XC Skiing - Rockwood State Forest

Woke up to howling winds and a dusting of snow locally, but not enough to do anything with. Checked snowfall reports and saw that Gloversville got 2" and Caroga Lake 3", and Rockwood SF already still had 8-10" on the ground. Seemed like skiing might at least be possible, if not fantastic.

Drove up and pulled into the parking area that was covered with glare ice from all the rain and melting that went on. Trails were definitely crunchy underneath, but powdery on top, so it could have been pretty good. Unfortunately, any prior ski tracks were now icy ruts, as were the foot-wide snowshoe trenches that were pretty common. Even worse were the snowmobile tracks that weren't even supposed to be there. We tried to mostly ski off to one side off all these, and avoided the bigger downhills, which would have been treacherous. Found one trail that hadn't been touched, and followed that out and back for the best skiing of the day.

We're really hoping that Fulton County continues to groom this area, or at least roll it flat. It's kind of a mess at the moment, and could really benefit from a foot of snow or some flattening out, or preferably both.

Geocaching - Sanders Nature Preserve

Still about 8-10" of hard crusty snow left on the ground - not good for local skiing or snowshoeing, so today we went geocaching. The Sanders Preserve is a Town of Glenville property that's wooded and has lots of streams running through it. Geocaching.com identified 5 relatively new caches that we had never attempted before, so we were off and running. Or at least walking, once I got my car unstuck from the ice-covered parking lot. We failed to find the first two, which were micros and may have been covered with snow. We'll go back for those in the spring. We did find the third one we attempted, and the other two remaining ones were out of the way and will also have to wait. Not a very successful day, but it was good to get outside for a walk after some of the nasty weather we've had lately.

Biking - Capital Holiday Lights in the Park

MHCC, NYBC, and ABC all coordinated a group ride this evening through Albany's Capital Holiday Lights in the Park display. It was supposed to have been last weekend, but the multiple storms knocked it out and they rescheduled for today. About 15 of us showed up at 4:30 pm, before the displays opened to vehicular traffic (at $15/car), and did 4-5 loops through the light displays. The very beginning of the ride also included a spectacular sunset as a backdrop. That was the real show.





Another rider posted a 4-minute video of the ride on YouTube. I'm the rider in the yellow jacket who appears only occasionally.

Retired one year!

Today is the one-year anniversary of my last day of work. And it's been a good year, as you can read here!

XC Skiing - Camp Saratoga Trails

Camp Saratoga is a part of the Wilton Wildlife Preserve and Park. In the winter, this parcel has groomed cross-country ski trails that are very nice and relatively close to home. Snowshoers and skiers are allowed, but bare-booting is prohibited, so the trails remain in pretty good condition.

Today Holly and I skied for about 90 minutes, and as we like to do, we didn't always stay on the groomed trails. There are several other skiable trails that aren't groomed, and which also provide some more challenging terrain, and we tried several today. Really made me want to get out into the backcountry environment and away from the groomed stuff. Unfortunately, the rest of this week, especially tomorrow, will bring a potpourri of skiing-unfriendly precipitation, including sleet, freezing rain, and just plain rain. We'll need some more snow on top of all that before skiing will be any good again.

No pictures today. If I had taken any, they would uncannily resemble the last two, snowy pine plantations and wide open trails.

XC Skiing - Woods Hollow Nature Preserve

After 15-20" of local snow in the past few days, getting out today was a must, despite the cold temps and biting winds. We settled on Woods Hollow, a small nature preserve north of Ballston Spa, managed by the Town of Milton.

We skied along the old Ballston Spa reservoir on a nature trail, then up into some pine plantations with very wide trails. It's a popular place for walking in all seasons, and ski tracks don't last very long here.



From there, we continued along the back of the preserve, and set out on the Green Loop (see map), a much less used trail by walkers, and a little backcountry-ish in its skiing feel. On the way back to the car, I couldn't resist going down the biggest available hill, and would have had a good ride had my binding not snagged a hidden downed branch, sending me head over heels.

We were out for about an hour and the skiing was excellent. We're considering someplace a little more exotic for tomorrow.

