On Wednesday, October 23, sixteen hikers and two dogs met at Whites Hollow Road, just to the west of the famous gorge at Watkins Glen for an out and back hike along the Finger Lakes Trail. This was a new area for most of the hikers.
The day was perfect for hiking. The sun was out, and while it started out cool, it soon warmed up so that most hiked in just shirts.
The hike has a number of interesting sites. There is a wonderful stone bridge and staircase, most likely dating back to the CCC days. There is a dam with a lovely pond beyond it, There is also the Hidden Valley 4H Camp just off the trail. The group enjoyed exploring the area and special sites. We arrived back at the cars after 2 hours of hiking and exploration.
Photo by Mark Sussman
Saturday, October 26
Abbott Loop east from Michigan Hollow Road to Hill Road and beyond, Danby SF
Hike report by Anne Becker
15 hikers met at the lower Abbot Loop crossing on Michigan Hollow road for a 3.5 mile hike in the Danby State Forest. There were enough leaves still on the trees and plenty of sunshine peeking through to make up for the chilly temperatures.
The route starts with a considerable climb, and then continues east to a lower section that includes boardwalks and creek-side views. A short road walk on the seasonal use Hill Road completed the eastern loop and got us back to the long descent to our cars. Keeping the group together proved challenging for first time hike leader Anne B., but all 15 did arrive back at the starting point safely.
Timing was not too far over the 2 hour mark, and so three club members then traveled south one mile to tour the property of Wayne Myers, known as Myers Gardens. The gardens were dormant, but this property also boasts beautiful stonework, a replica mill house and lots of antique farm equipment.
For our annual Halloween Ithaca City Cemeteries hike, there was a problem before the hike started. Ithaca High School was hosting a large lacrosse event that left us with no place to park at our planned meeting location. A last-minute change of parking to Stewart Park, with a quick group email and a flurry of text messages to the hikers I knew were planning on attending the hike, found the majority of hikers able to locate the group at the park. We managed to acquire a few more hikers who joined us in the cemetery. In the end, our group consisted of 32 hikers and five dogs on a sunny and warm loop hike through the city cemeteries and Cascadilla Gorge.
After hiking from Stewart Park to Lake Street, we turned into Lake View Cemetery, stopping to check out a notable occupant or two along the way. We exited that cemetery and. stopped at Sunset Park to enjoy the view and take a group picture before setting off again on Stewart Ave to reach the Ithaca City Cemetery.
As we turned into the City Cemetery, we opted to bypass our usual wandering path through that place in order to save a few minutes, and we walked through the cemetery to University Ave., where we encountered a guided tours of the cemetery. Turning downhill, we walked to the base of the Cascadilla gorge trail, which we took to College Ave. The gorge trail was very enjoyable, between the visuals of the freshly fallen leaves throughout the gorge and the decent amount of water flowing in the creek. There were many other people hiking the gorge trail today, so I found myself frequently having to pause and wait for them to pass me by. From College Ave., we walked downhill through Highland Place and Williams Street back to Stewart Ave., where we took the pathway that follows Cascadilla Park Road back to the base of University Ave.
Once we were back in Fall Creek, the larger group splintered into many small subgroups as clusters of hikers stopped to admire the various Halloween decorations and other things to see in the Fall Creek neighborhood. The small group I was with opted to stop at Ithaca Falls on our way back to the cars and arrived back at Stewart Park 40 minutes later than the earliest hikers who had completed the route.
Leader: Steve Schwartz. 14 hikers (including 6 hikers from the Onondaga Chapter of the ADK).
The hike was followed by a tour and lunch at Beck Equipment hosted by hiker Roger Beck.
This is a loop hike of about 4 miles on very lightly traveled dirt roads with a short paved section. For the most part this is easy walking on level terrain with only two moderate hills. The roads offer open scenes of the sweeping rural countryside of Cortland County. The views were especially striking with the fall colors at peak. The weather was threatening with glints of sunshine between the light rain and wind with temperatures in the low 40s. Basically it was a blustery fall day with more threats of rain than actual downpours.
