New-York tribune., 1901-06-09
OUTING TRIPS ON WHEEL.
A NEARBY REGION EASILY REACHED
HOW TO SEE ORANGE COUNTY
WHEELING PLEASURES

Of the most interesting of these is in the Orange
county part of this State. which includes a rolling
stretch OF country between the Highlands and the
Eamapo Mountains, which run from the Hudson
River to New-Jersey, partly in. Orange and partly
al hockIahd county on the SOUTH and the Shawan-
srnh range On the north, which beginning at the
Hudson valley in Ulster County. run southwest in
suIh'an Anc Orange counties, and extend also into
New-jcrsey, becoming the Blue or Kittatiuny
Mountains at the Delaware Water Gap.
Access 10 orange County is most easily gained
the practised wheel rider by crossing North
eastern New-Jersey. Perhaps the best route is TO
20 to Weehawken or Fort Lee by ferry cIir,b tho
Palisades and ride down into and across the salt
meadows To Hackensack whore ancient STONE
buildings and modern wooden ones almost iostle
one another, and suburban quiet Joins with the
busting activity AZ certain hours of The dav
prevalent in rural municipalities
From Haclcnsack northward the best route is
1y Arcola. Ridgewood Undercliff and Allendale to
sunern Here is the entrance 10 the beautiful
Rsmapo Valley. the delights of which have beer
greatly eXtolled. The State line is nassed before
Suffern is reached. and the route is in Rockland
County, past Ram2po and Hillburn alongside the
2anapo River and with the almost precpitous
wood covered heights rising on either hand Be-
Tond Sloatshurg Orange County is reached, and
hen past The entrance TO Tuxedo Park there is a
fine road, with ever varying pcturesqueness of
scenery. The valley is not wide enough for the
Erie Railroad, the Ramapo River and the highway
without their crossing another again and
ACRosS ORANGE COUNTY.
At Arden, where the Greenwood iron furnaces
are the head OF the valley is reached, and full
breadth of Orange County stretches out before one
the dim outlines of the Shawangunks IN the dis
taice and the larger form of SchunUemunk I'm the
foreground. The latter is hardly more than a big
hill, but is diGnihed by name as it stretches for
Gozen miles or more east CT Monroe. From Ar
den the road TO Newburg is along the line OF what
Is known as the Short Cut Railroad a branch of
of he
Ramapo Mountains, and then the Highlands with
Storm King at the banks of the Hudson The
route is through Central Valley, Highland Mills.
Woodbury. Mountainville. Orrs Mills and Vairs
Gate. ali Of them little villages with a few hun
lred houses the usual church spires and school
houses and the necessary marts of trade. They lie
in pleasant farming region, some OF it the best
in the county.
\ mile from Arden there IS a never failing
spring Of nearly ice cold water flowing from the
side Of hill, south of the road. \ pipe is led
from il to a barrel rhere horses may drink and
wheelmen resort % it TO cool Off hot days and
10 slake their thirst from the stream as it flows
from the ~pe. The local tradition says that on the
march d Newburg Washington and all his troops
quehched their thirst at this spring and it is
I-ncWn Washington's Spring.
STREAM NAMED BY WILLIS.
Near Orr's Mills the road crosses the Moodna,
large brook small river. which enters the Hud-
Cornwall. It's name was given TO it by
Nathaniel Parker Willis, the poet, whose home,
IdleWild, near its banks. Before he bestowed
The name Moodna upon the stream it bore the
proseic designation of Murderer's Greek. from a
tragedy its banks early in the century.
in the central valley region the roadbed is made
Of red shale which affords most excellent riding,
and il is a distinct disappointment when it is left
behind and the yellow dirt road reappears. But
the surface is generally good. and when the main
track IS unridable there is generally road edge
w1fch IS firm and smooth The country is undulat-
f. ---l~o ef,,1r .au A.
Hudson River Valley is approached the heights
II Storm King the west bank, and of the North
Beacon and South Beacon of the Fishkill Noun
tains. on the east bank, loom up and give a
genuine appearance Of mountain scenery. The
name Of the hamlet of Wallis Gate recalls the
DAYS of the plankroad and turnpike which passed
through that region from Newhurg 10 Goshen
After passing through the pleasant suburban dis
lTict of New Windsor. which overlooks Newourg
Rav the city limits are reached. Besides the route
described wheel riders reach Newburg by rid
ina On the east side of the Hudson to Fishkll and
crossing by ferry.
There are various routes leading out of New
burg one particularly good one running northward
along the Hudson River in the direction OF Kings
ton through Balmville Highland. West PARK
Esopus and Rondout. where a chain ferry carries
one across Esopus Greek. The main highway
leading due west was formerly known as the New
burg and Cochecton Turnpike. In the early part OF
the century it laid out as the chief thorough
fare from the Newhurg portion Of the Hudson River
Valley running Cochecton, on the Delaware
River and connecting with roads TO the west
ern part of the State, across Northeastern Penn
sylveria.
Before the DAYS of railroads a big four horse
stage ran daily from Newburg TO Monticello ana
westward After the Erie Railroad was built the
STAGE ran from Middletown to Monticello and was
only discontinued about third OF century G ago
when branch railroad was Dullt from fQIt ~ ~
20 the county seat of Sullivan county IN an t,Ie
earlier part of the century this hehway was aiI Ina
ola a6 toll
nd therS who used the road FOR man! yedts -
quantities OF farm products were ca!feG o'e ~
Newburg for shipment But the eHlehsioI oi iail-
nike ana one bv one its tollgates were abandoned,
o. fhe receints would not pay Tor keeplhg t ttt I @
near 'Te-b,lrg was given up. and after that Tune
Inc Tcad was neglected until a law was passed DE
Of The towns through which it passes, and it could
be improved.
LAID OUT on STRAIGHT LINE.
This route can never prove popular one for bi-
c,q,in., The engineer who laid IL out had hTfn
con,.iction that straight line was the shortest
distance between two points, but uld hot uiScti'"
,,,, between th. surface of map and the surface
OF the earth in "A rolling country The road was
LA ont ,,pon \ perfectly straight line, and runs
I'D hill and down dale i'm an undertaking manner
save al one or points. Al what are called the
Winding Hills. the Collabar nelghporiood s
wet ~ ntgomery. the road diVerges from a
straight line make its way over the s.SeP aS
while ~ Montgomery the winclnS or I,Ile Nalhltt
tar causes the bridge over il TO extend north ana
south instead of east and west sun luI tIsL 81
ward where the old turnpike crosses . Cie sa "a
mi Range the road also winds in the ascent ana
descent. But in the man mere - % ~ % recentIv
Vent over it said he believed he climbed forty mis-
- The further westward goes in Orange COUNTY
the better the roads. and there are some e ilire
stretches riding, notably on 1n 1hg WTev b be
; Montgomery and Walden. and bet ween Mont