Author: shesse

Hello Hikers!

 

Saturday Jan 23

Lloyd Stark Loop, Connecticut Hill Wildlife Management Area
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Something different. — I asked several regulars if they’d like to handle the photography for this hike report — not that I’m tired of photographing the hikes, but I thought it would be fun to give others a chance — so all the shots in this report are from Mark, who’s been taking photos for many years and who has an impressive collection of classic film cameras on display at his house — I took just one photo, an up-to-date mug shot of Dave G, who guided us along this confusing trail.
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Maybe we didn’t get any snow from the blizzard to the south, but I wonder if the big storm affected our weather in some other way — I thought it was unusually raw at the trail head, and it continued even after we were in the woods — wore my face mask the whole time — very roasty-toasty except it made my nose run vigorously the whole time, and there was some steaming up of the eyeglasses.

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
Dave G almost had to skip leading us on the hike — he was doing a last run-through of the trail the day before on skis when he took a nasty fall and hurt his foot — there actually wasn’t enough snow for skiing, which caused him to crash — luckily for us, he felt OK by morning. This is not the smoothest trail in the world — we hit lots of frozen leaves and crusty thin ice that kept collapsing underfoot — not that great for the ankles if you’re not careful.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
Don’t know if it was due to my dire warnings, but no one fell behind and got lost — just a little standing around waiting for everyone to catch up — the going was somewhat slow because of the poor surface
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The temperature never climbed above the high teens but there were enough uphills and we all warmed up before too long — we had two new hikers, steered to us by Norm — this is Dave — he got a huge “like” from Katharine …. not too hard to figure out why if you know her — there are two fantastic overlooks on this trail, both of them at their best with snow cover and gloomy light
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Official head count: 16 hikers and Yoda

More photos online:

Mark

Jack V

 

Sunday Jan 24

Kennedy State Forest, Virgil
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As many of you know, I’m a huge fan of evergreen forests — if you feel the same, this walk just beyond Dryden is definitely the one — I was really struck this time by how long we were able to spend walking through fantastic stands of hemlocks, and how dramatic and satisfying the evergreen scenery is. There are stretches of hardwood forest here too, but I’m pretty sure this walk contains the largest stretch of evergreens in our roster.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
It’s even more fun because much of the trail is a bit challenging — narrow, bumpy, rising and falling, roots in the path — the snow cover was quite slippery and there were hikers with less grippy soles on their shoes who actually had to crawl uphill in a few spots
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I like the ruggedness of the trail myself but it’s harder than usual for me to get action shots of the hikers, because I’m so busy trying to keep from tripping or falling, there’s no way I can keep turning around to photograph the people behind me. I really need to be able to stop and stand still.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
Much easier to get shots on the non-hemlock parts of the walk — the beech trees with their pale leaves add a nice luminous touch.
Super-regular hiker Brenda recently got a new hat — she said she loves hats and she always has a car full of them — very jazzy and I like the way it brings a touch of style into the woods.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
Some hikes have a high point, some don’t. Not everyone got to see this one, but I’d say it was definitely the high point — or low point, depending on how you define it
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That’s Norm — we were all steamed up when we emerged from the woods at the halfway point at Owego Hill Road, but he was the only one to tear off his clothes — I didn’t have to egg him on, either, it was his idea — pretty hairy guy ….
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Official head count: 26 hikers, five dogs

More photos online:

Me

Annie

Hello Hikers!