XC Skiing - Indian Meadows Town Park

Last week we had a crippling ice storm. Yesterday we had 10" of snow. Tomorrow, we're expecting 5-10" more. Welcome to winter in the Northeast!

With other things on the day's agenda, we only had time for a short local ski, the first of the season. I went to Holly's house and helped her get rid of some downed limbs from last week's ice storm, and then we headed for Indian Meadows, a nearby Town of Glenville park.



This is a fairly boring place to ski, but it's close by, and that was a big plus. We were out for 45-50 minutes on really good snow with some wet spots underneath. It was good to get out after a week of nothing but biking on the trainer in the basement. Combined with the morning's snow shoveling, that was enough for one day.

ICE STORM!! - Walk in Lisha Kill Preserve

Friday, December 12, brought us the most severe ice storm we've had here in over 20 years. We got somewhere between 0.75-1.0" of ice coating everything. Tree limbs were down all over the area and the Northeast, and over 240,000 people were without power just in this local area. Some still have no power, and may be out until the middle of next week. I was without electricity for 41+ hours, but fortunately, with temperatures dropping into the teens, I did have heat, unlike many of my neighbors. Our power in this neighborhood came back just after nightfall tonight.

Although the storm was very damaging, it can also be beautiful. Holly and I went for a walk this afternoon in the Lisha Kill Preserve, which I posted about not too long ago. Many, many tree limbs were down throughout the preserve, but almost all of the stately old pines were still standing. I didn't take any pictures on this walk, but have included a few here from around my backyard. I got off easier than many neighbors, but do have some minor cleanup to do nonetheless.

Geocaching - Niskayuna

It was a cold dreary December day, so Holly and I decided to try another geocache. This one was a multi-cache, a short walk along the Mohawk River south of the Rexford Bridge. The good news is that we got to walk in a place neither of us had been before. The bad news is we never found the initial cache. It sounds like it may have been a tricky one, but try as we might, we just couldn't find it. The hiders are evidently getting very creative with these things...

Biking - Local Roads

This was the third installment of the Tour de Clifton Park, a leisurely 28-mile social ride from the outings calendar of the Taconic Hiking Club. Details here...

Walk - Mohawk River State Park

Formerly known as the "Schenectady Museum Preserve", this is an area that used to be great and convenient for cross-country skiing. Now, it's become so popular with walkers, and their dogs, that the only good skiing is immediately after a new snowfall. There are some steep ravines and narrow, twisting downhills that can be pretty interesting on a good day.

But today I was walking, since there is no snow yet, just lots and lots of thick oozy mud. I wandered all over the place and even explored some trails I'd never seen before. This place is much better after the ground freezes and is covered with about a foot of snow. I was out for a little over an hour, doing a long loop around the wooded part of the preserve.

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path

A beautiful December day - sunny and over 50! Took a relaxed ride on the bike path. Details here...

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path

Maybe the last bike ride of the season today. Details here...

Geocaching - Ballston Lake, NY

A few weeks back, we unsuccessfully searched for a geocache entitled "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" Today, we found it. It was a cold and breezy day, and we needed to keep moving. After over an hour of following clues from one intermediate cache to the next, we were ready to stop and come back another time to finish it. One last look on our way back to the car turned up the final cache, after about 2 miles of walking total.

Hike - Vroman's Nose

A very short hike, actually. It only takes about a half hour to climb to the top of Vroman's Nose, a small hill with cliffs near Middleburgh, NY. It's about a half hour from home, and the views are outstanding. Unfortunately, my camera produced a hard error code when I turned it on, so I have no pictures for this trip. There are some pictures available at the previous link above, and also a wide selection via a simple Google image search.

It was barely at freezing up there, and the wind was blowing, so I took in some of the views, had a quick lunch and headed down. I'm thinking it's time for a new camera.

Walk - Lisha Kill Preserve

Another day that started out bright and sunny, and then came the grey skies and the snow squalls. This is November in the Northeast, and we have to make the best of it.

The Lisha Kill Preserve is a Nature Conservancy property in Niskayuna, NY. It's close to home, and provides a feeling of wildness without going very far. There are several deep ravines and streams, and a lot of very old and large trees. Some of these majestic white pines and hemlocks are said to be nearly 200 years old.



