Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center(Town of Grafton, Rensselaer County)

Headed up to the nearby Rensselaer Plateau after work this afternoon to do a little exploring at the Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center.  The elevation here mostly sits between 1500-1700 feet so I was not surprised that the temperature was only in the low 50's or to see the foliage moving along a bit more quickly than down in the valley. 

Took many of the various trails in the woods, including a stop at Newcomb Pond, where the red maples were really popping.

 

Closer to the north end of Newcomb Pond, on the Newcomb Pond Trail.

 

South of Dyken Pond Road, I checked out Dustin Swamp and its long, awkward boardwalk.

Dustin Pond.

Covered about 3.5 miles of trail and only saw one other person the whole time, a friendly mountain biker who stopped by to chat for a few while on a portion of the Long Trail.

Bearpen Mountain via George Lawrence Road(DEP/ Bearpen Mountain State Forest-Catskills)

Decided to repay a visit to 3600 foot Bearpen Mountain, a Catskill high peak, from a route I had never done before.  My approach today would be from the south, where DEP land comes down to meet George Lawrence Road at 2300 feet.  I easily parked my car off the road before the last driveway and headed into the woods, quickly picking up a good woods road, heading northeast through open woods and past abundant stone walls.

The temperature was cool but comfortable, in the mid to upper 50's, as I rapidly gained elevation on the old road.  The fall foliage appeared to be right on schedule, with some vivid colors beginning to pop in the higher elevations.  These maples were ablaze in a clearing near 3000 feet.

The woods road is well defined and easy to follow, as it climbs up the slopes of Bearpen's NW peak.

Around 3150 feet, the woods road peters out a bit, so I decided to bushwhack up from there, climbing directly up and then east over to an open ledge at 3350 feet with a killer view west over Buffalo Hollow.  As I took in the view, a passing rain shower opened up near Red Kill Ridge

After checking out the view, I continued my bushwhack up, soon hitting a myriad of herd/ game paths that eventually lead to the main snowmobile trail atop the ridge.  This trail is wide and quite muddy with many large puddles, but convenient for making time.

Just prior to the last steep push up to the summit, I passed the small pond that sits just off trail-and always seems so out of place for this elevation.

A final short but steep ascent brings you up to the summit ridge, with several small view points.  This is a nice view back towards the NW peak of Bearpen and the route just taken.  This was a fine spot to see the fall colors beginning to fill in.

West views towards Plattekill Ski Area.

From another ledge, no more than 30 yards away, there is a good view north-where more rain showers were coming down over the Schoharie Reservoir.

To the north/ northwest, Bearpen's long ridge eventually leads over to Roundtop-a Catskill hundred highest peak.

Beyond those views, the summit sits less than 2/10 of a mile away, off trail in a nondescript area of the woods, and is marked with a small rock cairn. 

Back on the snowmobile trail, a very small drop SE brings you to a fireplace in a clearing and an okay view to the north once again.  This view is somewhat limited with the leaves on the trees however.

One last view north can be enjoyed from the top of one of the old Ski Lifts down towards the valley of the Little West Kill.  Again, the leaves seriously impede the view this time of year.

After enjoying the views near the summit, I turned back, retracing my steps on the snowmobile trail towards Bearpen's Northwest Peak again when the skies opened up, raining hard for a good five minutes before clearing back out.  On my way back, I made one small pit stop near the very edge of DEP property on the west slopes below the NW summit to check out the old T-Bar from the old Roxbury Ski Center.

After a brief bushwhack down, I hit the woods road I had followed up once again and descended all the way back down to the car for a total of 5 miles RT and 1300 feet of ascent.  Felt good to be back in this area of the Catskills-one of my favorites-and one I hadn't done in quite some time.

Map Below. Red P=Parking    Blue X=Off Trail Ledge View      

Red X=Snowmobile Trail Views    Black X=Bearpen True Summit

 

 

Papscanee Island Nature Preserve(Town of Schodack, Rensselaer County)

Went for a short walk after work this afternoon from the south entrance to the Papscanee Island Nature Preserve on a blustery first full day of fall.  With temps only in the 50's and that brisk wind, it sure felt like fall too!  Followed the various trails at the preserve, enjoying the cooler weather.  Stopped briefly to check out the Hudson River-looking downstream.

Took parts of the white, red, yellow and blue trails, which meander along the woods just east of the Hudson.

Covered a little over 2 miles for the day.  Glad to finally be in autumn!!

Blackhead Mountain's South Ridge(Colgate Lake Wild Forest/ Windham Blackhead Range Wilderness-Catskills)

Headed south into the Catskills this morning to do a little exploring up the south slopes of Blackhead Mountain, starting down near Colgate Lake.  I had done this part trail/ part bushwhack hike several years ago and wanted to revisit an area of large grassy ledges around 3750 feet.  Parked in the second DEC parking lot on the left-past Colgate Lake(Elevation 2130 feet) and set out on the yellow marked trail heading north. The trail passes through expansive meadows with views of many of the surrounding peaks., such as this look south towards West Stoppel Point.  Unfortunately, overcast conditions as well as fog and low clouds were holding tight, so I was hoping that they would clear out as the day wore on.

I hiked the trail north for a little over half a mile before jumping into the woods to begin my bushwhack at a spot where the trail turns sharply east.  The woods were mostly pretty open and easy to negotiate, with only a couple of really steep areas to get up.

The steep areas were interspersed with flat, grassy areas as is typical with many Catskill peaks.  This was a large, grassy clearing at around 3200 feet.

The woods grew a bit tighter and snarled just below the ledges around 3700 feet, with a thick layer of fog hanging tight above.

