Hello Hikers!
All photos are by Tiger
Wed May 30
Black Diamond Trail south from Taughannock Falls SP for one hour
I figured this would be a good walk for a hot morning — it was close to 80 at the meet-up — it’s flat and somewhat shady — but it verged on being uncomfortable
I’ve taken to wearing a bike helmet whenever I go out since I fell down three weeks ago — I think I fell because I tripped but I’m not sure, since I have a genetic brain disorder that has damaged my balance and it’s possible that could have caused me to fall — I’ll wear the helmet for a while until I can see how things are going — it’s pretty uncomfortable in the sun …. — Katharine was advising me on how to walk more economically with hiking poles — you can see she has nice form
Pretty walk — but too hot!!
Official head count: 21H, three D
More photos:
Sat June 2
Hammond Hill SF — ski trails
Official head count: 20H, six D
Sun June 3
Satterly Hill, Burdett
I really like trying out new hikes we’ve never done before — even if they turn out to be disappointing — I like the novelty, the little bit of suspense about what’s coming next, the possibility the hike will be especially good — it’s worth the downside risk that it’ll be a dud — and if we don’t make the effort we’ll never be able to broaden our list of good hikes.
This wasn’t actually a new hike for us, since we’ve been to the destination a number of times, but it was an entirely new approach. It didn’t work out like I hoped. The start of the hike was fabulous, as you can see from the photos. But as the group walked north they came to an area of trees that blocked the great views of Seneca Lake, and a couple of suburban-type homes, and they decided to turn around rather than keep going. My plan had been to check out an area I thought looked good a little further north.
Instead, everyone backtracked to the top of Satterly Hill and turned onto the Finger Lakes Trail, a walk we’ve done a number of times over the years. It’s very picturesque if you head east on the FLT but the grass was so high no one wanted to venture in, so everyone walked west toward the lake, where the grass wasn’t so tall. Very pretty scenery but, disappointingly, there were no blooming shrubs or flowers, which I always hope to see here.
This trail segment loses its charm after a while and prompts you to turn back — because people still didn’t want to walk the other way in the tall grass, the hike broke up early when everyone got back to the road.
One other drawback I hadn’t anticipated — traffic on Satterly Hill Road was heavier than I realized — we’d never seen cars there in the (admittedly brief) times we’ve been on this road in the past.
Official head count: 18H, six D