Mohawk Hudson Bike/Hike Trail

The Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail (MHBHT) is an 86-mile (138 km) trail in New York's Mohawk Valley and Capital District regions. It is also the easternmost segment of the Erie Canalway Trail, as well as a portion of the Empire State Trail.

former Niskayuna Railroad Station along the trail, March 2010

Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail
The Corning Tower on the Albany skyline, as seen from the trail's Hudson River section
Length	86 miles (138 km)
Location	Little Falls to Albany, New York
Trailheads	Little Falls, Fort Plain, Canojaharie, Fultonville, Amsterdam, Pattersonville, Kiwanis Park in Rotterdam, Schenectady County Community College, Blatnick Park in Niskayuna, Lions Park in Niskayuna, Colonie Town Park in Colonie, Alexander Street in Cohoes, 4th Street Park in Watervliet, Corning Preserve in Albany
Use	Biking, inline skating, walking, cross-country skiing
Hiking details
Trail difficulty	Mostly easy, level, ADA-accessible, with isolated steep grades and occasional on-road sections
Season	All year, dawn to dusk
Surface	Asphalt
Right of way	Troy & Schenectady Railroad (Cohoes-Schenectady), West Shore Railroad (Pattersonville-Little Falls)

The trail starts on the west bank of the Hudson River in Albany's Corning Preserve, and travels northward along Interstate 787 to Watervliet. From there, an on-road bike route connects through Watervliet, Green Island and Cohoes to the Mohawk River section. The trail continues west from Cohoes along the Mohawk River with occasional on-road segments, connecting the communities of Colonie, Niskayuna, Schenectady, Pattersonville, Amsterdam, Fultonville, Canajoharie, and Fort Plain before ending in Little Falls. From here, the Erie Canalway Trail continues westward into Herkimer County, connecting to western New York and eventually ending in Buffalo.

Much of the trail is a rail trail, created from portions of the Troy & Schenectady Railroad,[1] which was taken out of service on January 15, 1965.[2] Most of the portion from the Northway to Schenectady was still owned by the Penn Central railroad as of 1973.[3]

While the trail is nearing completion, there are still a few gaps in the trail where it follows local roads. One such section follows Island View Road under the Thaddeus Kosciusko Bridge, which carries Interstate 87 over the Mohawk River, and another follows local roads through the cities of Cohoes and Watervliet, as well the Village of Green Island. Other on-road sections include a section following local roads through the Stockade Historic District in Schenectady, and a section of Route 5S in Pattersonville. These gaps are expected to be filled by the end of 2020 as part of the Empire State Trail project.

The Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail is the backbone of the trail network of the Capital Region, with direct connections to the Albany County Rail Trail, the Black Bridge Trail, the Champlain Canalway Trail, the ALCO Heritage Trail, the Uncle Sam Trail, and soon the Albany Hudson-Electric Trail. It is generally regarded as the Capital Region's premier linear park, and is by far the most heavily used, based on a 2016 survey of trail users. An estimated 264,000 use the trail at Lions Park in Niskayuna, and an estimated 203,000 use the trail at the Corning Preserve in Albany - these are the trail's busiest access points.[4]

Bathrooms are available at Rotterdam Kiwanis Park, Jeff Blatnick Town Park (seasonal), Niskayuna Lions Park (seasonal), Colonie Town Park (seasonal), and the Corning Preserve. The trail also includes many benches, picnic facilities, and parking areas.