Unnamed Comstock Road Ledges(Lake George Wild Forest-Adirondacks)

Finally got a break from the rain today, so decided to take advantage of the rare dry day by doing a little off trail exploration some unnamed ledges in a remote part of the Lake George Wild Forest(west of the Tongue Range).  On a recent hike of Middle Mountain last month I had noticed some ledges west across the Fly Brook valley, which got me digging into maps and potential bushwhacks.  Not only did I locate the ledges that are near the Fly Brook Valley(off Wardsboro Road), but I spotted some more potential ledges near Comstock Road, which is a discontinued and unmaintained old road.  Resting squarely on state land, I just had to get out and see what these ledges had to offer. I parked at the north end of Padanaram Road, where it meets unmarked Comstock Road(Elevation 830 feet) and set out north on foot on the old road, which is actually passable for a distance for high clearance vehicles.

The old road makes for a very pleasant walk, as it passes Round Pond Brook, which more closely resembles a beaver pond than a brook for this section.

Just under a mile into the hike the old road ends at a beaver pond, complete with a fire pit.  From there a rough foot path continues on to an informal foot bridge crossing of Round Pond Brook(pictured below).

Once beyond the foot bridge, the remnants of the trail all but disappear, so I began my bushwhack there.  I headed generally NE, following a pretty drainage up into a draw.

The climbing up to this point had been minimal, but around 1200 feet, near the head of the drainage, the slopes become increasingly steep as I turned more due north.

Sadly, the woods have been ravaged by thousands of gypsy moths, leaving the woods eerily open, and void of many leaves.  There is almost an early spring like appearance to the woods, as they are very open and easily navigable.

As I circled up to the southern set of the ledges, around 1400 feet, I began to get decent views, with grassy, open cliff bands above.

The first of several very good view points takes in an open south/ southeast view, with Catamount Mountain in the distance.

In my opinion, the SW views from a couple of small, open ledges are the best of all.  This is the valley of Round Pond Brook and Comstock Road, which was my route up.

There are a series of successive, open ledges and cliff bands that circle around from the south to the west side of the summit area-all with great views.

West facing views ranging all the way towards Gore Mountain and its neighbors.

I really enjoyed exploring the wide open woods and ledges all along this little peak.  Once again proving that size isn't everything...this small peak has a lot to offer!

After tagging the nondescript wooded 1647 foot summit, I continued a bit NW where the slopes were a bit less steep and made for a much easier decent.

Once down low, I made my way back to the foot path, then road, which I followed back to the car.  A nice and easy 4.2 miles RT, with 900 feet of ascent.  A hidden little gem, far off the beaten path!

Map of area below, with Red circle being the small peak.  Red X=start of hike

Flag Rock(Monument Mountain Reservation-Berkshires)

Headed over to the southern Berkshires after work today to hike 1454 foot Flag Rock on yet another hot and humid afternoon.  Flag Rock is part of the Trustees of Reservations Monument Mountain Reservation in the town of Great Barrington, and is located in the NW corner of the 555 acre property.

It has been several years since my last visit here and I was quite surprised by the progress done on a small parking area, trail signage, and even trail blazes.  My previous visit, back in 2016, I had to park on the shoulder of the road in a grassy field before hiking the unmarked herd path to the top.  Today, there is an actual parking area on the east side of Route 183(just north of Ramsdell Road) with orange trail blazing heading into the woods, as well as a trail map.  

From the parking area(Elevation 738 feet)I headed east on the orange blazes of Willow's Trail, gaining elevation on a wide old woods road with just a bit of mud underfoot.

A short distance in, the trail turns sharply left(north), soon passing by a purple marked Crossover Trail on the right.  Continuing past the junction, the trail continues to makes its way north, gaining elevation slowly but surely.  Although the ascent is barely noticeable much of the time, the humidity had me perspiring quite a bit though.

