"Hiking" in Poughkeepsie NY

A bridge across the Hudson River

Vising my sister turns into walking across water

My little sister goes to school in Poughkeepsie, NY at Marist College.  She is involved in the Marist Dance Ensemble and had her recital this past weekend.  Driving to her school I noticed a pedestrian walkway bridge and decided I would check it out after her show.  I asked her about it and she told me it was a two-mile walk to the end of the bridge and back and is quite scenic.  Getting to the bridge from her college was an easy drive because there are a lot of signs directing you to the bridge.  Finding a parking spot, on the other hand was not as easy.  Once my car was parked and I had my sneakers on and camera in hand I took off for my hike.

A walkway of history
Why would there even be a bridge here?

Leading up to the actual pedestrian bridge is what I will call and introductory walk.  The walkway leading up to the bridge was lined with picnic tables, and small sheds.  At each shed were posters explaining the history of the pedestrian bridge.  From these posters I learned a lot about the history of the bridge.  At 6,767 feet the Walkway Over the Hudson is the world's longest pedestrian bridge and that the Walkway is 212 feet about the Hudson River, a fact my boyfriend Mike who is afraid of heights wasn’t too thrilled to read.  The bridge was first used as a railroad bridge across the Hudson River.  It was first used in 1889 and at the time was the longest bridge in the world.  In 1974 a fire damaged the bridge and rendered it useless.  In 1992 Walkway Over the Hudson began its efforts to provide public access to the bridge and broke ground on the project in 2007.  In 2009 Walkway Over the Hudson State Historic Park opened to the public.

Cross Bridge Winds

After reading about this history Mike and I began our walk across the bridge.  For the first part of the walk there are fences on either side of the bridge making it difficult to see the beautiful view.  After some thought I realized those fences were most likely places there to prohibit people from dropping things off the edge of the bridge onto cars passing below.  Once we were on the portion of the bridge over the water the sights were beautiful.  You are able to see the breathtaking view of the Hudson River and the mountain range on both sides.  There are a few viewing stations as well as additional posters with more information about the bridge and it’s transformation from a railroad bridge to a pedestrian walkway.  The hike itself, if you can even call it that, is about 2.5 miles walking from one end of the bridge to the other and back with mostly level terrain.  Bicycles as well as rollerblading and skating are allowed.  You may not get a great exercise but the views are spectacular.