Bash Bish Falls

Bash Bish Falls

The stream

Looking down at the Falls



Not content with staying at home, I made for another day to a waterfall. This time, Bash Bish Falls. The trail starts in Copake, NY then crosses the MA state line. Bash Bish Falls at around 200 feet is Massachusetts highest waterfall. Much of that 200 feet is not within view. The portion that is easily recognizable is about 40 feet.

This is one of the easiest trails around. The trail to the Falls is 3/4 of a mile along a nice stream. Some leaves are falling making this a very pretty walk. Not much elevation is gained. The first view of the Falls is from up above. I recently read there have been 25 deaths in the past 100 years, mostly rock climbers and cliff jumpers. Just below the Falls a nice swim hole can be found. But, unfortunately a no swimming sign is also easily found.

I love Autumn!

Fawn's Leap

The chasm where the little fawn met its fate

The author's leap. Or maybe not.

The wonderful sight of fallen leaves on a flat rock makes for a great spot to just chill.

This was a bit weird. A tree that lost its bark.

Much blowdown along Kaaterskill Creek after Irene

Trres find some crazy places to put down its roots. But, the views are good.

An artist's dream. Many have been inspired by Fawn's Leap.

My feet took a good soaking as I had no choice but to walk inside the creek.

From the north side

From the south side


Having some time to kill, a little walk along the Kaaterskill in the vicinity of Fawn's Leap fit the bill perfectly. The walk began about a mile west of Palenville where route 23A crosses the Kaaterskill Creek from the south side to the north side.

Beginning the walk on the south side, I quickly turned around since the water was fairly high and didn't feel like walking in knee high water. I then walked along 23A to Fawn's Leap. Legend has it that a fawn tried to make the leap here following a chase by a dog. It's easy to be tempted to make the leap. From the north, a large rock slopes down encouraging you to give it a go. Realizing I'm not Carl Lewis, I passed. From here, I walked down to the creek. Walking west, I looked for spots to cross over. It took a while and finally coming to the conclusion that I had to get a good soaking, I finally crossed.

In this short walk, you really can see the massive amount of earth that Hurricane Irene moved. Many trees were taken down and sucked into the creek. But, also it appears that many, many large rocks had been displaced. In one area, it seems as though the creek itself has changed course slightly. This was very interesting to see. Its like watching erosion in real time.

Despite the traffic on route 23A, I enjoyed a wonderful stop on the south side of Fawn's Leap. A nice flat area that I took advantage of. The falls drowned out the traffic on route 23A and the view here is nothing short of spectacular. It's no wonder this site has inspired many artists.

Awosting Falls

The impressive Awosting Falls


This tree is basically growing straight out of rock. Amazing!

Awosting Falls

The view from the top, near sunset

Mohonk

Mother Nature at its worst and best. The foreground: destroyed crops from Hurricane Irene. The background: it speaks for itself.

The descent of the Peters Kill


Another of those great, easy walks with maximal benefits. Today, after Hurricane Irene, part of the carriage trail is out, making the walk a tad bit more difficult. This still is an easy hike. Bring the stroller (as a family was as I walked out). It's stroller easy.

From the Minnewaska parking lot, it's a short, quarter mile walk to the top of the Falls. From here there are views down to the Peters Kill as it makes its rapid descent to the Rondout Creek. Also, there are views toward the Trapps.

An easy descent down the carriage trail leads to spectacular views of these rather impressive Falls. Sit down. Chill. Shit. Lay down on one of the flat rocks. Just chill. Listen and enjoy the sound of the rapidly flowing Peters Kill. Enjoy the sight of the perfectly shaped Awosting Falls as it drops dramatically into a large pool. The No Swimming sign ruins thoughts of taking a dip.

Sheldon Falls

Area around Sheldon Falls


Views toward the Trapps

Sheldon Falls

Peters Kill just below Sheldon

Old power plant

The leaves are a changin


I failed in my previous trip to Sheldon Falls. This is a short off trail hike that I made longer and unsuccessful by hugging the east side of the Peters Kill. This time I tried following an open area that descended down a little bit to the east of the Peters Kill.

This proved to be the way. What a great, short and sweet walk this was. The descent followed gorgeous, white slabs of rock that neatly formed large steps. All of it Mother Nature's doing. Along the way, though, man's presence is felt. At the bottom of the falls there are ruins of an old power plant. Used to power the mountain houses around Minnewaska, its time came when Central Hudson took over in the 1950s. On the way down pipes can be seen which lead from the plant.

Despite this, Sheldon Falls makes for a short-on-time destination. The Falls and the plant make it a unique experience. The descent only enhances it. Further exploration will be required next time.

Big Bad Stony Kill Falls

The awesome Stony Kill Falls

A nice side view of the Falls

More Mushrooms!

The classic first view of the Falls

The view from above the Falls

Right in front of Stony Kill Falls


The Stony Kill taking a plunge!


