FORT Friends of the Rail Trail

08/21/2026

A new pocket park on the Rail Trail. Here's some detail:

NYS announcement – $267,857: Town of Bethlehem – Project will build a pocket park along the Albany County Helderberg-Hudson Rail Trail to enhance the trail experience and convenience, with increased foot traffic spurring business growth. The project will add amenities like benches and picnic tables, plus wayfinding signage and kiosks, and beautification efforts like landscaping and lighting. Outdoor workout equipment, bike racks, and security cameras will be installed. New paving and cautionary paint will be used to discourage high-speed bicyclists.

Great news for Albany County! We’ve been awarded $267,857 through New York State’s County Infrastructure Grant Program to support a new pocket park along the Albany County Helderberg-Hudson Rail Trail and Cherry Avenue Extension Multi-Use Path intersection in Bethlehem.

Thank you to Governor Hochul and Empire State Development for investing in our communities and helping us create spaces people can enjoy. Stay tuned for more details about the project!

https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-announces-more-38-million-awarded-49-projects-through-second-round-county

08/14/2026

It would appear that the County is repurposing land at the end of Bridge Street ... and a Trail parking lot would seem like the most logical use.

08/07/2026

08/07/2026

Trail Tunes is next weekend, Sunday, August 16. Join us at Bender Melon Farm Preserve to hear some amazing local music, live on the preserve trails! Thanks to our 2026 Music Sponsor Tacos Diablo NY, we're featuring 4 music stations. Be sure to catch Laura Leigh on the trail!

Singer/songwriter Laura Leigh is at once a relic of a bygone age and a fresh face in the new generation of folk, pulling inspiration from tried-and-true traditions of old-time country and rock and roll. Her driving rhythms and soaring melodies accompany heartfelt, insightful lyrics, delivered with a cadence that is simultaneously sincere and irreverent. It is this breadth and depth of range that makes her equally comfortable in the backwoods and back alleys of New York's enigmatic upstate. The joy she takes in her craft is self-evidentand contagious, as she includes you in the inside joke and regales you with unique American stories that feel like home.

Sign up in advance to save time at the check-in table: https://www.mohawkhudson.org/trail-tunes

08/07/2026

Your wish has come true! Emack and Bolio’s is doing a pop up event at the Old Toll Gate Ice Cream in Slingerlands! Stop by for a sweet treat after your walk or bike ride on the rail trail. We’ll be there from 4pm - 8pm Sunday August 9th! 💚💜

08/06/2026

You are invited to join Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy's Annual Fundraiser, Partners in Preservation, on Thursday, October 1 at River Stone Manor in Glenville.
The event is a festive evening celebrating 34 years of Capital Region conservation! This year, we are thrilled to honor Anita Sanchez, George Steele, The Town of Bethlehem's Farms & Forests Conservation Program, and Mike & Cary Patak for their outstanding contributions to their communities and the environment.
For event details and ticket sales, please visit www.mohawkhudson.org/fall-fundraiser

07/31/2026

07/31/2026

The Attorney General will issue a consumer alert to combat illegal e-motos, after a 17-year-old died in Lower Manhattan.

07/29/2026

Mark your calendars - Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy's Trail Tunes returns to Bender Melon Farm Preserve (New Scotland, NY) on Sunday, August 16, from 1 - 4 PM!

🤩We have an amazing musical line-up this year that you won't want to miss: Kimono Dragons, The Husbands, Carolyn Shapiro, and Laura Leigh

✨NEW this year: Common Roots Brewing Company will have beer and cider available for purchase, there will be a Hungry Traveler food truck, and we will host a kids’ craft table.

🥳Participants will also be entered in a prize raffle to win MHLC merchandise, Tacos Diablo NY gift cards, or a gift basket from Common Roots Brewing Company.

🚴‍♀️BONUS: Easy access to the event from the Rail Trail!

Register today to join the fun! www.mohawkhudson.org/events
(Pre-registration is encouraged but not required.)

07/24/2026

The Rail Trail and its predecessors have been part of the fabric of the regional landscape for about 165 years. It’s a great legacy to build on.

This is the “Kenwood Bridge” over the Normans Kill, adjacent to the Noonan Preserve. It separates Albany and Bethlehem.