Today, with the combination of mud, leaves, and snow, it was a little slick in spots, but I got in an hour's walk, covering all of the trails that are currently marked.

Walk - Mohawk River Bike Path

I thought I might get the bike out this afternoon, and that thought was encouraged by spending a little time on the trainer in the basement this morning. But then the weather got weird. The wind came up and brought with it an occasional snow squall, all lake-effect stuff coming down the Mohawk Valley from Lake Ontario. So instead of biking, I went for a 2.8-mile walk out west of Rotterdam on the bike path. I saw a great blue heron who kept flying farther down the path to avoid me, and we crossed paths several times in both directions. As I got to the 1.4-mile turnaround point, a more serious squall blew in, and continued for about 20 minutes. It was like winter out there, though the ground was still too warm for it to stick. By the time I got back to the car, the sun was out again and it was all over.

Walk - John Boyd Thacher State Park

Today dawned foggy and damp, though it was forecast to hit the low 60s again, a rarity for November. I couldn't get excited about biking in this weather, so I decided to go for a walk instead.

Thacher Park sits atop the Helderberg Escarpment, only about a half-hour's drive from home. It offers fairly level and non-muddy walking along the edge of the escarpment, and drop-dead scenery every step of the way. The fog cleared as I got closer, and it turned into a beautiful morning up there.



I last went there back in April of this year, and there are more pictures at this link. The waterfalls were running much more in earnest back then, with the snowmelt, but they were still very scenic today.





The Indian Ladder Trail is visible below Mine Lot Falls in the second photo. It's a very interesting walk below the cliffs and under the falls, but it's closed this time of year.

Hiking - Huckleberry Point

I was planning to lead a Schenectady ADK trip to Huckleberry Point on Saturday, but wet weather and a low overcast (read: summits socked in) caused me to cancel the trip. Today, Holly and I went and did the hike ourselves. It took us about 90 minutes from the car to the viewpoint, where we had lunch and took some pictures. It wasn't the most photogenic day - November is pretty bleak as it is, and the sun was not out as promised. But the views of the Hudson Valley and the Devil's Path range were right in our faces. It's a pretty spectacular place. Click on the picture for a 180-degree panorama.

Snowpack Monitor Training - Albany Pine Bush

The Albany Pine Bush is home to the rare Karner Blue Butterfly, a state and federal endangered species. In an effort to better understand its habitat requirements, a study is underway to assess the effects of snow depth on the overwintering success of the butterfly's eggs. Part of this study involves intensive monitoring of snow depth at numerous controlled sites within the Preserve during the winter months. This work is done by volunteers, and I just volunteered for the upcoming winter. Today we had a brief training meeting to go over the process and what we're expected to do. I'll be spending about an hour every two weeks, on the same day, in all kinds of weather, walking around and taking snow depth readings. I'll post more about this once the snow flies and these walks begin.

Walk - Featherstonehaugh State Forest

A relatively warm, damp day, not much good for anything but a walk somewhere. I decided to head to Featherstonehaugh SF to see what kind of shape the XC ski trails were in after a windy summer. Lots of trees down, and very wet as usual when not frozen over, but it was still an interesting walk. NYSDEC has closed on a timber sale from the forest, and that logging will begin once the ground freezes. Skiing and snowshoeing in there this winter may not be a great idea, either in terms of safety or aesthetics, but that's what multiple-use forestry is all about. At least it doesn't look like a clear-cut is planned, since many trees within the sale area were individually marked with various different types of symbols. Hopefully the contractor won't leave too much of a mess.

Golf - Hillcrest GC

Golf? In November? What a concept! This just never happens around here. With a sunny day and temps in the 60s, I decided to hit the links one last time. And I finally had the kind of round I've been waiting for these past few months. I didn't hit a lot of bad shots, and none were truly horrible. I finished with a 48, tying my best 9-hole score of the year at Hillcrest.

