Adventure in Cold Spring

Cold Spring Depot

Last week, a friend of mine asked if I’d ever heard of Cold Spring, New York. I had not. After some research, I talked about it with Jeffry, and made plans to go there. I was really looked forward to the trip, but when we woke up on the day there was thunder and rain. Normally, I would still have gone. But since I was not the only one going, I figured he wouldn’t want to go anymore. But in the end, he was the one who kicked me out of bed and got me going. We got ourselves ready and made our way to Grand Central.

Main Street

This was the first time I had ridden on the Metro North. A round trip, off peak ticket from Grand Central was only $29. I thought it’d be more to be honest. Once we got tickets, I made sure we got on the train a bit early. The trains leave surprisingly on time (if you ride with the MTA you know why I’m surprised), so don’t be late. The trains leave regularly from NYC, but the express trains (which we took) leave once an hour. But the return trains only leave once an hour period. So be mindful.

The ride up to Cold Spring was so nice. I had never been to this area of New York so I had no idea how beautiful it is. And of course we sat on the wrong side of the train. My fault. *Travel Tip* When traveling up to Cold Spring, sit on the left side of the train (facing west). You get an amazing view of the Hudson River.

When we arrived at Cold Spring, we were starving. Despite getting there later than planned, we were still in time for brunch. And the World Cup final!!! We ate at a wonderful place called the Cold Spring Depot. What I loved about the restaurant is that it is built in an old train station. But we sat outside in the courtyard where we could watch the final. The food was amazing!!! I got the Croque Madame and Jeffry got a Salmon Salad. The menu on the website is slightly different from the one at the restaurant though. I was sad they weren’t serving the ricotta pancakes, but what I got was amazing so is all good. I definitely recommend eating there. Just don’t get the Bloody Mary. Unless you actually like them.

View from Bull Hill (Mt Taurus)

From there we wound our way to Main Street to grab a couple bottles of water. I figured we’d find some at the Cold Spring General Store, but it was a bit more eclectic than I thought. We did find the water, but also a lot of very interesting things. One thing we wanted was a bottle of elderflower lemonade. We just didn’t want to have to lug it around with us up the mountain. So we found out they closed at 6pm (as do most places there on Sundays) and resolved to be back before then.

Now came the time for our hike. For some reason, Jeffry didn’t think we were really going on a hike. Even after we talked about his shoes that morning and he brought better ones. Surprise! We were. What I didn’t know was that he had never hiked before. That surprised me for some reason. Even so, we still went on the hike and had a great time. The hike I had originally intended doing was the Cornish Estate Trail Loop. We didn’t. We ended up on the Bull Hill trail. It encompasses a part of the trail I wanted, but also a part of three other trails. To start, you have two possible routes: the short loop, or the long loop. The short loop should take about 2-3 hours, while the long loop should take around 3-4. Unless you are some sort of speed walker, it will likely take you longer.

Since it is a loop, at the trail head we chose to go right (the white trail). The trail will lead you up the mountain at a decent incline. It isn’t super steep, but it is at a good angle. After a bunch of turns, the path levels out and opens up at an old quarry. The path will lead you around the right side of the quarry and continue up the mountain. But if you are anything like us, you will take a minute to explore this area. If you do this as well BE CAREFUL!!!!! People are dumb enough to toss stones down from the top. So be mindful of your surroundings. Moving on. When you are done exploring and have continued on, the trail will take you by some beautiful viewpoints. Stop and take in the beauty of the valley. It is amazing.

By the time we’d reached the fork in the trail, I was surprised that an hour had already passed. We realised that taking the long loop would take longer than the time we had. So we decided to continue on the short loop. We took the left trail (the yellow trail) and went on our way. The short loop may be shorter, but it has some truly breathtaking viewpoints. Since the clouds had largely dispersed, we were afforded some incredible views of the river surrounding region. One of the most awesome sights we saw actually surprised me. It was a turtle. No idea how it got all the way up there, but there it was just chilling by the side of the trail eating grass. Got a couple pictures before it scampered off into the foliage.

After one final picturesque viewpoint, our trail began its descent. You will navigate a number of twists and turns as you wind your way down the mountain. The forest you walk through has a kind of ethereal calmness to it that seems almost eerie. It was really beautiful.

When you finally reach the next (and potentially final) intersection, go left onto the red trail. Going right will lead you back up around the back of the mountain. This final leg of the trail is pretty easy going. It has some beautiful sights as well. Close to the intersection is a gorgeous bridge crossing a stream (and the continuation of the yellow trail), further down the trail is a large circular structure (no idea it’s purpose, but I walked around the outer rim of it), and then on the home stretch (after you have merged onto the blue trail) are a set of ruins. We wanted to explore them, but time was not in our favour. It was already after 5pm at this point and we needed to hurry. Naturally, it just gives us another reason to come back.

While the hike was amazing, it felt so good to sit down for a minute afterward. And to stop sweating. But it was wonderful being out in nature and away from the chaos of the city. Even Jeffry had a great time. And to top it off, we got back to the General Store with minutes to spare. The lady who runs the shop is really nice and we chatted for a few minutes. Then Jeffry had me pop in to the shop next to it called Go Go Pops for something refreshing. It is a kind of organic, hipster-like business. Kinda seemed out of place, but a very nice addition. I got him a smoothie, and I got a coconut ice pop and a Mexicane cola. I really liked it, but it wasn’t sweet enough for him.

The last stop for the day was one of the best. Another friend of mine told me about an amazing ice cream place up there called Moo Moo’s Creamery and said I needed to go there. Jeffry wasn’t planning on getting anything (having just had a smoothie), but that didn’t stop me. It was quite chaotic inside for such a tiny space. We waited patiently in the semblance of a queue, mulling over the many luscious flavours. It was so hard to choose. I wanted some of everything. When it was my turn, I opted for the maple almond and mocha (which the lady helping me recommended). Since the shop has a $10 minimum for cards Jeffry had to get some as well. He got banana and blueberry and he LOVED it. The ice cream there is incredible. So creamy and delicious. Even the banana (which I had to finish), which I am usually not a fan of. You need to go there.

We took our ice cream and sat by the pier watching as the sun set slowly before us. It was a lovely end to a very wonderful day. Once we finished, we made our way to the train and back to NYC. We sat on the right side this time so we could see the river better. It was well worth the trip out there. We plan to spend more time there since Cold Spring is close enough to the city for another nice day trip, and also far enough away to completely leave the stress of the city behind you. I fully recommend going there. Enjoy 😉