Why this ride
A 193 km one-way ride from near Califon, about 3 h 06 of riding. It goes by way of near Yorketown and Ridgefield.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Tarrytown Croton Reservoir Roads · part 2
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 193 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 06
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
New York / Hudson Valley rides → Tarrytown Croton Reservoir Roads phot
This part of the ride is 72 km of New York / Hudson Valley rides → Tarrytown Croton Reservoir Roads phot.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 72 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. New York / Hudson Valley rides
This is the valley of the South Branch of the Raritan River, a trout stream that runs clear enough over its stones to keep fly fishermen loyal for generations. Califon itself is a tiny place, barely a thousand people, with an old railroad right-of-way now used as a rail trail and a main street you will cross before you notice it. Long Valley sits a few kilometres to the north, and the hills on its far side belong to Schooley's Mountain, the first stretch of real ridge you meet when riding in from the east.
Read the complete Near Califon, on the way back write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
New York / Hudson Valley rides is where the day begins. Next is Photo stop near Yorketown.
2. Photo stop near Yorketown
Planning note
Photo stop near Yorketown comes up about 72 km into the recorded legs. Next is Tarrytown Croton Reservoir Roads checkpoint 8.
3. Ridgefield
Before Hollywood, there was Fort Lee. In the early 1900s the cliffs and towns along this stretch of the Hudson were the centre of American film-making, with studios turning out westerns, serials and melodramas, and serial heroines were filmed dangling from the very cliffs you ride above. The industry moved west for the sunshine, but the story is a good one to carry into the last miles of a ride.
Read the complete Ridgefield write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 193 km. Next is Back to Tarrytown Croton.
4. Back to Tarrytown Croton
Garden City and Hempstead sit on Long Island's flat middle, far from the Croton reservoirs, in what was once a huge natural prairie called the Hempstead Plains. This was the only true prairie in the east, a grassland of tall grasses and wildflowers that stretched for miles, and nearly all of it has been covered by houses, shops and roads, with only small patches protected. It is a strange thing to ride across a landscape you know used to look like Kansas.
Read the complete Tarrytown Croton write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back to Tarrytown Croton closes the day.
Leg by leg
Photo stop near Yorketown to Ridgefield
Photo stop near Yorketown → Ridgefield is 76 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.