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guided MK to North Dome and Sherrill as part of his successful quest to complete the Catskill 3500 list. It was a rather warm late April day and the ground surprisingly dry for the spring. We started the bushwhack near the beaver pond by the turn in the Devil’s Path west of St Annes Peak.
Thomas Cole Mountain Bushwhack – March 17, 2013
On St Patrick’s Day we bushwhacked Thomas Cole Mountain via a route less traveled from private property with permission from the landowner. The weather was perfect for a late winter hike with sunshine and the temperature not too far below freezing and enough snow to comfortably wear our snowshoes for the entire hike.
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Kinsman Range – August 19, 2012
North and South Kinsman make a great destination as either a day hike or staying overnight using the Lonesome Lake hut as the base for day hiking. The hike from the hut to the Kinsman summits follows the route of the Appalachian Trail via the Fishin’ Jimmy and Kinsman Ridge trails.
When the weather is nice, the views of the Franconia Range over Continue reading
Plateau and Sugarloaf Mountain – July 14, 2012
I led a diverse group of 10 hikers including hiking club members and guests from a local boy scout troop on a challenging hike of Plateau and Sugarloaf Mountains. We followed the Devil’s Path from Notch Lake and completed the hike through Pecoy Notch.
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Connie’s Way Ski Tour (Pinkham Notch) –February 21, 2012
On a vacation day, I skied a solo loop from Pinkham Notch consisting primarily of Old Jackson Road (OJR), the Mount Washington Auto Road, and the Connie’s Way ski trail. I used waxless skis, no skins. Most of the route is not too steep and skins are not necessary, but with the firm conditions there were a couple of short sections on the OJR that were a bit of work to ascend.
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Panther – Giant Ledge Backpack – December 29, 2011
This was a winter backpack from Fox Hollow to Giant Ledge. We hiked over Panther Mountain on the way to the campsite and the views were excellent. While hiking we saw lots of wildlife footprints in the snow, including bobcat and coyote.
The temperatures were in the mid teens when we set up our campsite, but warmed somewhat overnight along with a new dusting of snow while we were sleeping. Continue reading
Boy Scout Presidential Range Hut Hike, July 10 – 13, 2011
I led a Boy Scout Troop, including some of the older scouts and their leaders on a planned 3 night trek through the Presidential Range in New Hampshire. The itinerary was to include stays at the Mizpah Spring, Lakes of the Clouds, and Madison Spring huts covering
the entire range.
The first day we hiked to the Mizpah Hut via the Crawford Path from Route 302.
Arriving a little after lunch time the boys settled in and played cards while some of the adult leaders hiked over to Mount Jackson before dinner. The weather was very clear and the views north along our planned route from Mt Jackson were spectacular. Continue reading
Peekamoose and Table Mountain – July 2, 2011
A group of four of us hiked Peekamoose and Table Mountains on a warm July 4th weekend. At a little over 2600 feet elevation gain from the trailhead on Peekamoose Road, this is the greatest climb directly to a trailed summit in the Catskills, but it is a very nicely maintained trail with excellent viewpoints. Continue reading
Mount Tom and Mount Field, February 23, 2011
It was just Sean and I on this bluebird day and these were his first winter peaks. The weather was perfect with deep blue cloudless skies. Despite the forecast for windy conditions at the summits, the winds were rather tame.
Our route was to be a counter clockwise loop taking in Tom, Field, and maybe an out and back to Willey. We got a late start (a little after 10:30), and decided at the start that Willey wasn’t going to happen. Continue reading
Blackhead-Black Dome – January 29, 2011
Hike of Blackhead and Black Dome on a nice winter day with deep snow cover. We hiked both summits from Big Hollow Road via the Black Dome Range Trail Continue reading