ithacahikers

Hello Hikers!

Wed Dec 2

This report was written by Jim

Lick Brook and the Thayer Preserve, Danby

On December 2^nd, 14 hikers and 1 dog met on Townline Rd at the corner with Sandbank Rd, for a hike of the Lick Brook ravine area. Snow was freshly fallen in the area, although the snow on the actual trail was fairly minimal. The biggest snow-related issue that I could see over the course of the hike were the wet roots on the trail. There was a decent amount of water flowing over the various cascades and waterfalls, much more so than the last couple of times I’ve hiked this trail.

The group started down the trails on the Sweedler Nature Preserve side of Townline Rd; at the junction of the blue and white trails most hikers chose the white trail that winds down the hill and over the ridgelines before coming out on the valley floor near the waterfalls. A couple of hikers chose the more direct blue trail route to the valley floor.

Others within the group chose to take their time as they hiked the area trails. These last hikers chose to spend the bulk of their time in the valley admiring their immediate area there, rather than climb the hill to continue hiking with the main group of hikers.

After meeting on the valley floor and checking out the falls, the main body of hikers returned to Townline Rd via the Blue trail.

The group lost a couple of hikers to other responsibilities upon reaching the road, but the main body of hikers pressed on across Townline Rd  to the orange blazed trails on the Thayer Preserve. Within a few minutes the group had reached the open fields facing Northeasterly towards Sandbank Rd.

After stopping to admire the vista in front of us, the group turned around so as to avoid that part of the Preserve in which hunting is allowed.

We returned to the blue blazed trail which leads down to the streambed.

Hikers found that despite water levels being higher than in the past, fording the stream was not particularly difficult this day. The group crossed the stream and continued along the blue trail back to Townline RD and our vehicles.

This was very much a “hike your own hike” for much of the group, with various hikers taking their time and choosing which path to take, the amount of time spent in a particular area of the hike, etc. We had one new hiker, Barbara, on  this particular hike. Welcome to the group Barbara, and I hope that you will continue hiking with the Ithaca Hikers.

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Sat Dec 5

This report was written by Randy

Embedded photos by Randy/Nancy L

Watkins Glen SP — upper South entrance

Nine intrepid trekkers and three leashed and sweatered dogs met in the Park near the swimming pool, which was strangely still full of water. The day was overcast and chilly, and truly perfect day for a hike. Although there was sleet on the drive over, we encountered no precipitation during our hike…it waited until we were safely in our cars and on the way home!

We hiked west along the FLT, passing a picnic area full of stone tables covered with clever cairns. 

Nancy L was the “leader”, but the trail was so easy to follow others took turns.

  Soon the trail climbed steeply uphill allowing us to warm up.  The hike along the south side of the gorge had some precipitous drop-offs, some of which were protected with fencing, some exposed to serious trouble if you weren’t careful.  We passed a lean-to overlooking the trail; no firepit, but otherwise suitable for an emergency bivouac. 

The trail passed under a massive train trestle that spans the gorge.

We regrouped before continuing to a large pavilion located on the shore of a pond.  Everyone agreed it might be a nice spot to hold a group gathering, like a late-May picnic coinciding with the flowering of the nearby rhododendrons. 

We then continued west, some of us going out to Rt. 329 to check out the potential parking/access situation about a 1/2 mile away, while others waited a while before deciding to head back along an old park road.  Nancy led the first group back, and Randy guided the others along the same route.  Everyone eventually reunited in the Six Nations campground area.  From there it was a short downhill to our cars.  

More photos:

Randy/Nancy L

Cian

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Sun Dec 6

This report was written by Jim

Jim Schug Trail, Dryden

Fifteen hikers and three dogs met at the parking area for the Jim Schug Trail on Lake Rd.

The morning weather front had put a layer of frost and ice over everything, so several regular hikers and their pets were delayed in getting to the hike.

Setting off on the Schug Trail towards the village of Dryden, hikers were met by a stiff wind that chilled a person if they stopped to admire the views along the trail. Other than a group photo at Dryden Lake Park early in the morning there wasn’t a whole lot of stopping on this hike.

