Wolf Creek Falls Preserve

Near record warmth was in the forecast for today and with temps climbing into the low 50's by the time I was out of work, I wanted to head out and enjoy some this unseasonably warm weather.  With rainfall overnight combining with snowmelt I knew the local creeks and streams would be running high, and therefore I decided to head out to western Albany County and visit Wolf Creek Falls Preserve.  The preserve, located just past the Guilderland town line in the town of Knox is owned by the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy and  is 145 acres in size.  There are over 3 miles of trails, mostly through woods, and also along the banks of Wolf Creek where numerous small waterfalls can be seen.  The snow, which had nearly all completely melted away at home, was still very deep in the hilltowns. In a strange turn of events the temperature, which was close to 60 degrees in Nassau, was only in the upper 30's here.  I decided to break the snowshoes out for the first time this year.  Unfortunately, the snow was deep and extremely heavy, due to the water content of the snow, making walking challenging.

 There are many stone walls throughout the preserve, dating back to the mid 19th century when the land was cleared and the Van Auken family built the stone walls to contain sheep, whose wool was sent to the Huyck Felt Mill in Rensselaerville.

 A tributary of Wolf Creek running high through the wintry woods.

 The Long Path, a 408 mile trail that runs from Fort Lee, NJ to the Adirondacks runs through these woods.

 There are many small cascades in this preserve, especially after heavy rains and during snowmelt times.

Picturesque falls.

 The trail crosses Wolf Creek in this area, which is nearly always low during the warmer months, but there would be no crossing today, with waters running swift and high.

 A small stone tower built along the red trail.

 Deep in the woods, a wooden bench sits alone, a perfect place to soak in the solitude of your surroundings.

I hiked about one mile total, which under normal circumstances wouldn't seem like much, but today, with the heavy wet cement like snow I was walking through, it was more than enough.