I haven’t forgotten about my Ocean Trip Report, just getting busy with graduate school and life’s other distractions. Where I had to go yesterday inspired me to get back to work on finishing the Hudson Line. I found out about an APA-planning related book talk being held at the Hudson Valley Writers’ Center located in the historic Philipse Manor Train Station. It was a topic that interested me (I probably would have gone regardless of the train station location) but that made it extra special. I then went through my Hudson Line photo archives, a line that I’ve made a point of chipping away at and not finishing in one false swoop since it’s so easy for me to get to and so incredibly scenic as the river is one of my favorite places to take pictures. Well I guess I did go on one multi-station trip to finish off the harder to reach diesel upper Hudson Line portion. I did notice that Philipse Manor was on top of my revisit list, it’s been 10 years since my first visit for a comprehensive photo essay. After this point I realized strangely the last stop less without sufficient photos (a few could use some more) is Croton-Harmon of all places, I haven’t really been on the platform there in 11 years!
I had a rare lazy Friday at home partially writing up some other Hudson Line Stations. I was going to the event with a classmate and asked him just to meet me there. I ended up finally leaving the house on a beautiful day around 3:20 and walked to the 1 train at 191st Street. I get to the Hudson Line in different ways if I lack an Unlimited Ride MetroCard I’ll walk to University Heights or Spuyten Duyvil depending upon my mood but today I have one in my pocket so I take the 1 train.
Early enough I decide to take it to 242 Street-Van Cortlandt Park and start on the bus, a few of the stops in Yonkers I might as well supplement. As I get off the 1 train I notice the station renovation is proceeding nicely and there are currently no windscreens on parts of the unused side platforms offering nice views of the park.
The 3:53 1T Bus pulls up, its the Route 1 Branch to Tarrytown. I get on and debate getting all the way up to Philipse Manor just by bus and a mile and half walk. It’s crowded and stop and go since the rush hour is beginning. I decide to bail when were above the Glenwood Station in Yonkers, and decide to pay for the train, also wanting to get to Philipse Manor early for photos. I walk down the hill to the Glenwood–(32 Photos today, 58 new photos total) and enjoy seeing the former Yonkers Power Station along the New York Platform. There I buy my $4.25 ticket for the 11 Mile train ride with a longish wait I don’t find but am disappointed that I left the house to see what the Lake Shore Limited is looking like these days.
The 4:54 train comes on time and I have an uneventful 22 minute ride where the conductor strangely never gets to me up to Philipse Manor–(station rebuilt with 39 Photos). There I’m quite impressed by the neat stone station house that nearly has two levels down to the platform below. I also find the extremely narrow driveway and private beach club between the platform and the river interesting.
I also go south of the station and take a walk into Kingsland Point County Park, where I might be in illegally, I notice a residents of Westchester County only sign (totally ridiculous, lets then keep them out of Central park). I first find this unforchunately locked footbridge across the tracks.
I then go and enjoy the view and my camera decides to die, I’ve yet again forgotten to charge up its little battery (the biggest problem with my new SL1, compared to my old Rebel XTi).
I head up to the train station depot to attend the lecture. I’m told the door out to the porch is open so I go out there for a couple of iPhone 6 photos.
After the book talk portion during mingling I get a few more photos of the neat relatively small waiting room with a clearly sealed ticket office window and fireplace.
While networking after the book talk I watch the clock on and off, knowing we need to catch the 8:10 train, the next one isn’t until 9:10, and its clear that all the others who drove won’t be sticking around for another hour. If Philipse Manor was near a commercial district I wouldn’t have cared as much with the idea of eating up here. We leave the depot (I’ve met up with a classmate) at 8:07 and head across the footbridge, we time it perfectly, the train slowly rounds the bend and arrives. I don’t though by a new ticket to take me all the way to the Bronx. The conductor comes and I hand him my Zone 3 Yonkers ticket expecting to owe a dollar or less (it’s $5 to the Bronx instead of $4.25) to get myself to the Bronx. I’m told the step-up fare is $3 and say the ticket I have is valued at $4.25 the price of a ticket where I want to go is $5. The response I get is that “It’s $3 because I have to look at the zones, not what you paid for the ticket, $3 is the price of a new Zone 3 to Zone 2 trip.” I tell him that’s ridiculous I’ll just get off in Yonkers and take the bus. I debate going one more stop to Ludlow but decide it’s not the best idea in the dark (the area is a bit isolated) so I get off at Yonkers, saying goodbye to my classmate going all the way to Grand Central.
At Yonkers I walk a few blocks to Warburton Avenue and discover something else I haven’t noticed before, the nearest two bus stops a block apart, one only served by Route 1, the other only by Route 2. I’m at the Route 1 bus when a 2 approaches and I jog to the Route 2 only stop. It’s an uneventful quick ride down Broadway to 242 Street-Van Cortlant Park. Normally I would pay the extra 75¢ to ride all the way to Marble Hill but saving $3 seemed worth the extra 15ish minutes. At 242 Street a train has passengers and is about to leave. It’s not signed for the 1 train though but:
The diamond 5. The doors close before I can get on and I notice all the roll signs are set to the diamond 5 too! I take the 1 to 181 Street where there working away laying new bricks and head home.