The View

From Fort Montgomery, the Hudson River Valley view takes in a landscape of natural landmarks, transportation history, conservation areas, and long human use. The Hudson River Valley is part of both the Hudson Valley Greenway and the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area, and the Hudson River was designated an American Heritage River in 1998. Depending on season and weather, the view can extend north to Sugar Loaf Mountain and south to Dunderberg Mountain. The Bear Mountain Bridge was the first bridge to cross the Hudson River south of Albany, was the longest suspension bridge in the world when it opened in 1924, was privately financed by the Harriman family to improve access from New York City to Bear Mountain State Park, and was turned over to New York State in 1942. Archeological evidence indicates Native Americans occupied Iona Island as early as 3,500 BC; later it was used for grape cultivation, became a popular summer resort in the last two decades of the 19th century, was acquired by the U.S. Navy in 1899 for use as an ammunition depot through the Korean War, and was obtained by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission in 1965 for recreation, after which it slowly returned toward a natural state. Today it is part of the 1500-acre Iona Island - Doodletown Bird Conservation Area, which provides habitat for 165 documented bird species and serves as a critical winter home for bald eagles threatened in New York State. Sugar Loaf Mountain, named for its cone-like resemblance to a sugar loaf, is part of the 650-acre Osborn Preserve, a 1974 gift to New York State Parks within Hudson Highlands State Park, and offers views of West Point and the Hudson River. Manitou Marsh, one of the Hudson's tidal wetlands, can become somewhat salty when the river's flow is slow, especially in late summer, creating a mix of freshwater and seawater wildlife; it marks the upriver limit for fiddler crabs and also supports blue crabs, grass shrimp, and young fish. Anthony's Nose, a steep promontory projecting into the Hudson River, has appeared in many landscape paintings; Washington Irving attributed its name to Anthony van Corlear, Henry Hudson's trumpeter, though early maps indicate it was named for Saint Anthony, and in 1998 the Division of Military and Naval Affairs gave 180 acres there to New York State Parks. The Appalachian Trail, which runs about 2,160 miles from Georgia to Maine, crosses the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain Bridge, follows the river to the Osborn Preserve, then turns east; its first section began in 1923 just across Popolopen Creek in Bear Mountain State Park and ran to Tuxedo, New York. Dunderberg Mountain, meaning "Thunder Mountain," marks the southern entrance to the Hudson Highlands; investors including Thomas Edison once hoped to find silver there, but none was found, and the Palisades Interstate Park Commission acquired 140 acres in 1912 and added more land in the 1930s.

Highlands, New York · United States