From the top of Bastion Falls
The tree to the left is in a precarious spot when Irene pays a visit
A person rapelling down upper falls
A little art along the way
Bastion Falls
Back in the day the Catskills were a real happening place
After a week of mostly hard driving rain and with Hurricane Irene making its way up the eastern seaboard, today would be a good day for a late afternoon stroll to Kaaterskill Falls. At 265 feet, these two tiered falls are the highest in New York State.
There was a nice crowd making its way towards the Falls. At only a half mile, this makes for a popular trail. No stiff climbing for a rewarding view here. The trail is easy to follow and gets a bit slippery when wet. Otherwise, there are well placed rocks that make for great steps along with some wooden steps.
The trail begins off Route 23A which affords a nice view of Bastion Falls. This is an impressive Falls in its own right. After ascending gradually over the next half mile, the trail ends at the base of Kaaterskill Falls. On this day, with all the previous rain, it was flowing mightily.
We then did a bit of scrambling to just above the lower falls. The Upper Falls, in my opinion, is the prettier of the two. It falls dramatically with no interruption for over one hundred feet.
Where are the pictures?
ReplyDeleteIs there an official trail from the base to the top? I haven't hiked there in several years, but when I did hike there it was a very steep and eroded walk to the top. You might like this link:
http://www.hurricanes-blizzards-noreasters.com/
Media is really hyping Irene. Embarrassing. But people buy into it, make runs to the grocery, the home depot, the walmart, the gas station, and clean these places out.
All's quiet here on the bottom half of the earf. Tomorrow going with Andres to visit a town called Los Andes. We plan to soak our bodies in a pool fed by natural thermal waters. My back will probably enjoy that.