Highlights:

• 2 pars and 4 bogies
• Consistency!
• No out of bounds, water, lost balls, or unplayable lies
• Dropped a 30-foot putt on the last hole to finish with a par

Lowlights:

• Missed short putts on #3 and #6
• 3-putted #6
• Still mis-hit a couple of pitching wedges
• Need to work on adjusting grip to straighten shots out - lots of hooks

Hiking - Bennett Hill

Bennett Hill is one of several local preserves of the Mohawk-Hudson Land Conservancy. Located near Clarksville, NY, it's about a 400-foot climb to the 1135-foot flat summit, which is encircled by a loop trail around its outermost edges. We'd been here once before, I think in 2001, and never did find any of the promised open views. Today was the same, but maybe the trees have grown up since that picture. Nonetheless, it was a beautiful November day in the 60s, and a great day to be out.

Walk - Pine Bush Preserve and Rensselaer Lake

I'm a little sore from yesterday's run, so didn't want to overdo today, but it was another nice day, so I got out for a couple miles of easy walking. I parked at Six-Mile Waterworks Park at Rensselaer Lake, off Fuller Road in Albany (#3 on the first map below), and followed the paved trails beneath the Northway where they connect with some trails in a section of the Pine Bush that I'd never visited before (#2). It was a nice area, and apparently well-used, despite the constant noise of traffic not far in the distance.



On the way back, after crossing back under the Northway, I tried to follow some faint unmarked paths around the north side of the lake, but they faded out and I gave up. It's clear from the aerial photo above that the railroad tracks and a broken causeway both would have made that route impossible anyway.

Once I got back to the park via the original route, I sat on a bench and just enjoyed the scenery for a bit before heading home.

5k Run - Mohawk River Bike Path

With the Cardiac Classic 5k coming up on Thanksgiving morning, and my knee having problems, I felt like I needed to get out and see what I could do. I've run in this race for the past 7-8 years, and though my time keeps getting slower with age, it's still fun to be out there with 1,000 other runners as a way to start the day.

Expecting problems today, I wore an elastic knee brace, and felt no pain at all. This is a good thing, but how it feels tomorrow may be a better indicator. Now I need to try to do this regularly 2-3 times every week and get the rest of the body in shape. Running is a good winter activity if I can tolerate it, and now is the time to start if I can.

Geocaching - Ballston Lake, NY

After helping Holly with some yard work, we went geocaching along the Ballston Lake Bike Path. There was a multi-cache there entitled "Are You Smarter Than a 5th-Grader?", and it looked like it could be fun. Unfortunately, as thorough as we thought we were, we never found the first cache that would lead us to the others and the final. So, we settled for a just a walk on another nice fall day.

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path

Another easy river loop today. Details here...

Biking - Historical Tour of Ballston

We did part of a historical driving tour of the Town of Ballston today, by bicycle. Details here...

Hiking - Acra Point (Catskills)

Holly and I both had other things to do this morning, and wanted to get out for a short hike this afternoon. It was a beautiful sunny fall day in the 50s, not to be wasted. We decided to climb Acra Point, in the northeastern Catskills, only about 90 minutes from home, near Maplecrest, NY.



It was an easy one-mile climb up to the ridge between Acra Point and its neighbor, Burnt Knob, and only another half mile to a wide open view of the Blackhead Range. These mountains and this profile are visible from Albany on a moderately clear day, and it was nice to see them up close.

There are two interesting things in this picture. (1) is the sharp cutoff between hardwoods and balsam fir around 3900 feet or so. These mountains are all between 3900 and 4000 feet. (2) is the fact that snow is on the ground of these north-facing slopes just below the balsam line. Fall foliage is totally gone, except at lower elevations on south-facing slopes, having been blown down by recent strong north winds.

5k Run - Mohawk River Bike Path

Fall weather is definitely here, and with temps only around 50 degrees, I'm having trouble getting motivated to do much biking. I decided to get out for a run today, just to do something. Although I've been doing the same 5k route several times previously this fall, today was different. After about a half mile, my right knee started complaining, and I couldn't continue. I walked a few steps, tried again, but still a no-go, so I turned around and started walking back to the car, still with twinges. Then it stopped. I tried running again, and finished a 5k with no further pain.

