South of the trestle, rail trail users have historically antagonized Mountain Road residents by parking along the roadside and blocking their driveways. WVLT plans to alleviate the problem by excavating a new small parking lot underneath the southern access to the trestle, with a new trail leading down the embankment to improve access to the town park on the shore of the Rondout, according to DeBoer.
The process of renovating the 940-foot-long trestle began with a preliminary engineering analysis in 2009 to determine the feasibility of the $1.5 million project, followed by a full structural analysis when it was greenlighted in 2010. “They crawled over every inch of this thing,” says DeBoer, and found it still structurally sound. The engineers identified “minor structural needs,” including some steel trusses that needed reinforcement, which has been completed. Debris that had accumulated in pockets of the structure and been infiltrated by tree roots had to be removed.
On the surface of the trestle, decking had been installed halfway across by former owner John Rahl, in an abortive attempt several decades ago to turn the gorge of the Rondout Creek into a bungee-jumping destination. Although long enjoyed by walkers and cyclists for the vistas that it afforded, that decking was decayed and had become unsafe. “The railings were falling off,” says DeBoer. So the trestle was fenced off as repair and replacement work got underway.
WVLT wanted to reuse existing materials wherever possible, including any railroad ties that were still sound, since disposal of the creosote-soaked wood presents an environmental problem. So it was decided that the ties, normally laid with the narrow edge up, would be turned sideways in order to fill up the gaps between them and create a flat surface to support the bridge decking. Some new switch ties had to be ordered to replace old ones that had rotted, delaying the process somewhat, but most of the historic ties proved to be in good enough condition to be reclaimed.
One year ago, Ulster Ironworks began fabricating new railings of Cor-Ten steel, whose surface is designed to weather to a slightly rusted patina, preserving the historic look of the bridge without sacrificing structural strength. The round-topped railings “have the same design as Walkway Over the Hudson, on a smaller scale,” says DeBoer. “But they’re the same height,” to discourage the temptation to climb on or over them.
The railings have now been welded to the trestle, and WVLT is currently “in full research mode” to make a final determination as to what material would be best for decking: concrete or some sort of composite. “We’re having horses walk on it, seriously,” DeBoer asserts. “We want something that, maintenance-wise, has a long lifespan.”
As the renovation nears completion, WVLT is coordinating plans with the Town of Rosendale for a gala ribbon-cutting event, and with Hudson River Valley Resorts, the new owners of Williams Lake, who have expressed the wish to open their mile-and-a-half segment of the rail trail to public use on the same date as the trestle unveiling. “We’re working on getting a permanent written trail easement” for that section, says DeBoer. “We hope to sign that right when the trestle opens.”
Once that happens, rail trail users will be able to travel all the way from the trail’s southern terminus at the Wallkill Correctional Facility to the north end of the Williams Lake property. A few glitches still stand in the way of completing the corridor all the way to the Kingston city line, near the junction of Route 32 and Rockwell Lane. A dispute involving contradictory deeds is expected to be resolved in court shortly, enabling the relocation of sheds and a swimming pool that were mistakenly erected on the old railbed. Meanwhile, WVLT and the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail Association have been deploying volunteers to clean up fallen trees, debris and trash from the northern stretches of the trail so that it can be ready for reopening in 2014. “We removed 10.5 tons of tires from the Town of Ulster section,” DeBoer reports. “We estimated between 1,000 and 1,500 tires.”
Volunteers are still needed to help clear the way, which will extend a full 24 miles when completed, bringing visitors to Rosendale from both north and south. But according to DeBoer, “The trestle is going to be the showstopper. The views are breathtaking.”
