Last week my friend Hannah and I took a day trip to the beautiful Hudson Valley in New York. She had done an internship there last year and wanted to revisit some of the sights. Of course I obliged as a partner in adventure!
Having never been to the Hudson Valley area (made up of (but not limited to) Poughkeepsie, Hyde Park, and New Paltz), I had no idea what to expect, but was delightfully surprised.
Our first stop was the Hawthorne Valley Farm Store. This is a 400 acre biodynamic farm, market, and school all in one, located in Ghent, NY. This basically means that they are super organic and all natural. It was a cool little market, and this is where Hannah did her baking internship for JWU.
Our next stop was the Culinary Institute of America, a world renowned culinary college and competitor with Johnson & Wales. Located in Hyde Park, NY, their campus is along the Hudson River and has restaurants and bakeries open to the public. We had a delicious lunch at the Apple Pie Bakery. My turkey sandwich and roasted cauliflower soup was exceptional, as expected. If you are ever in the area, it would be a worth while stop for JUST the book store and cafe. Some culinary students were sitting behind us during lunch and they were passionately discussing the ingredients of the lunch special. It was perfect.
We didn't really have exact plans for the day, and just kind of flew by the seat of our pants.
We decided to check out FDR's Home and Library. While a tour cost money, we gave ourselves a mini tour, FREE of charge. The property was beautiful, and it was really neat to see some history. There were enough plaques to guide us around and tell us what was what. I can imagine the tour inside the house and library would be well worth it though.
Our next stop was the Walkway Over the Hudson, a pedestrian bridge from Poughkeepsie to Highland, salvaged from an old railway bridge and turned into a beautiful pedestrian area. Holy WOW. You could see for so miles, and I just cant get over how amazing this was.
After walking across that amazing bridge, which was just breathtaking, we headed into the artsy downtown New Paltz area. SUNY New Paltz is definitely known for being a little left of center artsy, creative type of school, and I think it carries over into the town. Many of the shops are full of cool and unusual things. We had coffee at a little cafe called the Cafeteria that was full of fun furniture and strange art. It was 9 times hipster.
Heading back through Poughkeepsie, Hannah INSISTED that we stop at Rossi's Deli, and wow, I am glad. They have the BEST paninis in all the land. I had the proscuitto, olive paste, spinach sandwich, and it was the most glorious, giant thing I have ever had. The home made focaccia bread was filled to the brim with the most savory Italian ingredients my mouth has ever been privy to.
The last stop of the day was the Millbrook Winery and Vineyard in Millbrook, NY, an award winning winery, also called the "flagship winery of the Hudson Valley." They offer wine tastings, and if you get there in time, tours of the facility. The vineyard was a beautiful sight, and the shop had all sorts of wines available for purchase. I wish I had bought some to bring home!
Our trip to the Hudson Valley proved to be quite the ideal little trip. It took about three and a half hours to drive from Rhode Island, taking the Taconic Parkway from the Mass Pike. It would make a great day trip, even a weekend trip for a family, or couple, of any age or interest!
If there was more time, I would have loved to explore more of the Hudson Valley Wine Trail, Wing's Castle, The Catskill Mountains, and all the history the area has to offer! I recommend Travel Hudson Valley for more information about any of these sites.
Have you ever been to this area? Any other hidden sites you want to share?
Having never been to the Hudson Valley area (made up of (but not limited to) Poughkeepsie, Hyde Park, and New Paltz), I had no idea what to expect, but was delightfully surprised.
Our first stop was the Hawthorne Valley Farm Store. This is a 400 acre biodynamic farm, market, and school all in one, located in Ghent, NY. This basically means that they are super organic and all natural. It was a cool little market, and this is where Hannah did her baking internship for JWU.
We didn't really have exact plans for the day, and just kind of flew by the seat of our pants.
Our next stop was the Walkway Over the Hudson, a pedestrian bridge from Poughkeepsie to Highland, salvaged from an old railway bridge and turned into a beautiful pedestrian area. Holy WOW. You could see for so miles, and I just cant get over how amazing this was.
Heading back through Poughkeepsie, Hannah INSISTED that we stop at Rossi's Deli, and wow, I am glad. They have the BEST paninis in all the land. I had the proscuitto, olive paste, spinach sandwich, and it was the most glorious, giant thing I have ever had. The home made focaccia bread was filled to the brim with the most savory Italian ingredients my mouth has ever been privy to.
Our trip to the Hudson Valley proved to be quite the ideal little trip. It took about three and a half hours to drive from Rhode Island, taking the Taconic Parkway from the Mass Pike. It would make a great day trip, even a weekend trip for a family, or couple, of any age or interest!
If there was more time, I would have loved to explore more of the Hudson Valley Wine Trail, Wing's Castle, The Catskill Mountains, and all the history the area has to offer! I recommend Travel Hudson Valley for more information about any of these sites.
Have you ever been to this area? Any other hidden sites you want to share?
1 comment:
We've never visited that area. The FDR museum would be perfect for my family!
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