I had arthroscopic surgery on my left knee for a torn meniscus in 1995, and it's been solid ever since. I've known all along that the right knee has had a lesser but similar problem, but today was the first time it ever stopped me from doing anything. It's probably the same thing - a little flap of torn cartilage out of place, which eventually snapped back where it belonged. Need to keep an eye on this one...

Hiking - Dial and Nippletop Mountains

Today I got together with my youngest brother and some of his friends to climb two more Adirondack High Peaks. All four of them are working on climbing the Adirondack 46, and I'd climbed these two already twice before.

I left Schenectady at 4:00am and drove north to meet them at the trailhead, while they were staying nearby near Lake Placid. We hit the trail a little after 7:00, just after dawn, and temps were in the low 30s. After a couple of hours of climbing, we reached the site of a 1999 forest fire that cleared a minor summit of Bear Den Mountain and opened up some spectacular new views of the Great Range and beyond. As always, click on the picture for a larger version.



After a stop for pictures here, we continued on to Dial Mountain, at 4,020 feet the 41st in height among the 46 peaks. Again, there were stupendous views of the Great Range, and we lingered here for a snack until we began to feel chilled.



Setting off from Dial, we headed inward farther away from the trailhead toward Nippletop Mountain, the 13th in height at 4,620 feet. Nippletop has some of the best views of any of the 46 highest peaks, and we really didn't want to leave.



Unfortunately, it was after 2:00 pm, and we now had a good 6 miles to cover back to the cars. The first mile dropped abruptly about 1,300 feet, and it wasn't made any easier by the ice-covered rocks. Temperatures had never risen above the low 30s at these elevations. After a very deliberate descent, we finally made it to the Lake Road, on the private property of the Adirondack Mountain Reserve and the Ausable Club. It's a private road open to hikers that leads to many trails in the area, and provides a quick and easy route back to the cars after a long day on the trail.

We reached the cars around 6:15 pm, just before dark, after 11 hours and 13 tough miles of hiking, but as somebody said "It's all about the views."

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path and Local Roads

I needed something to loosen up the legs from yesterday's hike, so got out for a leisurely flat river loop. Details here...

Hiking - Whiteface Mountain

Holly's working on climbing the Adirondack 46 (I finished in 1990), so today we went to climb Whiteface Mountain, near Wilmington, NY. At 4,867 feet, Whiteface is the 5th highest peak in New York State, and though it has a tourist road to the summit, that road closed for the season yesterday, so there would be no hordes of tourists as there are in season.

We approached Whiteface via the shortest route, 7.8 miles round trip with 3000+ feet of elevation gain. This route begins by first climbing Marble Mountain from the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, just outside the beginning of the summit toll road. This center occupies the former Marble Mountain ski lodge, and the trail to Marble follows the route of the ski center's old T-bar lift. That means it goes straight up without a break for almost a mile. We stopped on Marble to take in the views, and continued on, reaching the summit of Whiteface in several hours, as the clouds began lowering. The wind was consistently between 25-40 mph with occasional spits of drizzle. Views were less than the usual spectacular as views go, because of the weather and the fact that the fall foliage was well past peak. The views are so expansive that photos hardly do them justice, but here are a few that came out sort of OK.

This rainbow appeared off to the northeast as showers continued off and on all around us.











This view is looking to the southeast. On a clearer day, Lake Champlain and Vermont would be visible in the distance. The town of Wilmington can be seen in the lower center foreground.











The "money view" from Whiteface is certainly the one toward Lake Placid and the other Adirondack High Peaks far in the distance. The village of Lake Placid is actually on Mirror Lake, in the upper left corner of its namesake lake in this picture. The High Peaks were very nicely silhouetted against some brighter sky, but that was very difficult to capture under these conditions.









Since the wind was blowing between 25 and 40 mph, with threatening skies, we had a quick lunch, snapped whatever pictures we could, and headed back down, reaching the car a little before dark. Mostly, we stayed dry, with one heavier shower as we came back down the T-bar trail. Dinner at Pitkin's in Schroon Lake on the way home, and now straight to bed.

