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Park Perfect for Poetic Inspiration

3/24/2015

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Poets’ Walk celebrates the free verse of Walt Whitman while it exhibits, too, the formal structure of Robert Frost. Pacing up the graveled path from parking lot to pavilion, you march the metered rhythm of Robert Frost. From there, as you venture through the fields and then into the woods where only hints of the Hudson River are visible, you encounter the ruggedness of Walt Whitman.

Robert Frost, a poet of who composed in rhyme and metered rhythm, once remarked of the Civil War-era poet, Walt Whitman, “I’d rather play tennis without a net than write in free verse.”

Whitman, who was free of limits and imaginary lines, might reply, “I’d rather play tennis without a net — or a racquet.” Poets’ Walk is Whitman’s playground: No swings for children, no tables for picnics, no tennis court, but ample opportunity to be afoot and lighthearted strolling the long, brown path through field and forest.

Poets Walk Park, while a brief ramble of less than three miles of trail, offers many benches and two gazebos for contemplation and meditation. Originally a farm and then estate of the 1800s, most of Poets Walk Park is still pasture.

This open landscape, partitioned into rustic rooms with stands of trees, rock walls and curvaceous paths that keep secret what lies beyond the next knoll, begins as a pastoral walk, then opens up to high-bank views of the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains that dominate the horizon.

“Every change of season, every change of weather, indeed, every hour of the day, produces some change in the magical hues and shapes of these mountains,” writes Washington Irving of the Catskill Mountains in the opening verses of Rip Van Winkle, “they will gather a hood of gray vapors about their summits, which, in the last rays of the setting sun, will glow and light up like a crown of glory.” This same glorious view from these grounds experienced by Washington Irving awaits our exploration.

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A mile and a half south of Poets Walk is the more rugged Ferncliff Forest. Like Poets Walk, Ferncliff forest has its roots with the Astor family. A mere mile walk and 200 feet of elevation gain lead to a fire tower.

Atop in the tower cabin, while just a height of 450 feet, because of its proximity to the Hudson River and being above the tree canopy, is the most grand view in Dutchess County. A mesh of trails meanders through the woods for those wanting a few more miles of hiking. A paucity of parking assures solitude for those sauntering further.

For a repast, just north of Poets’ Walk is Bard College, whose cafeteria offers nutritious, organic, farm-fresh food. Just south, at the intersection with Route 199, is a substantial fruit and vegetable stand.

Maps of Poets’ Walk and all the Scenic Hudson parks are available at ScenicHudson.org. Information on Ferncliff Forest is available at FerncliffForest.org. These parks coupled with lunch make for an ideal day trip.

Skip Doyle is founder of Esopus Heritage, which serves to preserve and promote the nature and historic places in the town of Esopus. As a volunteer for the Adirondack Mountain Club, the Appalachian Mountain Club, and other nature preservation organizations, his outdoor offerings can be found at MidHudsonADK.org, AMC-NY.org and SkipNewYork@Yahoo.com
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Hudson trek reveals breathtaking scenery

3/24/2015

3 Comments

 
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Harrier Hill Park is a culmination — not a destination. It is the journey through the city of Hudson, and the Town of Greenport, that yields this vista as its reward.

Traveling through the Hudson Valley countryside, I reminisced about descending through the Grand Canyon to its bottom at Phantom Ranch. I was captivated by the recollection that every step down the canyon trail was an unfolding panorama of texture, vistas and color, and that my boots changed color from the dust of each hue of rock strata — red, brown, orange, green.

This autumn day, as I travel up the Hudson River Valley, I see that Arizona trek paled in comparison as I witness vastly more textures, vistas, culture and history. I am bathed in the vast enticements of nature: mountains rising and ebbing from the valley, pastoral fields adorned with wildflowers, the charted channels of the Hudson River and projecting through the fall foliage every spectrum of color.


Pausing at the Old Annsburo Orchards, I observe that the not-so-distant Catskill Mountains are defined as much by their cloves as by their peaks. The saddled mountains of Overlook and Platte, and the range of Devil's Path behind them — with Indian Head, Twin and Sugarloaf visible — are adrift from the paired peaks of Kaaterskill High Peak and Round Top by the vast chasm of Plattekill Clove. And those salient peaks of Kaaterskill High Peak and Round Top — visible throughout the Hudson River Valley — are separated from the Escarpment, North Mountain and the Blackhead Range by the deep cleft of Kaaterskill Clove.

While this is a day of vast vistas, it is only in the city of Hudson that I touch the waters of the Hudson River. The waterfront offers picnicking, day dockage for both motorboats and kayaks and cruises to the Hudson Lighthouse offshore. For dining and browsing, Warren Street is the Main Street of Hudson: Eight blocks of 19th century architecture from the Albany and Boston railroad tracks to the Amtrak rails is a diner's haven.

For children, Greenport Town Park has a playground, pavilion, picnic tables and ball fields. From here, trails lead to the Greenport Conservation Area — five miles of well-maintained walking trails owned by the Columbia Land Conservancy.

The best access to Greenport Conservation Area is the preserve's parking lot on Joslen Boulevard just a few hundred yards south of the town park. Here, a mile-long fine gravel path with grassy shoulders provides easy access; it is heartening to see the parallel etchings of strollers and wheelchairs.

The two-mile Stockport-Greenport Trail directly connects the Greenport Conservation Area with Scenic Hudson's Harrier Hill and the vast acreage protected by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. This is a true woods walk in contrast to the pedestrian Greenport trails. Having lingered touring Hudson and meandering the many Greenport Conservation Area trails, I arrived at Harrier Hill at sunset. The Catskill Mountains — blue in this fading light — and cloves I observed earlier in the day stretch even wider from this vantage point. As a serendipitous treat, the full moon was rising — as it does each month — precisely as the sun was setting. The short, gravel path from parking lot to pavilion at Harrier Hill makes access by strollers and wheelchairs easy.

Skip Doyle is owner of Outdoors Skipper, a New York licensed guide service offering hiking, biking, camping, paddling and skiing outings throughout the Hudson River Valley. He is also founder of Esopus Heritage, which serves to preserve and promote the nature and historic places in the town of Esopus. He is a volunteer for the Adirondack Mountain Club, the Appalachian Mountain Club and other nature preservation organizations, his outdoor offerings can be found at MidHudsonADK.org, AMC-NY.org, and SkipNewYork@Yahoo.com. "Valley Explorer" is a regular column in My Valley by outdoor enthusiasts.
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    Skip Doyle is owner of Outdoors Skipper, a New York licensed guide service offering hiking, biking, camping, paddling and skiing outings throughout the Hudson River Valley.

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Published 2015 @ Outdoor Skipper . Skip Doyle P.O. Box 632 . Port Ewen . New York 12466