Trails will shutter on April 21 for Fjord Trail work
The state parks department announced on March 14 that it will close Breakneck Ridge to hikers on April 21 for up to two years for Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail construction.
HHFT is building the Breakneck Connector and Bridge in the Hudson Highlands State Park Preserve just north of the tunnel as part of its planned 7.5-mile linear park between Cold Spring and Beacon. The train station will also be closed for renovations.
During construction, there will be no access to the Breakneck Ridge, Wilkinson Memorial and Lower Brook trailheads. The Washburn/Cornish trailheads, Notch Trail and Little Stony Point will remain open. State park staff and stewards from the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference will assist hikers.
Renderings via HHFT
The connector trail and bridge “will provide hikers with an alternative to walking on the dangerous and narrow Route 9D” and “create cohesive access to and from” the train station,” HHFT said in a news release. “The addition of sidewalks, organized and formalized parking, including small lots on the west side of Route 9D, enhanced crosswalks and wayfinding signage will facilitate a safer experience for both motorists and trail users.”
The site will also have public restrooms, an information kiosk, a bike tune-up station and new overlooks, HHFT said.
“The interior trail system will remain open during construction, and we encourage hikers to use this as an opportunity to learn about the many other fabulous hiking areas in the vicinity,” said Linda Cooper, regional director for state parks.
Will the Breakneck bypass trail also be closed?
A portion of it will. See the map in the article.
Why is it necessary to publish a concept drawing/vague illustration of the future Breakneck Connector with only two people walking in the picture — as if this scene could ever be duplicated in reality? This appears to be a partisan boost by this newspaper for the proposed Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail administrators.
We all know that hundreds of thousands of people will eventually be attracted to this $80 million bridge, and it will never be a serene locale for just two casual strollers.
And I hope Cold Spring residents are prepared to pay more in property taxes to deal with the garbage, bathrooms, sidewalks, parking and other resources needed if there is no support for the Dockside connector.
I was sitting at home, at my piano, in my house, which is on Route 9D just north of Main Street. I’m in my wheelchair, as usual. Every day I play for an hour, and on the weekends, within that hour, I always see about 30 people walking down 9D toward Breakneck.
They are day-trippers; sometimes they have dogs. They’re walking down 9D on the side, or what I call “the white line of death.” I used to be a competitive runner and would stand on the shoulder when there was traffic. But there is no shoulder on 9D, and no sidewalk. It needs a proper sidewalk, like the one in front of The Nest, from the top of Main Street to Boscobel and from the top of Main Street to Little Stony Point.
There are going to be more people here, whether we like it or not. I used to live in the Hamptons and every five years or so, I’d move from South Hampton to Bridge Hampton to East Hampton, and finally to Montauk. But even that got crowded out, so I moved to Philipstown. My family has been here since 1968 and the area is just growing and growing. There’s nothing you can do about it.
I hope the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail works out, because more people will be connected to the environment and appreciate it. The Fjord Trail will also benefit people like me. We can see the river and enjoy life instead of being stuck at home watching people walk the white line of death.