Trail Maintenance - Northville-Lake Placid Trail

Since 1994, Holly and I have adopted a section of the Northville-Lake Placid Trail, under the Adirondack Mountain Club's (ADK) Trail Steward program. That means we walk through the 6-mile section every spring and fall, removing blowdown, cutting back brush, clearing drainages, and reporting any major issues to the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation. We try to get others to join us by leading this as a Schenectady Chapter ADK trip. Today, despite having only a crew of 3, we got a lot of work done on a beautiful fall day, spending about 5 hours in the woods in prime Adirondack fall foliage season.

Golf - Hillcrest GC

Felt better rested after a lazy day yesterday, but needed to save some serious energy for trail maintenance tomorrow, so golf seemed like a good activity for today. Went to Hillcrest again, and generally played a little better than the past few outings. Aside from some fairway problems on #1, and some of the usual short game flubs on #3 and #6, I had much fewer mis-hits today then the few previous rounds. Irons were better, and I was usually pretty good off the tee (3 wood), aside from an OB on #4, and a futile attempt at hitting a driver on #6. Overall, a 53, much lower than the last few rounds.

Highlights:

• 2 pars and 2 bogeys
• Finished with 2 pars, sinking a 10-footer on #8 and a 20-footer on #9
• Felt more comfortable over the ball, and generally hit more solid shots
• No lost balls or balls in water

Lowlights:

• Out of bounds on #4
• 3-putt on #3
• Still some mis-hits on pitches and chips

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path and Local Roads

Bit off a little more than I could chew today, but it was such a nice day to be out. Details here...

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path and Local Roads

A long-ish ride today, but at an easy pace with some friends. Details here...

5k Run - Mohawk River Bike Path

Another unpredictable weather day. The rain in the morning was pretty certain, simply by looking at the local radar, and then it was supposed to clear in the afternoon. It did, temporarily, but the radar showed another weak line of showers headed our way, so I spent some time reading and sat tight to see what happened. Sure enough, the unexpected showers intensified and soaked us again mid-afternoon. When it finally cleared for real, I got out for another run. In the process, something funny happened to my lower back, so tonight I'm tending to that. Aging is hell...

Hiking - Cliffs on Moose Mountain

Moose Mountain (1840') is just south of Wells, NY, in the southern Adirondacks. There's no trail to its summit, but that's why we like it and go there every fall on a leaf-peeping hike. It's about 90 minutes by map and compass to the top of some open cliffs that offer breathtaking views of the valley below, and as a friend once called them, the "Persian-carpeted hills" in the distance. In 7 years of doing this hike, we've never met another soul, and today was no exception. Colors were near peak on a blustery cool fall day.

5k Run - Mohawk River Bike Path

Another funny weather day - mid-50s, gusty winds, and off-and-on unpredictable showers. I did some indoor catching up, and when the weather finally cleared by late afternoon, got out for another run, just to do something. The wind was really howling down along the river in the open, and it definitely wouldn't have been a great day for much of anything else.

Golf - Hillcrest GC

Today dawned very windy and temps were only expected to be around 60, so what to do? I didn't really want to bike in that, and also didn't feel like driving very far for a hike. That left golf, the theory being that the wind doesn't matter if the shot is bad when it leaves the clubface. That definitely proved to be the case.

While in most rounds, I typically do OK but have a few bad holes that ruin it, today I didn't really have any GOOD holes. My irons and short game seemed to have deserted me, on practically every hole. I was basically OK off the tee in most cases, and made some really good putts that kept the score under 60, but in general it wasn't a very good round at all. I think I'll skip the highlights and lowlights on this one. Better luck next week, probably at a par-3 course to get in some concentrated irons work.

Biking - another river loop.

Nice 70-ish October day, so I got out for a ride in the afternoon. Details here...

Hiking - In Search of Local Waterfalls

That wasn't originally the purpose of today's walk. I was actually somewhat disappointed that the roads didn't dry out, and the weather improve, in time for a worthwhile bike ride. So I settled for hiking the 4-5 mile loop at the Plotterkill Preserve instead. It's possible to go here and either "hike" or "walk", depending exactly what you're looking for. There are miles of trails and steep terrain, so a good workout is possible less than 30 minutes from home.