 

Wednesday Jan 20

Chestnut Lean-to, Danby SF
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I’m posting this report on Wednesday’s hike ahead of time in order to get the ball rolling on our hot dog cook-out coming up next Sunday. We did the hike in to the lean-to for our midweek hike so we could collect enough wood for the fire, which I’ve learned from experience is the most important item in a winter cook-out.
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At the first cook-out we had, two years ago, the fire was too small and we were a little chilly. Last year we had a big fire but we started it too late and it didn’t get really blazing until we were wrapping up. This year I’m advertising a fire guaranteed to be five feet high, and we’re going to start it early so it will be just right when we gather.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
We thought we might have to do some extensive foraging for firewood, but the state DEC has done a great deal of tree-cutting in the area near the lean-to in the last year, and a lot of the wood has been left lying around, so there was actually a tremendous supply for us, though it required sawing. We had a number of saws with us and we managed to produce a huge amount of good-sized logs. We hid most of the cut wood a ways off in the woods to be sure no one camps out between now and the cook-out date and spots our logs and burns them.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
If your idea of a great outdoor get-together is to sit alongside a pool while a waiter hands you a drink, you won’t like the cook-out. But if you like a little challenge mixed in, this event is fantastic. The hike in from the cars is short, about 20 minutes, but there are several lively ups and downs along the way that will get you warmed up. If the snow is deep, we’ll have our snowshoe team walk in at the front of the line to pack the trail down into a solid base (we did this last year). We’ll have a two-hour walk as usual for those interested, but if you just want to come for the cook-out, by all means do it.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
The lean-to’s in an idyllic setting and it’s especially pretty with snow. You can get inside the open part of the lean-to if you want shelter, though no one has done this to date. There are rustic benches around the fire, and we cut some large stumps to use as stools. With the fire blasting away, it’s really quite pleasant. I’ll give details about the food next week — there’s no need to pre-order anything — just show up and you’ll find a hot dog waiting for you.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
We had a lot of fun cutting and gathering the firewood on Wednesday’s hike. It didn’t seem like work with everyone pitching in.
Official head count: 16 hikers and Yoda

More photos online:

Me

Jack V

Hello Hikers!

 

Wednesday Jan 13

Yellow Barn SF followed by a birthday party at Steve and Diane’s in Ellis Hollow

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It was so horribly cold and windy at the trail head I briefly thought we might have to abandon the hike, something we’ve only ever done once or twice before.  But then we reached the shelter of the trees in a minute or two and the wind was blocked.  Still unpleasantly cold for a while until we got warmed up.

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online.

The snow cover wasn’t very deep and it was nice and powdery, but we hit a surprising amount of slick ice underneath, and the terrain was generally bumpy and choppy, which made walking a little tough, especially for those with knee or ankle problems.  Tiger’s knee swelled up when she got back home and it was hurting in bed; she had to take Aleve several times.

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online

This walk is a very pleasing mixture of woods and fields  —  we hit some windy areas out in the open but by then we were steamed up and it didn’t feel so miserable.  Extremely beautiful sky with big puffy clouds and a lovely sun.

There’s a large pond along the way that was covered with snow.  I asked if anyone wanted to test out the thickness of the ice:

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online

That’s Eckhart, our #1 daredevil.  If you look closely, you’ll see he was up on his toes jumping up and down, and grinning.  So we learned the ice could support one person.

But how many more?

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How many of you think this was a fun challenge?  How many a foolish and risky one?

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Official head count:  18 hikers, two dogs.  Everyone came out a bit small in order to get them all into one long lineup.   I have  another version of this shot online broken in two so everyone appears larger and you can see their faces better.

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online

Six more people came to the party afterwards  —  we had NY-style cheesecake baked by Diane, shrimp and pizza, and lots of beer and wine  —  plenty of that left over for our hot dog cook-out coming up Jan 31 in Danby.

More photos online

Me

Annie

Jack V

 

 

Saturday Jan 16

Lindsay Parsons Preserve, W Danby

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Sometimes a hike comes across as more than just a string of different scenes. Several of us were talking about music, and it occurred to me this walk unfolded like a beautiful tone poem — fantastic saturated subtle shades of brown and grey — pale mist hanging on the hillsides — dim light than got lighter and darker — wet tree trunks and logs gleaming
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The start was a little disconcerting — parts of the parking lot were a sheet of treacherous ice — but it was fine once we headed down the hill into the preserve.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
Supposedly the rain that passed through a few hours before we set out was finished, but then we got a 10-minute burst on the trail — one of the hikers who was wearing a down coat got soaked and had to turn back early. For those of us wearing water-resistant gear, it was fun.

