Report to Hikers: week of Sept 25-Oct 1

 

Hello hikers!

 

Wed Sept 27

Potato Hill SF, Caroline

It was very warm, above 80, and sultry  —  just bearable in the shade of the trees

When we hit Blackman Hill Road we always then cross a very large field with spectacular views to the south all the way into Pennsylvania many miles away  —  after milling around for a few minutes so I can get some shots where there’s enough light ….

But there was a motion made to skip crossing the field in the hot direct sun and to get right back into the woods

Back into the woods won by a split vote

I love the field but it was undoubtedly cooler in the woods

Official head count:  23H, five D

More photos:

Annie

Jack V

 

Saturday Sept 30

Finger Lakes National Forest, Burdett  —  FLT from lower Burnt Hill Road to Logan Road

Great classic early fall morning on the trail  —  mid 40s, dramatically gloomy, fresh breeze, raining a little on the last leg of the drive to the trail head and then off and on for the first half of the hike  —  fabulous atmospherics

There’s a pond and a field right off to the side on the first leg of the walk but I failed to see either  —  too busy talking  —  Jack V got a shot of the pond  —  I liked the lean-to

As I mentioned in the hike announcement, this was the first time we did this hike  —  the woods are very nice, above average in quality I would say  —  condition of the trail is very good

Many lively ups and downs along the way  —  no one had to worry about being cold

We did the last return leg on Burnt Hill Road instead of returning through the woods  —  this is a first-rate country road

It’s a bit hairy for driving  —  this was the only car that passed us while we were walking on it

Even though this was our first time doing this hike, we managed to get back in exactly two hours, thanks to some very accurate timing advice from Jack V, who had been here before

Official head count:  14H, nine D

More photos:

Jack V

 

Sunday Oct 1

Shindagin Hollow SF  —  from Braley Hill Road to Shindagin Hollow Road on the FLT

Official head count:  23H, eight D

More photos:

Annie

Jack V

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Shotgun season for deer doesn’t begin until mid-November, but hunting for small animals and birds began Sunday Oct 1.  We don’t stop hiking during this season, but some private landowners who allow the Finger Lakes Trail to cross their property do close their land for hunting starting Oct 1.  Our hiking pal Gary M, head of the Cayuga Trails Club, asked me to refer you to this list of FLT closures, and to remind you to honor the private landowners’ requests.

 

Report to Hikers: week of Sept 18-Sept 24

 

Hello Hikers!

 

Wednesday Sept 20

Road walk  —  farming area between Jacksonville and Perry City, town of Ulysses  —  with Mark

This is Taughannock Creek, quite a few miles upstream from the falls

This junkyard is famous in the neighborhood for the number of old cars tucked away in the weeds and bushes  —  there used to be as many as 6,000  —  now there’s reportedly about 2,000  —  this is an active business selling unusual auto parts

I was really struck by the charm of this Greek Revival-style farmhouse  —  turns out Susan L knows the owners

Official head count:  14H, four D

More photos:

Jack V

 

Saturday Sept 23

Hammond Hill SF north of Star Stanton Road, with Jack V

This house has been under construction for a while  —  seems to be finally finished  —  this has caused the town of Dryden highway department to improve a new length of Star Stanton Road  —  don’t know how this will impact parking for us in the future

One of the things I like about HHSF is that we sometimes get to see horses  —  almost didn’t happen this time, but then we passed these two while we heading home  —  I had to lean over in front of Tiger, who was driving, to get this shot as we drove by  —  very unpromising conditions, surprising the photo came out OK  —  the two riders are there but obscured by the horses

Official head count:  20H, six D

More photos:

Jack V

 

Sunday Sept 24

Connecticut Hill WMA  —  The Upper Wedge, with Dave B

Official head count:  20H, five D

More photos:

Jack V

 

 

 

Report to Hikers: week of Sept 11-Sept 17

 

Hello Hikers!