Despite the temperatures there was a decent amount of other people using the trail this day.

The wind whipping across the lake was observed to be creating a good amount of wave action. The greens and browns in the shallow, still  ponds were particularly vibrantly colored under their thin crust of ice. This was in particular contrast to the white of the frost and ice covered areas.

The group pretty quickly broke up into about three distinct groups, not counting the late arrivals. The fastest group reported at the end of the hike that they had reached South Street before turning around, for a total distance of a little over five miles for that group.

Some of us were content to progress at a much slower pace than the lead element.

The return trip to the cars had only occasional periods of wind, unlike the outbound leg of the hike.

Three scenic shots from the trail

More photos:

Cian

Hello Hikers!

Wed Nov 25

This report was written by Jim

Owl Creek Trail, Lower Buttermilk Falls SP

Fourteen hikers and three dogs met in the parking lot at Lower Buttermilk Falls State Park

The main trails in the park are still one way, with the Rim Trail allowing for foot traffic towards the upper end of the park, and the Gorge Trail bringing one way traffic back to lower Buttermilk.

Leaving the parking lot, the group climbed the paved service road towards the camping area until we reached the turn onto the Owl Creek Trail.

The group quickly churned its way up that trail until reaching the summit at the cemetery. This trail always provides a good amount of exercise despite its relative shortness compared to many trails we’ve hiked as a group.

After catching our respective breath we returned to the Owl Creek Trail, most of us preferring for the downward leg of the hike to take a slight jog onto a side section of trail that skirts more directly along the rim of the gorge as we proceeded down the slope.

Eventually the group found its way back to the paved service road; from there we took an unimproved service road to a junction with the Rim Trail. The group followed the Rim Trail until reaching a bridge that crossed over to the gorge trail. We returned to the lower park and our vehicles without incident.

A common comment from many hikers following this hike is that the persons who chose which direction to funnel foot traffic on both the Rim and Gorge Trails got their directions wrong, and that the Gorge Trail should have had foot traffic ascending from the lower park. While the views of the Gorge Trail were certainly nice enough going down the trail, the hikers are probably correct in that the hike would have been better going up the Gorge Trail. Hopefully by the next time we do this hike this sort of one-way traffic on the main park trails will no longer bee  an issue.

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Sat Nov 28

This report was written by Jim

Upper Treman SP, Enfield — rural roads and park trails

18 hikers and 6 dogs assembled on Woodard Rd on the fringes of Robert H Treman State Park

Upon arrival the group found that the Germ-o-phobic Ithaca Hikers were already in the area; it was good to see those of you from that group.

I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to talk to the individual hikers from the Germ-o-phobic hiking group.

It was a cool but clear morning when our group set off down the path towards the wooden bridge that crosses Fishkill Creek towards Butternut Creek Rd.

For me the short stretch along Butternut Creek Rd is usually a pretty nice area to walk, and today was no exception.

By the time the group got to Van Ostrand Rd the group was pretty well strung out, with some hikers not catching up to the main body of hikers until we got to the Rim Trail.

While on Van Ostrand, the wind picked up for a short while, as did the rain, as if to test our resolve to be out and about at that time. A passing motorist actually stopped at one point to inquire as to whether the group needed assistance. I’m not sure if that was motivated by simple country hospitatility or whether the group looked that down-trodden at that point in the hike.

By the time we got to the end of Thomas Rd and re-entered park property the rain and wind had stopped, and were unnoticed for the remainder of the hike.

The group walked to the junction of the Rim Trail and Thomas RD, and from there went a short distance along the Rim Trail to the overlook. Part of the group chose to break off from the main body and hike a short distance on the FLT rather than hike to the overlook

The entire group reconvened on the FLT when the overlook group followed the FLT hikers onto the FLT and met us there.

The reunited group returned to the Rim Trail and hiked that to Upper Robert Treman.

Once at the upper Treman parking lot the group took the side path to the CCC trail which runs through the former Upper Treman campground area; that trail  eventually led us back to the original path from the trailhead, and from there back to our cars.

