“Nyack is a lively village in winter,”
Rockland County Journal, 1857
After a snowfall quiets the landscape, a new sound emerges—the shrieks and shouts of children riding sleds. Nyack has long taken pride in its steep hills, perfect for sledding in the horse-and-buggy days when streets remained unplowed. But all of Rockland County offers superior sledding—backyards, golf courses, schools, cemeteries, streets, driveways, and parks. If a good hill was nearby, kids could sled not only on snow days but also after school and on weekends. In the Facebook group Rockland County Back in the Day, members mention hundreds of different sledding sites. This year, continuing the tradition, Nyack Mayor Joe Rand personally supplied twenty sleds for young kids at Memorial Park.
A Short History of Sledding
Sleds date back to a time when winter travel was easier on sleds and sleighs than on wheeled carts. Even the ancient Egyptians used sledges over sand dunes, which, aside from temperature, share similar physical properties with snow. Northern Native Americans designed J-shaped toboggans that could be steered using a looped rope controlled by the front rider’s feet. The modern bobsled evolved from the toboggan.
Sleds with skis originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland, where the sport gained popularity in the 1870s. Runner sleds, which move faster on compacted snow and ice, became the standard. In the 1880s, Samuel Leeds Allen invented the Flexible Flyer, America’s first steerable sled. Affordable and enormously popular, it became a bestseller. In 1887, when Nyack’s population was half of what it is today, Dutcher Brothers General Store sold 81 sleds in just five days.
Paintings of sledding from days gone by. Courtesy of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission.
Metal discs appeared in the mid-1900s, followed by plastic sleds, tubes, and saucers, which have largely replaced wooden sleds. These modern designs work well on both packed and fresh snow and are easier for young kids to carry uphill. Plastic flying saucers, while particularly fast, are nearly impossible to steer. Wooden sleds with runners perform best on compacted snow; metal runners can be waxed for extra speed, offering longer rides and better steering than plastic alternatives.
Nyack Sledding Routes in the Horse-and-Buggy Era
“Nyack is a lively village in winter,” noted a journalist in 1857, highlighting its four or five popular sledding hills, along with numerous frozen ponds for skating. In the horse-and-buggy era, unpaved and unplowed streets saw frequent use by horse-drawn sleighs. As the roads became packed with snow and ice, they posed challenges for walkers and horses but proved ideal for sledding.
In the mid-1800s, the steep hills on Main Street and Depew Avenue were favorites, bustling with sledders day and night. As traffic increased, sledders sought out quieter streets. One of the longest sled runs in South Nyack started near the Prospect House, a large tourist hotel on South Highland Avenue. Sledders could glide down to Franklin Avenue via Cedar Hill Avenue, then free of Thruway interruptions. On especially icy days, some dared to start even higher, at Inspiration Point near Simpson Hall on the former Nyack College campus.
Other popular routes included Hudson Avenue, starting at Summit Street, and De Cantillon Place, an extension of Third Avenue leading up to the mansion of Richard De Cantillon. Spear Street and lower Hudson Avenue also saw action, with sledders racing from Broadway to the Shoddy Mill, a factory producing recycled wool, near the outlet of Nyack Brook in Memorial Park.
Sledding Perils
Sledding could be perilous. One winter, three boys, sledding lickety-split down De Cantillon’s hill on an icy day, sped across Broadway and continued down Third Avenue. Gaining speed, they ultimately crashed into the docks. One boy fell off, but the other two slid onto the frozen Hudson River before being rescued.
Nyack Sledding Routes “Back in the Day“
Adventurous sledders braved the gigantic hills of Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Kit Shappie still recalls the fear of crashing into Helen Hayes’s brick wall at the foot of Sixth Avenue and Broadway. Upper Nyack Historian Win Perry remembers his Flexible Flyer days fondly, frequently sledding on Tallman, Highmount, and Castle Heights Avenues.
Rockland County Sledding Routes “Back in the Day“
Golf courses, with their wide-open hills, were prime sledding spots. Dellwood Country Club in New City was a popular choice, despite periodic bans. Blue Hill Golf Course in Pearl River featured a legendary 45-degree slope called “Cardiac Hill” near the 10th hole, which ended in a sand trap. By 1993, Orangetown prohibited sledding at Blue Hill. Chateau D’Vie (now New York Country Club) in Spring Valley boasted one of the fastest toboggan runs along Brick Church Road, while Rockland Lake’s north golf course featured a steep slope at the 10th hole.
Nyack According to Kattie Ruddon, Hudson Avenue from Washington to Franklin was blocked off for sledding, with coal placed at the bottom to stop sleds and side streets barricaded. Tallman Avenue also had controlled sledding, with bales of hay at the bottom to prevent kids from crossing Broadway. Ross Avenue (closed to traffic in 1963 due to resident complaints) and the former Nyack College were other local favorites.
Schools, Cemeteries, and More
Schools with open space and hills also became sledding hotspots. Many recall the sled run down Dutch Hill (or Tappan Zee Hill) at Tappan Zee High School, which extended almost to Western Highway. At Spring Valley Junior High, kids poured water on slopes to create icy runs. At Hilltop Elementary, up to ten kids once rode the hood of an old Dodge as a sled. Even cemeteries, particularly Oak Hill Cemetery, saw their fair share of sledding.
Nichols Hill, on the Lederle Labs property (now Pfizer, the site of coronavirus vaccine research), was a famous toboggan route known for its steep descent and two bumps. Today, the hill is part of the Middletown overpass over Route 304. The old Silvermine ski area in Harriman also provided a long sledding run.
Countless local streets served as sledding venues. In the late 1960s, homeowners on Mountain View Avenue in Pearl River allowed kids to sled along multiple properties, with a frozen swamp at the bottom doubling as an ice-skating rink. The aptly named Steep Hill Road in Nanuet, once a dirt road, featured a daunting 24-inch oak tree at its base.
Sledding in Nyack in the 2020s
In 2020s, after the first big snowfall, parents take their kids to Memorial Park, the hill behind Upper Nyack Elementary School, River Hook, and the Marydell hill off Larchdale. Just this month, Nyack Mayor Joe Rand personally left twenty small sleds for kids to enjoy at Memorial Park. For many, it is their first taste of sledding’s thrills—memories that will last a lifetime.
Mike Hays lived in the Nyacks for 38-years. He worked for McGraw-Hill Education in New York City for many years. Hays serves as President of the Historical Society of the Nyacks, Vice-President of the Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center, and Upper Nyack Historian. . Married to Bernie Richey, he enjoys cycling and winters in Florida. You can follow him on Instagram as UpperNyackMike.
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by Sun River Health and Ellis Sotheby’s International Realty. Sun River Health is a network of 43 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) providing primary, dental, pediatric, OB-GYN, and behavioral health care to over 245,000 patients annually. Ellis Sotheby’s International Realty is the lower Hudson Valley’s Leader in Luxury. Located in the charming Hudson River village of Nyack, approximately 22 miles from New York City. Our agents are passionate about listing and selling extraordinary properties in the Lower Hudson Valley, including Rockland and Orange Counties, New York.
