I love seeing covered bridges, especially historic ones. I was looking for a daytrip from the Northern Catskills, and through a Google Maps search I found this beauty.
The Downsville Covered Bridge is a wooden bridge that you can still drive through. (Wow!) It was originally built in 1854 by Robert Murray, a Scottish Immigrant born in 1814. The bridge is 174 feet long and 19 feet wide spanning the eastern branch of the Delaware River, in Delaware County, New York.
There is a pretty park to the side of the bridge with plenty of parking. You can bring a picnic with you to enjoy at the park or head on over to the Downsville Diner. The diner was delightfully decorated, and the food was good and very reasonably priced. Or continue up the road to have lunch or dinner at the Old Schoolhouse Inn and Restaurant.
The town features a few shops including a wine store and sports shop. If you want to rent kayaks or canoes stop into Al’s Sports Store.
Getting to the Downsville Covered Bridge
When I followed the Google Maps directions, it took me to the other side of the bridge (where there isn’t parking). The Downsville Covered Bridge is 1 hour and 45 minutes from Catskill, New York; a little over 2 hours from the George Washington Bridge; or about 4 hours from Center City Philadelphia.
A little bit of history about the Downsville Covered Bridge
The Downsville Covered Bridge is a long and queenpost truss bridge built in 1854 by Robert Murray at a cost of $1,700. It was restored in 1998 for $1,000,000, and because of that you can drive your car over the bridge if you wish to. (We didn’t but I think that’s pretty cool, especially if driving over a historic covered bridge is on your bucket list.)
Robert Murray also built the Hamden Covered Bridge in 1859 that spans the Western branch of the Delaware river and several other bridges in New York. The Downsville Covered Bridge is one of the oldest historic bridges in New York and is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.
Staying in Downsville, New York
Although we didn’t stay overnight, there are two places I noticed while driving through town.
- Old Schoolhouse Inn and Restaurant offers 4 guest rooms and a Honeymoon Suite. Room rates listed on their website starts at $105 per night (double occupancy).
- Downsville Motel has about a half dozen regular rooms that start at $85 per night (double occupancy). They also have an apartment available that features two bedrooms, great river views and a full kitchen for $120 per night (double occupancy). Seems like a bargain to me!
Other interesting links
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