More photos:

Cian

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Sun Nov 29

This report was written by Jim

The three embedded photos are by Steve S

Fillmore Glen SP, Moravia

Fifteen hikers and five dogs drove to Fillmore Glen State park on a frost-covered morning to hike the north and south rim trails. The gorge trail remains closed to hikers.

The main body set off from the parking lot, soon met by a late arrival who had arrived a little late and chased the group down.

It was a great day for a hike, with the temperatures climbing from their early freezing levels yet always cool enough to not make the hike unbearable for anyone.

The light coming down through the barren trees was fantastic, creating a crisp contrast between light and shadow  that gave us some  interesting views down into the gorge as we passed by on the trail. Being on the trail this late in the season, there was no effect of walking through a green tunnel that I recall from the last time we hiked I this park last summer.

There was a significant amount of water coming over the many waterfalls, and the group stopped multiple times along the way for photo opportunities of these cascades as well as the dam at the upper end of our hiking loop.

After passing over the dam there was a short road-walk to reach the south rim trail, which the group followed back to the lower end of the park.

After reaching the main park area the group diverted long enough to take in a view of the Cowpens, and then returned to our cars at just about a Stephen-perfect two hours and two minutes.

A couple of members of the group, including Cian, chose to make their own hiking route around the park, so his nature panoramas for the day may show different areas of the trails from what the main group saw.

More photos:

Nancy L

Cian

Hello Hikers!

Wed Nov 18

This report was written by Jim

Mulholland Wildflower Preserve to Potter’s Falls, Six Mile Creek

11 hikers met in the parking lot of the Mulholland Wildflower Preserve on Giles Street in the City of Ithaca.

There  had been a recent snowfall, and so the ground and trees were covered with a good amount of snow. In fact there was enough snow covering the recent leaf-fall that I was soon regretting not having worn my winter boots with their lugged soles. The footing underneath was in spots unsafe. Other than that, it was an enjoyable walk along the blue blazed trails along the waterway.

After pausing briefly to admire the flowing stream, the group soon climbed the hills to meet the access road to Second Dam.

We made progress along that path to the overlook area beyond Second Dam, at which time we were met by a 12^th hiker and his dog who had arrived late to the parking area.

The group continued beyond the overlook area, eventually coming to the area where we normally scale a hillside to a goat path that takes the group closer to Potters Falls. Based on the snow-covered conditions I felt that it was unsafe to proceed further, and turned the group around.

Returning to the original blue blazed path we continued Easterly, to an observation area below second dam. When there is a decent amount of water coming over the dam this spot never fails to impress, and so it was on this hike.

Following that brief pause the group returned to the parking area and our cars.

Since the group had turned around early we had an additional thirty minutes of hike time.

Some of the group had already returned to the blue blazed trails in an effort to recover a lost item.

Many of the remaining hikers chose to cross Giles Street and take the blue blazed trail on that side of the street to the     “Businessman’s Lunch”  falls area. I had often heard of this falls, but despite many years of living here had never walked the path to this particular falls. It was quite impressive and worth the extra few minutes to take that side trail.

More photos:

Jack V

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Sat Nov 21

This report was written by Jim

The photos were taken by Tiger

Taughannock Falls SP — gorge trail and rim trail

On Saturday November 21^st approximately 18 hikers and 6 dogs met at the small parking area near the falls in Lower Taughannock Falls State Park. I say “approximate”, as there were hikers who continued to arrive after the group had started off towards the falls. As a result, I did not get a firm headcount on everyone.

The group did a quick trip the base of the falls, which had a decent amount of water flowing over it that day

Returning to the parking lot, the group crossed the near-by bridge in a Northerly direction.

Once across the bridge the group split into two sections, with one group taking the more direct stair route to the campground area and the North Rim Trail. The other half of the group took the more leisurely road approach to the area

Climbing the North Rim Trail while avoiding the significant number of other hikers and their own dog companions, the group stopped briefly at the overlook area before continuing on to the bridge that connects the North and South Rim Trails.

Both groups took the South Rim Trail back to the parking lot without incident.

A great day for a hike, but also a lot of other park patrons were out enjoying the scenery and weather.

