New York State Route 214

NYS Route 214 marker

NYS Route 214

Map of New York State Route 214

Map of eastern New York with NY 214 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NYSDOT
Length: 12.48 mi[1] (20.08 km)
Existed: 1930[2] – present
Major junctions
South end: NY 28 in Shandaken
North end: NY 23A near Tannersville
Location
Counties: Ulster, Greene
Highway system
← NY 213NY 215 →

New York State Route 214 (NY 214) is a short but scenic state highway in the heart of the Catskill Park. It runs north–south from near the hamlet of Phoenicia up near an old railroad route into the narrow pass known as Stony Clove Notch, then down into the upper Schoharie Creek valley to end near Hunter.

Route description

A two-lane road winding between two steep and wooded slopes. There is a small body of water on the left
NY 214 looking north into Stony Clove Notch

NY 214 begins at an intersection with NY 28 in the town of Shandaken as the latter runs along the Esopus Creek. NY 214 gains the moniker of Main Street, climbing downhill into the hamlet of Phoenicia, crossing a tributary of Esopus Creek, Stony Clove Creek, into the center of the community. A block after the water crossing, NY 214 turns northwest off Main Street, becoming a two-lane commercial street, bypassing the downtown section of Phoenicia, now paralleling the waterway. NY 214 soon leaves Phoenicia, bending northeast along Stony Clove Creek, crossing northeast along the sides of the nearby mountains, reaching the hamlet of Chichester, where it becomes a two-lane residential road in the middle of the notch.[3]

NY 214 continues northeast out of Chichester, crossing through the town of Shandaken, remaining a two-lane roadway. A short distance northeast of Chichester, the route crosses out of Ulster County and into Greene County. NY 214 continues northeast through the town of Hunter. Reaching the hamlet of Lanesville, the route becomes a rural mountainside road through various mountains of the Catskill High Peaks. For a short distance along the route east of Lanesville, the route bends eastward rather than northeast, reaching the hamlet of Edgewood, which consists of a few homes and a junction with Notch Hill Road. At this junction, NY 214 turns northward between Plateau and Hunter mountains, becoming a two-lane woods road.[3]

NY 214 passes a small pond of Stony Clove Notch, continuing north and turning northeast near Higgins Road. After the northeastern turn, the route junctions with the southern terminus of County Route 83 (CR 83 or Ski Bowl Road). The route winds out and becomes a flat area through Hunter, reaching a junction with NY 23A in the hamlet of Hunter, just west of Tannersville.[3]

NY 214 heading southbound from NY 23A facing Hunter Mountain

History

A track of some kind had long existed up NY 214's present-day course, although it was suitable only for personal foot traffic, which had to pass through Stony Clove Notch in single file as it was extremely narrow at the time. In the 1840s tanner Charles Edwards widened it at great personal expense so that at least wagons could get through, serving not only his tanneries in Hunter but the lumber companies in Lanesville and Chichester as well.

In 1873 the Stoney [sic] Clove Turnpike was incorporated to make further road improvements. In 1881, the narrow gauge railway was built along the road. The road was taken over by the state of New York in the late 1920s and designated as NY 214 as part of the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York.[2][4]

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
UlsterShandaken0.000.00 NY 28Hamlet of Phoenicia
GreeneTown of Hunter12.4820.08 NY 23A
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "2008 Traffic Volume Report for New York State" (PDF). New York State Department of Transportation. June 16, 2009. p. 189. Retrieved February 1, 2010.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Road Map of New York (Map). Cartography by General Drafting. Standard Oil Company of New York. 1930.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Microsoft; Nokia (March 11, 2013). "overview map of NY 214" (Map). Bing Maps. Microsoft. Retrieved March 11, 2013.
  4. ↑ Official Map Showing State Highways and other important roads (Map). Cartography by Rand McNally and Company. State of New York Department of Public Works. 1926.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to New York State Route 214.