As I made my way up to the grassy ledges, I found several outstanding vistas-even with the fog not budging much.  Here's a nice view SE towards Arizona Mountain, with the Hudson Valley just beyond to the left.

A view SW, with a corner of Colgate Lake visible through the mist.

From the grassy clearing, the view south takes in both Colgate Lake(right) and Lake Capra(left) and the long ridge of West Stoppel Point just above.  From this vantage point, I could really see some of the early fall colors popping out.

SE views once again, with Arizona to the left and Stoppel Point to the right, shrouded nearly completely in low clouds.

I hung out in the grassy clearing for nearly an hour, eating lunch and hoping for the clouds to clear out but to no avail.  Even with the thick cloud and fog, the views were still quite nice however!

On the descent, I chose a slightly different route down instead of staying right on the ridge and ended up hitting a rough old woods to help ease the way.

 

A quiet, peaceful descent through mostly open hardwoods finally brought me back down into the Colgate Lake Wild Forest, where, at around 2300 feet, I stumbled back onto the marked DEC trail, which I easily followed back out the car.

A wonderful day in the woods, although I wish the clouds had cleared just a bit.  Hiked about 5.4 miles RT, with over 1800 feet of total ascent.  Didn't see another person all day.

Map Below.  Red P=Parking   Red X=Grassy Ledges

Keleher Preserve(Town of New Scotland, Albany County)

Did a short hike at the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy's Keleher Preserve this morning up in the Albany County hilltowns.   It was another muggy day with storms set to move in a little later on, so I moved along quickly, enjoying complete solitude on the trails.

 

The preserve sits on the slopes of Wolf Hill, and provides seasonal views to the east from a couple of small clearings.  Unfortunately the murky conditions didn't allow for much of a view today.

While green is still the dominant color in the woods, small splashes of fall colors can be found here and there.

Hiked about 3.7 miles total with a couple hundred feet of elevation gain along the way.  Only saw one other person out on the trails this morning.
 

Hand Hollow State Forest(Town of New Lebanon, Columbia County)

Did a quick after work walk to Spiegelberg Lake in the Hand Hollow State Forest on a comfortable mid September afternoon.  Parked in the marked parking area along CR34 and hiked the unmarked but obvious trail south for just under 3/4 of a mile, gently climbing almost the whole way.

Didn't see another person as I covered about 1.5 miles out and back accompanied by a light breeze.

 

Albert Community Forest(Town of Nassau, Rensselaer County)

Did a short hike at the Albert Community Forest this afternoon just prior to some severe storms moving in under very humid conditions.  The overcast, moody conditions kept most folks away as I was the only person there for the entire hike.

Stone walls lace the trails inside the forest.

The small, babbling brook that runs through the woods was running well after last night's heavy rains as well.

Covered about 2 miles on a peaceful, quiet day.
 

Little Samuels Point & Samuels Point(Slide Mountain Wilderness-Catskills)

Headed south today to do a bushwhack hike to 2200 foot Little Samuels Point and 2885 foot Samuels Point in the heart of the Catskills.  Weather was almost perfect for this hike, which I had done in parts previously, but not altogether.  Parked in a small, unmarked parking area beside old stone pillars from a former estate along Route 28A(Elevation 760 feet) and headed west into the woods along the remains of an old road.

 

The old road peters out a short distance in, so I simply bushwhacked up through open hardwoods.  The woods were mostly quite pleasant, save for several large patches of thick mountain laurel.  Stumbled upon some kind of large, rocky clearing in a plateau like area.  These type of areas seem to be unique to the Catskills.

My ascent was pretty easy, until I hit a large tangle of mountain laurel around 1850 feet, followed by a steep climb up towards Little Samuel Point's ledges.

On the south slope of Little Samuels Point, around 2100 feet, is a very steep area of ledges.  While most of the views are slightly obscured, there is one large boulder that allows some very nice views from atop of.

From the large boulder looking southwest towards(L-R) Ashokan High Point's ridge, Little Rocky, and Hanover Mountain.

Further to the SW, Wittenburg's southeast ridge is in the foreground, while the ridge of Hanocer to Balsam Cap in just beyond and the valley of Moon Haw Road in between.

 

To the south, South Mountain and Ashokan High Point can be seen through the treetops.

A short ascent from the ledges, brought me up to the 2200 foot summit of Little Samuels Point, which sits in a nice, large clearing. While checking this area out, a large animal went crashing into the woods less than 20 yards away from me, but I didn't see what it was.  Startled me to say the least!

From the top of Little Samuels Point, I utilized a herd path that dropped down through a thick area of mountain laurel to the 2175 foot low spot between peaks.  From there, the summit of Samuels Point sits less than 4/10 of a mile away, but is over 700 feet up. It was a very steep climb up through several areas of cliff bands and was quite a workout.

Finally arriving at the 2885 foot summit of Samuels Point, which itself sits in a large clearing.

A short distance away from the summit is a fire pit and view point to the north from a steep area of ledges.

From the view spot, looking north towards the Devils Path peaks.  Although nice, this view is slightly better in the winter when the leaves are off the trees.

After enjoying the summit, I began my descent, being sure to explore the slopes a bit more in an effort to find some views.  I did manage to find this nice framed view of the Ashokan Reservoir just below the summit area.

Further down, I found some additional views on Little Samuels Points north slopes towards nearby Ticetonyk Mountain.

One more framed view down towards the school in Boiceville.

A steep, but pretty straightforward bushwhack down through open woods brought me all the way back to the car for a total of just over 5 miles RT and  nearly 2300 feet of total ascent.

Map Below.

P=Parking   Blue X=Little Samuels Point   Red X=Samuels Point