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
There’s a big pond here — not clear from looking whether the ice was weak or not — that’s daredevil Bud checking it out — evidently still solid but he didn’t venture any further out from the shore into the flooded areas

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Later, Bud found a garter snake in the middle of the trail, something we haven’t seen before in cold weather — you can see him lifting the snake in the bottom of the photo — the dogs ignored it

          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
On the hike I was trying to think of an arty women’s designer who created a very successful clothing line in the mid-80s using a palate of muted woodland colors — couldn’t think of her name but Tiger knew it  —  not that our ladies do much hiking in stylish sportswear.  Tiger thought the scenery looked like a rich and subtle tweed.

Official head count: 20 hikers, four dogs
More photos online:

Me

Jack V

 

Sunday Jan 17

Willseyville Creek, Caroline

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Delightful grey morning along a very low-key and easygoing trail well off the beaten track.
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This walk resembles the Jim Schug Trail in Dryden in that it’s an old railroad right-of-way running through a swampy floodplain — it differs because there are some lovely woods and rolling fields to see along the way — and because you get the strong feeling hardly anyone walks here
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
In winter, the right-of-way becomes an official snowmobile trail — it would definitely be fun to roar along here on a frigid morning — as long as the big puddles were frozen over
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
The walk takes us across Ridgeway Road up to the edge of a very large pond Willseyville Creek has formed — couldn’t manage to get a shot showing some of the extent, but the views to the east into the hills are beautiful too
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The creek passes under Ridgeway Road at the low point in the background of this shot — quick walk back to the cars —

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…… very little traffic to dodge ….
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Official head count: 28 hikers, four dogs
More photos online:

Me

Jack V

Hello Hikers!

 

 

Wednesday Jan 6

Potato Hill SF, Caroline

A minute or two after we set off for the trail head, Tiger noticed a “low tire pressure” warning light on the dashboard. It took a lot more time than we expected to resolve this, thanks to a series of semi-comical mishaps, and so we had to miss the hike. I regret this, because from the photos by Annie and Jack V, it looks like it was a really good one. Annie prepared a report for everyone, and Brenda added more info. I asked Annie and Jack V to send me their two favorite photos, and a blurb explaining why they especially liked the shots they picked.

**

Annie’s report:  Today’s hike started out with a bit of a surprise. Several cars lined up on Level Green but no Hesses were to be found. We then got the word that they had car trouble and would not be hiking today. We were on our own! The first challenge was finding the trail. What I learned later was, if you were using Google Maps and its dropped pin for the meeting place, and if you stopped right where the pin dropped, you were precisely at the trail head. Of course, we were parked hither and yon so we did scramble back and forth until we got it right. Jack V. led the way through the snow covered woods, which were filled with shafts of sunlight, tall tree shadows, crunchy snow and ice. It was beautiful and we all knew that Steve and Susan would have loved it.

Photo by Jack V. He chose this shot because ‘Here is the trail head! How did I drive past it without seeing it?’

Crossing Blackman Hill Road, we noticed a state trooper parked near the Hidden Driveways sign. (Of course, in my photograph, I would have liked to change the sign to read “Hidden State Trooper” but the sign was too small in the photo for a quick change by yours truly!). We were very careful to hike to the left of the power poles and driveway (especially aware of the watchful eyes of the state trooper) and up the field we climbed, entranced by bright blue skies, streaks of white clouds, and bright sun that warmed us up. The views were lovely and we were told that we were seeing Pennsylvania mountains on that clear morning.

          Click here to see a version of this photo online

Photo by Annie: “I enjoyed all the vistas we saw today but I particularly like this photo where I zoomed in on the view. I like seeing the various hills and mountains in the distance, with varying shades of blue, streaks of white clouds, with the red barn in the foreground.”

