Report to Hikers: week of Jan 21-Jan 27

Hello Hikers!

Wed Jan 23

Midweek hike cancelled — freezing rain and ice

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Sat Jan 26

Fisher Settlement Road west toward Curtis Road on the FLT, Danby SF

The snow on the FLT was a bit rough and choppy, but we decided to try it out, rather than just walk on the road
This trail is at its best in winter, when you can clearly appreciate the rolling terrain and the interesting plantings
After a while, I decided the trail surface was actually not that much fun — it was very slow going, and for those of us with hip or knee or ankle problems, a challenge. It took us a long time to reach this stream — we didn’t want to attempt a crossing, so we turned back even though it was early
Got back to the cars 20 minutes early, decided to walk down Fisher Settlement Road a bit
A great classic country-road look — rolling terrain, the road meandering a little, dark brooding woods along the edge — love it
There are almost no buildings along the length of Fisher Settlement Road as it passes through Danby SF, but those few that have been built have a surprisingly upscale feellng — this is not some backwoods country area

Official head count: 15H, one D. One additional hiker drove out but went to the wrong spot and so missed the hike.

More photos:

Jack V

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Sun Jan 27

Upper Treman SP trails and adjacent country roads

It was in the low 30s and it snowed vigorously a few times, but it felt surprisingly mild anyway — you can see that Casey (shirt and suspenders) shed his bright yellow coat

Official head count: 20H, one D. We saw one bow hunter, at the meet-up, who promised not to shoot at any of us

More photos:

Jack V

Report to Hikers: week of Jan 7-Jan 13

Hello Hikers!

Wed Jan 9

Shindagin Hollow SF, bike trails in the northern sector

I don’t like to be too cautious about scheduling hikes just because the weather might be messy — so we headed up into Shindagin Hollow SF while a weather advisory for snow and ice was in effect — it was smooth sailing until we reached the edge of the forest — the access road, Braley Hill Road, hadn’t been sanded yet and it was a sheet of ice — the car was sliding around as we crept up the hill, and Tiger, who was driving, was afraid it would slide into the huge ditch along the edge. I thought it was great fun

The trail was a mixture of snow, ice and standing water — the footing was a bit tricky but some people managed to proceed without foot traction
The early part of the trail has some fabulous pine forest action
We were almost back to the cars when we realized two hikers weren’t with us any more. Turned out they missed a turn and kept going in the wrong direction. Luckily they both had smart phones with Verizon service so we were able to speak to them (there was no AT&T reception). But they didn’t have a map and they couldn’t figure out the extremely confusing trail situation without one, despite our coaching. They finally emerged from the woods 90 minutes late, after one of the hikers went home and then e-mailed them a map.

Official head count: 11H, one D

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Sat Jan 12

Buttermilk Falls SP, rim trail and Bear Trail

You get a great view of Buttermilk Creek from this lookout when the leaves are down
We saw only a few other hikers — and this hunter — it was the first day of the special Tompkins County hunting season, and bow hunting is always permitted in season in the state parks — we don’t usually get such a vivid reminder
Just enough snow to illuminate the terrain, but thin enough that walking was really easy — except where it was icy
We came upon two deer while we were walking down this stretch — they raced away — wonder if they knew who was looking for them ….?

Official head count: 24H, three D

More photos:

Jack V

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Sun Jan 13

Two hikes SE of Dryden — FLT east into Cortland County (hilly) and the Jim Schug Trail (flat) — followed by a stop at Hopshire Brewery

It was 6 degrees at the meet-up but there was no wind and the sun was lovely — so it was actually wasn’t bad at all standing around
You have to walk steadily uphill more or less steeply for the first one-third of the hike — great way to warm up
The snow was powdery but slippery — your foot slid backwards a little on every step — quite tiring
This is the start of the steep climb over the hill — always strenuous but it was much harder with the slippery footing
Even our most rugged hikers found the going tough this time
The trail ascends the front side of the hill on a series of switchbacks that seem to go on and on, though the straight-line distance from the bottom to the top isn’t all that great
We’re now on the other side of the hill, looking into Cortland County — I find this such a serene and beautiful spot
We weren’t able to proceed much beyond this point because the slow going ate up the time
Coming back down the switchbacks was extremely challenging in its own way — your feet skidded uncontrollably as you made the switches
Back down at the start of the hill — good chance to appreciate the terrain and contours of the Dryden Lake valley
This marked the return to the trail of one of our most active and energetic hikers, Vicki, right front, who’s been out on disability since June — she suffered a sudden spinal problem that left her unable to sit or drive or walk more than a short while — surgery in the fall, finally recovering — she said she spent much of the time lying in bed — we were very happy to see her back — she could only handle the flat walk, though

Stop at Hopshire on the way home

A lot of hikers stopped off. The big room where we like to congregate was reserved for a brunch operation, so we had to squeeze into a small room next door — it’s a tight fit but it works and the small size of the room cuts down on the noise. It was a very cheerful mood — word leaked out that it was the birthday of one of the hikers, and that made it even more festive.

