The South County Trailway is a 14.1 mile (22.7km) long rail-trail that stretches from the Putnam Trail in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx to the North County Trailway in East View, New York. The construction of this Trailway began in 1990 and was completed in October 2017. The trailway has now become a popular route for bicycle commuters in Westchester.
What Is So Special About This Trailway?
Apart from the length, it connects to a lot of places. The South County Trailway was constructed mostly along the mainline of the former New York and Putnam Railroad railbed in Westchester County, New York (also known as “Westchester”). In East View, it connects to the North County Trailway. Much of the trail is in the Saw Mill River floodplain, although the southern portion runs along Tibbetts Brook.
Bicycle commuters who use the trailway from Westchester can travel to attend to jobs in Elmsford, the Bronx, Manhattan, and Getty Square in Yonkers. The trailway is not bright at night because of the absence of street lights, and when it is winter, the road does not get plowed. Because of this, it may be hard to navigate through the trailway but not impossible.
What Will You Find Us Doing At The South County Trailways?
You will find us doing the best two things to do on the trailways: biking or hiking! If there is any bike path that resembles the main artery for bikes in the Hudson Valley Region, it is the South County Trailways. It is one of the most popular parks in the Westchester area and also the centerpiece of Westchester’s trail networks.
This trailway is usually viewed as a very long bike path, but in the real sense of it, it is made of four different tracks, names, and maps. Even if the name changes as you look at the map, it is the same all through.
What Should You Be Expecting When Biking On The Trailways?
Since the construction of the trailways started in 1990 and ended in 2017, some parts of the roads are older than some. So, when biking on this road, you may have a bumpy ride. But there is good news. The old parts are getting reconstructed, but the bad news is that because of how long the trailway is, it will take years to fix it entirely, and you may not be able to go through some routes because of ongoing construction. But this does not in any way affect you from using the trailways.
Are There Cons To Using The South County Trailways?
Well, there are a couple of downsides to using the trailways. But those downsides are not exactly going to affect your fun. Some downsides are:
There are no restrooms around. If you need to ease yourself, you also can’t leak in the bushes because the area is not so covered.
There are also no restaurants in the area. So while planning to take a long ride on this trailway, you should pack food and drinks.
Those factors aside, the South County Trailway is a great place to exercise through biking and get a view of natural sceneries.
