Bessie's Woods(Town of Sand Lake, Rensselaer County)

Visited the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance's newest preserve this afternoon, Bessie's Woods, located near the hamlet of Taborton high up in the Rensselaer County hills.  Off and on rain all morning finally let up, so I headed out to explore these woods in search of early fall colors.

I took all of the perimeter trails at the preserve, which range in elevation between 1300 and 1600 feet, passing through dark hemlocks and open hardwoods.

Cruising through a sea of golden ferns near the site of an old homestead.

Fall foliage is starting to take hold at these higher elevations.

The recent wet weather has left some very muddy trails, such as this section along an old woods road.

Covered about 2 miles at this quiet little preserve.  Nothing too flashy or memorable-but a nice escape into the woods.

On my drive home, the Rensselaer Plateau's fall foliage was alive and well, with vibrant colors around every turn.

Schor Conservation Area(Town of Canaan, Columbia County)

Had a small window of free time so took advantage of a beautiful fall like day by doing a quick hike of the Columbia Land Conservancy's Schor Conservation Area.  Shocked to have the place to myself for this quiet stroll along Joe's Pond and into the woods.

Paid a brief visit up to the summit viewpoint, where the Albany skyline and the distant Helderbergs can be seen on the distant horizon to the west.

A nice and easy 2.5 miles, with just the slightest tinge of fall colors beginning to creep in.

Moose Mountain Pond, Bald Pate, Owl Pate(Hammond Pond Wild Forest-Adirondacks)

Bald Pate and Owl Pate are two untrailed peaks that lie in the heart of the Hammond Pond Wild Forest and have been on my radar for quite some time now.  Tuesday presented me a rare chance recently for a full day of hiking, and with dry weather in the forecast I took advantage and headed out.  This hike would be over 10 miles total, with 60 percent being trailed and the rest being bushwhack.  I parked at the trailhead for Moose Mountain Pond off of Ensign Pond Road(Elevation 950 feet) in North Hudson and was the only car there at the break of dawn. To reach the peaks, I'd have to follow the blue blazed trail south/ then southeast to the pond for over 3 miles before crossing it's outlet and beginning a steep bushwhack up. 

The trail is fairly uneventful, with minimal elevation gained and lost along the way.  I made good time under humid, cloudy conditions stopping briefly to check out a nice small waterfall on Berrymill Brook along the way.

A bit further along is a nice spot to stop and soak in the view south across the Berrymill Pond from its outlet.

After 3.2 miles of pretty easy hiking on the trail, I arrived at the Lean To on Moose Mountain Pond.  The Lean To is located in the northeast corner of the pond and sits back in the woods a bit, but a short walk brings you down to the water's edge and a great view of my intended targets-Bald Pate(L) and Owl Pate(R), both unfortunately obscured with low clouds.  A lone loon welcomed my arrival and I sat in silence for a few minutes, soaking in the serenity.

From the Lean To, I backtracked to the outlet of Moose Mountain Pond, where an easy rock hop got me across and into the woods at the base of Bald Pate.  From here it would be about 900 feet of climbing in less than 3/4 of a mile. As I made my way through the open woods, I was shocked to stumble across pink flagging, which was a bit sporadic down low, but did eventually lead all the way up the mountain.

I chose not to follow the pink flagging, instead making my own tracks up the very steep slopes, working up a good sweat under the sticky conditions.

After hitting the thickly wooded 2148 foot summit of Bald Pate, I continued on to the long south and west facing ledges of the peak, finding a wall of clouds where open views should be.

I explored the open ledges, patiently hoping for the clouds to break and offer some views.  My perseverance paid off(sort of) when clouds broke just long enough to provide a decent view NW towards the valley I had just traveled below.

Taking in the view of a hogback on Owl Pate(my next destination) where thick clouds refused to budge.

After carefully descending off of Bald Pate, I made my way up the hogback on Owl Pate and then onto the mountain itself, where it was a bit thicker than I expected, as well as being ringed with steep cliff bands.  Unfortunately somewhere along the way, my Canon camera-which has taken years of abuse-stopped working properly and I was forced to use my cell phone for photos the remainder of the trip.  This is the wooded 2448 foot summit of Owl Pate, sitting unassumingly in a thick area of spruce and deadfall.

Just south of the summit is a broad area of ledges and views, stretching all the way down to Pharaoh Mountain(center high point) and a small stretch of Schroon Lake to the right.

Numerous viewing opportunities from a series of small ledges.

View due south out over Owl Pate Pond.

SE view into the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness from a wide open area of ledges.

After enjoying the awesome views, I had to choose a route down, deciding to basically head right down the north slope seeking the path of least resistance. It was a slow go on the very steep descent, losing nearly 1200 feet in 8/10 of a mile.  Eventually I made my way back down to Moose Mountain Pond's outlet, which I easily crossed and then followed the marked trail back out.  Once back on the trail, I took a moment to revisit Berrymill Pond's outlet-this time bathed in sunshine under blue skies-much different from my morning view.

Arrived back at the car, feeling accomplished but tired, covering 10.2 miles with 1800 feet of total ascent.  Amazingly didn't see another soul the entire day.

Map is below.  Red P=Parking   Red X's=summits