ithacahikers

Wednesday February 1

Bock Harvey Forest Preserve and Rieman Woods

Hike report and photo by Jim

Ten hikers met at the Bock Harvey Preserve for a hike of preserve trails and the FLT. Overall trail conditions were good, with minimal snowpack that only a handful of recent hikers had preceded us on.

We set off from the parking lot, quickly crossing the open fields to arrive at the lean-to, where we stopped for a quick group photo.

From there, we took the blue-blazed trail to the FLT to Porter Hill Road and Rieman Woods beyond. The main group took the Rieman Woods loop out and back, while I opted to roadwalk back to the road crossing and wait for the other hikers to return.

Once we’d all reunited, we took the FLT back into the Bock Harvey Preserve, hiking that trail through woods and open fields in a gradual arc until we reached Rockwell Road.

We turned around yet again and took the FLT until we diverted at the yellow-blazed preserve trail, which took us back to the cars.

Saturday February 4

Shindagin Hollow State Forest

Hike report by Jim

Six hikers met at the end of the maintained section of Shindagin Hollow Road for a hike of the Rim and bike trails. Although it was a cold morning (-3F as we got out of our cars), all of the hikers were well prepared for the frigid conditions.

The group set off down the seasonal portion of Shindagin Hollow Road, a layer of fresh white snow underfoot. We reached the turn-off to the Rim Trail and entered the woods. There, we followed the path in the snow left by a few previous hikers and bicyclists.

The sun gleamed off the snow in open areas but was greatly diminished under the trees.

The trail wound along the cliff’s edge, and before long we found ourselves at the top of the bike trail leading down to the stream. A decent layer of ice lay on top of the stream, and we crossed with minimal excitement.

We paused to check on the “shoe shrine” (see photo below) before continuing on our way to the lower end of Shindagin Hollow Road.

On the road walk back to the cars, the sun disappeared behind a layer of clouds that weren’t there early in the hike, so I’m glad that we hiked during the early part of the day and could enjoy the sunshine.

A warm welcome to Matt on his first hike with the group!

For those who missed this hike due to weather and temperature concerns, be assured that I will reschedule this hike sooner in the hike rotation than I normally do, so that everyone can enjoy this locale. This is one of my favorite places to hike, and I don’t want those of you who sat out this hike due to weather concerns to have to wait many months before we hike here again…

View Leigh Ann’s photo album.

Sunday February 5

Finger Lakes Trail from Woodard Road to Hines Road and beyond

Hike report and map by Nancy L.

Twenty-seven hikers and four dogs gathered on Woodward Road near upper Treman Park to hike northward and away from the park on the Finger Lakes Trail.  

The temperature was much milder than the previous two days, so I was comfortable without my stocking cap, which I had forgotten, anyway. Traction gear was a must, as the trail varied between snow and icy spots.  

Hikers were spaced out nicely, everyone going at their own pace without getting too spread out. The route makes many short ups and downs, crossing gullies and ridges. So we got a workout without noticing it, thanks to the bursts of activity.  

After crossing Hines Road we continued a short way farther on the FLT before turning around to retrace our steps. This allowed the fastest hikers to get in a little more distance than the rest of the group. 

We arrived back at the cars about 10-15 minutes ahead of our scheduled end time, so some hikers extended the hike on the other side of Woodard Road, while others chatted by the cars or left a few minutes early.

View Cian’s photo album.

Wednesday January 25

Lime Hollow Nature Center, Cortland

Hike report and photo by Jim

Five hikers met on a snowy morning at the Gracie Road parking lot for a hike of the Lime Hollow Nature Center trail system. For a good portion of the hike, we were getting fresh supplies of the white stuff delivered to us from above–not in such great quantities as to make the hike dangerous, but enough that it slowed us down and forced me to modify our normal route to stay within our usual two hours.

We started the hike by walking west on the Lehigh Valley trail, from which we completed a circuit of the High Vista loop. We then crossed the Lehigh Valley trail to jump onto Hermits Way. This section was nice in that it was much more sheltered from the falling snow. There was less accumulation on parts of Hermits Way than we found on other trails within the preserve.

Along the way, we discussed amending future hiking route options to include the Wilderness Way trail, which is usually closed for hunting when we hike here.

