Gaskell Family Forest(Town of Nassau, Rensselaer County)

Unnamed on most topographic maps, Snake Mountain is actually a pair of locally well known hills sitting directly above the Kinderhook Creek, and just outside of the village of East Nassau in rural Rensselaer County.  Until recently, this area sat in private hands and was unavailable for public access, but just this year, that all changed.  Along with some help from Scenic Hudson, local conservation group Hudson Taconic Lands purchased Snake Mountain and the land surrounding it, totaling well over 150 acres that will be open to the public as the Gaskell Family Forest.  Thankfully for me, this property sits almost in my backyard, less than five minutes from my house and I was graciously granted permission to explore this new area by Jim Bonesteel, the Executive Director of Hudson Taconic Lands.  Thank you to Jim for this amazing opportunity.

I set aside a couple of hours this past weekend and headed the short distance down the road to check things out under warm but comfortable conditions.  To get started I parked at a gated entrance just off Route 66, less than a mile south of the village of East Nassau and set out west, following a wide woods road.  Elevation to start was 625 feet.

Just a few yards past the gate, the woods road passes through a large power line clearing and then a small, almost unnoticeable pond on the right.

The woods road is in remarkable condition and makes for very pleasant walking.  Although only about 100 yards away from Route 66 at this point,  these woods feel a world away.

While walking the road, I subtly noticed some large objects tucked into the woods just a few yards away.  As I got closer, the objects grew in size, as did my interest.  What I found were gigantic, stone ruins which are scattered about in these woods and quite impressive.

After speaking with a couple of HTL members it seems that most of these ruins date back to an old Mining operation from about 100 years ago.  Attached is a photo of the old Rensselaer Stone Works, from the early 20th century.   Notice how clear cut and wide open the woods were back then.

As an interesting side note, Lane Construction, who owned the property at the time, attempted to mine the property once again in the 1990's, but the people of East Nassau banded together and fought against it, preventing it from coming to fruition.
The road slowly climbs up into a saddle between the two summits, where I turned south towards the higher, true summit.  As I made my way south, I passed by a dramatic, stunning area of cliffs, which will eventually be open to rock climbers as access is improved.

I utilized another woods road and herd path to access the top of the cliffs, with a precipitous drop below.

From the cliff tops, there are nice views west towards the neighboring unnamed ridge line over Kinderhook Creek as well as Curtis Mountain beyond.

Slightly further along the cliff tops, I caught this glimpse towards Snake Mountain's north summit.  While these views were nice, I would venture a guess that they would improve vastly with the leaves off the trees.

Just above the cliffs, I continued climbing up towards the summit through a beautiful mixed forest.

The true 900 foot high point on Snake Mountain sits in a very pleasant, grassy clearing.

Rows and rows of sturdy old stone walls dot the summit ridge.

After enjoying the summit area, I followed woods roads back down the mountain, eventually making my way west, off trail, all the way down to the Kinderhook Creek.  This part of the Kinderhook, not far from the Kinderhook Creek Preserve on the opposite side of the water, has a very rugged and remote feel.  

I followed the edge of the creek for a little ways, enjoying the serenity, before a steep bushwhack east brought me up towards Snake Mountain's north summit.  I soon picked up another good woods road, which brought me straight up to the top.  The north summit, while slightly lower than its southern neighbor, is quite stunning and even more beautiful to me.

From a ledge off the summit, a spectacular view unfolds to the southeast.  

A great view towards Snake Mountain's true summit to the south.

East views towards Bald Hill(left) and Roberts Hill(right).  Just below, to the left, sits the Village of East Nassau, which will be much more visible once the trees shed their leaves.

From the ledge views, a nice and easy descent and road walk brought me back down to the car.  Covered about 2.7 miles total with over 600 feet of combined ascent for the day.  What an absolutely beautiful area!  

A special thank you to Jim Bonesteel, William Lanford, and Annie Jacobs.  

Map Below.    Red P=Parking.     Blue Star=Summit.       Red Asterisk=Vista

The Narrows/ Burden Pond Preserve(City of Troy, Rensselaer County)

My toddler has been asking to get out for a "hike" the last few days, so this morning we finally had a chance for a nice easy walk in Troy on a beautiful summer day.  Our first stop was along the Narrows Trail off of Mill Street, where my boy was thrilled to be out enjoying the views.

