Coffee Ride to Anatomy Craft Coffee Bar

The Ride

I’d learned about the Upstate Coffee Crawl from visiting Foundry42+ in Port Jervis, NY, so I had to add the participating venues to the Tank of Coffee backlog. One of those was Anatomy Craft Coffee Bar in Honesdale, PA. The Beeline to get there was 87.9 miles, so today would be a long day. See our article on discovering new roads with Beeline. One of my oldest friends lives in the area, so I contacted him to meet at the coffee shop.

The significant storms earlier this year closed many of my favorite roads in Harriman and the surrounding area, so I had to make do with US Highway 6 once on the other side of the Hudson. To make up for it, I did a zig-zag on the east side of the Hudson. I took Route 35, which runs along the east side of the Croton Falls Reservoir, then turned left on Drewville Road and left onto West Shore Drive to follow along the reservoir’s west side.

A right on Route 70 (Stebbins Road) got me pointing in the relative direction of the compass again. This joined with Croton Falls Road (Route 34) meandering until it arrived at Route 6 in Mahopac.

Route 6 travels along the east side of Lake Mahopac, heading north, so my compass was urgently pointing to the left to get back on track.

I found a road leading more northwest and grabbed any roads leading west to arrive at Route 32 (Hill Street), which started to head south as I had to intercept the Bear Mountain Bridge to cross the Hudson. This essentially had me loop around Lake Mahopac to connect with Route 6N, heading southwest to reconnect with US Highway 6.

I took this till Strawberry Road, which was better aligned with the compass, and avoided the main highway bit of 6 here. I connected with the Bear Mountain Parkway and then got onto 6/202 to climb to the Bear Mountain Bridge.

I love crossing at the Bear Mountain Bridge, not just because of the approach road, which is so popular with motorcyclists, but because it leads to Harriman Park, which has many great roads (though damaged in the storms this summer). The bridge itself has a fascinating history. It was the longest suspension bridge in the world for nearly two years. It was also the first automobile bridge to cross the Hudson south of Albany, NY. The GW bridge wouldn’t be built for another seven years.

On the other side of the Hudson, I stayed on 6, which has lovely views and sweepers as it descends toward Goshen, a two-lane highway. I continued to bypass Goshen & Florida, after which 6 became a nice meandering country lane heading toward Port Jervis. Port Jervis leads to Route 97 by the Hawk’s Nest, a popular motorcycle route overlooking the Delaware River. 97 follows along the NY side, with the other side of the river being PA.

On the day I was riding, Route 97 had some construction going on with some loose gravel for a long stretch, which did limit speed a bit. Eventually, traffic entirely stopped as it shut down to one lane with such a long stretch it required a “pilot car,” so the wait was about 10 minutes sitting still, where I turned the engine off.

Once the pilot car had led my side of the road past the construction area, I had only a little before I split off of 97 to Route 52 near Narrowsburg. As I entered the town, I noticed The Tusten Cup at the corner of Main Street and Bridge Street (Route 52). Tusten Cup is another of the coffee shops in the Upstate Coffee Crawl and the Tank of Coffee backlog. Hopefully, the construction on Route 97 will be complete when I do that ride.

REVER is a mobile app designed to help you track, plan, or navigate your ride. With the app, you can easily plan your route, view maps and directions, and track your distance using GPS technology. The app is an excellent tool for anyone who loves to ride and wants to keep track of their progress and distance.

Bridge Street lives up to its name, spanning the Delaware River and crossing the border into Pennsylvania. I eventually merged with 6, which became densely populated in Honesdale, and then found my way to Anatomy Craft Coffee Bar. All the zig-zags on the east side of the Hudson and 97’s river-hugging resulted in the track Rever recorded as 133.4 miles. See the route below.

The Coffee Shop

Honesdale, PA, was founded initially as part of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, used to transport the anthracite coal discovered in northeastern Pennsylvania in the early 1800s. It was also the location of the first steam locomotive in the United States, as the railroads eventually took over transport for coal.

Nowadays, Honesdale doesn’t have the same draw from the industry it once had, but many of the structures from its heyday make for an appealing town to explore. Main Street in downtown Honesdale features several of these three story buildings from a bygone era. Some even have stenciled names across the top of their former industrial purposes. At 630 Main Street is the building that is the home to Anatomy Craft Coffee Bar

The coffee shop is easy to miss. It’s on a one-way street heading in the opposite direction from which I came. A sidewalk board in front is the most prominent indication, followed by a small stencil on the glass door. Surrounding shops have much more prominent signs, so keep a keen eye out for it.

There is seating outside directly on the sidewalk & that is where I saw my friend sitting, who lives only about 20 minutes from Honesdale. I found a spot on the other side of the street and parked the BMW R1200GSA.

A quick greeting with my friend & I headed inside to grab a coffee. The counter is on the left as you enter. In front is another level with stairs leading up to it and a ramp on the right. The center had an area with a small platform in stained wood to create a stage with a mixing board and PA speakers on either side. Surrounding it were several tables with metal chairs.

The coffee options include americano, cappuccino, latte, macchiato & espresso. Flavors can be added to any drink, and cold brew is on tap. If tea is more to your liking, they have options ranging from green and Earl Grey to English breakfast & chamomile.

Food options are also available from the Smash Slider Bar.

I ordered an americano & brought it back outside & joined my friend. We caught up while sipping our coffees. He was the friend who got me into motorcycling in the first place, but his pair of original Ducati Monsters haven’t been running in a few years. He was admiring the BMW R1200GSA I’d ridden today parked across the street. He said it was on his short list of a bike that would be more flexible and long-distance than his Monsters. I concur that it is one of, if not the best, do-it-all bikes available today.

Anatomy Craft Coffee Bar is part of the Creative Compound. It aims to blend business, food, art, and community. There is a co-working space on the 3rd floor. There is an open mic night weekly in the evenings, so you don’t have to limit your visits to the early morning as I did.

The Refreshments

My Americano, while served in a paper cup, was delicious, and the conversation with an old friend accentuated the flavor. I regret not trying any of the food options as I arrived early in the morning having breakfast at home. But I recommend it as a space to come together, so bring a friend on your next coffee ride!