Total head count for both hikes: 29H, seven D

More photos:

Jack V

Report to Hikers: week of Dec 31-Jan 6

Wed Jan 2

Two quiet farm roads in South Danby

This spot, the corner of Hill Road and Curtis Road, is a great spot if you’re into road walking. There are three different walks, all excellent, that begin here. Two are woods roads; the one we did is paved.
We began by walking east on Hill Road toward South Danby Road
I love rolling hills and old farmhouses nestled in hollows, so I’m a big fan of this stretch of the road
Now we’re on the way back from South Danby Road — great distant view — there’s basically no houses visible from here — you can really see why this is called “Hill” Road if you click on the pphoto and look at how the road undulates and rises
This one stretch past the farm houses looks equally great when you look at it from either direction
Back at the starting point, first leg of the walk finished
The group’s now walking north on Curtis Road toward Route 96B
I love overgrown fields like this in winter, especially on a gloomy day
Not the most prosperous-looking farm countryside, but very picturesque ….
…. assuming you like decayed barns
This little dome house is quite out of place — straight out of the Whole Earth Catalogue 1970

Official head count: 14H, one D

More photos:

Jack V

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Sat Jan 5

Stewart Park to the Farmers’ Market along the lake — followed by a belated New Year’s get-together

I was afraid we’d have to start the walk in the rain, but the storm (which wasn’t predicted) moved off shortly before hike time. One result was that the only people who turned out were hikers who don’t stay home just because they might get wet
The storm left behind some fantastic atmospherics
Not everyone shown ….

Get-together at the small pavilion in Stewart Park

The weather changed shortly before we got back to the pavilion — sun came out — wind picked up a little
The breeze wasn’t all that strong but it was enough to feel really cold if you had your gloves off, which everyone did so they could handle the food. The nagging wind got oppressive and we broke up a little early.

Official head counts:

Hike — 27H, six D

Get-together — five more people and four more D

More photos:

Jack V

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Sun Jan 6

Layen Road to Bruce Hill Road and beyond, Jersey Hill, Danby

Very bad weather was being predicted shortly before hike time — snow and rain likely, and high winds
This walk includes a long stretch through wide open fields — I was here once in the winter when the wind was so fierce we had to turn back after just a couple of minutes
It wasn’t bad at all this time.

Somehow, we never manage to get all the hikers into the formal portraits ….
Notice the guy in the black shirt not wearing a jacket? That’s Casey — amazingly cold-hardy — though he suffers from cold hands so he wears fancy heated gloves
Maybe the trees that surround the field were holding back the wind — in any case, it wasn’t particularly cold or miserable at al
Very nice in the woods
This is Bruce Hill Road
Once we reach this point,time starts to run short — there are two attractions to be seen up ahead, a picturesque quarry and another large and dramatic field — unfortunately, if we stop for the quarry, there’s not enough time to reach the field ….
We chose to go straight to the field — stood around for a couple of minutes, then had to turn back
There’s a very striking and beautiful gorge in the right side of the photo — too bad you can’t really discern it.

Didn’t rain, no more than a few specks of snow. Very nice walk

Official head count: 24H, six D

Report to Hikers: Sat-Sun Dec 29-30

Sat Dec 29

Gorge Trail, Mark Smith Road, Finger Lakes National Forest

Part of the fun of hiking out in the country is you get the chance to drive through some wonderful rural scenery on the way to the trail head. I’ve loved this farm house along Mark Smith Road since the first time we came here, years ago. The terrain and the massing of the forest behind create a setting of great appeal and charm, the kind of spot you can spin out an idyllic fantasy about. I grabbed this photo hastily — I need to spend a bit more time next time and see if I can capture the scene better.

That’s the road in the background — gives you an idea of how steeply the trail ascends right off the bat
All the ponds were frozen. The ice looked quite thick and I asked for a volunteer to test it out. No takers.
It was horribly muddy on the trails on the broad level top of the forest preserve, so we shifted to Burnt Hill Road
We took a detour to check out this gorgeous pond — there’s a trail that heads through the pine woods in the background, but it’s muddy even in dry weather ….
We saw a couple of parked cars — this was the only one in motion
This was a great road for a walk on a gloomy damp mild morning

Official head count: 17H, two D

More photos:

Jack V

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Sun Dec 30

Treman SP onn the FLT from Route 13

Another hike morning with a beautiful coat of fresh snow draped over everything.
A small group of hikers decided to start early and race well beyond the point we normally turn around — they wanted to see Lucifer Falls. They got back to the cars 20 minutes late.
The main group maintained their discipline and didn’t try to start ahead of time
The snow cover was a bit thin, but deep enough to create a lovely effect
This is one of a handful of spots where everyone is required to pose for an official group photo. The advance group was long gone, of course — four other hikers were also missing from this shot. The Certified Head Count is listed at the end of this report.
I managed to squeeze under this fallen log myself — wondered if I’d make it. Most hikers walked around rather than crawl under.
The snow was melting fast by the time we got back to the cars

Official head count: 29H, seven D

More photos:

Jack V was with the fast-moving advance group. You can see his shots here

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Want to see a short video of our Christmas get-together?

It turned out Norm made 1:45 video by wandering around and documenting the scene. Good chance to see what our get-togethers are like. Technical note: The video would not open for us in Windows 10, but it worked fine on a tablet computer running Android. The video is here.