The DogHike Blog

Rye Patch, NY – 10 Great Canine Finds in the Hudson Valley.There are a lot of perks to being a canine Hudson Valley resident—fresh country air, the mountains, and plenty of dog-friendly restaurants to visit.
If your pooch is aching to stretch his legs or needs to release his high-energy beyond your backyard or indoor confines, there are plenty of places to run around leashed or un-leashed in the Hudson Valley. Even better, these locations promise a fun day trip for humans too.
You’re sure to meet others to mingle and walk with.  

In an exciting new partnership, Wallkill Valley Land Trust and Open Space Conservatory has acquired 11.5 miles (65 acres) of the former Wallkill Valley Railroad in Ulster County.  This acquisition has almost doubled the length of the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail which occupies the former railroad bed. The highlight of this purchase is the iconic 940-foot-long Rosendale Railroad Trestle, perched 150 feet over the Rondout Creek in Rosendale, originally constructed in 1895.  The trestle, which is now closed to the public, is the most spectacular portions of the scenic rail trail.

This expansion now means that additional hamlets along the Wallkill River Valley will be connected to one another and trail users can take the scenic route to get to them as they pass by woodlands, open fields, and farmlands lands. Residents and tourist alike can bike, walk, run, bird watch, horseback ride and cross country ski while they discover a wide variety of birds, other wildlife and the panoramically beautiful views of the Shawangunk Ridge and the Wallkill River.

The project will involve repairing the 114 year old bridge’s steel infrastructure, installing wooden decks and railings, and regrading and widening the rest of the newly acquired Rail Trail. Once completed, the new rail trail will allow upstate New Yorkers and the general public to view the Shawangunk Ridge, the Binnewater Lakes region with its historic cement mines, and the hamlet of Rosendale from a lofty perch — 150 feet in the air.

This linear park will benefit Mid-Hudson Valley residents in many ways.  It will fill in the most important “missing link” in one of the best networks of rail trails in the Hudson River Valley, and will encourage new economic development in the town of Rosendale.

In short, the restored Rosendale extension of the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail will be a recreational and cultural resource that will provide users with an unparalleled recreational experience.

via WVLT – Wallkill Valley Rail Trail- Rosendale.

Facebook | Cornwall Reunion Jam.

By WILLIAM J. KEMBLE

Correspondent

WOODSTOCK — Town Board members on Tuesday said regulations should be individualized for each of three park areas in the town to keep dog owners happy while complying with health regulations and keeping athletic fields sanitary.

The comments were made during a public hearing on planned requirements to have dogs leashed at the Comeau property and Rick Volz Field but kept off the athletic fields while formalizing a complete dog ban at Andy Lee Field.

“Our goal is to say that we don’t want any dogs on the playing fields,” town Councilwoman Terrie Rosenblum said.

Town Clerk Jackie Early added that the ban at Andy Lee Field was necessary because children’s recreation activities would not be allowed by Ulster County officials without the ban.

“No dogs (can be allowed) because the Health Department would shut down the camp,” she said.

Regulations were proposed after town officials found that signs already posted cannot be enforced because laws were never adopted.

Town Board members expect to allow dogs on leashes at the Comeau property on trails but prohibit owners from allowing the animals beyond the tree line surrounding the athletic fields. However, Early noted changes on the property could leave dog owners with questions.

“I think that could be a problem down the road,” Early said. “You have to be very careful when you’re making these laws. You can’t say the tree line because the tree line might not be there somewhere down the road.”

Woodstock Soccer Club board member Paul Shultis Jr. said parents would be discouraged from bringing their pets to games as a compromise for implementing regulations intended to stop other dog owners from use of the fields when games are not being played.

“For us to control the parents through e-mail and say if you bring your dog it needs to be on a leash and this is the designated area, we can control that,” he said. “It’s impossible to control the dogs coming out of the western trail and the eastern trail.”

via Woodstock board mulls park dog rules – The Daily Freeman News: Serving the Hudson Valley since 1871(DailyFreeman.com).

