Explore the Local Area Pt. 3

 During these cold winter months, I have continued to steer my steel horse clear of the interstate and the seasonably icy winds gifted to us by a northern climate, guiding my two wheels along the twisting backroads of the Hudson Valley, exploring areas left unexplored to me until this journey. On this particular day, I decided to eschew the towns and villages and explore the tree lined forestry which connects those collections of dwellings and it did not disappoint. I aimed to allow myself to get lost and yet somehow managed to keep finding my way to familiar territory, a good sign that I’ve done better at exploring my local area than I had originally thought. 

I wound around the prisons just outside of Ulster and Ellenville and found myself transported back in time as I caroused the twists and turns beyond the thinnest portions of the Rondout Creek. It was easy to imagine traversing these same lanes on a saddled steed, in a day which preceded modern paving methods, marking these avenues as little more than well trodden trails. 

I eventually turned onto a wider street, somehow missing the markings which should have marked it as NY 44/55. Traveling along this beautiful state highway, I only made it a few miles until things began to take on a familiar visage and before I knew it, I was climbing my way into the fantastic sways around Lake Minnewaska. As the roadsides began to fill with thicker and thicker mounds of whitening snow and the waterfalls stood frozen in time, I noticed the temperature dropping at a rate of about a single degree per mile, until my fingers began to protest in anger at the abuse of unpreparedness. Thankfully, I kept a thicker pair of winter gloves in the saddlebag for just such an occurrence and finding a convenient stretch of cement to pull away from the main roadway, I made the switch, to the delight of my aching digits.

Winding back down the hill, I turned onto 299 and made my way towards the town of New Paltz, known to some for a bustling college scene with an identity borrowed from the Woodstock of yesteryear and to others for its proximity to the Mohonk Preserve and Mountainhouse. All throughout this journey are plenty of rest spots to get out, stretch your legs and enjoy the incredible view across the expansive valley nestled into the foothills of the Catskill Mountains.

Every ride, I seem to find myself more and more impressed by the endless beauty of the Hudson Valley and the roads connecting one town to the next.