Hello Hikers!
Monday May 24
Report by shesse. Photos by Tiger/shesse
Farm road walk — NW of Perry City, Schuyler County
Another wondferful morning out in farm country — mid 60s, birds twittering in the fields, sweet smell of spring blossoms in the air, a pale blue sky streaked with jet trails ….
We walked on Bower Road in the last stretch before it dead-ended into the Hector Forest
This is where the terrain rises to a high point between the two lakes. The horizon in the background here is on the other side of Cayuga Lake, miles to the east.
One country touch that’s not so great — the roads in this area are made of an unusually dry dirt and they can get very dusty. Luckily there’s almost no traffic
I’ve loved this walk for years, but I’m sorry to say I’ve now lost interest, because six large upscale houses have been built along the first part of the walk since we were here last. They’re widely spaced out and pleasant enough to look at, but they’ve completely destroyed the rural feelling for me. The scenery now seems fake.
There are still many great touches, of course
But it’s just not the same.
Official head count: three walkers
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Wed May 26
Hike report by Jim. Photos by Tiger
Monkey Run Natural Area, north side of Fall Creek at Hanshaw Road
12 hikers and 1 dog met at the parking area for the Monkey Run Natural Area on Hanshaw Rd.
A 13th hiker arrived later and met the group on the trail in the area of the stairs that lead from stream level to the higher trails that skirt the edge of the cliffs above the streambed.
A few members of the group broke away early and made their ways back to their cars, so the final numbers of the group ending the hike was about half of those who had started the hike.
Hikers were not alone in the area; multiple other people were leaving and arriving throughout our time in the area.
Temperatures were warm but not unbearable, and we avoided the heavy rain that struck the area later in the day.
Susan had an alternate route to get the group to the “beach” area that we always visit on this particular hike.
Other than the alternate route to the “beach”, the route taken by the hikers was our normal one for this hike, although the exact trail route is difficult to actually describe. The group tried to stay under cover of the trees and out of the fields as much as possible due to the bright sunlight on hike day. The plant life undergrowth on the forest floor was well advanced but not an impediment to the hike.
There were a very few areas the group crossed that had mud, and the water levels at stream crossings were low enough that the few water crossings were not too much of an impediment to the hike.
All things considered it was a good morning for a hike….
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Sat May 29
Hike report by Jim.
Six Mile Creek, south side trails
11 Ithaca Hikers and 2 dogs met on Crescent Place in the city of Ithaca for a hike of the trail network around the South Hill Rec Way.
While it had been raining most of the previous evening, the start of the hike found the weather cleared up, if still overcast.
Hikers walked down the South Hill Rec Way to the turn onto the blue blazed trail that runs through the woods to the area of Second Dam and beyond.
Despite the rain the previous day the trail was in good condition. The various water crossings along the trail had a good amount of water flowing downstream, but none so much that it made the crossing difficult.
Temperatures were cool enough that the hike was enjoyable.
The group had a chance to see a little of the area wildlife, including a deer and wild turkey, over the course of the hike.
Reaching the hill overlooking Second Dam the group followed the sharp right turn that follows the ridgeline where it returns to the Rec Way
Arriving at the Rec Way most of the groups members opted to continue walking to the East for a few minutes to round out the hike time. The Rec Way was being well-used, so there were several other walkers and joggers on the Rec Way at the same time.
Upon returning to the junction with the blue blazed trail the group opted to remain on the Rec Way and walk back to Crescent Place.
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Sun May 30
Hike report by Leigh Ann. Photos by Cian
Connecticut Hill Cemetery area
Hi, everyone.
Eleven hikers and three dogs met to hike this afternoon on Connecticut Hill. The gathering time was 1:15 to avoid turkey hunters. Some of us arrived early to hike from the main parking spot by Connecticut Hill Cemetery, which is at the western junction of Boylan and Connecticut Hill Road. Others shuttled to the trailhead from the Cemetery.
This day never warmed up above the mid-50s, and it remained overcast and slightly drizzly. After several days of soaking rain, this was a hike of moss and ferns, black-wet trees, and pops of chartreuse foliage in rooms within the forest. Most of our route was over cushiony forest floor.
This was a fun hike that only the leaders, Nancy Lorr and Randy Olson, had seen before. I wish I could describe the route in detail, but that’s something Nancy L. can do. We headed south from the western junction of Boylan and Connecticut Hill Road, until we turned west on another road, which I believe is also named Connecticut Hill Road. At the bottom of the hill on that new road, we took off southwesterly into the woods. We visited a lovely pond that had enormous, purple lady slippers still blooming by the shore. Then we continued southwesterly down and across several healthy streams and turned back east and uphill toward the road we came in on, using the FLT for a bit of the way.
Near the end of the hike, we turned off a trail to look for a very small cemetery that maybe 100 people have seen in the last 10 years. There are only eight headstones, and they are very old, from just one family. One is for Mary, wife of Jedediah Green, who died at age 79 on March 31, 1842. She would have remembered the beginning of the United States. Jedediah is buried nearby, near 14-year-old daughter and other family members. The day could not have been better for finding this cemetery. It is not something to explore on a bright, shiny day.
Thank you, Nancy and Randy, for leading this hike!
Best wishes,
Leigh Ann
You can see Cian’s complete photo album here.