After the hike we caravaned down the hill following Roger the short distance to Beck Equipment in Preble. We had an informative and interesting tour viewing how they repair heavy construction equipment in the massive facility there. Roger provided a sumptuous repast of ham with all the fixins, pizza, coffee, and much else. Thank you Roger! Everyone had a wonderful time.
Photo by JimPhotos by Steve Schwartz
Saturday, October 19
FTL from Schuyler County Veterans Memorial Park, Alpine
Hike report by Leigh Ann
Twelve hikers and two dogs enjoyed a spectacularly shiny day on the FLT. We went from the Schuyler County Veteran’s Park to where the wooden bridge used to be in Hendershot Gulf. This hike is about 5.5 miles round trip and is almost flat, with about 275 feet of elevation gain. It is rewarding any time of year, as it goes along fields, a bog, through forests, and along Hendershot Gulf. The bright blue sky contrasted mightily with the peak fall foliage.
Spur trail from upper Lick Brook/Townline Road to upper Buttermilk Falls SP/Yaple Road
Hike report by Jim
Nineteen hikers and two dogs met on Townline Rd in the Town of Ithaca for an out and back hike of the Thayer Preserve and the FLT spur trail into Upper Buttermilk Falls State Park. This is hike # 11 on our list of regular hike locations.
After an initial photograph the hikers set off on the red blazed portion of Toms Trail within the Thayer Preserve. This involves a couple of short uphill sections that eventually come to Sandbank Rd where the actual kiosk for the Preserve and a small parking area is located. Continuing onwards, the group passed by the junction with the blue blazed section of Toms Trail that we would touch later in the hike.
Beyond that trail junction the footpath crosses an open field behind South Hill Cidery before the trail plunges back into the woods before coming out on a utility right of way. By now the sun was out and the day was warming up nicely. The group hiked the right of way to West King Rd; from there a short road walk brought hikers to the orange blazed FLT spur trail that passes through some nice sections of woods and a couple of open field sections that were well along in their transition to fall colors on today’s hike. The last time we did this section of trail it was very much under water or suffering from heavy mud, forcing the group that day to road walk on Yaple Rd. No such problem existed today, and while the field sections could probably use one more mowing, it was a great improvement from the last hike here.
The hikers reached Yaple Rd earlier than normal, so we crossed the small bridge on Comfort Rd and entered the state park for a short hike to Treman Lake. We turned around at the lake and with Leigh Ann now in the lead we re-traced our earlier route.
Reaching the junction with the blue blazed trail we turned onto that section of trail, crossed the dry Lick Brook stream bed, and completed the loop of Toms Trail that brings hikers back to Townline Rd a short distance from the cars on the opposite side of the bridge located at the trailhead. That last section of trail is always one of my favorites in this area; while it doesn’t offer the same degree of awe that you get while hiking the trails on the opposite side of Townline Rd above the falls in the Sweedler Preserve, this section does offer some very enjoyable views as you hike the trail above the creek bed before it reached Townline Rd.
Ten hikers met at the junction of Whites Hollow and Punch Bowl Roads, just outside of Watkins Glen State Park, for a hike of the FLT and Gorge Trails within the park. This is hike # 14-1B on our list of regular hike locations: https://www.ithacahikers.com/hike-14.
After a quick group photo the hikers entered the park through the gate on Punch Bowl Rd and quickly turned off the service road onto the FLT footpath. This trail followed the hills above the stream, eventually arriving at the upper shelter in the park. The group stopped briefly to look over the shelter before continuing on the hike, The FLT in this section has some modest elevation changes, and other than some trip hazards from roots its a pretty nice section of trail. The only mud we encountered on the hike today was in the immediate vicinity of the shelter, and that was minimal at best.
On the trail it was overcast and in shadow, but the sun shone brightly overhead, its light shining through the canopy in beams of light. Occasionally we would walk out from underneath the canopy into a well-lit short section of trail that never seemed to last very long before we were plunged back into shadow.
The group stopped briefly at the dam below the shelter area before continuing on.
It was in this area that encountered a work crew who were in the area attempting to treat the hemlock trees in that part of the forest.
Eventually we arrived at the mile point bridge, turning into that bridge and crossing into the Gorge Trail.. Up to this point other than the work crew and a very few day hikers, we had had the trail to ourselves. Once on the Gorge Trail we found ourselves mingling with quite a few park visitors.
