Driving Instructions

NOTE: For club trips, get receipts for tolls and gas (EZ pass statements are OK for tolls)
 Contents: NY State Thruway ... Katterskill Falls ... Westchestcher North County Trailway .. to Main NCCOC page ... Back To Current Trips Listing Page
Directions to NYS Thruway (route 87)
 From NCC
Take the Meadowbrook Parkway North to the Northern State Parkway WEST or the Long Island Expressway WEST.  (Note: the Northern State Parkway often has less traffic, particularly at rush hours.)  Get off at the Cross Island Parkway Northbound.

From Elsewhere West of NCC:
Take the major roads north to the Northern State or take Southern State Pkwy West to the Cross Island Pkwy. 
Once on the Cross Island Parkway Northbound:
get into the middle lane and continue past the Throggs Neck Bridge (the right lane is forced to exit at the Throggs Neck Bridge).  After you have passed under the Throggs Neck Bridge, move over into the right lane which will go to the Whitestone Bridge.
Take the Whitestone Bridge to the Bronx; after you go through the tolls, stay toward the left to go to the Hutchison River Parkway.  Take the parkway north through the Bronx to exit 13, "Cross County Parkway".  (It only goes one way, westbound.)Take the Cross County Parkway about 3 miles and stay to the right to exit to the Bronx River Parkway Northbound (exit will also say Sprain Brook Pkwy).  Take the Bronx River Parkway less than a mile where it splits and becvomes the Sprain Brook Parkway.  After 6-7 miles, exit to the Cross Westchester Expy, I-287 WEST (left hand exit).  Take I-287 across the Tappan Zee Bridge where it joins with the NY Thruway.
ALTERNATE ROUTE from Cross County Pkwy:
Instead of exiting at the Bronx River Parkway, stay on the Cross County a little longer and exit for the NYS Thruway (I-87) North.  At the end of the exit ramp, turn right and travel next to the Thruway past the shopping center.  Very shortly there is an entrance to the Thruway from the left lane.  Take the Thruway north across the Tappan Zee Bridge
ALTERNATE ROUTE using the Throggs Neck Bridge:
Take the Throggs Neck Bridge to I-95 NORTH (New England Thruway).  Take I-95 to exit 9 (right after Pelham Parkway exit) for the Hutchinson River Parkway Northbound.  Take the parkway north through the Bronx to exit 13, "Cross County Parkway".  (It only goes one way, westbound.)  Follow directions in the 5th paragraph, above.
ALTERNATE ROUTE using the Throggs Neck Bridge and I-95 (Much longer route):
Take the Throggs Neck Bridge to I-95 NORTH (New England Thruway).  Stay on I-95 through the Bronx and past the Westchester toll to exit 21 for I-287 West.  Take I-287 all the way across Westchester to the Tappan Zee Bridge where it joins with the NY Thruway.   

Katterskill Falls (Catskills)

Take the NY State Thruway (route 87) north to exit 20 "Saugerties."  At the end of the exit ramp turn LEFT  on route 212, cross over the thruway and then turn RIGHT onto route 32 north.  Follow route 32 about 8-10 miles to route 32A.  Turn left onto route 32A west (towards "Palenville"). Go through Palenville and turn left onto route 23A west (towards "Haines Falls").  Follow route 23A 3-4 miles: the trail to the Falls starts at the corner of a hair-pin turn, the parking area is up hill about 1/4 mile from that turn.

Westchestcher North County Trailway

A complete map of the trail is at:
http://www.westchestergov.com/parks/pdfs/Maps/Trailways/Nctrailmap.pdf

You will be getting on the trail about halfway, just south of the town of Kitchawin.  If you look at the bottom of the right-hand map you will see an A for access and a P for parking.  The parking is right at the intersection of route 100 and route 134.   The access is just east of the intersection a short way along route 134. 

Take the Taconic Parkway north from the Hawthorne interchange.  Get off at Route 100 --the exit should say "Millwood" and/or "Tompkins Corners".  (Rooute 100 parallels the parkway so there are several route 100 exits -- make sure it is for the right towns.)  Travel North on route 100 through the town of Millwood -- after about 3 miles route 134 (Kitchawin Road) will come in on your left.  (It may not say route 134.)  You will see a gravel parking area right at the intersection.  A map is available at:
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Millwood,+NY&ie=UTF8&z=13&ll=41.196352,-73.793621&spn=0.07298,0.195007&t=h&om=1

After unloading bikes, go north on the Bikeway.  It is about 15 miles to the Westchester County line (route 6) .  Directly across the road the trail continues as the Putnam County Trailway.  I thik it is finished about another 6 miles, but I am not sure what is open. There is an old map of the Putnam Co trailway available at:
http://www.putnamcountyny.com/planning/trailwaybrochure.pdf

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rev 11/10/05