From Hermits Way we crossed onto Fen Way, which prompted a conversation about the various associations we had for other “Fen Ways,” “Fenways,” etc., that we have encountered in our lives.

Back on the Lehigh Valley trail, we returned to Gracie Rd., crossing that and continuing on the Lehigh Valley trail to the Maple Run trail. We took Maple Run to the Chicago Bog. Because time was running short, we opted to curtail the normal loop we do near the bog to a simple out-and-back hike that returned us to our cars at nearly the two-hour time.

This was an enjoyable hike despite the change to my original plan, and I look forward to developing some other routes at Lime Hollow in the next few months!

Saturday January 28

Ellis Hollow Nature Preserve, Dryden

Hike report by Mary W.

On Saturday morning the sky was mostly clear. It was 31 degrees and unusually sunny, considering the recent Ithaca weather. Sixteen hikers and one dog took to the snowy trails of the Ellis Hollow preserve off Ellis Hollow Creek Road. This is a 111-acre preserve located in the town of Dryden that was donated to the Finger Lakes Land Trust by Barbara Keeton and her family.

We started out heading north, going uphill on the yellow trail until we reached the red trail, which we took to the left and to circumnavigate the preserve. The red trail traces the perimeter of the preserve and intersects with the yellow and blue trails, giving hikers several stream crossings and lively ups and downs.

We covered all of the available trail areas in our hike that went out, up, and around once, and then again in the other direction. The hike plan was such that hikers may not realize they’d been turned around; perhaps that was true for some.

Welcome to Liz on her first hike with us!

Photos by Mary W.

View Cian’s photo album.

View Leigh Ann’s photo album.

Sunday January 29

Monkey Run Natural Area, Ithaca

Hike report by Jim

Twenty hikers and three dogs met at the corner of Hanshaw and Lower Creek roads for a hike of the Cayuga trail system on the north side of the Monkey Run area.

It was a cool, clear, wintry day. I arrived early at the trailhead and did an exploratory hike of the first stretch of trail, which was icy. So I warned everyone that foot traction was needed due to the extensive ice.

We completed a loop of the red-blazed trails, stopping along the way for a group photo. Other than a couple of other individual dog walkers encountered in the parking lot before the hike, we had the trails to ourselves.

We emerged from the red-blazed trails into the area around the Cornell pavilion, circled around the open fields, and took the orange-blazed trail. The downhill stretches of the footpath were definitely slippery on the outbound leg of the hike, but I noticed on our return that the ice covering the trail had been fairly well broken up by the passage of 20 sets of hikers’ feet.

There was a little more mud on the trail than I expected for January, but it didn’t seem to slow us down too badly. The orange-blazed portion of the trail is an out-and-back section, and after a short pause at our turnaround point we reversed our course.

Back at the Cornell pavilion we left the woods and circled the pavilion to take the service road back to our cars, arriving there with five minutes to spare.

View Cian’s photo album.

View Leigh Ann’s photo album.

Wednesday January 18

FLT west from Logan Rd., Finger Lakes National Forest

Hike report by Jim

Ten hikers and a single dog set off from Logan Road for a hike of the Finger Lakes Trail to Satterly Hill Road and beyond. It was a cool January day with minimal snow and ice cover. For most of the early part of the  hike, we made our way across the open fields before returning to the woods, dodging a few pools of standing water around the field and occasional blowdowns on the trail.

We crossed the rebuilt hikers bridge and soon arrived at the first real elevation changes. A few semi-frozen muddy spots on the hillside slowed us down a bit, but Jack V nimbly led the group  up the hill without any major difficulties.

We left the FLT to take one of the many horse trails that criss-cross the hillside, and we came out at a point on Satterly Hill Road that offered hikers a better panorama than the view where the official FLT footpath crosses the road.

We returned to the FLT footpath, crossed Satterly Hill Road, and began a short downhill hike toward Watkins Glen in order to burn up a few minutes before turning around. It was on this section of trail that we encountered a surprise. Stopping to make an entry at the trail register, I opened the box to find it filled with around 20 mice, one of which came out of the box and launched himself at me for intruding on their personal space. The mouse hung onto the front of my jacket for a moment, fixing me with an angry glare, before jumping away and running into the field. I opted to grant the other little creatures their privacy and didn’t sign the register that day.

