Catskill Park, Overlook Mountain Fire Tower & Hotel Ruins, 5.82 Miles RT, 1,640' +/-, April 24, 2022

April 24, 2022

We took a day trip to the Catskills to explore the area and hike. Our first stop was the visitors center where we asked for some recommendations and picked up a few maps. We decided to check out Overlook Mountain which was one of the hikes I’d read about when I was researching before our trip. We got back in the car, drove through Woodstock and found the parking lot at the trailhead off Meads Mountain Road across from a Tibetan Buddhist monastery. It was later in the day, and with this being a popular hike, the lot was at capacity and we ended up parking along side the road.

The hike is on an old carriage road and the views didn’t change much as we made our way up steadily gaining in elevation. In a little over a mile and a half we came upon the ruins of the old Overlook Hotel. The ruins here are the remains of the third building that was built at this location. The first was built in the early 1800s. Over the years, the Overlook Hotel changed hands serval times. It seemed to be a failed endeavor right from its start. It burned down twice before it was rebuilt it in concrete. In the early 1900s, the failed Overlook Hotel closed its doors indefinitely as the trend of luxury resort hotels in the Catskills phased out and the clientele took their money elsewhere. Today, the Overlook’s ruins are one of the only historic resorts left in the Catskills. In the 1970s, the hotel burned yet again, but the concrete structure withstood the fiery blaze.

After exploring the ruins, we continued up the trail until we reached the summit of Overlook Mountain at 3,140 feet. There’s a cabin just before the fire tower and a short spur trail that took us to a rocky outcropping with expansive views of the Hudson River Valley and Ashokan Reservior. After checking out the vista, we continued to the fire tower. We climbed the tower’s stairs, but the door to the actual lookout was closed. We cllimbed up the 60 foot tower as high as we could go and enjoyed the views before heading down to have a snack at one of the convenient picnic tables on the summit.

After our snack, we began to make our way back. We decided to quick check out a side trail to Echo Lake which had much less people, but as we began to give up elevation, we decided to turn around and save it for another day since it was a little late and we’d have to hike it back up and then down again on our original trail.

It was a lovely day and although this was a more populated hike, I did enjoy the climb up the fire tower and it was a nice intro to the Catskills.

Click “Read More” below for more photos.

Adirondack Park, Cat & Thomas Mountain Preserve, Cat Mountain, 7 Miles RT, 1,342 +/-, April 17, 2022

April 17, 2022

Beautiful day in the Adirondacks hiking to the top of Cat Mountain. We started the hike from the trailhead off Valley Woods Road, followed the blue trail and then onto the yellow trail to the summit which gave us spectacular views overlooking Lake George. There is nothing technical on this route and no rock scrambling as there typically is with much of the Adirondacks. Since it’s shoulder season, I was expecting more mud, but it was minimal. This was the perfect hike to do after a 4 hour drive which gave us enough time to head up to Lake Placid afterwards and enjoy a nice dinner before settling in early and heading out to do more hiking in the High Peaks region the next day.

Click Read More below for more photos.

Adirondack Mountains, Roaring Brook Falls Trail, Cobble Lookout Trail, Van Hoevenberg Trail, Marcy Dam, Avalanche Pass Trail, Heart Lake, October 17 & 18, 2021

October 17, 2021

We spent another couple of days hiking in the Adirondack Mountains High Peaks Region. Weather was not ideal for high elevation since it’s the beginning of shoulder season when fall starts to turn into winter. Trail conditions are beginning to become a mix of mud, ice and snow so we stayed low and just enjoyed our time exploring the area and scouting out more potential hikes for future trips. Once there’s a good coating of snow on the ground we’ll be back for snowshoeing. Despite the weather, (rain mixed with snow which I honestly don’t mind… better then humidity!), we had an amazing time.

Mt. Jo and Heart Lake, Adirondack Mountains, High Peaks Region, 4.2 Miles RT, 801' +/-, Max Elevation 2,877', September 21, 2021

September 25, 2021

After yesterday’s long journey to the top of Mt. Marcy, we were ready for an easy day. We decided to hit the trail again, but this time tackle a much shorter peak, Mt. Jo. The trail begins across the street from Adirondack Loj and starts off on a flat, gravel path with interpretive signs for the diverse vegetation. It passes by Adirondack Loj Nature Museum before becoming a dirt path that begins the ascent. It was a beautiful morning as the light shined through the trees on this crisp, fall day. And while I wasn’t planning for a steep climb, we did have some work to do to get to the top. After a little over a mile of steep climbing, the trail leveled off just before the summit. Another short scramble and a climb up some helpful ladders and we were at the top of Mt. Jo looking over at Mt. Marcy, where we were just yesterday. Down below we could see Heart Lake and the trees were just beginning to show signs of fall color. We chatted with some hikers at the summit before heading back down. People are always so much happier when you meet them on the trail. Once we got back down, we added a little more hiking with a walk around Heart Lake. We stopped a few times to sit and enjoy the views, listen to the sounds of the wilderness and watch people in their canoes paddling across the lake. It’s in these moments when I feel most at peace. I’m always happy in the mountains. It was a great way to end an amazing couple of days in the High Peaks Region of the Adirondacks and I foresee many more trips to come.