Stony Kill Falls, which is easily accessed from Kerhonkson, is located in the western zone of Minnewaska State Park. With a single drop of almost 90 feet, Stony Kill Falls is the highest in the Shawangunks. The road leading to the parking area is used for access to the aqueduct from the Rondout Resevoir.

At only about a half mile, this is one of the great easy walks in the Hudson Valley. Although, there is not a maintained trail. The walking at first is through open grounds. It looks as if there was a mine here possibly. There are numerous structures, including an asphalt area that looks as if it is a helicopter landing pad. The walk then heads into the woods and it feels like you're in the wilderness. Different herd paths and unmaintained trails can be found on both sides of the Stony Kill.

Most people stay on the right as that happens to be where the parking lot is located. The Falls come into view and wow! How beautiful it is! Recently, with all the rain the Falls have been flowing nicely and the area around the Falls are a lush green. Someday, I'm going to have to check out waterfalls in Hawaii.

A great spot to chill is right behind the Falls. I did this for a bit then decided I'd like to check out the view from above. Considering how wet it was, the paths going up were not too bad. The trickiest section had a miniature waterfall pouring down on it. At this point I got fairly wet.

The views from on top were great, but not like those on the bottom. But, I love getting a different perspective. And only at the top do you get a feeling of how high the waterfall really is. Also, what may be the best swimming hole can be found a top the Falls. It's exactly why so many venture up the sometimes tricky path.

Dogs know a great swim hole when they find one.


Lots of water on this day!

Waterfalls Part 4: Verkeerder Kill Falls

Verkeerder Kill Falls

Brook atop the falls

A mushroom for the Vpo Man

A tiny bit of Hardwoods along the way. Most of the hike is through huckleberry and blue berry bushes with dwarf pines.

Breakneck and Storm King in the distance.



I made the trek to Sam's Point right after work. It took a bit longer than expected and I was not pleased to find that I'd have to be out by 7pm. Then again, I was pleased to be getting some from Mother Nature.

This would be a pretty quick hike out to the Falls. While there I enjoyed watching the Falls running as the previous time it was barely a trickle. It's not one of the picturesque waterfalls, but it is set in a wonderful location. It's at a top of a ravine and drops down close to one hundred feet. Near sunset, the sun shines its light on Verkeerder Kill Falls.

Taurus From Cold Spring

West Point in foreground, with the Tappan Zee and NYC skyline in background

Newburgh Beacon Bridge with Mohonk and Slide in background

Constitution Island and Cold Spring

Mighty Storm King

Breakneck Ridge

Nature reclaiming lost territory

Remains of the Cornish Estate

I love the vines.


With the humidity gone and clean, crisp air replacing it, hiking season is here. Today the sun shined bright with crystal clear blue skies. Weather conditions perfect for my first jaunt up Taurus or Bull Hill. I like Taurus. Bull Hill just seems so lame.

I took the Washburn trail from the same parking lot that Little Stony Point is located. The Washburn does not let up. After walking around in circles at the former site of a mine, I continued the ascent with view points popping up every so often. I mostly walked up with a very friendly woman from Cold Spring, who gave me great information about the other trails in the area. Originally, I planned to do an out and back. She convinced me to go out by the Cornish Estate. It was welcome advice.

The views from Taurus were outstanding. The NYC skyline could be made out. Both the Tappan Zee and the Bear Mountain Bridge were in view. Bear Mountain and Anthony's Nose and surrounding mountains dominated. Another view point just off the summit took in all of Breakneck Ridge leading to Mt Beacon. The Gunks and Catskills could be made out in the distance. Most specifically, Mohonk, Castle Point and Sam's Point in the Gunks were in view along with Slide and the Central Catskills, as were the mountains of the Devil's Path.

From Taurus I descended down into the notch between Taurus and Breakneck. Walking through here in the almost all hardwoods forest led me to thinking that I'll have to come back in a month. The trail down led to a pretty brook that had old ruins, maybe an old mill. This trail eventually led to the Cornish Estate. Really, really cool looking old ruins. A lot of different vegetation grew attached to the structures in a way that would make any great artist jealous. I walked out from here on a trail gradually descending with a nice young woman from California. She asked me about places to go around here. Nothing, of course, here can compare to the Sierras, but I recommended that she really check out the Gunks. But, she did mentioned she really enjoyed this hike. Well, so did I!!!

Little Stony Point

Yes, it is!!!

Breakneck. Today it did look like the U.S.'s most popular trail

Mighty Storm King

If you are ever in the great Hudson River town of Cold Spring, walk a half mile north out of town. There is a parking lot on the left on Route 9D. A quick little walk will bring you to the river with magnificent views of Storm King and Breakneck. The reward to effort ratio is extremely high.

Seward Range 9/11 Memorial Hike

Moon rising over the Sewards

Misty morning along Coreys Road

Standard fare in the Dacks

Waterfall over a downed tree

Ampersand Mt and Ampersand Lake. I want to go there.

Whiteface in the distance and Lake Placid below it

Cliff near summit of Seward

Did this tree really grow upside down?