More photos:

Cian

Jack V

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Sun Nov 22

This report was written by Jim

Lime Hollow Nature Pr4eserve, McLean

14 hikers met in the parking lot to Lime Hollow Nature Center on Gracie Rd in Cortland Couty.

No companion animals were in attendance due to Nature Center rules.

It was  a good hiking day, with cool temps and inclement weather that held off until nearly the end of the hike.

I had hiked other parts of the Nature Center a month or two ago with the group , and wanted to avoid parts of the Nature Center on this hike that I had found not so appealing the last time.

The group started Westerly on the Lehigh Valley trail. Once at the High Vista Loop we took that trail until we came around to a westerly leg that eventually took us South across Lehigh Valley to the Tundra ski trail loop. Our biggest issue of the hike was at this point, as the Nature Center map depicts some of the ski trails, but none of those trails are actually named.

We did most of the Tundra  loop trail before cutting over to the Hermits Way trail over more ski trails.

I had done this part of the Nature Center trails on the last hike and found it much more appealing than the previous route I had taken.

The group hiked South on Hermits Way, before eventually turning North again on Fen Way.

Once the group was back on Lehigh Valley we turned Easterly, crossing over Gracie RD and continuing on Lehigh Valley until we reached Maple Run. Maple Run led to the Phillips Memorial Trail, which skirts the Chicago Bog. It was at this point that we had our only contact with other hikers over the entire time of our hike. I found it interesting that on a weekend the Nature Center had a fairly low attendance, which was good for our group.

A short detour to admire the bog, and then the group resumed our hike on the Memorial Trail. It was at this point that I had some concern for our route, as we were crossing paths that were not depicted on the map and had no signage. We reached a well-marked  intersection of  the Esker Connector, which in turn led us back to Maple Run. It was at around this time that precipitation in the form of sleet started raining down on us, although we were moving fairly quickly by that time and so the sleet was a minor annoyance at best.

Upon returning to Lehigh Valley Trail the group returned to our cars

Overall this was a good day for a hike, and an excellent bit of fall countryside to hike through. If others are going to hike any of these trails I would strongly recommend doing so with a map ( available on the Ithaca Hikers website at the hike description for this hike ) or smart phone app that will keep you on the correct trails.

More photos:

Cian

Wed Nov 11

This report was written by Jim

A rainy morning hike

This was a bit of an odd hike in many ways.

The original hike location was supposed  to be at Taughannock Falls State Park.

The day started out as a rainy day; I have previously decided to stop cancelling hikes solely because of rain, due to the number of rainy hike days that seemed to clear up as soon as I cancelled a hike.

I arrived at the lower parking area of Taughannock Falls State Park  to find a couple dozen or more  NYS Department of Corrections personnel and their vehicles entirely filling the parking lot we normally park in.  It was reported to me that a prisoner had escaped, and the DOCS personnel could not advise that it was safe to visit the park that day.

I waited at the park entrance for any hikers and decided to relocate to Allan Treman State Marina as an alternate hike location.

Four hikers convened at the Treman marina; we walked around the perimeter pathway along the lake. This path has been paved since I last visited the area, and I’m not entirely sure if its an improvement or not. We left the path at one point and walked the shoreline until terrain prevented further forward progress, at which time we returned to the paved path. It was interesting to see some of the effects of tides and wave actions on the terrain along the shoreline, and entirely unfortunate that the area was ruined by a sizeable amount of trash that had been deposited along the shoreline. One of these days, if the weather cooperates, I may go down there with a trash bag or two….

We continued along the pathway, returning to the area of the parking lot. We walked to the area of the inlet and continued our hike there, leaving Treman Marina property and entering Cass Park and the area along the inlet. We walked  as far as the Children’s Garden and walked through that, something I hadn’t previously done.

The group then re-traced our steps and returned to our vehicles at Treman Marina.

An unusual hike, not entirely unenjoyable due to the rain.

Thanks to those who came out despite the weather.

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Sat Nov 14

This report was written by Jim

Dabes Diversion Loop, Virgil

14 hikers and 5 dogs met in Cortland County at the corner of Bleck and Hauck Hill RD for a hike of the Dabes Diversion Loop, part of the FLT and the Kuzia Cut-Off.