Our group walked down the Gorge Trail, stopping frequently to take photos or to wait for passing hikers in the narrow confines of the trail. We turned onto the Lovers Leap trail and took that to the Sentry Bridge, which we crossed over and returned to the FLT.
Once back on the FLT it was a steady uphill slog for a while until we arrived back at the mile point bridge. From there we retraced our previous route back to our cars. On the return portion of the hike we encountered many more park visitors than we had during our initial hike from the trailhead.
The group arrived back at the cars about fifteen minutes late, but no one was complaining as it was a great day to be in the woods today.
The morning was clear, with large clouds in the sky as I turned onto Lake Rd to get to the park. Before the road dips towards the lake a traveler is treated to a panoramic view of the fields, the lake in the distance, all against the distant shores on the opposite side of the lake and the blue skies overhead.
I had a little drama when I got to the park, as they were still charging the entrance fee, while the state park website said that the seasonal entrance fees were no longer being collected. I had scheduled this hike within the week-long narrow window of the entrance fee not being collected and the start of hunting season next week, when we would lose access to all trails within the park. The persistent lack of accurate information on several state park websites has repeatedly been a frustration for me in planning hikes for the group. I was able to speak to park staff and resolve this issue today to my satisfaction.
The hikers posed for our usual group photos and then started the hike. This park is a fairly new location for the group; I think this was only the third group hike we’ve done here. I opted to take the group on a loop around the perimeter trails on the easterly side of Lake Rd. This consisted of parts of the Sunset Ridge Trail, the Spring Run Ravine Trail, the North Woods Trail, the Pheasant Run Trail, the Whitetail Crossing Trail, and the Hidden Forest Trail.
The trails here are what I would describe as being very easy, with only minor elevation changes along the entirety of the route. There are trail signs at every intersection but no blazing on the trail routes; this time of year when the fallen leaves obscure the footpath, having a map to assist you on a first hike here is helpful.
I knew from the last time that we did this hike that we wouldn’t get a full hike out of the trail section, and today was a faster hike than our hike here last fall. Once we completed the trail loop, we crossed back over Lake Rd and walked to the paved path that follows the shoreline of Cayuga Lake. By now the day had warmed up, a stiff breeze was blowing in from the lake, and there were many whitecaps on the water. A few hardy boaters were on the lake getting their last days of boating in before the weather turns colder next week.
We encountered no other hikers on the trail portion of the hike, and not many day walkers along the shore. I wasn’t surprised by this, as our hikers who’ve previously come to this park on their own reported that the hiking trails here were unknown to them on their previous visits. I will admit that the only reason I knew of the trail system in this park was by looking at state park maps online where I had noticed the trail system depicted.
After the hike several members of our group reconvened at the Aurora Brewing Company for lunch. We got a table outside under the porch, with a field of grapes and the lake in the distance made for enjoyable surroundings.
This was our first group hike here since the Land Trust opened the Preserve to the public earlier this year. At that time Nancy H and I had hiked the Preserve trails and posted a report here that the trails were insufficient for our group hike durations. A member posted a response that we had missed an entire loop of trail which didn’t appear on the Preserve map. Eventually I got around to plugging this location into our hike schedule for today.
The weather forecast for Sunday was not favorable, especially in comparison to Saturday. The overnight rain on Saturday had me convinced that I would wake up Sunday morning to find a slew of RSVP cancelations on our Meetup group. Instead, I found that we had received additional RSVPs, not cancelations.
The rain had stopped by the time hikers started arriving at the Preserve parking lot on Ridge Rd. It might have been overcast, but the views of the lake from the parking area were promising.
Our group photo was taken by an unidentified jogger who was passing by the group, so for once we are all in the picture….
The hikers took the main white blazed trail down the hill, eventually turning onto the blue blazed Dannys Trail loop. The nice feature of Dannys Trail is that it is sandwiched between two nice ravines that give hikers some good views as they descend and then re-ascend through the course of the loop. Hikers mentioned that the carpet of freshly fallen leaves on the forest floor around us was a visual treat, as was the striking visual effect of so many treetops being in vibrant fall colors while the lower parts of the trees were still a deep green. It was also noted that trees higher up the slope were further along the seasonal leaf color changes than those trees lower on the slope, many of which were still entirely green.
