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Saturday, August 9, 2014

Wolf Hollow(Mohawk Valley)

Located in Glenville, 1.1 mile Wolf Hollow Road has been closed since Tropical Storm Irene due to stabilization issues but remains open to foot traffic.  There is plenty of history here, as the Gorge was formed around 450 million years ago from a significant fault and was also believed to be the site of the last great battle between the Mohawks and Algonkians in 1669.
  Followng Irene, the county did make a request to FEMA for funding to repair the road, but it was denied. 
Preservationists are making a push to protect this land and make it a scenic walkway.  A section of the Long Path does run through here now and is marked by aqua paint.
Small and often dried up Chaughtanoonda Creek runs along the road and is usually barely noticeable.  This tiny creek can really become an issue following torrential rains and during spring melt time, however. 
Steep hillsides eroding away.
After only 3 years of being closed, nature is beginning to take back over the road.

A fascinating study of nature and man made structures.
The deeper I walked into the hollow the less sun could be seen.  This made for a nice cool section of the road.
Looking up the road gives a great perspective of the steep hillsides of the gorge.
A small stream flows directly down the steep gorge.
There are sections of the hollow where cliffs rise impressively over 100 feet on each side of the road.
Chaughtanoonda Creek's dried up stream bed.
Steep sloping hills.
The road has been closed before due to stabilization issues
The bottom of Wolf Hollow Gorge.
A bend in the road near the bottom of the hollow.
This is a very nice, historical walk.
A tree barely hanging on by its roots.
In 1854, a small cave was dug in the Hollow in a mistaken search for coal.
After a nice 2.2 mile RT walk I arrived back at the closed gate at the top of the Hollow.

2 comments:

  1. Beautiful piece of road. During the snowstorm in October of 1987, I traveled up this road, and it was like driving through a tunnel as the tree's all bowed over the road. I've been wondering why the closure for a couple of years now, maybe this year I'll walk it. Thank you for sharing!

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  2. Yes, that storm still sticks out in my memory as the most devastating one I can recall. Must've been a very eerie seen walking along that road!

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