Weather at the start of the hike was definitely “brisk”, with a  cold wind that cut through a person if they stood around too much.

The hike warmed people up pretty quickly as we climbed through the hills away from our cars.

The trail overall was in decent shape, and the single water crossing once we reached it had a lot more water flowing through it than the last couple of times we’ve done this hike.

The view from the overlook area at the junction of the Diversion Loop and the FLT was excellent, with no haze limiting the view of the further reaches of the valley in front of us.

A few hikers wandered down the FLT to the West to check out the Foxfire Lean-To. By the time they came back the last members of the hiking group had caught up to the main body, and so the group continued Easterly on the FLT.

After crossing Bleck Rd the group jumped onto the Kuzia Cut-off. As has been noted in previous hike reports of this area, a good portion of the Southerly end of the cut-off was recently logged, so the group was walking through a wide swath of forest destruction where felled trees were just left where they fell or piled up after being cut. On this hike I am always happy to get beyond that area of logging activity and reach more intact portions of the trail.

Ultimately the group reached the northerly end of the Cut-off, and followed the seasonal part of Hauck Hill Rd back to our cars.

We reached the cars a full thirty minutes early, as our pace on the hike had been fairly quick. To round out the hike time I chose to take a few willing people down a near-by snowmobile trail in an effort to determine if we can combine that trail with a part of the FLT to create another loop trail for future hikes.

More photos:

Cian

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Sun Nov 15

Texas Hollow SF, Bennettsburg

The main group of hikers chose to do a major uphill climb by heading up the FLT at a very good pace. If you look at the topo map below you can see the dramatic elevation change as the red-colored FLT goes south. You can also see it in the cross section view below the topo map.

The group made it up to the third old logging road, if you’re familiar with the trail.

Meanwhile, one hiker, Leigh Ann, arrived at the trail head a few minutes late. Here is her report:

“I figured I might be doing a solo hike when I got there late. I saw everyone on the other side of the field where the lake was.  When I got up into the woods, I had a 50/50 chance of taking the same trail everyone else did. I chose wrong, so I hiked the FLT up to Newtown Road and back (about 5.75 miles, 1200 feet of elevation change). While I was hiking, I came up with this haiku:

Under a slate sky,

Trees roar and snap in the wind.

I climb a steep slope.

I didn’t see any trees snap, but another hiker I encountered did.

I figured I’d see everyone back at the cars, and I did – we had a good laugh about how we had been on the same trail for a while, but not ever at the same place!

Best wishes,

Leigh Ann”

Official head count: 8H, two D

More photos:

Cian

Hello Hikers!

Wed Nov 4

This report was written by Jim

Interloken Trail from Parmenter Road south, Finger Lakes National Forest

On Wednesday November 4^th  a total of  10 hikers and 3 dogs met on Parmenter Rd in Seneca County for a South-bound hike on part of the Interloken Trail led by Mark S.

Soon after starting the hike a few of the hikers and the dogs opted to do an alternate road hike in the area. The remainder of the group pressed onwards.

Hiking through the woods, the group eventually reached open fields with a good view of Seneca Lake in the distance. With no cows in the fields to contend with, the group continued South, crossing into Schuyler County at Townline RD.

Shortly after that, the group reached Teeter Pond. After a brief observation period at the pond, the group turned North towards our vehicles, opting to hike the No-Tan-Takto trail that runs alongside that portion of the Interloken Trail. Upon reaching Wilkens Rd the group decided that a return to woods walking was a more desirable route of travel. We did a short road walk to the West, again jumping into the Interloken Trail for the last leg of the hike back to Parameter Rd

Weather conditions for the hike were good. Temperatures were pleasant. It was interesting seeing some of the fields and woods portions of this hike  in their fall phase; I’ve previously seen this section of the Interloken during mush wetter summer months when the undergrowth was  in full summer bloom, but never in the fall time period as during this hike.

Overall it was a very enjoyable hike,  with terrain and elevation changes that are not too difficult for those who might just be starting to hike area trails.