After a short walk along the Narrows Trail, we then drove the short distance uphill to Burden Pond Preserve and set out.

Took a leisurely stroll around to the north side of the pond and followed the trails east along the Wynants Kill.  Although you are in Troy, these woods provide a shocking sense of peace and solitude.

We made a quick pit stop first at Lower Burden Falls.

Further along, our next stop was Upper Burden Falls.

If anyone reading this has a toddler, then they know how difficult it can be to keep their focus for an entire hike.  To break it up on the return we took a small respite and dipped our feet in the Wynants Kill.

Had a wonderful time exploring the woods with my son, covering about 2 miles total with a couple of hundred feet of ups and downs along the way.  Didn't see another person our entire time on the trail.

Off Trail Ledges near Giant's Washbowl & The Dipper(Giant Mountain Wilderness-Adirondacks)

Did some exploring both on trail and off trail along the lower slopes of Giant Mountain in the Adirondack High Peaks on a beautiful spring morning.  Parked along Route 73 and headed up the blue blazed Ridge Trail, passing several other groups also heading up the mountain along the way.

It felt good getting some climbing in, and I made pretty good time rising up to Giants Washbowl.

I skirted the south side of the Washbowl, taking in one last view back east across the water before I exited the trail and began my bushwhack.

The bushwhack was pretty easy, and I even picked up a rough herd path as I made my way over to a series of ledges directly over Route 73 and Chapel Pond below.

Open rock ledges and great views.

Spectacular views out over Route 73 to the southeast, with Round Mountain's rocky lower slopes to the right.

Views back up NE towards the next ridgline, and Rocky Peak Ridge beyond.

Circling around the open ledges, I was presented with wonderful vistas in several different directions.  The view west takes in (left to right)the lower slopes of Noonmark Mountain, the Great Range and the Ausable  Club deep in the valley.

Noonmark left and the Great Range right.  Hard to beat views like this.

After enjoying the off trail views, I headed back down to the Washbowl and the marked trail.  I was only on the trail for a few moments though, as I headed back into the woods, bushwhacking my way east towards the Dipper, a small body of water that sits in a bowl between ridges on the mountain.  The woods were quite easy to navigate and filled with fern glades until I got down near the Dipper.  Once there it got a bit gnarly in spots.

Views towards Rocky Peak Ridge across the Dipper.

West views across the Dipper.

One last view of the Dipper, before I headed down towards the nearby rushing water of Beebe Brook.

I followed Beebe Brook all the way back down off the mountain, stopping to check out several of the cascades along the way.  I knew there are a couple of larger waterfalls on the brook, but it was pretty rough getting down to them, so I took a pass on them today.

Further down the ridge, I actually picked up some on again, off again herd paths and easily made my way all the way back down towards the trail and my waiting car.  A fun area to explore for sure, with numerous opportunities for adventure.  I covered about 4 miles total, with 1000 feet of ascent.  

Map below.  Blue P=Parking      Blue star=Dipper.   Ledges labeled in red

Peaked Hill(Hammond Pond Wild Forest-Adirondacks)

Doing a little catching up on previous hikes I had done earlier this spring in the Adirondacks.  My first stop was a short bushwhack hike to 1890 foot Peaked Hill, a small peak in the Hammond Pond Wild Forest.  Peaked Hill can be reached via a trail on the south side of the mountain, but the trail itself is only accessible from the north shore of Paradox Lake.  It is also possible to reach the summit by bushwhacking up the north slopes of the mountain from a small area of state land on Johnson Pond Road, which would be my route today.  Parked on the shoulder of the road, elevation 1250 feet, and set out with bugs swarming me almost immediately, meaning I'd need to throw on the bug net.

From the car, I crossed the road and began climbing immediately through open woods.

The ascent was straightforward and steep, but never anything too crazy.  A last push up over a band of ledges brought me to the summit, which sits in a small clearing.

Once atop the hill, I found my way over to the trail, which drops down to a spectacular area of rock ledges.  Southwest views stretching all the way to Schroon Lake, with Crane, Eleventh, and Gore Mountains on the distant horizon.

West views towards Hoffman and Blue Ridge Mountain's across the Northway.

