Running Trails in Westchester
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| Twin Lakes |
Sept. 15, 2008: OCA South/Putnam Trail: I’ve gotten a report that while the stairs connecting the OCA and the Putnam Rail trail are closed, a work-around has been developed. Old Croton Aqueduct/Putnam Trail.
Westchester enjoys a great number of good trails. In southern Westchester, where I live, there’s a trail within a 10 minute drive of everywhere. There are 4 within that distance from me. They vary in distance, surface, and condition. For those in the City, several can be gotten to via mass transit, either by subway, as is the case for the Old Croton Aqueduct/Putnam Trail run, or on MetroNorth, which is true for the OCA Central, OCA North, and Rockefeller on the Hudson Line and the Leatherstocking Trail and Colonial Greenway from the New Haven Line. I have also made a list of tracks (and a Map) and I’d really appreciate anyone who knows of additional ones to let me know, with a brief description.
| County Trail Map |
| County Track Map | Long Run Alternative |
This is a list of running trails and trail runs in southern Westchester. (They are listed to the left in the Navigation Bar.) I have not ventured to the northern parts of the County for running, and am limiting myself to trails on which I have run or about which others have provided me information. Also, if you see a downed tree across a path, call the appropriate Parks Dep’t. They rely on trail-users to bring these things to their attention. Westchester: 914-864-7000 (The County is very responsive; whenever I’ve called, the tree is gone the next time I’m in the park.) NYC is slower, but I have spoken to the VCP Administrator about it and he appreciates getting contacted by trail-users. The City number is 311 or 212-NEW YORK, but if it’s in Van Cortlandt (through which the OCA and Putnam Trail run in the Bronx) call 718-430-1890.
And speaking of the County, it is involved in numerous trail initiatives. There is the Colonial Greenway, which joins a number of trails. Paul Gisondo of the County's Planning Dep’t pointed me to information about the Westchester RiverWalk, a 46-mile largely paved greenway that will go straight-up the Hudson, from Yonkers to Peekskill (PDF) and then through Fort Smith to the Putnam border, where it connects to the Appalachian Trail. The intent is to connect it to the City, to the Battery. I’m asking Paul where it stands. In the meantime, the links on the Site provide tons of info. There’s also a link to a County Map (although I quibble with the inclusion of a connection between the OCA South and OCA Central in Yonkers, which is more of a theoretical than a real trail).
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| From the City |
| Mtn Bikes |
| Hiking |
| Horses |
| My Blog | 2 Products:
Headlamp Road ID |
I noticed this Forum for NYC trail runners when someone was kind enough to put a link to this site. I have also put up some Hiking links, including one for the Westchester Novice Meet-Up. They can provide hints to good running trails.
For mountain bikers, some of these trails are suitable and permitted, others not. I have a brief description here, including a link to the West. Mtn Bike Ass’n where you can get bike-specific maps and a forum useful for hooking up with other bikers.
I’ve also put a number of the pictures taken since October onto Flickr, at Flickr: Westchester Trails. Finally, I’ve put up external links to trail descriptions in Somers and North Salem (thanks to Tim Fulton, the ArmoryTrack.com webmaster and Head Coach at Somers HS (who, Tim says, do lots of miles and nearly all of it on trails) and who points to efforts at putting a nice State trail at Eagle River in Somers).
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Note that the Google.Maps of courses now have a “Print” function. The above County Trail Map link will get a Google.Map application I created. Double-click on a pin, and it will center the spot and then use the zoom-in function to, well, zoom in. You can also link directly to the page with that trail. (I’ve added a track map.) Thanks to MapBuilder.net. I have added a bunch of Google.maps with the courses marked, with distances, thanks to a tweak from Paul Degnan. This technology is less useful on trails than on other courses because it requires that you see where you’re marking and trails are often obscured by trees. Google has added a “Hybrid” option, which displays the map and roads on the satellite. Very cool. I’ve applied it to Nature Study/Twin Lakes from the entrance at Chester Heights with one loop of the lake, to the OCA South, the OCA-Putnam, and the OCA North. I’m going to adding more (although the trails themselves are pretty easy to follow without a map). By going to his site, you can customize your own work-out routes. Dave Goodwin has a similar site and has also posted some NYC routes, with other places (incl. one I’ve done in Hyde Park!) as well.
A Change of Seasons: Nature Study Woods and Twin Lakes
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| The Old Croton Aqueduct in Hastings-on-Hudson. |
The essential elements of a trail are surface conditions – rockiness and recovery-from-rain being the most important – hilliness, and frequency of road-crossings. Most of the trails I list are flat, pancake-flat for the Old Croton Aqueduct (except in its northern stretches). They vary, however, with respect to the other characteristics, as well as with an additional one, equine encounters. I touch on these in the individual trail references.
| On Safety |
But as to all of them, remember, these are TRAILS and they inevitably have hazards. You run on them at your own risk. I mention some hazards in the individual trail-descriptions. There may be others. But as with all running, use common sense.
