The First Bridge Over the Hudson River—Walkway Over the Hudson

Our destination for this trip was Niagara Falls, a drive of over 7 hours one way from New Haven. To avoid exhaustion, we decided to take it slow and enjoy the journey. After about two hours of driving from New Haven, we arrived at our first stop—Walkway Over the Hudson State Park. Unlike a traditional park, this "park" is actually a massive iron bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Poughkeepsie and the town of Highland in New York. The Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge, completed in 1889, was the first bridge to cross the Hudson River and served as a critical transportation corridor, moving raw materials from the Midwest to industrial cities in the Northeast. However, a devastating fire in 1974 destroyed parts of the bridge's wooden ties and tracks. Due to the high cost of repairs, the bridge was abandoned. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, a group of community members formed the nonprofit "Walkway Over the Hudson", dedicated to transforming the bridge into a public walkway. Renovation officially began in 2008, and on October 3, 2009, the bridge reopened as a state park, becoming the longest elevated pedestrian bridge in the world! 🌉 The Walkway Over the Hudson stretches 2 kilometers (1.28 miles) long and sits about 65 meters (213 feet) above the water. Walking across it today gave me serious acrophobia! 😱 But as they say, the higher you go, the farther you see—the views from the bridge are absolutely breathtaking! It’s perfect for walking, jogging, biking 🚴, and sightseeing. We did a quick round trip in about an hour, but if you take your time to soak in the scenery, you could easily spend two hours up there. And I bet sunset views from the bridge would be EPIC! 🌇 Free Parking Spot: 📍 162 Washington St, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 Hey fellow travelers! 👋 Have you ever visited the Walkway Over the Hudson? How did you like the experience? Would you dare to look down from that height? 😉 Drop your thoughts in the comments! #HudsonRiver #PoughkeepsieNY #WalkwayOverTheHudson #NewHaven #RoadTrip #LandmarkArchitecture #BridgesOfTheWorld #NYDayTrips #NewHavenDayTrips