Report to Hikers: week of Dec 17-Dec 23

Hello Hikers!

Wed Dec 19

Diane’s Crossing to Hill Road and beyond on the FLT, Danby SF

We finally had a sunny morning for a change, and Norm, who’s concerned about sun exposure, decided to try out a nose protector he created from cardboard. His verdict: It worked well

Official head count: 13H, one D

More photos:

Jack V

Sat Dec 22

Danby SF: Loop trail from Bald Hill Road to Diane’s Crossing and back

We’ve been very lucky this fall and gotten an unusually large number of mornings with fresh snow draped beautifully over the woods — this one was the best so far — in fact, it was probably the best winter-wonderland scenery we’ve had in some years

Normally I load the hike photos onto the web site in the sequence they were taken, so the hike report becomes a chronological narrative of the walk — this time I’m just putting the most dramatic scenes first, so you can get a quick idea how apectacular it was

This is Michigan Creek looking south from the little footbridge at Diane’s Crossing ….

…. everyone was bowled over by the spectacular scene

This part of Danby SF is a perfect setting for a very clingy snow because of the mix of evergreens, mature deciduous trees with lots of small branches, and thick-growing bushes. The situation was even more special because the snow wasn’t deep, so it wasn’t a struggle to walk, just a little bit slippery

Even the half-mile stretch of road walk looked great — as promised, no traffic ….

Bald Hill Road as we headed south toward the entrance to Dove’s Trail

I got this shot from the rear — that’s the official hike photographer Tiger out front — great forest scenery

At the end of the hike, a few hundred feet from the cars …. typically the draped snow would have started to fall off the branches by this point but it really lasted this time.

Official head count: 17H, two D

Sun Dec 23

Lindsay Parsons Preserve, West Danby

Official head count: 22H, nine D