- Don’t wear headphones on trails. Too much concentration is required.
- If in doubt about the surface or where your foot is going to land – because it’s flooded, or covered with leaves, or covered with snow, or whatever – slow down and tread lightly; I’ve fallen a few times on these trails on runs and while the falls have not done too much damage, they could have. So be careful.
- Watch for tree roots and low-hanging branches, one of which (on the stretch of the Putnam Trail I suggest avoiding) once knocked someone with whom I was running straight to the ground. Tom’s running. BOOM. Tom’s on his back.
- Be careful of rockiness; if you run on Saxon Woods East, for example, you are going to be running on and over rocks.
- Use care in crossing streets. When crossing Broadway as you approach Dobbs Ferry on the OCA: Central, as another example, stop and look both ways.
- If you are in a group and you see a hazard, let those behind you know. If there’s a low branch, raise your hand. If there’s a rock or hole ahead and to your right, point down with your right hand. I do this in races and others may think I’m nuts, but they appreciate it.
These are only examples. If you know of others, let me know.
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| July 7, 2005 |
Finally, I am not a long-distance runner and rarely stop for water during a run. For the most part, these trails do not have places for water stops. The only 3 I know of are on the OCA-Putnam, where there are water fountains in Tibbetts Brook and at the golf-course clubhouse at the southern end, Saxon Woods, where there is water at the golf-course club house, and Rockefeller, which has water at the visitor’s center, off route 117. For the most part, however, you’re on your own.
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| A tip about trails: when out of town, stop at a bike shop to ask about good trails. |
“Rules for a knife-fight?” The Westchester County Mountain Bike Ass’n has a list of common-sense Trail Rules, many of which apply to runners as well (except for the one about controlling your bike). I add the following, some which applies to bikes as well.
Most of the trails can be run in trainers with no difficulty, although for the eastern Saxon Woods loop I suggest trail shoes if you have them. That loop, the north part of the OCA, and the Rockefeller will also give you a hard work-out no matter how easily you plan on taking it. Most are wide enough so that running two-abreast is generally no problem.
There is a mix of loop and out-and-back courses. I will give my approximate distances for landmarks or loops, using a very rough guess based upon my pace; these guesses tell you how long the run might be, but you should use a watch. I will try to get measurements. The trails are readily accessible by car. All except for the OCA-North and Rockefeller are right off parkway exits with ready parking nearby.
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As to public transportation, only the OCA Central and Northern segments and the Rockefeller Park are reachable by train. The OCA Central and Northern segments run parallel and not too far from the Hudson Line of Metro North, albeit via a fairly steep hill. You could start at the top of the Central Segment at Irvington and run all the way into Yonkers (Glenwood). I have put some information about this alternative on the OCA Central site. There is a public-transport link for the OCA Northern and Rockefeller. You can also get to the OCA Southern and Putnam Trail via the 1 subway to Van Cortlandt Park or from the 4 train to Woodlawn, although this one is tricky and I have to figure out the best way to describe it. I also have a hint regarding a way to avoid stinking-up-the-joint when you take a train to a trail.
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| Leatherstocking Trail; looking out to Old White Plains Road, Mamaroneck. |
Eric Turkewitz of the Sound Shore Runners is working with officials from the County, Mamaroneck, New Rochelle, and Scarsdale to develop the Colonial Greenway, a loop that includes many of my routes and is a 13+ mile loop (with only a slight amount of paved-road-running around New Rochelle, Mamaroneck, Scarsdale, Eastchester, and New Rochelle). (My own description of the Colonial Greenway is not as detailed as is Eric's.) When their work is completed, this trail will be marked by diamond signs strategically (and environmentally-safely) placed on trees. In addition to the Twin Lakes and Saxon Woods trails, it includes the Leatherstocking Trail and other trails closer to I-95. A draft of a detailed map is being circulated, and it should be widely-available when it is done.
I hope to add additional trails from my experience or from others who have some. For each trail, I have a narrative description. For each trail, I give a MapQuest link.
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From the City
It turns out that most of these trails can be reached from the City. The 1 or 4 subway get you to the OCA/Putnam Trail. Note, however, that right now the easy connection to the OCA from the No. 1 is blocked, as discussed above. MetroNorth’s Hudson Line gets you to the OCA Central, the OCA North, and the Rockefeller estate. MetroNorth’s New Haven Line gets you to the Leatherstocking Trail and, with a little care, to Saxon Woods. I give directions for each of these options.
| Last edited on ... July 25, 2008 |  |