When I started down the trail from the car, I was surprised to hear the unusual (for here) sound of a lot of water running. After a few days of rain, the creek was running high, which meant that the 3 large (50-60') waterfalls would be the main attraction of the day, and to hell with the longer loop. I left the trail and tried to get to the base of the first (western, upstream) falls, but was stymied by high water along the creek. The same was true of the side-by-side lower waterfalls - there was just no way to get there without wading. Not gonna happen. Then I realized that the main loop was also out - although there's a high-water crossing at the eastern (downstream) end of the gorge, I would still need to wade to get back across on the return trip at the upstream crossing point. So, I walked the so-called "Highlands Trail" back to the car instead, now REALLY wanting to see some falling water.

Next, I headed for the Christman Sanctuary, a Nature Conservancy property a little to the west and south. It has nice cascades and a 30-foot waterfall that should also be running pretty good. I was not disappointed, as the pictures below will show.

New England Asters provided a riot of color as I walked across the field from the car to the sign-in box.



Once I reached the stream, I just headed upstream, stopping at every cascade and small waterfall along the way. Though many of these may look alike, they were all taken at different places along the stream. On a good day, this place is just full of falling water! Enjoy!









After a fairly short walk, both on and off trail to follow the stream, I arrived at the main attraction, a 30-foot waterfall, with another 6-8 foot drop just above and behind it. Contrast this view with the other one from the dead of winter, when I snowshoed here in 2002.



Beyond and above this point, the stream is flowing from private property, and this is the end of the line.

5k Run - Mohawk River Bike Path

On an afternoon that was supposed to be a washout, we went to a movie and exited to find blue skies and warm temperatures. Kind of a waste. When I got home, I decided to salvage what was left of the day by getting out for a run, the first since May 13, according to this blog. This has been a summer of almost all biking, and a few scattered hikes, but no running at all. I took it really easy, but had no trouble finishing 5k at a relaxed pace. Nice to know that cross-training works, and that I'm able to just go out and do this without building up to it with shorter distances!

Golf - Hillcrest GC

After a month and a half of various other activities that got me out of a "normal" routine, whatever that means, I returned to the golf course today expecting the worst. This is a game you have to play regularly to get any better at it.

After 2 shots out of bounds on the first hole, resulting in an 11 on a par 5, it looked like my worst fears would indeed be realized. But then I settled down nicely and played solid bogey golf most of the rest of the round, the exception being the shot I put in the water on #7. Overall, I finished with a 51, about my usual average, and a little amazing given the two bad holes.

Highlights:

• 3 greens in regulation
• 2 pars and 5 bogeys
• chipping was better than a month ago, by far, as were short irons

Lowlights:

• 2 OB shots on #1 for an 11
• Flubbed tee shot on #7, then put the next shot in the water
• Missed several easy putts, due to heavy dew on greens.

Biking - Mohawk River Bike Path

Did the usual ride of last resort today, after various interfering issues. Details here...

Hiking - Race Mountain (Berkshires)

Holly wanted to climb something with some elevation and a view today, so we headed for the Berkshires of Massachusetts, only a little over an hour away. I love living here - it's central to so many things!! Race Mountain is about a 3-mile 1700-foot climb, with some nice waterfalls along the way. Amazingly, neither of us had ever been there before, so there was the added bonus of seeing some new territory. The hike involves about a 2-mile stiff climb from the valley to the ridge via the Race Brook Trail, and then a rolling 1-mile hike along the Appalachian Trail to the summit.

Just before the steepest part of the climb, we reached the upper falls on Race Brook. There had earlier been a separate loop trail to some lower falls, but we saved that for the trip down.



We passed through a designated AT camping area, and then reached the AT itself and turned south toward Race Mountain. We reached the summit about a half-hour later, where there were 360-degree views. Mount Everett dominates the view to the north.



We continued a little beyond the summit, descending slightly along the south ridge to some east-facing ledges with outstanding, though hazy, views of the valley below.



We returned north back over the summit, and headed down. On the way back down to the valley, we followed the other loop trail for the lower falls, but lost it in a confusing maze of unofficial paths that surrounded the stream. We saw the falls from a distance, but it was getting late, and we elected not to do the additional climb that would have been necessary to get closer. We followed the stream back down until we intersected the main trail, and returned to the car. Ice cream, as usual, on the way home ended a nice day.