Mt. Marcy via Van Hoevenberg Trail, Adirondack Mountains, High Peaks Region, 16 Miles RT, 3,734' +/-, 5,344' Max Elevation, September 20, 2021

September 24, 2021

“The love of wilderness is more than a hunger for what is always beyond reach; it is also an expression of loyalty to the earth ... the only home we shall ever know, the only paradise we ever need -- if only we had the eyes to see.” -- Edward Abbey (American writer and naturalist)

After over a year we were finally back in the mountains. Leaving California with its limitless peaks and vast wilderness and relocating to an area of Northeastern Pennsylvania which lacks high-elevation mountains was a very hard adjustment for me. We decided to drive to upstate New York and hike the High Peaks Region in the Adirondack Mountains. We would set up basecamp in Lake Placid, sleep one night and the next morning hike from Adirondack Loj on the Van Hoevenberg Trail to the top of Mt. Marcy, the highest peak in New York state. The journey would be an arduous climb of over 16 miles, most of which required bouldering, rock scrambling and climbing up large and oftentimes slippery slabs of rock. It had been over a year since I’d done any hiking with much elevation, but I craved the challenge and the rewards that come with reaching the summit after putting in a hard day’s work on the trail.

We arrived at Adirondack Loj at 5:30 am, about an hour before sunrise. We donned our headlamps and headed out on the Van Hoevenberg trail towards Marcy Dam. The trail was mostly easy going for the first two miles. We moved quickly to the first junction, and as we reached the dam the sun was starting to come up. We took a moment to enjoy the views of Mt. Colden, Avalanche Mountain and Wright Peak, but we couldn’t linger knowing we had a lot more miles to cover. We crossed the bridge over Marcy Brook and began to ascend on a moderate grade as we hiked along Phelps Brook. We passed the junction to Phelps Mountain and from here we began a steep climb up the trail which was covered in nothing but boulders. After the first steep pitch, the trail crossed Marcy Brook and briefly leveled off for a short distance as we passed the junction to Indian Falls. At about 5 miles in we began another steep ascent which seemed like endless scrambling and climbing. The terrain was slippery in sections and required a lot of mental concentration and careful foot placement. As we reached the top of the ridge, I began to see hints of blue sky. I knew we were getting closer. Now, the trail eased slightly except for the mud and the obstacle course of wooden planks we had to negotiate, and we began to get our first views of Mt. Marcy. We hiked through thick scrub and scrambled up more barefaced boulders before reaching the Alpine Zone. We were starting to get above the treeline, and I was beginning to feel anxious as the climbing got even harder and steeper. Higher and higher we ascended, scrambling the bare rock and slabs. We followed the cairns and the yellow paint blazes guiding the way straight up. And then, finally, we were there… standing on the summit of Mt. Marcy, the highest peak in New York State at 5,344 feet. It was an amazing feeling! One I haven’t felt since leaving the mountains of California. We took in the views and fueled up on snacks, but the moment could not last because we knew we had miles of strenuous descent before we could finally relax and celebrate. The climb back down the mountain was even more taxing. We were tired both physically and mentally, and the amount of concentration it took to descend the boulders and rocks was even more laborious then it was going up. It was about 6:30 pm when we finally reached the Loj. We were tired, sore and even a little delirious, but it was an incredible day and one which we will not soon forget.

Hiking Mt. Marcy was both a physical and mental challenge. It pushed us to our limits. There comes a point in hikes like these when you know you’re stretching yourself, but you just can’t turn back because you don’t want to waste all the effort you’ve already put in so you just keep pushing. The feeling of reaching a hard earned summit is a feeling that’s difficult to describe. It becomes an addiction. It’s a challenge not everyone will have the privilege of experiencing. It’s a journey that makes you stronger and brings you closer to those who are on that same journey. And although the moment of reaching the summit may be fleeting compared to the hours you put in to get there, it will always be worth it.

Click on “Read More Below for More Photos”