At the turn-around time, we reversed our course and took the FLT back down the hill. Along the section of trail we’d missed by taking the horse trail, we encountered the only frozen section of trail: a large pool of standing water on the footpath that had frozen through.

Hikers took the return leg of the hike at their own pace, arriving back at our cars in staggered subgroups.

View Nancy L‘s photo album.

Saturday January 21

Kennedy State Forest, Virgil

Hike report by Jim

It was a  cold, clear, wintry morning as 17 hikers and four dogs met in Cortland County for a lollipop hike of the Kennedy State Forest trails. As we set off, a thin layer of fresh white snow covered everything around us. This trail has minimal ups and downs as it follows Rowland Creek, but we still needed to focus on the path rather than the views of the forest around us, due to the uncertain footing caused by the many roots that lay just under the snow.

The FLT winds through stands of hemlocks, and the damage from the logging just a couple of seasons ago was hidden from view by both the returning forest growth and the fresh snow cover.

At the junction with the Swedish Loop, we moved away from the stream. Its noise receded as we made our way through the forest following the blue blazes.

We had several newer hikers with us, so I took a quick detour down one dead-end, yellow-blazed trail to an observation area overlooking the stream. Then we returned to the Swedish Loop and continued our hike.

At the second yellow-blazed junction, we took that shortcut back to the FLT for the return trip to our cars.

Along the way, we encountered a minimal amount of mud and only a couple of other day hikers. Some stream crossings were a bit challenging due to the volume of flowing water.

As usual, we ended this hike about 15 minutes early, as I had chosen to not extend our time on the Swedish Loop. Some hikers opted for a short, extra out-and-back hike of the FLT to use up the time, but most of us were happy despite the shorter hike.

View Leigh Ann’s photo album.

View Cian’s photo album.

Sunday January 22

Roy H Park Preserve to Hammond Hill State Forest, Dryden

Hike report by Nancy L.

Twenty hikers and one dog met at the parking lot for the northern portion of the Roy H. Park Nature Preserve on a chilly morning. Jack V led this hike. The initial walk on the boardwalk across the marsh was picturesque as usual. As we entered the woods, an inch of fresh snow on the ground gave the scenery a quiet beauty. 

The trail climbed gradually to Hammond Hill Road over about a mile. When the vanguard reached Hammond Hill Road, they waited so hikers could regroup, and then we turned south on the road.  We avoided the trails in the Hammond Hill state forest east of Hammond Hill Road so as to leave the snow in prime condition for the cross-country skiers who frequent this area.  (Post-holing, which results from attempting to walk in deep snow, spoils the surface for skiing. The snow was not deep, but we still followed these guidelines.)

About a half-mile south, we walked a short way on a trail but turned around when we concluded we were again on a cross-country skiing trail. We proceeded farther south on the abandoned portion of Hammond Hill Road, going about a mile in that direction. 

At the one-hour point, we turned around and retraced our steps.  It was fun to see several Icelandic horses on Hammond Hill Road getting ready to hike as well!

Welcome to Hillary and Barb on their first hike with us!

Wednesday January 11

YMCA Outdoor Education Center trails through Ecovillage and beyond

Hike report by Jim

Sixteen hikers met for a hike of the YMCA and Ecovillage trails on the west side of the Town of Ithaca, off State Route 79. It was a cool day with temps that made the hike an enjoyable experience.

I hadn’t had a chance to prehike this route and we hadn’t been on these trails in 10 months, so I was unsure what shape we’d find the trails in. On our last hike here, we had to zig-zag through the various trails in the YMCA system to avoid the worst of the muddy sections. On this day, the trail system was bone dry, with only a hint of mud in a couple of places.

We quickly passed through the YMCA trails and soon found ourselves on the Ecovillage trails. These unsigned trails are always a bit of a challenge, but I had a cheat sheet of directions from our last hike here. Soon we were passing through the woods into the open fields below the Ecovillage residences. We walked along the woods’ edge and followed the Coy Glen grassy pathways to Elm Street before turning around and finding our route through the Ecovillage road system back to the trails and from there back onto YMCA property.

We arrived at our cars with a few minutes to spare, but no one was complaining.

A warm welcome to Sara, Tasha, and Dennis on their first hike with the group!

Saturday January 14

Blue-blazed trail starting at Boylan and Hulford roads, Connecticut Hill

Hike report by Nancy L.

