Cold Spring - town in New York, USA

For other places with the same name, see Cold Spring (disambiguation).

Cold Spring is a village in Putnam County in the state of New York in the United States of America. Its location in the scenic Hudson Highlands and proximity to a commuter railroad makes it a popular weekend escape from New York City.

Understand

Founded in 1846 and holding a economy in iron production throughout the Civil War, it is what essentially created the village. It was named a Federal Historic District in 1973. Prominence had faded since the foundry closed in 1911, but its notoriety locally in the antiquities trade is negligible in comparison to the sheer touristic appeal of the village.

Cold Spring enjoys the temperate climate, but bad weather breaks on the mountains, as such you can enjoy more than 260 days of sunshine a year, as well as the appropriately impressive thunder storm. To hear the echoes roll through the valley is really something! However, if you will be hiking, water is a must. The trees are appropriately shady, but you can go for miles in the mountains.

The tourist information booth is downtown by the river, on the east-side of the tracks. They also house two bathrooms behind them, which are usually clean.

There are several denominations in the area, specifically in Cold Spring are the Catholic church, near the river, The Episcopalian church on Main Street which is next to the traffic light, the Presbyterian church up one street from the Episcopalian, the Methodist church near the School, and the Baptist church which famously only has a handful of members and shares its priest. They have been a new marketing strategy as 'the Church on the Hill' they are also the famous divide between Nelsonville and Cold Spring.

Get in

By plane

• Stewart International Airport, 1180 First St, New Windsor, +1 845 564-2100. The closest airport, just over the Newburgh-Beacon bridge. Allegiant Air, American Eagle, and JetBlue operate flights from Florida and Philadelphia (Mar 2021). About a 30-minute drive.
• Newark Liberty International Airport, Newark, New Jersey, John F. Kennedy International Airport, and LaGuardia Airport are a long ride by livery car, but offer direct flights to major destinations worldwide.

By car

Cold Spring is an approximately 1-1½ hour drive from New York City, and a 1½-2 hour drive from Albany.

By train

• Metro-North Railroad – Hudson Line. Express service between Cold Spring station and New York City's Grand Central Terminal is about 1 hour and 20 minutes, a 52.5 mile trip. A one-way ticket costs $15 off-peak and $20 peak. Local service is also available between other Metro-North commuter stations. Full weekday and weekend schedules are available online. On-board train fares are subject to a stiff surcharge, so buy your tickets online or at the vending machines on the southbound (to New York) platform. Parking is available at the station.
• Amtrak. Long distance connections are available in New York City's Penn Station and at Metro-North's Croton-Harmon and Poughkeepsie stations.

By boat

By bus

Get around

There is no easily accessed taxi service in Cold Spring, but on the weekends you can take the train north one station to a stop which lets you out right at Breakneck, a popular mountain to hike up, especially in clear weather when you can look up and down the Hudson River. Any train will stop on its way south in the town of Garrison as well.

Also on the weekends is a trolley that does a circuit a few times a day. To acquire some more information about it, visit the tourism information booth by the bathrooms on the East side of the train tracks. There is often a volunteer there from the Village Board. The ride is scenic and relaxed, reputedly only costing a dime. The stops are various points of interest in Cold Spring, the Garrison train station and Boscobel.

The most common way to get around is to walk. The country can be steep so leave yourself time. The Hudson Valley enjoys around 260 days of sunshine a year, usually more, so please hydrate appropriately! The cheapest water to be found is either free from the faucets in the always-open bathrooms down by the tracks (the water is reputedly from the Catskills and is the same that services the school's water fountains) or for one-dollar at the Chinese Take-out, Ming Moon.

See

• Boscobel, 1601 Route 9D, Garrison, +1 845 265-3638. Historic neoclassical mansion has panoramic views of the Hudson River and highlands. Special calendar of events. The Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival performs here.

Do

• Rent a kayak or take a guided kayak tour on the Hudson. Hudson Valley Outfitters, 63 Main St., +1 845 265-0221.
• Take a hike.
  • Hudson Highlands State Park (dead link: January 2023). Breakneck Ridge, north of Cold Spring on Route 9D, is an especially popular destination. Park your car on the shoulder of Route 9D, north of the short tunnel through the mountain. Parts of the ascent are rugged, a strenuous scramble up a steep, rocky slope (follow white trail markers). There is a less challenging route around the back of the ridge (yellow trail markers to white/red trail markers). New York-New Jersey Trail Conference topographic trail maps of the east portion of Hudson Highlands State Park, available at Hudson Valley Outfitters at 63 Main St., show current trails.
  • Clarence Fahnestock State Park, 41.429°, -73.858°. East of Cold Spring on Route 301. 14,000 acres to explore. Park office is located at 1498 Route 301, Carmel, +1 845 225-7207.
• Watch birds and other wildlife from a boardwalk into a tidal marsh. Spectacular views of Storm King Mountain. Constitution Marsh Audubon Center and Sanctuary, Indian Brook Rd, +1 845 265-2601, * Cold Spring Film Society, Dockside Park (from the Gazebo at the bottom of Main, walk north up West St. into Dockside Park), info@coldspringfilm.org. Watch a free outdoor movie and have a picnic dinner right on the Hudson river. On Saturdays in the summer they show free outdoor screenings of popular films like Jaws, The Princess Bride, and Casablanca in Dockside Park. They also show free indoor films in the winter months at various village locations. Free 2016-04-20

Buy

Browse the dozens of antique stores, shops, and galleries on Main Street.

Eat

Budget

• The Foundry Cafe, 55 Main St, +1 845 265-4504. Serves breakfast and lunch.
• Cold Spring Pizza, 120 Main St, +1 845 265-9512. Cheap slices and small deli next door mean this is easily the most budget-friendly place.
• Ming-Moon, Chinese Take-Out, 106 Main St, +1 845 265-2140. Chinese food, mostly take-out but has a few tables.

Mid-range

• Cold Spring Depot Restaurant, +1 845 265-5000. 1 Depot Square. Family-friendly restaurant in the 1893 train station. Patio is popular in the summer.
• Whistling Willie's, 184 Main St, +1 845 265-2012. Some of the best burgers in town. Live music is also quite a draw.
• Riverview Restaurant, 45 Fair St, +1 845 265-4778. Italian cuisine with great views of the river and mountains. Outdoor dining in season.
• Cathryn's Tuscan Grill, 91 Main St, +1 845 265-5582. Northern Italian in the heart of downtown village.

Splurge

• Bird & Bottle Inn, 1123 Old Albany Post Rd, +1 845 424-2333. Garrison. Fine dining in a renovated, renowned country 18th-century inn 2 miles south of Cold Spring on Rt. 9.

• Le Bouchon, Main Street, Cold Spring. A proper French restaurant next door to all your favorite antique shops.

Drink

Sleep

Budget

In nearby Fishkill (a 15-minute car/taxi ride) at the intersection of Rt 9 and I-84 are several hotels, motels and inns. They range from Comfortably priced to full-suite extravagant, but not the quality or money of those listed in Splurge.

Mid-range

Splurge

• Hudson House, 2 Main St, +1 845 265-9355. River front inn has 12 guest rooms and one large suite, all with private baths.
• Pig Hill Inn, 73 Main St, +1 845 265-9247. Eight-room inn at the center of the village. Terraced garden, conservatory. Some rooms have fireplaces.
• Bird & Bottle Inn, 1123 Old Albany Post Rd, +1 845 424-2333. Garrison. A renowned country inn in 18th-century buildings. Some rooms have fireplaces.

Stay safe

Dial 911 from any telephone for emergency police, medical, and fire services.

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