South views towards Pharaoh Mountain, with Paradox Lake below.

From the bottom of the ledges looking up.

One more zoom view towards Paradox Lake and Pharaoh Mountain.

I retraced my steps back up the hill on the trail, then an easy bushwhack brought me back down to my car.  Covered just over 1 mile total, with over 700 feet of climbing.  An easy, short off trail adventure.

Map below.   P=Parking.   Blue Dot=Views

Town of Sand Lake Walking Trail(Town of Sand Lake, Rensselaer County)

Did a short walk along the Sand Lake Walking Trail early this morning before the heat really kicked in.  The trails are fairly uneventful, but the red trail, which hugs the Wynantskill was quite wet and overgrown in spots.  Also...tick infested.

Covered about 8/10 of a mile on a hot, spring day.  

Hayes Mountain(Hoffman Notch Wilderness Area-Adirondacks)

It's been a long time since I've had an opportunity to get out hiking, but I finally found some time and just had to take advantage. Did a little exploring in the Hoffman Notch Wilderness in the heart of the Adirondacks on a beautiful, cool spring day and boy did it feel good to get out there.  My goal was to hike to Bailey Pond via a marked trail, and then to bushwhack up to 2736 foot Hayes Mountain and an extensive area of cliffs on its SE slopes.  

I parked at the end of Loch Muller Road, at the southern trailhead for Hoffman Notch(Elevation 1650 feet), and headed into the woods via the marked trail, quickly turning left onto the blue blazed Bailey Pond trail.

The trail is well marked and easy to follow as it heads NW in the footprint of an old town road, arriving at a crossing of the West Branch of Trout Brook in just over 8/10 of a mile.

The trail bends sharply left at the brook, and within moments arrives at the NE shore of Bailey Pond, with a great view. of Hayes Mountain across the water.

The marked trail ends at the pond, but I continued west along the marshy southeast end of Bailey Pond, soaking in more views.

At the southwest shoreline of the pond, the view northeast encompasses(left to right) Hayes Mtn, a portion of Bailey Hill and Washburn Ridge 

From the south end of Bailey Pond, Hayes Mountain looms directly above to the west but is ringed with sheer cliffs in that area so I decided to continue my bushwhack further south into a deep draw between peaks, soon arriving at beaver meadow.

At the beaver pond, I turned west, climbing steeply up towards the mountain through open hardwoods.

I carefully weaved my way up the steep slopes, contouring my way over towards the extensive cliffs.  My first up close views of the cliffs were quite impressive.

From a small perch at the edge of the cliffs, I enjoyed the first of many fine view points.  This view takes in the cliffs of Hayes, as well as a sliver of Bailey Pond and sprawling Texas Ridge beyond.

From an open ledge, SE views across the deep draw where I had began my ascent, with the south end of Cobble Hill(left) and Bigsby Hill(right)

From the same ledge, looking more southerly towards the peaks around Irishtown.

As I continued my ascent, I clung to the edge of the cliffs, taking in the spectacular views along the way.  The slopes of neighboring Cobble Hill are visible here with Texas Ridge in the nearby distance beyond.

After enjoying the exhilarating climb up along the cliffs, I headed back into the woods, making my way steeply up through increasing spruce stands towards the summit.

The summit cone of Hayes is a mix of spruce and beech with the 2736 foot true summit being a bit unspectacular.

After hitting the top of the mountain, I bushwhacked north, making my way steadily down towards Marion Pond.  After a little over 3/4 of a mile, I arrived at the SW shore of Marion Pond.  

Marion Pond is a high elevation pond(2300 feet) which can be only be reached by bushwhacking or a rough herd path, so it doesn't see the amount of hikers that many other ponds may see, although it does have a couple of decent informal campsites and row boats stashed nearby.

From Marion Pond I followed the rough herd path, which is flagged, but seems to meander incoherently north and east.  I followed it for a while, before simply bushwhacking my way back down towards Bailey Pond.

Once back down to Bailey Pond, it was an easy hike out on the marked DEC trail to my car.  

Covered about 7 miles total, with a good portion of the day being off trail.  Elevation gain was a touch over 1200 feet.

Map below.  Red P=Parking      Red *-Hayes Mountain summit