Nine intrepid hikers and a dog gathered at the corner of Hulford Hill and Boylan roads on a cold, somewhat snowy morning. Luckily, the snow plow had cleared the road to that spot, making the approach relatively easy. 

I believe we all had our traction devices on, which was particularly good during the preliminary short road walk up Boylan Road to the trail that cut into the woods on the left. A short way in after passing a small field, the blue-marked trees begin, making the trail relatively easy to follow.  The trail heads south, following a branch of Carter Creek, although it is quite a way up the hill from the creek itself. 

The forest is mostly red pine and quite pleasant. The snow on the trail, though recent, was relatively thin, making the walking quite easy.  Marcy, the young dog, was a great leader, finding the trail before the rest of us. 

After about two miles, the trail heads closer to the creek, eventually intersecting with an old roadbed that leads down to the water. At that spot, there are several lovely cascades. We stopped there to catch a group photo in front of the falls. 

At this point, a smaller but steeply descending creek comes in from the opposite, western side of the creek. A steep trail follows this creek, which allows hikers to quickly ascend to the upper reaches of the hillside and Cabin Road. 

Getting across the larger creek was a challenge. (I felt the cold water seeping into my boots when I accidentally dipped my toe in). Initially, the hillside is very steep. Casey led most of the group up to a level spot, while I took the more treacherous route along the opposite side of the main creek to a rope tied there for scrambling up the steep hill. Everyone else watched, having arrived before me. 

Then we had the task of climbing the relatively steep trail to Cabin Road, short but not sweet. It was only a short way up Cabin Road to another trail that takes off going north. A series of old road beds provided a trail along the west side (but out of view) of the main creek, heading north. 

Eventually we reached a trail heading back downhill to the creek and across it.  From there, it was a short distance to return to the blue-blazed trail.  Thanks to the many footprints, we quickly made our way back along the blue-marked trail to our cars.

Sunday January 15

Shindagin Hollow Bike and Snowmobile Trails

Hike report by Jim

I knew while I was en route to the trailhead that this would be a special hike. As I drove down Irish Settlement Road, I could see the trees along the far ridgeline, a ghostly white army that stretched into the distance.

I got to the trailhead and checked out conditions a short way along the trail. Soon, hikers were arriving in clusters. By the time the last arrivals had jockeyed into their parking spaces, both parking lots were full.

After I gave a quick explanation of our route at the large kiosk map, we set off. We had 23 hikers and two dogs (a 24th hiker arrived later and did her own hike). Entering the woods was a unique experience; the trunks and branches of trees were dabbed with new snow. We pressed forward over flagstones also coated with new snow.

The first 1/10 mile or so was really enjoyable, and the snowy conditions seemed to impress the whole group. About six people said this was their first experience of hiking the Shindagin bike trails. For the rest of us, it’s been at least a year – probably longer – since we hiked here. I don’t think I’ve led a hike here since I took over the group.

Hiking through the rows of tall, snow-covered evergreens was like walking through a cathedral, the church columns surrounding us and proceeding in rows into the distance.

We reached the first intersection and turned into a scene that was even more wintry than the one behind us. This hike wasn’t getting old in the slightest!

We continued along a gentle downhill trek, following the infrequent blue discs that marked our route, our feet crunching through the thin, crusty layer of ice under the snow.

After taking another turn, we pressed forward until we passed the FLT and finally turned onto a snowmobile trail that offered a steady downhill grade, a minor water crossing, and then an uphill slog back to Braley Hill Road.

After pausing briefly on the road, we turned onto the FLT and began a gradual climb before crossing another snowmobile trail and reaching the first of several red-blazed bike trails.

We followed these trails, getting a little lost along the way. (I had prehiked the route earlier in the week and marked my route with engineer tape, but along the way I’d overlooked a few intersections and it appeared that some of my tape markers had disappeared since my first hike. Throw a layer of fresh snow on everything and it starts to look different…) Some bicyclists had preceded us and broken trail through the layer of ice.

Eventually we found ourselves walking along another plantation of monoculture pines. The sun came out from behind the clouds, bathing the woods in white brilliance for a few short minutes.

We reached our final descent far too soon, it seemed, but we found ourselves arriving back at our cars at exactly the two-hour mark.