We walked through some more woods and then returned to the pasture and walked up even higher for more views. It was definitely worth the short climb and we lingered there for a while. We all enjoyed the hike back. I, for one, also like to observe things that I hadn’t seen going the other way. Those of us at the end of the group were interested to see that hikers hung around the cars for a little while before departing.”

       Click here to see a copy of this photo online

Photo by Jack V:  “Do you see the cat?”

We all noticed, on our way in on Level Green from Route 79, that the trees were covered with ice and they glistened in the morning sun. The beauty of the ice was gone on the return trip but definitely worth remembering.”

Photo by Annie:  “I like this one because it captures the bright colors of our hikers as they move through the trail and the garland of brown beech leaves that hang tenaciously on their branches. I wouldn’t have known what they were if I hadn’t been for walking with Jim Rundle on a fall hike when he told me about those beech trees. I love learning things from my fellow hikers!”

**

And from Brenda:  “A few additional comments:  Jack V. did his best to keep us off the private driveway off Blackman Hill Road and directed us to walk in the parallel field. He reinforced this by pointing out the State Trooper waiting (lurking) to arrest non compliant hikers.
This worked and the hikers complied until our return trip when Yoda decided to walk on the driveway. Jack tried his best to inform Yoda of the error of his ways but Yoda ignored him. Due to Yoda’s small stature the Trooper probably did not see him and he evaded arrest.
Being curious about the terrain we covered on the hike I found out (googled)
that Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps worked to plant trees on Potato Hill.”

Official head count:  17 hikers, two dogs

You can see Annie’s photos here

You can see Jack V’s photos here

 

 

Saturday Jan 9

South Danby Road west to the Abbott Loop, Danby SF

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Here’s a rhetorical question. It’s supposed to be a drizzly morning, but when you step out the door to leave for the hike, it’s raining briskly. Do you: a) push ahead, or b) go back inside and plop down on the couch?
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I always make Tiger push ahead, of course, but it can be a dilemma for others. In this case, it obviously worked out, but you never can predict. Halfway to the hike, the rain stopped, the sky cleared and the sun burst out — then, when we reached the trail head, it was another typical dark and gloomy winter morning …. but not raining
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online
There was a thin coat of slushy snow, and the trail was quite wet and muddy in spots. So I want to give a shout-out to some new shoes I just got at EMS — other hikers were slipping and skidding but my shoes were extremely grippy, and I didn’t get my feet wet — list price a bit steep but Tiger got them for 1/3 off.
          Click here to see a copy of this photo online.
Ever smash the top of your head on a log that’s fallen across the trail high up that you failed to notice? I did it once and it was very upsetting, quite painful and I briefly wondered if I’d gotten a concussion. I was talking to to a hiker behind me about Trump when he abruptly cried out — I turned around to see him rubbing his forehead and looking at a fallen log at head height. This is actually a bad trail for these head-smashing logs — this same hiker hit his head here once before, on a different log. It’s not hard to let your attention relax and bash into one of these menaces.
          Click here to see a copy of thi photo online
Otherwise we had a great hike. Official head count: 22 hikers, three dogs

More photos online:
Me
Annie
Jack V

Sunday Jan 10

I hate to have to cancel a hike because of rain  — half the time it ends up that we could have hiked  —  but this time it probably was the right decision  —  according to the various rainfall loggers at the Ithaca Climate Page, we got just about 1/4″ of rain between 9 and noon  —  hard enough to make hiking uncomfortable for those of us who don’t love getting soaked  —  and one hiker told me it was pouring at her house on West Hill a little before 10.

Hello Hikers!