After completing Dannys Trail there’s a nice viewing area at the end of the white blazed trail which offers some nice views of the lake. This viewing area is as close to the lake as hikers get while in this preserve.
From the viewing area the next section of trail on our route today was the yellow blazed out-and-back path that takes hikers to the dead end of Fiddlers Ridge Rd. This trail section is nice as it passes through a great little section of woods with a couple of minor stream crossings along the way. There was a little water flowing after the overnight rains, but no mud on the trails. Leigh Ann commented that while the Preserve is fairly new, the trails give the appearance of getting some frequent and on-going use by the public. Clearly Lansing residents are taking advantage of this new hiking resource in a town that in many respects has fewer hiking options than many of the other townships in the county.
The last portion of the Preserve that we visited was the red-blazed vista loop. This is the trail section that doesn’t appear on the official maps. The mowed loop that follows the tree line around the perimeter of the open fields is about a mile or so in length. While there aren’t many views of the lake from here, there is a sliver of Cayuga Lake visible from the loop. Today the multitude of fall colors from the surrounding trees and the scrubby vegetation in the open fields was a nice part of the hike.
While we were in the open fields it started to drizzle a little; not enough to make the hike any less enjoyable.
Once we completed the Vista loop we returned to the yellow blazed trail and from there back to the parking area. The rain grew somewhat in intensity for this last part of the hike, and soon after arriving back at our cars (at exactly two hours), the skies opened up and the rain really poured.
Welcome to Annika on her first hike with the group!
The day was cool and overcast throughout the hike. There was a small amount of precipitation throughout the hike at various times, but while under the forest canopy it was barely noticed. After the hike was completed the weather took a turn for the worse with heavy rain, so in retrospect I have no issues with the minor sprinkling we got during the hike.
My main fear before today’s hike was that the preserve would be closed for hunting, as it’s been known to have hunting closures outside of the regular hunting season in the past. I arrived early to verify that the trails were open, and found staff busily engaged in mowing portions of the open fields near the parking area.
The hikers started down the hill, passing through the open fields to reach the red blazed trails that lead deeper into the forest. The fields around us were in muted but still enjoyable fall colors. The group initially took the red blazed trail to its junction with the yellow blazed loop, which we completed mostly without incident. The footpath was a little slick in spots, particularly on the steep hillsides, and a hiker or two slipped along the way without sustaining any injuries.
Completing the yellow blazed loop the group returned to the red blazed loop, following that further downhill to the lower areas of the forest, crossing dry streambeds and passing under fractured tree trunks along the way.
A year or so there was an addition to the preserve’s acreage, and while there aren’t any new trails there seems to be a change to the red blazed loops route that made that section more enjoyable than what I recall from past hikes at this location.
On the uphill portion of the red blazed loop the group passed over the old stone wall and made the final climb to where the red blazed trail returns to itself.
Climbing the hillside from that trail junction, we soon turned onto the blue blazed trail that loops around the open field below the parking area. We returned to our cars without incident and a few minutes earlier than normal, but the hikers reported that it had been an enjoyable hike despite its somewhat abbreviated duration.
Photo by JimPhotos by Maria Driscoll McMahon
Saturday, October 5
Trail Maintenance Day and Optional Get-Together
Report by Jim
Five hikers met at the junction of Lower Creek and Hanshaw Rds in the Town of Dryden for trail maintenance on our adopted section of the Cayuga Trail.
Despite the low turn-out the group still managed to cover about 75% of our adopted section. The group identified a small number of blowdown trees across the trail, which were reported to the CTC sawyer. Other than that, only minor trimming and pruning was required.
Parts of the Cayuga Trail maintenance is overseen by the Cayuga Trails Club. Trail maps for the Cayuga Trail are available in paper or electronic formats through the Finger Lakes Trail Conference at: https://fingerlakestrail.org/store/maps-and-gps/…. Sale of the map sheets helps to defray costs associated with trail maintenance.
No group photo was taken. Thanks to all who came out today for the work detail.