Today was the kind of hike I enjoy the most, in case you couldn’t tell. Thanks to all who came out to share the trail with me today!

View Leigh Ann’s photo album.

View Cian’s photo album.

Wednesday January 4

Finger Lakes Trail from Eastman Hill Road

Hike report by Jim

Seven hikers met on Eastman Hill Rd., just inside the Tioga County line, for a hike of the FLT into Eberhard Preserve. This hike was partly a hike of the recently rerouted FLT as it comes off Eastman Hill toward Coddington Rd.

The day was unseasonably warm; any snowpack on the trail had melted, although the small ponds and water-filled ditches we passed still had thin skims of ice on their surfaces.

As you leave the parking area, it’s a steady-but-gradual climb along a seasonal portion of Eastman Hill Rd. Past an unsigned intersection with the seasonal end of Heisey Rd., the trail  goes left and right. We opted for the right, or southerly, direction.

The trail continued a steady climb, and the footpath was often a wet, muddy slog. This section is usually wet except in the driest part of summer, so conditions were not entirely unexpected.

Shortly after reaching the plateau at the top of Eastman Hill, the trail takes a turn, a recent redirection that was the purpose of our hike today. The rerouted section of trail meanders around the top of Eastman Hill for some time, following various old logging roads. Eventually, the footpath dips downhill, and before long we were passing the green metal sign announcing the border of Eberhard Preserve.

From this point on, the trail’s downhill slope becomes more pronounced. We passed by the first blue-blazed side trail and continued downhill on the FLT.

By the time we reached the second side trail, a green-blazed section that connects with the blue-blazed trail, it was our turnaround time, so we opted to take the green trail as part of our return route. We went steadily downhill on the green-blazed trail until we reached the blue-blazed trail.

That section of the blue-blazed trail goes sharply uphill, something not entirely unexpected as we had a copy of the Eberhard Preserve trail map with us. Once the blue-blazed trail levels out, it meets up with the FLT section we’d already traversed.

The return hike to our cars over the FLT was as muddy as the outbound leg, but thankfully more downhill than not. We reached our cars about 10 minutes past our normal hike duration, but as we’d stopped many times during the hike I am sure that future hikes at this location will be quicker.

Saturday January 7

West on the FLT from South Danby Road

Hike report by Jim

Seventeen hikers and one dog met on South Danby Road for a westbound hike of the FLT. It was an overcast morning, and as the hike progressed a haze of fine flakes began to fall steadily. Soon the forest floor was covered in a thin layer of fresh snow, and the faded white blazes were in some cases lost in the sheath of white that clung to the trees.

On the hike’s outbound leg we encountered a fair amount of mud, and sections of the trail were covered by flowing water.

The main group of hikers soon reached David’s Bridge on the FLT. Hikers crossed that and climbed the hill to Curtis Road and beyond. By now, the snowfall had stopped. This group reached Hill Road before turning around and retracing their steps.

A few of the slower hikers turned around at the hour mark, and the main group picked them up along the way as everyone returned to South Danby Road.

View Cian’s photo album.

Sunday January 8

South Hill Recreation Way, Ithaca

Hike report by Jim

Twenty-eight hikers and a dog hiked from Crescent Place in Ithaca into the trail system that runs along the South Hill Rec Way. Temperatures were on the cool side, but it didn’t take long to warm up as we traversed the various hills and ridges of the blue-blazed trail.

This was the first time that many of our newer hikers had been on this trail, so it was nice to bring them here on a pleasant day for a winter hike. We met a handful of trail runners and other day hikers along the way, but otherwise we had the trail to ourselves.

I’d been worried that wintry conditions might make water crossings hazardous or prevent us from visiting the lower section of trail near the water. But given the recent thaw, these worries were unfounded.

There was a significant amount of water in all of the water crossings and some parts of the trail were muddy, so eventually I gave up trying to keep my feet dry and simply waded through the crossings or the mud bogs as we encountered them.

Some of the hike’s highlights were the fast-flowing waterways, checking out the old stone staircase, the views out over the second dam area, and the descent to the shoreline across from Mulholland Wildflower Preserve on the return leg.

Welcome to Pat, Yvonne, and Bill on their first hike with the group!

View Leigh Ann’s photo album.

View Cian’s photo album.