Exciting weekend ahead on the Hudson

Workers are putting the finishing touches on the Walkway

HIGHLAND – Autumn has arrived, but this weekend brings a new beginning to the former Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge.

Gov. David Paterson and Sen. Charles Schumer will be on hand Saturday when the Walkway Over the Hudson Historic Park opens as part of New York State’s Quadracentennial celebration.

“It was 16 years ago that I first walked out on this railroad bridge, and I thought to myself it would be great if everyone could see this tremendous view,” said Fred Schaeffer, chairman of the Walkway Over the Hudson.  “So it’s really nice to have this dream come true.”

The first cornerstone of the bridge was put in place in 1873, and in 1888 the bridge, then the longest in the world at 6,767 feet, opened to ferry rail traffic into New England.

It continued to be a viable crossing, moving freight and passengers, including soldiers bound overseas during World War II, until it was closed by a fire in 1974.

In 1992 the Walkway Over the Hudson, which began as a grassroots organization, started the long process of getting the bridge converted for pedestrians and bicyclists. In 2007, a partnership began with Dyson Foundation that eventually attracted more private and public funding to complete the project.

“It’s quiet and peaceful, and it takes your breath away,” said Schaeffer.

From the Walkway, pedestrians and bicyclists can take a break to enjoy the 24mile viewshed. “You can see the Hudson Highlands; you can see the Catskills to the north,” he said. “I think people are going to be amazed how beautiful it is from up here.”

The bridge originally cost $3.5 million to build in the 1880s. And now 111 years after it was completed, $38.5 million in state, federal and private funding will convert it into a walkway constructed with 973 concrete panels.

Bringing the bridge into the 21st century also made sense financially because it would have cost about $54 million to demolish it.

“This will bring a lot of tourists into the area, especially to the connecting trails on both sides. I think we’ll get people from outside the area and definitely outside the state,” said Schaeffer.

For about a decade, Town of Lloyd and Ulster County residents have enjoyed the Hudson Valley Rail Trail, a 2.5 mile trail from Tony Williams Park east to the hamlet of Highland,

Town of Lloyd Supervisor Ray Costantino said another 1.5 miles of the rail trail will be completed by 2010 to finally connect to the Walkway Over the Hudson.

“I’m so thrilled for the Town of Lloyd and Ulster County,” said Costantino.

A rail trail is also being completed off the Walkway in Dutchess County all the way to East Fishkill. More tourism dollars, though unknown, are expected to flow into the region and Ulster County with opening of the Walkway.

“They are talking millions of dollars, but I don’t what it’s going to be. We just know it’s going to be better than what we have,” said Costantino.

via Exciting weekend ahead on the Hudson.

GARDINER — The Shawangunk Mountains Scenic Byway has been extended to include a 5.8-mile stretch of Route 44/55 in the Town of Gardiner.

Gov. David Paterson signed the addition into law this month. The scenic byway encircles roughly 134,000 acres, including the Wallkill and Rondout valleys, and includes the major roads around the Shawangunk Mountains.

While the region eagerly awaits the October opening of the famed Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge as a walkway and bike path, Ulster County just gained a sizable increase to one of its signature rail trails.

This is no small matter, since ultimately the Wallkill Rail Trail, which will double in size, eventually will be linked to the railroad bridge over the Hudson River and onto a rail trail in Dutchess County. It’s hard to overstate the tourism benefits of having such a trail system, and local walkers and bicyclists are excited as well.

The railroad bridge, closed by a spectacular fire in the 1970s, will soon offer breathtaking views for those biking or walking on the approximate 1.25-mile span. The bridge was once part of the Maybrook rail line, and officials on both sides of the river are using that line to expand their rail trails. In Ulster County, that trail expansion will eventually head west to New Paltz, which is home to the Wallkill trail.

Two groups – The Open Space Institute and Wallkill Valley Land Trust – recently announced that trail will be extended by a full 11.5 miles, nearly doubling its length. The trail runs north through the towns of Gardiner, New Paltz and Rosendale, but the extension means it will continue into the Town of Ulster and the City of Kingston.