Sunday, October 6
Shindagin Hollow State Forest, Brooktondale
Hike report by Jim
Twenty-four hikers and four dogs met on Braley Hill Rd in the Town of Caroline for a hike of area trails within Shindagin Hollow State Forest on a nice sunny fall morning. This was hike # 28-3 on our list of regular hike locations: https://www.ithacahikers.com/hike-28
The trails proved to be a popular place today, as the two parking lots opposite each other were mostly full of the cars of other hikers and many bicyclists by the time our hike started, forcing our arriving hikers to park along the shoulder of Braley Hill Rd.
Our hike today consisted of a loop route spliced together from sections of Blue-blazed trails #1 and 3, the Finger Lakes Trail, Red – blazed Trails # 1 and #4, and Yellow-blazed trails #4 and #1. Normally I would refer readers to the appropriate Finger Lakes Trail map sheet ( in this case map sheet M18, available for sale here in electronic or paper formats: https://fingerlakestrail.org/store/maps-and-gps/…, but that map sheet doesn’t adequately detail the other trail systems within Shindagin Hollow State Forest as well as the DEC map available here: https://dec.ny.gov/sites/default/files/shdhll.pdf.
This hike starts off from the parking lot, the trail underfoot for the first short stretch consisting of some nicely arranged flagstones. If you’ve hiked with our group for a number of years you might recall when this initial section was always a muddy quagmire, a fun start to any hike.
Soon the trail transitions to passing through some nice stands of evergreens that are in such neat and orderly rows they must surely date from the CCC days when so many of the local forests were planted.
Blue #1 tends to be a steady downward route until reaching Blue #3, which begins a steady climb upwards until we reach the snowmobile trail that takes us back to Braley Hill Rd.
Crossing Braley Hill Rd, the hike route takes us uphill via the FLT, crossing over a seasonal road or two and making a couple of quick turns along the way until we reach the Red-blazed #4 trail. Red #4 in turn becomes the Red- blazed #1 trail, which takes us to a trail crossing where we find ourselves on the yellow blazed trails. Ultimately the group finds itself back at the parking lot on Braley Hill Rd at the appropriate time.
We had multiple interactions with bicyclists on the trails today.
Trail conditions were good, with very little mud. The leaves have been falling, and while the footpath is somewhat obscured in places it’s not difficult to discern the path ahead of you through the fallen leaves.
We also had an event close to the end of the hike where a member of the group took a spill and required medical assistance from the medical people in our group. Thanks to the hikers who remained with the injured hiker to render appropriate aid!
A quick reminder to all hikers that now that we are officially into hunting season, I would appreciate it if everyone could make an effort to hike in either blaze orange or pink clothing articles, both for yourself and your canine hiking partners. The neon yellow safety vests that some hikers wear are also acceptable.
We are also stil in tick season. Some hikers reported that they or their canines picked up some ticks on the previous Wednesday hike. Be sure to check yourself and your animals after hikes, and consider spraying youself with tick spray before each hike.
The day was cool and clear when I arrived at the parking area. The forecast was for a dry morning, with rain predicted to start around 2 PM. The views across the valley to the far hills was good. Soon after I took the picture included with this report the rain started and quickly turned into a significant downpour; much of the distant view of the hills was diminished for a while.
The rest of today’s hikers arrived and climbed the short hill to where I was waiting for them. After the briefest of introductions due to the rainy conditions, we started the hike. The rain continued for the first few minutes of the hike, and the overhead leaf canopy didn’t seem to offer us much protection from the elements. This sort of total rain isn’t one we’ve encountered much on hikes this summer, and thankfully the rain didn’t last long into the hike.
The initial leg of the hike consists of a series of downhill trails that range in grade from “gradual” to “somewhat steep”, the latter only being a problem with the trail surface or the leaves underfoot becomes slippery in the rain, as during today’s hike.
Some of the trail sections we hiked today are somewhat overgrown and in need of a pruning or mowing, but others we passed through are perfectly fine. The trail sections vary from a single track to a wide country logging road where you can walk next to each other quite easily.
The forest greenery around us during today’s hike was clearly in the midst of its fall color transition, so we were surrounded by a variety of forest colors.
Eventually the lower section of trail we were on comes out onto Sovocool Hill Rd, where the hikers posed for a group photo before crossing the road and continuing the hike on the lower series of loops that come out directly behind Groton Middle/ Senior High School.
