Twice a year, the equinox sunrise lines up perfectly with the deck of the Walkway Over the Hudson. On March 20, the gates open early for a sunrise stroll above the river.
Visitors gather on the deck of the Walkway Over the Hudson at sunrise during Walkwayhenge, when the equinox sun rises in near-perfect alignment with the mile-long pedestrian bridge spanning the Hudson River. Credit: Fred Schaeffer.
Twice a year, just after dawn, the sun rises in perfect alignment with the long, linear deck of the Walkway Over the Hudson, turning the world’s longest elevated pedestrian bridge into a kind of Hudson Valley sundial. The phenomenon has come to be known as Walkwayhenge, and it returns on the vernal equinox this year, when the gates will open early—6:30am on Friday, March 20—so visitors can watch the sunrise stretch down the length of the bridge.
The alignment was first noticed by Fred Schaeffer, the longtime advocate who championed the transformation of the abandoned railroad span into the public park it is today. According to Friends of the Walkway spokesman Geoff Brault, Schaeffer had a habit of opening the gates early for morning bike rides and began noticing that on the equinoxes the sunrise lined up with the bridge’s railings. “Back in the day, Fred Schaeffer used to have a key to the gate,” Brault says. “He’d open the gates early and go on morning bike rides, and he noticed that on the equinoxes the sunrise would be kind of in between the railings.”
Schaeffer, an avid photographer, began inviting friends to the bridge at sunrise to capture the effect. Over time, word spread among local photographers and early risers. What began as a quiet discovery evolved into a small but beloved seasonal ritual.
Brault estimates that anywhere from 10 to 30 people typically show up, depending largely on the weather. Many bring cameras, though these days smartphones dominate the scene. “It’s kind of hard to say who’s there expressly for the photo opportunity,” he says. “Everybody uses cell phones now, so a lot of people end up taking pictures whether they planned to or not.”
The experience itself is part of the draw. Standing 212 feet above the Hudson River, the Walkway offers a perspective unlike any other in the region, with the rising sun illuminating the bridge’s mile-long corridor. “I think the Walkway is so iconic that it becomes the perfect pair with another very cool occurrence,” Brault says. “You can go on sunrise walks in a lot of places, but it’s really special to do it here. It’s the world’s longest elevated pedestrian bridge, and you’re 212 feet above the Hudson River. It’s truly a viewpoint you can’t get anywhere else.”
Photographers looking for the best vantage point won’t need to search hard. Because the bridge runs straight across the river, Brault says there’s effectively no wrong place to stand. The flagpole at the center of the span can add a dramatic element to photos if the wind catches the flag at the right moment.
Both entrances to the Walkway—from Poughkeepsie and Highland—will open early for the event, allowing visitors to stroll onto the bridge and watch the sunrise unfold down its length. For those willing to set an alarm, Walkwayhenge offers a rare convergence of landscape, architecture, and celestial timing—one that, fittingly, happens only twice a year.
