Hudson River Valley Ramble Celebrates Best Of The Region

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — It's time for one of the best ways to celebrate the valley's natural beauty and heritage — the annual Hudson River Valley Ramble.

Every September the ramble offers a series of diverse events that highlight the area's history, culture and natural resources, and there are many ways to take part. Every September, participation continues to grow, the organizers said.

Hike, bike, paddle down the waterways, learn about Hudson River Valley artists or visit Revolutionary War historical sites. You can watch birds, gather wild herbs, or explore urban trails, visit the shell of a castle or learn about the aqueduct that supplies New York City water. From festivals to sightseeing cruises, there's something to do almost every day for the rest of September. For example, the Westmoreland Sanctuary in Bedford has several events going on.

It's easy to find events by type or by features such as family-friendly, wheelchair-accessible and within walking distance of a train station.

Coming up Friday: Walking Tour of Public Art in Poughkeepsie

A leisurely tour includes over 45 indoor and outdoor murals, sculptures, historical monuments, architecture in a three block area of downtown Poughkeepsie. The tour highlights several New Deal era murals commissioned by FDR, large scale contemporary murals, 9/11 and Vietnam monuments, one sculpture park and several very new graffiti style street art wall works. The tour ends in restaurant row on Main Street.

Here are just a few of the events Saturday:

• Apple Harvest Festival at the Hurds Family Farm, Modena
• Migrating Birds at the John Burroughs Nature Sanctuary, West Park
• Springside: Matthew Vassar Treasure Hunt, Poughkeepsie
• Guided Tree Walk at Zofnass Preserve, Pound Ridge
• The Army Tunnels tour, Blauvelt

The ramble covers a large geographic area that includes Albany, Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Rensselaer, Rockland, Saratoga, Ulster; Washington, Westchester, and those portions of New York and Bronx counties adjacent to the Hudson River and within the city's waterfront revitalization program area.