On the return leg of the hike, for the uphill climb back to Sovocool Hill Rd, Anne took over leading the group.
We arrived back at Sovocool Hill Rd, crossed back over that road and continued on the upper loop of the trail system. The upper loop returns to the parking area. A few minor stream crossings were actively running with that mornings rain.
The group returned to the cars about ten minutes early. Most of the hikers agreed to meet for lunch on the Village of Groton, which made a nice conclusion to the mornings hike.
Warm welcome to Mimi on her first hike with the group!
Photos by Jim
Photo by James Twomey
Saturday, September 28
Bob Cameron Loop, Connecticut Hill, Newfield
Hike report by Jim
Twenty-four hikers and two dogs met on Tower Rd in the Town of Newfield for a hike of the Bob Cameron Loop and part of the near-by Finger Lakes Trail. This is hike #47 on our list of regular hike locations: https://www.ithacahikers.com/hike-47
The day had a hint of rain as we drove to the trailhead, but by the time hikers arrived on Tower Rd there was no immediate sign of precipitation.
The group posed for a quick photo before walking a short distance down Tower Rd to access the Cameron Loop and FLT.
Trail conditions were good overall; this footpath is rarely entirely dry, but today any mud we encountered was minimal. There was no water flowing in the streams we crossed or hiked alongside. There was a minimal amount of freshly fallen leaves on the trail today, but the most brilliant of those fallen leaves were on the FLT after completing the Cameron Loop and crossing Tower Rd to do a short out-and-back on the FLT.
The beginning of this hike consists of a long downhill section, first on the FLT immediately off Tower Rd, and once the Cameron Loop splits off from the FLT it continues that same downward direction for some time before making a final stream crossing and beginning a long uphill return to Tower Rd consisting in some places of switchbacks on the more serious inclines and a meandering trail through the woods in other spots.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable hike; the group paused occasionally to look at one or another natural thing observed along the trail. We did encounter one couple hiking the Loop today but otherwise had the trail to ourselves.
During the uphill return portion of the Loop Leigh Ann took the lead for the remainder of the hike. A steady light rain started to fall, and by the time the group had returned to Tower Rd a few hikers opted to end their hike early rather than continue on the FLT.
About half of the original group crossed Tower Rd and continued on the FLT for about twenty minutes before turning around and returning to Tower Rd and our cars.
FLT from Spruce Pond to Jones Hill, including Fellows Hill Loop Trail, Tully
Hike report by Jim
So, I screwed up on today’s hike.
This was supposed to be an out-and back from Spruce Pond in Morgan Hill State Forest in Onondaga County to the hang glider area at Labrador Hollow State Area. We last did that hike in 2021 as one of our Tuesday ” farther away ” hikes, and it’s on our list of hike locations as Hike # 60-1….. but that’s not the hike we did.
I went left instead of right on the Onondaga Trail very early in the hike, as I was operating from memory of the last hike we did at that location. It was a nice out-and-back hike for fourteen hikers and two dogs, to be sure. People who drove a little longer than normal for our hikes, taking a chance that it would be a good hike even after the overnight precipitation. It ended up being a nice woods walk with little in the way of real elevation gain. The group walked along a ravine or two along the way, a couple of extremely minor water crossings that had little in the way of actual water, even after the previous night’s rainfall. I’m not sure that I would list this as its own unique hike on our hikes list, given the distance people drove for what ended up just being a woods hike with little in the way of unique attributes.
We encountered a small group of trail runners early in the hike but otherwise had the trail to ourselves.
Eventually we turned around and walked back to Spruce Pond, where we took the group photo. From there a few hikers drove to another nearby parking area intending to approach the hang glider area from that direction. Leigh Ann opted to do the original hike as I had intended to do it, and a few of us did a short section of the Fellows Hill Loop Trail around Spruce Pond.
For those of you who might want to try this hike and actually pay attention to the map while on the trail, map sheets are available for purchase in paper or electronic formats through the Finger Lakes Trail Conference at : https://fingerlakestrail.org/…/purchase-individual-maps/. This particular map sheet is available there as ” The Onondaga Trail”. Sale of the map sheets helps to defray the costs associated with trail maintenance.
