Griffin Hill(Catskills)

After digging out and freezing our tails off the last couple of days, it sure felt good to get out and do some exploring in the beautiful western Catskills today.  Our first stop was in the village of Hobart, where NYC DEP land along River Street provides access to 2026 foot Griffin Hill.  The pastoral, wintry view from our starting point, as we donned our snowshoes and headed out. Starting elevation was 1600 feet.

The bright morning sun did little to warm things up with temperatures south of zero to start the day.

Skirting the banks of mostly frozen Town Brook. 

The steep slopes leading towards Griffin hill's summit area.  Much of this peak has been cleared and appears to have been former pastureland.

The ascent was literally wide open, and pretty easy going.  Thank god there was little to no wind on this day.

From the high, open meadows on the north slopes of Griffin Hill, we enjoyed a spectacular view of Churchill Mountain and its surrounding farmland.

 

Ice clung to each branch, taking on the appearance of a million crystals, as we made our way up Griffin Hill.

As we gained elevation, the views really began to open up, sprawling to the north.  Mount Bob hovers directly over Hobart, with Mine Hill in the distance and Churchill to the right.

An idyllic view NE over the village of Hobart.

Near the summit, we entered an open hardwood forest.

Easy going through deep snow.

 NYC DEP land provides the hiker with access up to 1/10 of a mile shy of the summit

Although barely over 2000 feet, Griffin Hill offers up a lot of bang for the buck, with great north facing views.

A view north towards Mount Bob.

An easy descent brought us back down the peak, where we crossed the Catskill Scenic Trail(which acts as a snowmobile trail in the winter),

A nice, easy 1.6 mile RT off trail gem.  Elevation gain is a bit over 400 feet.