Mt Tremper

I met up with my friend Caroline for a light stroll in the Catskills.  We originally planned to do Wittenburg, but our progressively later and later meeting time didn't allow for such an ambitious hike.
Recently I've been to Mt Tremper, but both times were in the dark and fog during trail runs for Manitou's Revenge.  It's probably been ten years since I've been to the summit to actually enjoy the views.

It was almost 3pm by the time we got going.  We walked up quite briskly arriving to the summit in a little over an hour.  We had some lunch on the summit and mostly talked about our future plans career-wise.  We were greeted by one of the largest Catskill snakes I've seen.

Much of the past week's humidity cleared which made the views from the tower quite nice.  We were quite surprised at how low the Ashokan Resevoir's water level was.  Although quite dry recently, this Spring we have received an enormous amount of rain.  Tremper provided some wonderful views of Wittenburg and Slide and the rest of the Central Catskills.  A great day to be out and my first real hike since winter.

Wittenburg and Slide

The descent is much more enjoyable to walk than run.  Though Caroline may disagree.

Some pines along the way

Plattekill Falls

The Hudson Valley is so wet and lush with all the rain we have had.  Spring is here.

Worm Tracks

WHP in the clouds.  Beautiful early spring colors.

The water is flowing!

I went for a short run up to Windham High Peak after it poured.  The trail was washed out near the register.  The mud near the summit was the worst I've seen.  Just clouds from the view points near the top.

When I returned to the car to change, I noticed a lot of worms in the parking lot.  But I noticed their tracks first.  I took some photos.

Ferncliff Forest

After our recent snowfall, I decided to go for a short hike before I headed out for work.  I really love winter's beauty.

Double Top and Eagle

My friend Caysey would be finishing up his winter 3500 Club peaks on Double Top and Eagle.  This would be my first return to Double Top since I finished the winter peaks in 2004.  Caysey's least favorite peak is Eagle which he would finish on.  Instead of using the trail, we would bushwack from its col with Double Top.  With the recent snow, it was a beautiful day out with plenty of the white stuff.

Mornings With Chris Hiker (Four Mile Point Preserve)

After sleeping a rough night in the car due to the adverse weather, I decided to fill some time by checking out the river at Four Mile.

The quarter mile walk to the river would be strictly through slush.  It wasn't that cold, but it felt bitter.  The wet snow, wet cold ice soaked through the bones.

Mornings With Chris Hiker (Rhinecliff)

It's been fairly cold recently, so I figured I'd wander around by the river in Rhinecliff and check out the ice.  Next week it will be quite warm, so the ice will not be around for long.

Indian Head via Overlook Mt

Indian Head from Overlook

With a bunch of trail runs lined up for the spring, I figured to keep the momentum going from my weekend in the Dacks.  Another hiking goal of mine is to hike all the 3500 foot peaks before the leaves return (or at least before the Escarpment Trail run in July).

Since I have only approached Indian Head from Platte Clove, I decided to take it on from the south.  I wanted to include Echo Lake, but my late start ruined those plans.  The trail from the junction to Echo Lake to the junction for Indian Head would be knew for me.  According to the maps there is a view point that looks out over the Hudson.  We shall see, since roughly half the view points on these maps do not exist.

There is a view!  The Hudson River and the Tivoli Bays

It's been a little while since the mountains have received any snow and the highs would be in the low 20s.  I knew there would be plenty of snow, but I left the snow shoes in the car and wore microspikes the entire way.  The trail up Overlook was completely packed down and icy in many spots.  The trail to Echo Lake and beyond had only a few people on it, but I barely post-holed.  The microspikes were a great choice.

I reached the junction to Indian Head in great time.  I met a guy who tried barebooting his way up Indian Head, but turned around.  He decided to head towards the way I came.  I told him it'd only be about a half hour to a decent view point.  He thought that sounded like a pretty good idea.

The hike up Indian Head was a little slow going, but not too icy.  I enjoyed the views along the way.  The steep section to the hanging rock was quite tough, but I made it just fine.  I did decide against going down it though.  This added about an hour and a half to the hike, but a much safer alternative for my back.

Some section along the way with bare rock

Lot of ice on the trees

Some ice found its way down my back

Plattekill and Overlook

No doubt, it's Winter up here!

While hiking this, I realized how long it has been since I've actually been up and over the actual summit.  Typically, I just head up to the view points and head back down.  This was nice.  I also met a few people along the way.

I made it to Overlook just before dark and walked down without a headlamp.  Though not full, I was aided by the 60-70% illuminated moon.  A nice, tough hike and a wonderful day to be out.