump up^ "Guide to area multi-use trails". Times Herald-Record(Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media
Group). 2009-03-06. Retrieved 2010-12-26.