 

Saturday Jan 2

Bald Hill Road to Thatcher’s Pinnacles, Danby SF
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
For years I thought it was completely wimpy to park 2/3 of the way up the long hill to this great look-out, rather than do the full hike from the valley below — well, I’ve seen the light — now I love being able to bypass all the intermediate huffing and puffing, and just zip straight up to the Pinnacles
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There’s too much vegetation blocking the full view from the top for much of the year now, but it’s fabulous in winter, especially with a little snow on the ground — I really like the effect of the distant hills in the background — looks a bit like a stage set to me — this is our senior hiker, Eckhart — I have similar shots of two other super-regulars, Steve S and Jack V, in my online album
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
Our walk had a nice bleak quality — some nasty frozen spots on Bald Hill Road that were quite slippery — otherwise, the snow cover was fluffy and we had an easy time of it.
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
The trail between Bald Hill Road and the Pinnacles is part of the Abbott Loop, and the scenery along much of the way is among the most atmospheric we see, especially with fresh snow on the pine boughs — but pretty much too dark for good photos — I’ve never been able to get a shot that came anywhere near capturing the beauty.
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
The weather was pleasant and we were in good spirits — this was a crew mainly of super-regulars and the conversational level was quite loud.
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Official head count: 17 hikers, two dogs

More photos online:
Me
Jack V

 

Sunday Jan 3

Texas Hollow SF
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This is a decent enough walk on a nice summer day — but the hike’s really emotionally satisfying when it’s nasty out, cold with rain or snow — the woods here have a great brooding and somber quality that bad weather strongly brings out
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I never attempt landscape or nature-type photos — I try to let you see the hikers, having fun or not — the downside is that I don’t convey much sense of what the bigger picture looked like. That’s an integral part of any hike that I ignore — but our nature photographers do a great job of documenting that.
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
We were supposed to have just some minor snow flurries in the morning, but it snowed pretty much the whole time, and it was wonderfully dark. I loved the lighting — as long as the hikers were out in the open.
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
In fact, most of this walk is under the trees — but I’ve pretty much given up trying to get shots there on dark winter days while I’m wearing multiple mittens and it’s almost impossible to make camera adjustments while stumbling along on slippery ups and downs.
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
You can see that no one walked on the boardwalk in this shot — this is where the bees were living that stung several of our ladies last summer — people have now created a path off to the side and I guess no one trusts the boardwalk now even when the bees aren’t around.

Two minor news items:
1) There’s a big coyote den right off the trail — I can never remember where it is but regular hiker Bud does — he reported seeing something furry moving around — we decided not to tell everyone for fear they’d cluster around talking excitedly and scare off whatever coyote was living inside
2) Dave B, our Mr Connecticut Hill who’s been on the injured list for months, made his first serious hike with us since he had a major ankle repair surgery — he made it pretty far before turning back — he sais he has two months’ more rehab work to do.
          Click here to see a version of this photo online
Official head count:  27 hikers, five dogs

More photos online:
Me
Annie
Jack V

****

If you’ve been waiting for Annie’s photos from New Year’s Day, click here

****

I want to give a special shout-out to a former hiker, now inactive, who came to our New Year’s Day tailgate party. She hasn’t hiked with us in some time, and she doesn’t know many of our current regulars, who joined us after she’d left the trail. She’s Marjorie O, who was part of the nucleus of the Ithaca Hikers when Tiger and I got involved in mid-2004. The group was very small, and there weren’t very many really avid hikers among them, so the turnout was often quite small (we did just one hike a week then, on Sundays). I would have given up trying to organize hikes if the attendance had continued so low for very long, but Marjorie began a very effective campaign to recruit a large number of people to at least try out the group from among her huge circle of friends and acquaintances. Tiger and I had moved here without knowing a single person in Ithaca, so Marjorie’s effort was invaluable. She pumped a large number of people into the group — most didn’t last, but there was a sense of momentum and growth — word of mouth began to spread — we started to catch on — today we’re surviving without her help, but she single-handedly kept us from closing down prematurely because of a lack on interest.

****

Our winter hot dog cook-out at Chestnut Lean-to will be Sunday Jan 31, after our regular hike. This isn’t our biggest social event of the year but it’s the most lively, IMO. We plan to have a major fire this time, guaranteed five feet high, so no one needs to worry about being cold.