Biking - Effective Cycling Course

Took an Effective Cycling course yesterday and today. Details here...

Biking - Bike Path River Loop

First time back in the saddle after 10 days away, so I took it easy. Details here...

Windjammer Cruise Photos - September 13-17, 2008

As promised, here are some pictures from the Maine Windjammer Cruise we just returned from. I took close to 50 shots, using a film camera, and was largely disappointed with the overall results. And I do think at least some of it may have been shoddy processing. From now on, I'll be sticking to digital. Here are a few of the best of the rest.

We arrived in Camden, ME, on Saturday the 13th. Mount Battie, in Camden Hills State Park, has an auto road to the summit, where there are stunning views of Camden and its harbor.










We boarded the boat on Saturday night, adjusted to our tiny cabins, and spent the night docked in Camden harbor. Sunday morning dawned very foggy and windy, and this was the only picture I took all day. The Lewis R. French is the middle schooner in this shot. After a hearty breakfast, we left the harbor and set sail around 10am. The rest of the day was very windy with a cold drizzle, and we wore raingear for the entire day. Note the canopies over the decks while anchored.







Sunday night was spent anchored in Carter Cove, a small bay off Vinalhaven Island. The winds were so strong that we lowered the "storm anchor", which is somewhat bigger and heavier than the normal one. The wind howled all night, but in the morning, the fog quickly lifted. On Monday, the strong winds continued, up to 30-40 mph with small craft advisories. As we crossed some bays exposed to the open ocean, we had 6-8 foot swells and the boat was rocking every which way. It was a pretty wild ride, but an amazing experience.






We were supposed to throw this immediately if anyone went overboard. Thankfully, despite some rough seas at times, that didn't happen.












Monday night, we anchored in Bass Harbor, at the southwest corner of Mount Desert Island, near Acadia National Park. Many of us walked to see the Bass Harbor Lighthouse.










Walking back to the boat, we had a good view of the French and other boats docked in the harbor. The French is the middle one of the three boats at right center.










Sunset was beautiful in Bass Harbor.















It was quickly followed by moonrise, with an almost-full moon. I slept on deck this night instead of in our cabin, in a sleeping bag. It was cool, but much quieter than the cabins with their thin walls and many snorers.












On Tuesday, we got an early start, and put ashore at Hell's Half Acre, a small island with a rocky beach, for a lobster feast at lunchtime. Here, Captain Garth Wells (left) steers the boat and First Mate Eric (right) sits on top of the lobster pot as the first party goes ashore.










They were soon followed by Garth's wife Jenny and crew member Annika, with the rest of the food. We had hamburgers and hot dogs as appetizers while the lobster preparations were underway.











A view of the French in partial sail from the rocky beach. This would be our only opportunity for shots of the boat with sails up, since we were usually on the boat when that was the case.

While the lobsters were steaming, we walked around the entire perimeter of this small rocky island. This was actually at high tide.

Another shot of the French from the island.













And another.













The beach was solid granite, not sand. In the background is the rest of the group (22 passengers and 4 crew) enjoying the appetizers and conversation.













Jenny, Captain Garth, and Annika removing rubber bands from the lobster claws and throwing the lobsters in the pot.











Lobsters and corn-on-the-cob on a bed of seaweed for serving. The meat was removed from the shells of any leftover lobsters and turned up the next morning for breakfast as lobster quiche. The food on this trip was just incredible from start to finish.










Heading back to the French after lunch and cleanup. In the afternoon, we sailed to Pulpit Harbor, on the northwest shore of North Haven Island, where we anchored for the night. Dinner, as if any of us needed any, was homemade soup, salad, and cornbread.

On Wednesday, we set sail back to Camden on a very calm day. Maine lobster fishermen were everywhere, as were their multi-colored buoys.

Camden harbor appears in the distance. Mount Battie, where we started this trip, is behind and to the right of the picture. We arrived back in port around 11am, packed up and hit the road for home after a very memorable adventure.