Thanks to Mark S for leading the hike, and everyone who came to hike that day.

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Sat Nov 7

This report was written by Jim

Ski trails, Hammond Hill SF, Dryden

Hikers met at the parking lot on Hammond Hill RD for one last hike of the trails there before winter closes in on us.

We were far from the only ones who made the decision to use the Hammond Hill area on Saturday, as the parking lot had many horse trailers, trucks and passenger vehicles when I arrived. We passed many dog walkers and bicyclists over the course of our hike, although I tried to steer clear of the more popular trails.

Todays Ithaca Hikers group included four entirely new people for this hike. Welcome to all of you, and hope to see you on future hikes!

The group initially set off with twenty hikers and two dogs..

An additional Ithaca Hiker and their dog arrived too late to find the group and did their own hike, later catching up to us after the hike at Hopshire

Just a reminder to everyone, unless we are hiking an entirely new area that the group is unfamiliar with, we start the hikes promptly.

The temperatures were higher than expected, and soon some of the hikers were down to short sleeves. Hard to believe that just a week ago we were enduring our first snow accumulation of the season.

As we walked the yellow trails to the seasonal portion of Canaan Rd, the trail behind me was alive with the shuffling of feet through the freshly fallen leaves and the buzz of voices. The leaf-fall was so new in many places today that had there been no markers on trees along the way, picking out the trail in some places would have been a bit of a task for someone new to the Hill. The tall stands of trees the trail passes through before reaching Canaan Rd are among my favorite locations on Hammond Hill, and today did not disappoint.

Upon reaching Canaan Rd the group crossed over that road , continuing along more yellow trails. We doubled back to Canaan RD on trails that offered a wonderful view down some steep slopes. The views of the downhill slopes along this section are often concealed by the leaves in summer, but there are no such problems this time of year

Upon returning to Canaan RD the group walked the road to near the intersection of Canaan and Red Man, where we walked the Rabbit Run snowmobile trail to its intersection with the blue hiking trails at the top of the hill. A short out and back towards the South to kill a few minutes, and we soon turned North again to walk back to the cars.

Overall it was an excellent day to hike, one of the best we’ve probably had in a month or so.

More photos:

Cian

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Sun Nov 8

This report was written by Jim

Logan Road, Finger Lakes National Forest — FLT east

Twelve hikers and one dog met on Logan Rd in Schuyler County, for a hike of the Finger Lakes Trail.

The weather wasn’t as pleasant as it had been the previous day, but still excellent for the second week of November.

Hikers struck out on the FLT in an Easterly direction, as trail use in the Westerly direction is shut down for hunting season.

The first 30 minutes was a steady climb alongside a pleasant ravine. At the top of the hill we encountered a junction with the Southside Trail, but continued on the FLT.

The next half mile was a steady, undulating series of small creek beds and gradual up-hill and down-hill portions for another thirty minutes, until we reached Burnt Hill RD.

After crossing Burnt Hill Rd we continued on a short section of the co-located FLT and Interloken Trail, until  the FLT veered off to the South.

This section of the FLT was interesting to me because the air was thick with falling leaves, and the noise of the leaves hitting the forest floor around me was quite evident.

At the same time the low bushes around me were a mix of deep reds, yellows and some that were even a deep green, as of yet unaffected by the seasonal leaf changes.

Occasionally passing under a gauntlet of trees as the trail cut a path between the trunks was also visually pleasing.

Passing Dunham lean-to, the group managed to avoid twisting an ankles on the unsteady streambed rocks that lay in wait under the fresh leaf cover, as the trail followed a dry streambed.

As the FLT returned to Burnt Hill RD, some of our group opted to road-walk North on Burnt Hill, while others opted to walk entirely back to their cars from that turn-around point on the FLT. The group on Burnt Hill further split up as some chose to continue road-walking on Wycoff Rd for a more direct route back to their cars. Others chose to continue on Burnt Hill to the first FLT crossing, and return to Logan RD along our original route.

There was a moderate amount of other trail users today, but nothing like Hammond Hill was the previous day.

More photos

Cian