The trail basically continues straight, going through a high pass, with steep, rocky slopes rising high above on both sides.  After about 1.8 miles, and one last steep push up, the trail arrives at the clearing atop Flag Rock.  From here, there are good views west directly over the community of Housatonic down below through the haze. Unfortunately, as evidenced in this photo, heavy rain was just about to move through.

The peak's namesake-Flag and Rock-with clearer skies further to the north just beyond Tom Ball Mountain's ridge.

On the southwest horizon, the southern Taconic ridgeline forms quite a formidable backdrop.

After a few moments up at the top, the front got a little too close for comfort, so I quickly headed back down, passing beneath the large cliff bands just below Flag Rock.  With the winds picking up and dark skies above, I moved swiftly down, hoping to beat the rain. 

Sadly, my attempts to beat the rain failed, as a torrential rainstorm caught up with me, drenching me in just a few minutes time.  I arrived back at the car soaked, but actually feeling a bit refreshed.  3.7 miles RT, with just under 800 feet of climbing for the day.

Shaker Mountain(Hancock Shaker Village/ Pittsfield State Forest-Berkshires)

Tried to take advantage of a small window of dry weather after work this afternoon by heading east just over the state line into Massachusetts to do a quick hike up 1838 foot Shaker Mountain.  Parked in the large pull off along Route 20 across the road from the Hancock Shaker Village and headed north past the gate on the North Family Trail(Elevation 1181 feet), quickly arriving at the shore of Shaker Reservoir, which was constructed all the way back in 1790.  Just beyond the treeline in the near distance is Shaker Mountain's ridge poking out.

Beyond the Reservoir, I continued north on the wide old road, with a refreshing breeze keeping it comfortable.  Green and white trail blazes guide the way in the shady forest.

Babbling Shaker Brook accompanies the trail for a distance, making for a peaceful, soothing soundtrack.

The brook comes crashing down in a couple of small, but pretty cascades at the site of the Lower Dam, which supplied water to the Hancock Village.  There are many retaining walls and stone remnants that still remain today.

The trail up Shaker Mountain is fairly easy, with nothing too steep, although you will definitely know you're climbing.  Just before arriving at the summit, you will encounter a large clearing that seems out of place.  This was the site of the Hancock Shaker Village's religious holy ground, where the Shaker's held services every spring and fall.

There are small white fences that mark each of the four corners in the clearing of the Holy Site.

The Holy Ground is not actually located at the summit, so you must continue on the trail a short distance further and then take a herd path over to an airplane beacon, which sits in a small clearing.  The true summit sits back in the woods a couple hundred feet from here, and is fully treed in.

With threatening skies above, I decided to head back down the way I came in an attempt to stay dry.  Once back down low I enjoyed checking out some of the old remnants, which are accompanied with interpretive signing. 

One last look at beautiful Shaker Brook before heading back to the car.

A nice and easy 3 miles RT with 800 feet of ascent, and luckily the rain held off(other than a very light drizzle a couple of times).  The iffy weather must've been enough to keep people away, as I didn't see another soul the entire hike.
 

Lisha Kill Preserve(Niskayuna, Schenectady County)

Did a short after dinner walk at the Nature Conservancy's Lisha Kill Preserve on a breezy, humid summer evening.  The muggy weather must've kept people away because there was only one other person out walking their dog while I was there.

The trails quickly drop down into a ravine, where the Fly Kill, a small tributary stream runs through.

The trails are very pleasant and well marked, passing through old growth forests, where some trees are over 200 years old.  I followed the red trail over to the yellow blazed "Frank's Trail", before returning to the red marked "Grattan Family Trail", which eventually drops down to the Lisha Kill.

The Lisha Kill was a lovely sight on this humid summer evening.  I did see someone with their dog splashing around in the water, enjoying the cool creek just upstream from this photo.

Took all three trails at the preserve for a total of about 2.1 miles, and worked up a decent sweat in the process.  Woods were a little buggy, but not too bad.
 

Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center(Grafton/ Berlin, Rensselaer County, NY)

Decided to get out and enjoy a beautiful-dare I say-perfect summer afternoon after work at the Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center up on the Rensselaer Plateau.  I was a bit tired from work, but had to take advantage of the nice weather so decided to do a little easy hiking on the quiet, wooded trails here.  Much to my delight, there was only one other car in the lot(Elevation 1650 feet) when arrived, so I first headed east a short distance down to the Shoreline Trail along Dyken Pond's west edge.

I followed the shoreline north, enjoying a few decent views across the open water.  There was a couple out in a kayak, presumably the other car in the parking lot.

After leaving the water's edge, I took various trails through the expansive woodlands north of Dyken Pond Road, passing through countless fern glades.

One of the newer additions to this land is the area around Newcomb Pond, which was added about five years ago and offers some nice views of this large wetland from an orange blazed trail.

After checking out most of the trails north of the road, I did a little exploring south of the road as well near Dustin Swamp.

One of the most well known features of the Dyken Pond Education Center is the long, winding footbridge across Dustin Swamp.  It's perfect in its imperfection.

Hiked nearly 4 miles total for the day on many of the trails at the Center, enjoying the low humidity and pleasant breeze.  Was a little surprised to not see anybody else out on the trails on such a gorgeous day.  The heat and humidity will be with us in no time, so was glad to get out and enjoy the weather while it's here.

Canaan Mountain Ledges(Litchfield County, Connecticut)

Headed east into the hills of Litchfield County in NW Connecticut to check out a series of open ledges along the steep west slopes of Canaan Mountain this afternoon.  Unfortunately, almost on cue, extreme heat and humidity greeted me on this first full day of summer, so-although steep-this would be a fairly short hike.  I parked in an unmarked parking area on the east side of Route 7 in the town of Canaan(Elevation 725 feet) and headed east through thick weeds until I hit the wood line and Connecticut State Land discs.

Once in the woods, I picked up an unmarked but obvious herd path.  Followed this herd path quite steeply up to a green blazed trail, which continues a very, very steep ascent.

Once on the ridge, after nearly 800 feet of climbing in about half a mile, the green trail(mixed with white blazes as well) finally levels out a bit and turns north.  Followed this trail until a yellow blazed trail comes in from the west, which I picked up and continued north along the ridge.

The yellow blazes hug the very steep western slopes of the mountain, soon emerging in a series of small ledges and clearings. 

With the leaves on the trees, the first couple of ledges offered just teasing views, until a nice, open ledge finally provides a wide open vista.  Dripping in sweat, I stopped to enjoy this nice view to the SW into the sweltering, soupy air mass.

Just a very short distance north of the first set of ledges is a second, much broader area of open rock, at just over 1500 feet in elevation, where the views are outstanding.  These nearly 180 degree views stretch from the south/ SW all the way to the north with Route 7 far, far below.

My favorite view of the day is to the NW from these wide open rock ledges.  This view takes in the peaks of the Appalachian Trail(left to right on the horizon) Bear, Race and Everett.

After enjoying the spectacular views, I began heading back on the yellow trail. Instead of returning the way I had come, however, I decided to follow the yellow blazes on an even steeper descent than my route up. 

This route ended up being quite fun and even a bit challenging, with two ladders and a huge boulder squeeze to get through!  Rope was found in a couple of steeper spots as well.

Once off the steepest part of the descent, I picked up a red blazed trail which heads south at the foot of the serious cliffs I had just come down.  If you look carefully, you may be able to pick out one of the ladders near the center of the photo.

Followed the red trail all the way back down to the unmarked herd path which all but disappears at the bottom, in thick brush.  Pushing through the tick infested weeds, I stumbled upon some kind of old foundation which happened to be only a few yards away from the parking area.

Got back to the car, literally drenched in sweat.  The only saving grace today, was a gusty south wind that at least helped me from getting too hot.  About 3.5 miles total and nearly 1000 feet of ascent and had the woods to myself.