 

Wednesday Sept 13

Road walk:  Southern Newfield at the Tioga County line

Brand new territory for all of us  —  this was another rural road walk discovered by Scott while he was riding his bike

We soon came upon a small herd of jet black cattle  —  it seemed clear they were intrigued by the sight of a group of people walking by   —  they ran around in an amusing fashion and seemed to be really enjoying themselves

Our walk was shaping up to be very attractive when two highway department trucks pulled up and said the road we were on was about to be closed for resurfacing.  We went back to the cars and drove to a new spot on a different road.

I wasn’t sure where we had gone  —  very deserted setting

As the person who conceived and plotted out this walk, Scott was a little concerned that the group might be disappointed or irritated by the unexpected road work.  But everyone took it completely in stride.  Scott wrote to me afterwards:

Wanted to pass on my appreciation that when things got screwed up nobody pissed or moaned, bitched or whined.  A tribute to the group!

I had a great time myself.  I find it so interesting to go out into these picturesque rural neighborhoods I’d never otherwise get to  —  and walking is an ideal way to check them out.

Official head count:  16H, five D

You can see Jack V’s shots here

 

Saturday Sept 16

Layen Road to Bruce Hill Road and beyond, Danby

The owner of the quarry has walled it off from the hiking trail by piling up a big mound of dirt  —  we sent a scouting party over the top to investigate  —  nothing exciting to report

There’s a couple of nice fields south of Bruce Hill Road that we can just reach before it’s time to turn around  —  this one is usually planted in corn, except that Tiger said, oddly, this time there were no corn cobs on the plants

There are at least three kinds of apples growing along the side of the big field at the start of the hike, according to Tiger.  A number of hikers tried them  —  very tasty though a bit hard, according to Tiger

Official head count:  24H, seven D

More photos:

Jack V

 

Sunday Sept 17

Taughannock Falls SP rim trail

This is a great spot for a group photo  —  never occurred to me; Lourdes gets credit for the suggestion  —  not everyone was shown

Official head count:  35H, seven D

More photos:

Jack V

 

Report to Hikers: week of Sept 5-Sept 10

 

Hello Hikers!

 

Wednesday Sept 6

Bald Hill Road to Michigan Hollow Road on the FLT and then up Smiley Hill Road, Danby SF

There were apples growing along Michigan Hollow Road, probably dating back decades to the time this was farmland  —  I generally don’t eat wild fruit but these hikers said the apples tasted good

Official head count:  15H, three D

 

Saturday Sept 9

Woodard Road south into Upper Treman SP, Enfield

Official head count:  17H, four D

 

Sunday Sept 10

Upper Buttermilk Falls SP from Yaple Road

Official head count:  27H, eight D

More photos:

Jack V

 

Report to Hikers: week of Aug 28-Sept 4

 

Hello Hikers!

 

Wednesday Aug 30

Road walk:  Valley View Road and Tupper Road, West Danby

A new walk for us, discovered by Scott while he was taking a bike ride.  We shaped up in a very quiet semi-suburban neighborhood, walked up a wild-looking dirt stretch, and emerged into another very quiet semi-suburban neighborhood.  Very interesting and fun to explore parts of the county like this that we’d never otherwise venture into.

There’s an old cemetery near where we parked that’s extremely beautiful

Official head count:  24H, five D

 

Saturday Sept 2

Connecticut Hill WMA  —  Lloyd Starks Loop highlights, with Dave B

Official head count:  27H, 10 D

 

Labor Day Sept 4

Lindsay Parsons Biodiveristy Preserve and get-together at Katharine and Scott’s

I arrived at the hike expecting to find rolling fields of goldenrod in bloom  —  but it turned out that more than 2/3 of the acreage had been mowed recently  —  we had a great walk anyway

Official head count:  31H, seven D

Get together at Katharine and Scott’s

A small number of hikers didn’t proceed on to the party, but a number of other people who hadn’t hiked showed up and we had a big turnout.  Lovely relaxed vibe.

More photos:

Jack V