Sawtooth Mts in foreground with whiteface in background

On the Summit of Big Bad Seward

Long Lake in between Emmons and Donaldson

Seward from Donaldson

Seymour from Donaldson

Wright, Algonquin, Iroqouis, with Marcy all the way to the right

Donaldson

Long Lake. Lives up to its name, Don't you think?

Tupper Lake

Last Summit of the day!

Multi-color moss

The Santanonis

Wildberries

Foam building up in brook. I saw this at Tivoli Bays

The brook herd path followed

Marsh viewed from Coreys Road

Nice & Sexy



This is the almost annual 9/11 Memorial Hike. Officially I started in 2005 when I hiked up Redfield. When I came home that night I found my beloved cat Sherman lifeless in a box. So 9/11 has two meanings for me. I now hike in memory of those who suffered from the attacks and in memory of Sherman.

After years of procrastination, I thought it was time for the Sewards. These mountains have been rather elusive for me. Many Adirondack trips I’ve taken started as plans to go to the Sewards. Usually because I was too lazy to wake up early enough or too lazy to pack my camping gear, I bailed out and settled for something else. After Hurricane Irene swept through town, I started to plan for something in the Whites. Although most trails were open, there were road closings to contend with. I then read a trip report to Seymour post Hurricane Irene. It was settled. This was my chance.

It was almost 7pm by the time I made my way down Coreys Road. It was a pretty ride past multi-color marshes on a gravel road. After crossing Stony Brook (the bridge survived Hurricane Irene) I passed some hikers camped along the side of the road with a raging fire. I thought, “shit, is that legal?” Apparently there are numerous camping spots along the three miles of road before the trailhead. I found one I liked and then proceeded to pitch my tent. Although I was uncomfortable (most likely because my back was bothering me), I had a good night of sleep.

The parking lot was packed but mostly with horse trailers. There were three others signed in before me. Not as many hikers out as I thought, especially since these four (Seymour, Seward, Donaldson, Emmons) were one of the only accessible 46ers due to Irene. The approach trail to the herd path was typical: lots of mud, marshes, stream crossings. It was about 4.5 miles to the herd path to the Sewards. There was another herd path to Seymour about a half mile up. My Keen trail runners held up well. Would they hold up for the Sewards? It is kind of crazy, but they did get me up last year’s hike up Allen.

The herd path like most herd paths in the Adirondacks was easy to follow. Having said that, I did briefly go off course. Early on I missed the stream crossing. I turned around and spotted a cairn on the other side. Dummy. After that, the route finding was easy. Now, the climbing wasn’t. It was relentless. The ascent from the beginning of the herd path would be a little over two thousand. It’s never easy. It continually got steeper the higher and higher it went. Outstanding views started popping up to the north. Ampersand Mountain, the Sawtooths and Whiteface were in sight. After negotiating around a cliff, I had made it to the summit. After raising my arms up having ascended Seward, I took a nice break enjoying the satisfaction of getting here.

It was time to get moving again. Some of the toughest hiking was going down Seward toward Donaldson. The herd path winded its way down bypassing the many cliffs. There were also a couple small ascents. And of course, plenty of mud. But, the mighty Keens were holding up! I eventually made it to Donaldson.

The views were surprisingly great. An up close view of the Santanonis can be seen. Seward and Seymour dominated to the north and east. Directly east the high peaks, Algonquin, Iroqouis and Marcy were in view. I also met a woman from Canada on the summit. Donaldson was her 40th. Like myself, she did the Santanonis without doing Coushashagra. She came up the Caulkins brook herd path. This could easily take over an hour to an hour and a half off the hike. I tried taking it down, but lost the trail, so I did these mountains as an out and back.

There was plenty of mud just below the summit of Donaldson. Some of the worst of the day. But Emmons did not live up to its dreadfulness as others had mentioned. It was definitely muddy, but not nearly as bad as Donaldson or the trail from Coreys Road. After the trek from Donaldson, Emmons had finally been reached. The Sewards had finally been done. I shouted, pumping my arms in the air with such gratification I just wanted to lay down in the mud and stare straight at the clear blue sky.

Now, it was all about making my way out. I got a bit careless and lost my balance a few times and stepping into ankle high mud. This caused me to lose my shoe on one occasion. I met a mother and son on my way out. I started out with them in the morning. They hiked to Seymour. I thought, “how cool is that? Mom taking her son out to the Adirondacks’ 46ers.” He looked like he was maybe 12,13 and he had just completed number 22. That’s pretty cool. He’s done more than he is years. Maybe in a year or two I’ll have more 46ers than years.

Some stats:

Approximately 15 miles

Coreys Road to Sewards herd path: 2 hours
Herd path to Seward: 2 hours
Seward to Donaldson: 1 hour
Donaldson to Emmons: 45min
Emmons to Donaldson: 45min
Donaldson to Seward: 1 hour
Seward to Blue berry foot path: 1 ½ hours
Trail to Coreys: 2 hours