The two groups acquired this latest part of the railroad bed from Ulster County, which had taken hold of it through tax foreclosure proceedings in April. Significantly, this extension also will lead to the reopening of the railroad trestle over the Rondout Creek in Rosendale. This trestle used to be the last stop for northbound bikers and hikers on the Wallkill trail. Officials for the organizations say they will pursue an approximate $500,000 state grant to redeck the trestle and connect the old and new portions of the trail. They also are seeking donations and plan to clean up the trail’s addition.

Hudson Valley rail trails tend to cut right through the heart of key business districts and other destinations. Linking as many of them as possible makes sense and will be good for businesses.

Without question, the old Poughkeepsie Rail Bridge, which rises to more than 200 feet above the water and will be the longest pedestrian bridge in the world when it opens, will be a signature attraction. Economic and planning experts expect more than 250,000 visitors to the bridge each year, translating into about $20 million in economic activity and $727,000 in added revenues from tourism, mostly in sales tax. But outlying communities can benefit as well, if enough trails are connected leading to and from the bridge.

The Wallkill expansion, while significant in its own right, is tied to that bigger vision.

via Rail trails lead to gain for region | PoughkeepsieJournal.com | Poughkeepsie Journal.

HIGHLAND — The soon-to-be-opened Walkway Over the Hudson has been designated a National Recreation Trail, thanks to Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley, an early supporter of the $38 million project.”This designation literally puts the Walkway Over the Hudson on the national map, where it will receive the recognition it deserves,” a Hinchey spokesman said Wednesday.The project, which will make the abandoned Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge a pedestrian and cyclist park, will open to the public on Oct. 3.The opening will follow ceremonies involving hundreds of project supporters and politicians.

via Walkway over Hudson gets national trail designation | recordonline.com.

NEW YORK (CBS)

More than five million family pets are reported lost or stolen each year, and the experience can often be heartbreaking.

So when a 2-year-old dog named Mikey went missing from his owner Gina Nagel’s Long Island backyard in May, she pulled out all the stops.

“I went to the pound, we made up signs, we went on Craiglist and called all the vets and (found) nothing,” Nagel said. “I’ve had boyfriends that I didn’t miss as much.”

But the loss of a pet does not always have to end in tragedy.

Pet ownership has spawned a billion-dollar pet finding industry, with one option for owners being the pet microchip. This is essentially a permanent form of identification embedded in the animal’s coat which then enables it to be tracked down with the use of locating websites.

Pet owners using the microchip can also post high-tech, virtual lost-and-found flyers online, as well as send out mass e-mails to others with their contact information and a picture of the missing animal.

The most recent pet tracking device is called Find Toto – a phone service capable of spreading the news about a missing pet to as many as 10 thousand homes in the surrounding area. The process is has been formally dubbed “Robo-Calling.”

FindToto.com’s Colleen Busch explained the process is rather simple, despite the complicated name.

“(The website) pulls all of the neighbors’ phone numbers and we alert them with a 30-second personalized message about your pet,” Busch said.

When Nagel lost Mikey, she turned to FindToto.com. Her personalized message said, “Mikey is a white and apricot Maltese-Shitzu mix.”

Nagel said her phone started ringing with reports of Mikey sightings soon after the calls were made.

“I heard phones ringing all over,” Nagel said. “It really restored my faith in humanity.”

Find Toto claims a recovery rate of 85 percent within the first 48 hours after an animal is lost. But Busch added that the service can still be effective afterwards.

“We’ve found a dog in six minutes and we’ve found a cat that was gone for five months,” Busch said.

It took the service 26 hours to find Mikey.

“(Mikey) comes running up and jumps in my arms,” Nagel said. “It was like a scene from a movie.”

The cost of Find Toto varies depending on how many calls the owner wishes to make, with the maximum price being around $825. The company is exempt from the government’s official Do Not Call list.

via New Phone Service Helps To Track Lost Pets – wcbstv.com .