Explore the best rated trails in Great Neck, NY. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Norwalk River Valley Trail and Ridgefield Rail Trail. With more than 90 trails covering 603 miles you're bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
I chanced upon this trail on a cycling day from Pennsylvania Terminal in NYC to Amenia, New York and while pedaling I thought of the former freight train engineers gliding through these wonderful environments and having the views all to themselves. Now, we all can enjoy the trailway! The surface is smooth and the journey is peaceful. My trip north from Gotham and return trip south two days later took place on nice days in August, and I imagine that the Maybrook must be terrific in the fall. On its own, the Maybrook is an excellent trail; connect to it via Westchester County's South- and North County Trailways and/or the Putnam Trailway, and the Maybrook becomes one leg of many possible cycling adventures. This summer, I am going back, because I need my Maybrook fix. Thank you, New York State, for investing in premier recreational resources!
I rode it with my bike it was good ride.I will be doing it again. It was clean and well maintained. A lot of walkers.
4/21. We parked at the Beardley Zoo parking lot and biked only 1 mile until we couldn't go any further. There was flooding and construction was taking place for a new water pipe. So we had to go to our car and start somewhere else. We parked on Trumbull Ave. at the Dept of Parks and Recreation as the parking lot for the trail on Trumbull was closed. We biked about 5 miles to Whitney Ave. and there was another sign that the trail was temporarily closed. The 5 miles we biked were lovely along the river. I'm not sure who you would contact to find out the status of the trail. We were hoping to do 26 miles round trip and got in 13.
I'm slowly checking trails that make up the Empire State Trail off my list so I will compare the Putnam Trailway to its adjacent trails.
Both the North County Trailway and Maybrook Trailway offer a better riding experience in my opinion. They are both slightly longer, are a little less hilly (which could be a positive or a negative) and are in better shape. All three trails provide similar scenery with a good mix of residential, tree cover and a few lakes/revivors.
That being said the Putnam Trailway isn't a bad trail by any means. It is hillier but that breaks up the monotony of a flat trail. Some of the hills are a fair challenge but they are not very long so its a few short climbs followed by a exciting downhill. There are a fair amount of road crossings especially around Baldwin Place but only two or three are busy, the rest were very quiet. I would say the roughest part of the trail is also around Baldwin Place, nothing crazy just a few bumps and cracks. I have a hybrid bike and had no issues with the trail.
The Rail Trails of Rockland county are simply wonderful!
NYS State Law prohibits E-Bikes from riding on the trail but it seems no one is obeying or enforcing the law. It will be an issue when someone gets hurt. There is no difference between an E-bike and a motorcycle except for the way it is powered. I'm not sure this will be an issue when someone gets hurt.
This was my first time riding the Loantaka Brook trail. It is late March 2023. I found the trail to be asphalt and smooth with beautiful creeks & dense wooded & nature scenery. On weekdays the trail is not very crowded but because the trail is somewhat narrow I can see it would be challenging to share the trail with walkers & hikers. I actually got lost trying to find my way back to the parking lot. The trail is not very well marked. If you are new to this trail I suggest you go online & review the trail map.
The trail was originally a tow path...in its early days mules would walk along it towing barges through the canal, usually carrying coal from Pennsylvania to the New York area. The canal is seventy-five feet wide and eight feet deep. It was dug in the 1830s by hand - mostly by laborers brought in from Ireland. They worked under brutal conditions from sunup til sundown; some of them had stonemason skills and their cobblestone spillways still survive.
So how long did it take 3,000 Irish laborers to dig the canal? Only three freaking years! Next time you ride this trail, mentally drink a toast of fine Irish whiskey to the good folks who labored so we can ride!
I mountain biked this short but beautiful trail before the 2012 Sandy washout. I took it from Ogdensburg to Beaver Lake Road (walk the tracks the last 300 feet) and then headed down RT 23 and left on 517 to Ogdensburg for a easy loop ride. I hiked the trail 1/13/2023 and I am happy to say that the collapsed section now has a narrow berm on the south side that can be biked (technical) or just walked. There are some trees down along the trail (hop some and carry over some) and some muddy areas by the rock cuts and some passable streams, but the views are worth a try. If you scramble up the rock mound you have great views of Ogdensburg and Sparta, and when you travel under the power lines you have a great view of RT 23 and Franklin. I think the rock cuts are deeper than the ones on the Paullinskill Trail and the elevated rail bed section are amazing. If you want to continue further into the Hamburg Mountain Wildlife Area, you can hop off this trail when it gets close to RT 23, and you will be across the street from their parking area. There is a also great little convenience store at the start of the trail in Ogdensburg as well a a new local bar across the street.
I’ve completed the Wilton trails in Lovers Lane, Entrance near Orem’s Dinner and Mathews Park. All are great. My favorites are the Wilton Trails, you enter and your engulfed in nature. Absolutely beautiful. I also love walking In Mathews park although that is more of a city trail to me not as much nature as these are concrete paved and you pass near traffic and such. So grateful to all the hard work put into to providing these trails thank you!
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