Getting around New York City & the Hudson Valley

Open Ag Technology GOAT 2022 Conference
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Hi everyone!

I wanted to share with folks my personal know-how as a local-yocal from NYC for getting around town and up to Omega Institute, for those who are coming from further afield and who prefer to use public transit.

Public Transit to Omega Institute (Rhinebeck)

I myself am planning to take Metro North (Hudson Line) from Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan up to Poughkeepsie on Sunday evening, probably in the company of @laurieWayne and @julietnpn, if others want to come along on the party train. From there we’ll split a cab, about a half hour drive to Omega. The Hudson Line also has a stop at Harlem-125th Street, which is especially easy to get to from LaGuardia Airport (LGA) via the M60 Shuttle Bus.

Another option is to take Amtrak from NY Penn Station (34th St) up to the Rhinecliff Station, which is a smidge closer to Omega and only about a 20 min drive, though train tickets are also a smidge more $ and they don’t run quite as frequently.

There’s a local car service, Exectutive Ride (+1-845-204-7148), which looks like a good Uber alternative, or probably there would be people with cars (#GOATSwithCars) willing to pick you up from either station, if you inquire in the “Attendee Logistics” spreadsheet (you should have gotten a link to via email).

New York City MTA Subway & Buses

NYC Subway and Buses are a great way to get around the city in all 5 boroughs. The MTA website is very helpful, and there is even a MyMTA app if that’s yer thing. These days, both subways and buses accept contactless NFC payment via phone or credit/debit cards with a chip, so you don’t have to fumble with a Metro Card you may only use once.

Pre-GOAT / Post-GOAT / Anytime-GOAT

And since I’m just gonna be kickin it in Queens the weekends before and after the conference, I’d be delighted to meet up with others who have a little time to kill in the city, though I’m preferential to the outer boroughs.

There’s actually a great spot in my area, Nowadays, which has a large outdoor space that can accommodate a crowd, if we had enough interested people, but I’m also game for meeting up at any ol’ coffee shop or bar or a public park if the weather is nice. Laurie and I may also be doing the quickest little site-seeing tour on Sunday evening, starting around the Oculus Center then probably making our way up to the BK Bridge-City Hall Station, and going from there straight to Grand Central and then to Omega.

In any event, I’m happy to chat with folks who are coming in and have questions or just want to connect. See you all soon!

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Oh, and as for getting from the airports to other transit options…

Airport Connections

from JFK: The A train can get you all the way to Penn Station, straight shot zero transfers, if that’s where you’re taking Amtrak. Or, you can go one more stop to 42nd St and transfer to the 7 train or Shuttle (S) to get over to Grand Central if you’re taking Metro North.

from LGA: LaGuardia unfortunately does not have any easy subway connections, but to compensate there are several express shuttle buses, like the M60 I mentioned above, which once again, is a pretty convenient way to get to the Harlem-125th Station for Metro North.

from EWR (Newark, NJ): NJ Transit (Northeast Corridor Line) can take you from the Newark Int’l Airport Station (accessible via AirTrain or whatever it’s called) directly to New YORK Penn Station (not to be confused with NewARK Penn Station… just FYI). Alternatively, if you take NJ Transit to NewARK Penn Station, you can connect there to the PATH, which can take you to World Trade Center, or with an additional transfer at Journal Square, will take you to Christopher St in Greenwich Village, 14th St, etc.

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@jgaehring any suggestions for traveling from Albany airport?

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I’m not familiar with that area’s public transit options personally, but Amtrak has a stop at the Albany-Rensaleer station, just on the other side of the Hudson River. It appears to be accessible by municipal bus lines, about an hour from the airport according to Google Maps.

The Adirondack, Empire and Ethan Allen lines are really the only good train options that I know of once you get above north of Poughkeepsie, which is the last stop on Metro North’s Hudson line. There are many other bus options, which are likely faster, but I’m even less familiar with those.

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Thank you for posting this! Laurie reached out to me as we both land at Newark about the same time. Can I travel with you all?

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For sure! We have one other person who reached out, too, so we may need to figure out capacity for the ride from the Poughkeepsie, but I’m sure we can make it work!

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Should we find a cider house or farm brewery to meet up at Sunday evening?

Maybe somewhere between Omega and the train stations? That way people with cars can help pick up people taking the trains, and we can all enjoy a little pre-conference camaraderie before hunkering down at Omega for the week.

I was hopeful either Wilklow Orchards or the Bad Seed Taproom would be open, since they’re run by some folks I know from my Greenmarket days, and have a beautiful farm, but their Sunday hours are rather early. Another old market friend of mine also has a Brewery about half an hour north of Omega, From the Ground Brewery, which is probably too far but figured I’d plug them anyways. I’m sure there are loads more options, though, and probably closer ones on the east side of the Hudson. There’s even a Slow Fox Farm Brewery that looks pretty good and is staggering distance from Omega, just a half mile down the road. Although I’m thinking now it might make best sense to find a place in Poughkeepsie, if we wanted to pick up more folks from the train. The options there are of course abundant.

I threw out the idea before of a “virtual happy hour” before, would anyone be open to that if we can find a convenient time tonight or tomorrow? Then we could discuss these options, other travel logistics, and general GOAT-adjacent activities. I know @paul121 was looking at some other afternoon activities in the Rhinebeck/Kingston/Poughkeepsie area, that others might want to get in on, too.

cc: @JeffPiestrak, @laurieWayne, @ElizabethVaughan, @bharman, @paul121, @mstenta, @gbathree, @julietnpn, @sudokita, @chrowe

I’ll also throw this out there, for folks inclined to bring/rent a bike:

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Hey, sorry it’s last minute notice, but in 40 min or so (3pm Eastern) Laurie and I are gonna chat quick about our own travel plans and a possible gathering Sun night, if anyone following the topic here wanted to join:

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Whoops sorry I missed this! I am down for whatever! I took both Jamie and Laurie’s cells down so I can connect tomorrow. See my cell on the event attendees sheet if needed! Cheers, Elizabeth

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We have a Signal group for communication about travel and such if anyone is looking for help getting here.