Hello Hikers!
Wed Nov 10
Hike report by Jim
Allan Treman Marine Park, Cass Park and the Black Diamond Trail
14 hikers met in the parking lot of Allan H Treman State Marine Park, for a tour of several area walking trails. The group started the hike by walking the new paved walking trail that follows the perimeter of the marina. That trail, once it reaches the marina entrance on Cayuga Inlet, follows the lake shoreline in a loop in the direction of the Hog Hole area.
On this day the trees were brilliant in their fall hues, while the lake itself was a sullen grey color. Breezes whipping across the choppy water made me happy that I’d worn an additional layer on this particular hike.
The group, completing this circuit, crossed the park entrance road and jumped onto the Cayuga Waterfront Trail as it follows the Cayuga Inlet. WE followed the Waterfront Trail as far as the Childrens Garden in Cass Park; crossing State Route 89 the group hopped onto the Black Diamond Trail for a quick out and back portion of the hike to burn up some hike time.
Returning to the Childrens Garden the group paused long enough to allow our newest youngest hiker Imogen some time to check out the equipment and to interact with the other kids who were there.
With our hike time drawing to a close the group walked on the Waterfront Trail back to Cass Park and then to our cars in Allan H Treman.
While not a regular hike in our rotation, it was a good break from the routine of some of our more frequently visited locations.
Photos by shesse
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Sat Nov 13
Hike report by Nancy L
Shortened Van Lone Loop, Schuyler County
15 hikers (including one toddler in a backpack) and 2 dogs gathered on this damp morning. We started out by hiking along the Fingerlakes Trail for a pleasant walk along the edge of the “Gulf” creek which is the outlet creek for Cayuta Lake. The water was fairly high but the trail was not flooded. This portion is quite picturesque. The creek meanders around numerous islands. At the beginning it flows slowly but in later portions runs more rapidly. A mile and a half in, there is an impressive cascade formed by a feeder stream that flows in from van lone hill from the north. At this spot, the trail leads us over the stream via an elaborate old curving bridge which looks rickety but has been recently shored up.Shortly after crossing the bridge our hike turned away from the finger lakes trail to follow an alternate route that begins with a short but steep uphill trail that connects to a nice old road through a dark forest high on the east side of the feeder stream. The road goes through a field before rejoining the Van Lone Loop trail. This portion of the loop is called “School House Road” . We took a side trip east to look at the ruins of the old School House before heading West on the trail. The trail led down to the stream where a few of us got our feet wet crossing due to the recent rain. From there we had to climb to near the top of Van Lone Hill and over. The hiking trail ends at the top of Gulf Road. The drizzle was picking up steam as we descended steeply down the road and back to our cars.
Photos by Randy/Nancy
You can see Randy and Nancy’s complete photo album here
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Photos by Cian
You can see Cian’s complete photo album here
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Sun Nov 14
Hike report by Jim
Monkey Run, south side of Fall Creek, Varna
23 hikers and 3 dogs met on Monkey Run Rd in the Town of Dryden for a hike of the trails in the area. The group started out in a Southwesterly direction on the orange blazed trails. Crossing the open Cornell fields we jumped onto the red blazed trails, which we followed for the remainder of the hike.
Temperatures were cool, which made for a comfortable hike day.
Recent rains had made the trail muddy and slick in places, with wet leaves adding to that problem.
The streams were well-flowing with run-off, and while the skies over all were grey and a little overcast, the visibility at lower altitudes was unaffected.
Few other people were on the trails, although we did see the Cayuga Trails Club maintainers for this section at the beginning of the hike, as well as a handful of other dog walkers and day hikers at various points.
Welcome to new hikers James, Nick and Joanna for their first hike with the group
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Photos by Cian
You can see Cian’s complete photo album here