5 Smells That Only Hudson Valley Residents can Identify

There are some odors that, for better or worse, can only be smelled in the Hudson Valley. If you live here you'll know exactly what we're talking about.

The Old Poughkeepsie Water Treatment Plant
If you were living in or near Poughkeepsie up until a few years ago you know the unique smell that used to come from the Water Treatment Plant near Marist College. It was a blend of broccoli and poop that used to waft through the entire area, especially on rainy days. Upgrades to the plant have made the smell a thing of the past, but it will never disappear from our memories.

Metro North Trains
There's a very specific aroma that one gets when riding the train between Poughkeepsie and Grand Central. It's a mechanical smell that most likely comes from the diesel engines used on the trains. I've been on trains in many other places, and none of them smell quite like Metro North. Once that smell hits you, you know you're on the train.

The Dutchess County Fair
If I could bottle one Hudson Valley smell it would be the Dutchess County Fair. There's that unique mix of fried dough, hay, milkshakes and barnyard animals that should be off-putting but is just incredibly mouth-watering. Maybe it's the association between the smell and all of that delicious food available on the midway, but there's nothing quite like it.

The Newburgh Waterfront
If you've spent any amount of time on the Newburgh Waterfront during the summer, you know that it has it's own unique blend of that "seashore" smell. It's not quite ocean, and not quite river. Perhaps it's the flow of salt water that sometimes makes its way up the Hudson or the combination of the different restaurants mixed with the algae smell from the docks, but that particular area of the river has it's own distinct aroma that is unmistakably the Newburgh Waterfront.

The Hudson Valley Mall in Kingston
I'm not quite sure if it's the mixture of aromas coming from all of the different stores, a special type of floor wax or cleaner, the food court or a combination of them all, but the Hudson Valley Mall has a smell that's like no other. In fact, each mall in our area has it's own smell. I'd bet that you could blindfold someone from the Hudson Valley and drop them in any random mall and they'd be able to identify it by the smell. Poughkeepsie Galleria, Newburgh Mall, Galleria at Crystal Run; each of them have their own unique twist on that "mall smell" that tells you immediately where you are.

There are hundreds of other places throughout the Hudson Valley that have their own unique smells, both good and bad. What's the one aroma that instantly reminds you of the area? Share your favorite hometown odor on our Facebook page or in the comments section below.