A group of seven bird watchers walking along the sensory trail in early Fall among colorful leaves on some trees and along the trail

The Riverwalk Sensory Trail at Hudson Crossing Park is a 1540' stone dust path along the shore of the Hudson River. It connects to the Alfred Z. Solomon Kayak Launch located just below the Lock 5 Canal Office.

This unique trail, along a picturesque portion of the Hudson River near the confluence of the Battenkill River, is one of the longest sensory trails of its kind. It is designed to provide a riverside outdoor experience for individuals who are mobility or visually impaired. The nearest similar trail is over 100 miles away in the Mohonk Preserve west of New Paltz, New York.

 

Ribbon Cutting on Opening Day

Officially opened on June 15, 2013, the Riverwalk Sensory Trail and the Alfred Z. Solomon Kayak Launch came to fruition thanks to the generosity of many. Landscape Architect Bill Sprengnether worked with the National Park Service Office of Accessibility, Saratoga Bridges, and others, to insure that appropriate standards were incorporated into the plans for the trail.

Learn more about the opening and the generous funding sources that made the Sensory Trail possible by clicking below.

A woman kayaking in the river heading for the Dix Bridge on a beautiful day

Alfred Z. Solomon Kayak Launch

Enjoy direct and easy access to The Hudson River with your canoe or kayak at the Alfred Z. Solomon Kayak Launch, which is located on one end of the Sensory Trail. Convenient parking is available by the Canal, and the launch is down a short trail. A locker is available for long distance kayakers who want to store their equipment while they visit the local community.

 
A Heritage Waysides sign found along the Senssory Trail showing First Nations people around a community fire pit and a Saratoga County Trail map.

Heritage Waysides

Working in partnership with Lakes to Locks Passage and the Greenwich Lions Club Hudson Crossing Park is proud to offer visitors collection of waysides that tell regional stories of key events and players that have had significant historical and/or commercial impacts on our region.

By offering audio and video versions of the waysides found along the HCP trails, Hudson Crossing continues to make the HCP experience as accessible as possible to people of all abilities.

 
One of four interpretive signs along the sensory trail. Each sign links visitors to four unique regional stories totaling sixteen that were compiled with help from National Park staff from the Saratoga National Historical Park.

Trail Region Interpretive Signs

The interpretive signs with stories about the many people who have enjoyed Hudson Crossing Park throughout the years can be found along the HCP Riverwalk Sensory Trail. There are 16 stories available that were compiled with the help from National Park staff from the Saratoga National Historical Park.

Hudson Crossing Park held a contest to discover "the voices" for the recordings. In addition to local media we employed "Voices for All" to help send our message across the nation. As a result we had 28 entrants from 14 different states.

Voices of the Park: Coralie Davis, Tej Singh, Sam Aldrich, Anthony Cardenas, and Thomas Robinson. These signs were made possible through funding from: Hudson River Foundation, Lakes to Locks Passage Scenic Byway, a Federal Highway Administration’s National Scenic Byway Program.