Onions are the quiet fame of Orange County, New York, and the fields lie just north of Middletown. The black dirt region, a flat basin of ancient lakebed soil dark as coffee grounds, was drained in the nineteenth century and turned into some of the richest farmland in the Northeast, growing onions, lettuce, corn and sweet potatoes, and in autumn the roads are lined with trucks loaded with sacks. Middletown itself, a small city of about twenty-eight thousand, grew up as a railway junction and a manufacturing town, and its old brick downtown has a faded but friendly feel.
The ride has two halves, and this town is where they start and end. Heading west, you come quickly to the Delaware River and the road known as Hawk's Nest, a stretch of Route 97 blasted into the cliff face in the 1930s above the river between Port Jervis and Sparrowbush. It is one of the great short rides in the region, with a cliff on one side and a long drop to the river on the other, the road curling around outcrops with sharp, tight bends and a low stone wall that does not inspire confidence. Photographers and cyclists share it, so on a sunny weekend it can be busy. The view down the river, with the Pennsylvania hills opposite, is superb, and the colour in October is remarkable.
Then comes the Delaware Water Gap, where the river cuts through the Kittatinny Ridge in a deep notch, and the national recreation area covers the valley on both sides. Eagles winter along the river, and in summer canoeists drift past on the slow current. Back at Middletown, there are the Shawangunks to the north and the Hudson Highlands to the east, with their own good roads.
Fuel and services are no problem here. Middletown has stations, supermarkets, diners and hotels, and the main road carries plenty of traffic. Unlike across the river in New Jersey, where an attendant does the pumping, in New York State you fill your own tank. Mechanics are easy to find, and the town is a convenient place to start or finish the day. Goshen, a few miles away, is known for its harness racing track, one of the oldest in the country.
Take it easy on Hawk's Nest. Gravel, wet leaves and sun-glare can all catch the unwary, and the river is a long way down.