The Empire State Trail is a
multi-use trail
A shared-use path, mixed-use path or multi-use pathway is a path which is 'designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists'. Examples of shared-use paths include sidewalks designated as shared-use, bridleways and rail trails. A ...
in
New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
that was proposed by Governor
Andrew Cuomo
Andrew Mark Cuomo ( ; ; born December 6, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the same position that his father, Mario Cu ...
in January 2017 and completed in December 2020. The trail runs from
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
north to the Canadian border in
Rouses Point near the northern tip of
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain ( ; french: Lac Champlain) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the US states of New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canada, Canadian province of Quebec.
The New York portion of t ...
, and also from
Buffalo to
Albany. At , it is the longest multi-use trail in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. The trail includes pre-existing trail segments, which retain their existing identity but are now co-signed as a segment of the Empire State Trail. The trail also links to other regional bicycling and hiking trails such as the
Appalachian Trail
The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian ...
, the
Adirondack and
Catskill Park
The Catskill Park is in the Catskill Mountains in New York in the United States. It consists of of land inside a Blue Line in four counties: Delaware, Greene, Sullivan, and Ulster. As of 2005, or 41 percent of the land within, is owned by ...
s, the
Great Lakes Seaway Trail, the
Genesee Valley Greenway
The Genesee Valley Greenway is a rail trail in western New York's Genesee River valley.
The trail stretches for along a former Pennsylvania Railroad right-of-way as well as adjacent land from the Genesee Valley Canal. The low grade path is a m ...
, and others. A segment near its southernmost part, on the
Hudson River Greenway
The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a waterfront greenway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan, in New York City. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It is separate ...
in Manhattan, is concurrent with the
East Coast Greenway
The East Coast Greenway is a pedestrian and bicycle route between Maine and Florida along the East Coast of the United States. In 2020, the Greenway received over 50 million visits.
The nonprofit East Coast Greenway Alliance was created in 1991. ...
. The trail is used for hiking, biking,
snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and in some areas
snowmobiling
A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...
.
Completing the trail required 40 construction projects to create new trails and to eliminate gaps in existing segments.
On December 30, 2020, Governor Cuomo announced that these construction projects were finished, and that the Empire State Trail was officially completed and open to the public.
Route
The trail is organized in three main segments: the
Hudson River Valley Greenway Trail, the
Erie Canalway Trail, and the Champlain Valley Trail.
The
Hudson River Valley Greenway runs from
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
to
Albany along numerous greenways and rail trails, including the
Hudson River Greenway
The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a waterfront greenway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan, in New York City. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It is separate ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, the
North County Trailway
The North County Trailway is a long paved rail trail stretching from Eastview to Baldwin Place in Westchester County, New York. It is also part of the statewide Empire State Trail.
History and route
The North County Trailway was constructe ...
and
South County Trailway in
Westchester County
Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...
, the
Walkway Over the Hudson, the Albany–Hudson Electric Trail, and others. It loosely follows the eastern shore of the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
with a brief section in
Ulster County
Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster.
History
...
on the western shore. This section of trail is primarily off-road, but contains one significant on-road section between
Kingston and
Hudson.
The
Erie Canalway Trail runs from
Buffalo to
Albany (via
Rochester
Rochester may refer to:
Places Australia
* Rochester, Victoria
Canada
* Rochester, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Rochester, Kent
** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area
** History of Rochester, Kent
** HM Prison ...
and
Syracuse) along towpaths and rail trails following both the old
Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...
and the later
New York State Canal System
The New York State Canal System (formerly known as the New York State Barge Canal) is a successor to the Erie Canal and other canals within New York. Currently, the system is composed of the Erie Canal, the Oswego Canal, the Cayuga–Seneca Cana ...
. After the completion of the Empire State Trail, this section is almost entirely off-road, with notable on-road gaps remaining between
Clyde Clyde may refer to:
People
* Clyde (given name)
* Clyde (surname)
Places
For townships see also Clyde Township
Australia
* Clyde, New South Wales
* Clyde, Victoria
* Clyde River, New South Wales
Canada
* Clyde, Alberta
* Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...
and
Port Byron,
Schuyler Schuyler may refer to:
Places United States
* Schuyler County, Illinois
* Schuyler County, Missouri
* Schuyler, Nebraska, a city
* Schuyler County, New York
* Schuyler, New York, a town
* Schuyler Island, Lake Champlain, New York
* Schuyler C ...
and
Frankfort, and
Cohoes and
Watervliet.
The Champlain Valley Trail runs from
Albany to the
Canadian border
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
in
Rouses Point. This section initially follows the
Champlain Canal from Albany to
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...
, and then follows
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain ( ; french: Lac Champlain) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the US states of New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canada, Canadian province of Quebec.
The New York portion of t ...
to
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. The section along the canal utilizes the
Champlain Canalway Trail, but north of Whitehall the trail is entirely on-road, following
State Bike Route 9 the rest of the way.
The trail connects 22 counties and many cities throughout the state, including
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
,
Buffalo,
Albany, and points in between. There is also a proposal to extend the trail from its southern terminus into Long Island.
Trail maintenance
The trail connects existing trail segments operated by a variety of state entities, local governments, and non-profit organizations such as the
New York State Canalway Trail,
Dutchess Rail Trail,
Wallkill Valley Rail Trail
The Wallkill Valley Rail Trail is a rail trail and linear park that runs along the former Wallkill Valley Railroad rail corridor in Ulster County, New York. It stretches from Gardiner through New Paltz, Rosendale and Ulster to the Kingston c ...
and others. The trail maintenance activities continue to be undertaken by the entity that operates each local segment of the larger Empire State Trail.
[
]
Trails included
![Empire State Trail trailhead at New Paltz](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Empire_State_Trail_trailhead_at_New_Paltz.jpg)
New York City to Albany
*Hudson River Greenway
The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway is a waterfront greenway for walking or cycling, long, around the island of Manhattan, in New York City. The largest portions are operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. It is separate ...
* Putnam Greenway (NYC)
*North County Trailway
The North County Trailway is a long paved rail trail stretching from Eastview to Baldwin Place in Westchester County, New York. It is also part of the statewide Empire State Trail.
History and route
The North County Trailway was constructe ...
* South County Trailway
* Putnam County Trailway
*Maybrook Trailway
Maybrook is a village in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 3,150 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie– Newburgh– Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York– ...
* Dutchess Rail Trail
* Walkway over the Hudson
*Hudson Valley Rail Trail
The Hudson Valley Rail Trail is a paved east–west rail trail in the town of Lloyd in Ulster County, New York, stretching from the Hudson River through the hamlet of Highland. The trail was originally part of the Poughkeepsie Bridge Route, a ...
*Wallkill Valley Rail Trail
The Wallkill Valley Rail Trail is a rail trail and linear park that runs along the former Wallkill Valley Railroad rail corridor in Ulster County, New York. It stretches from Gardiner through New Paltz, Rosendale and Ulster to the Kingston c ...
* Kingston Point Rail Trail
* Albany-Hudson Electric Trail
Albany to Buffalo
* New York State Canalway Trail - Erie Canalway Trails
* Onondaga Creekwalk
* Shoreline Trail
Albany to Champlain
* New York State Canalway Trail - Champlain Canalway Trails
* Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail
*Delaware Avenue-Black Bridge Trail - Van Schaick Island
*Terry Gordon Trail
See also
* List of trails in New York
External links
Official site
Interactive Map
Open source map of cycling route
Open source map of walking route
References
{{coord missing, New York (state)
Nature reserves in New York (state)
Tourism in New York (state)
Hiking trails in New York (state)