Gatheriong 7.0 (Catskills) - just hiking requests and plans

[Papa Bear]

This thread is intended for just hiking requests and plans for the 7.0 Catskill Gathering in September.

Please post all discusions for parties, places to eat, where to camp, how to drive, who brings the beer and all those important things that belong to a gathering in the existing thread: Existing thread

For those less important functions such as hiking , Please post here.

Pb

 

[Papa Bear]

I would like to bag Slide, Hunter and Black Dome while I'm otherwise enjoying myself at the Gathering .

Anyone want to do these in 1, 2, or 3 days or in combinations let me know. I'm a Catskills newbie but people know these are on certain lists. (The 111s and the P2ks)

Thanks
pb

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

Slide and Hunter are county highpoints, so I want them. Would be interested in doing other nearby CoHPs, Huntersfield, Bearpen and Beech are possibilities.

 

[Tuco]

I am considering the portion of the Devil's Path from 214 to Spruceton Rd for that Weekend one day if anybody is interested. The thought of Cornell Slide Wittenberg is also intersting. I am not fulfilling a list so otherwise I am game for anything.

 

[daxs]

I am really a Catskill newcomer. I was thinking about Slide, Cornell and Wittenberg. Since I am also after the fire towers, Balsam and Hunter are also possibilities. Of course, I am open to suggestions from more expereinced Catskill hikers.

 

[Puma concolor]

OK, Papa Bear, ya stumped me. I thought I knew it all with peakbagging in the Northeast ... but the "P2ks" is a new one to me. What the heck?

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

I do not recall having seen the term "P2K" previously, but would bet (knowing PB) that he means peaks with prominence of 2,000 feet or more. I am unaware of a source of information on the prominences of NY peaks, for the New England peaks see Roy's New England Fifty Finest Peaks.

Prominence is an example of the same psychopathology that leads to county highpointing. I suffer from the latter, PB seems stricken with the former

 

[Papa Bear]

Mark

Mo got it: P2k means peaks with a prominence of 2000' or more. Roy is the expert on this list; he helped put it together. There are 3 in the Catskills, 10 in the Adirondaks, and 42 in New England.

Here's a great map showing them all: Northeast US prominence map.

The observant reader will notice some of the peaks I plan to climb next week in northern Vermont on this very list.

Gotta do them all ...

Pb

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

The observant reader will notice some of the peaks I plan to climb next week in northern Vermont on this very list.

Not only the same psychopathology, but also occasionally similar lists. Signal and East are both CoHPs and on the NE 50 Finest list.

Prominence, by definition, gives you peaks that rise above the surroundings. CoHPs can occasionally be non-descript places where a county line crosses the slope of a mountain whose summit lies in another county. These points, on a county line, are called "liners". I hope to be doing the Strafford County HP, where the county line crosses the slopes of the unimpressive Crown Copple Mountain, early next month.

Matbe PB is onto something with the P2Ks

 

[Papa Bear]

So, join me, one and all, in bagging some P2ks. But, on this thread, let's get back to the Catskill gathering.

Anyone else want to add their Catskill to-do list?

Pb

 

[askus3]

7.0 Gathering Hikes

I am assuming (I know I should not do that) that many of the participants of the gathering are coming down to do Slide & Hunter so they can get their NY 4,000 footers. It is unfortunate because the Catskills have so much other hiking to offer. A circular out of North Lake along the escarpment and a side spur to Kaaterskill Falls is a must for newcomers to the area. So this is what I would like to offer to those that have 3 days to hike.

Fri.: North Lake Circular including Kaaterskill Falls. See what the Hudson River Artists saw and visit the sites of the Grand Hotels. Get a feel for what Washington Irving felt when he wrote Rip Van Winkle.
This would be about a 5 mile hike and we'll start about 2 PM.

Sat.: The entire Burroughs Range. Plot two cars on Frost Valley Road and do Wittenberg, Cornell & Slide. I love ascending Slide from the north. Also, we will descend the Curtis-Ormsbee Trail as it is far more scenic. I have satrted at Woodland Valley and if you are willing to include a roadwalk of two miles, that would eliminate any car shuttle. But if you have any stamina, and this will be your only visit to the Catskills, doing Slide without the other two is doing yourself a disservice. It is a long trip to the Catskills from Boston & points north - don't sell yourself short.

Sun.: Hunter & SW Hunter from Devils Tombstone. Hunter with its restored fire tower is obvious. Since you're in the area why not climb a trailless peak in the Catskills and sign in a cannister to round out a great hike. Should be able to be done by 3 PM if starting at 7 AM.

Now, I have another comment. I know many of you have peaks you need for your own personal goals, but IMHO I think you should put them aside as a Gathering is just that and let us host our visitors with hikes that they are coming down to do. If we all go off and do our own thing then is this a Gathering? Unless I am missing the point and the Gathering is the evening socializing and the hikes are off on your own. And maybe, I have mistakenly assumed that half the participants are coming down from far away and want to peakbag Slide & Hunter and not to to see what else the Catskills have to offer. Also, maybe you are right that by offering other options we don't have a mob scene on any particular hike.

So by adding a little extra to the Hunter & Slide hikes, all will get a taste of the Catskills. And my North Lake hike will complete the sampler.

Black Dome is a great hike along with Blackhead & Thomas Cole but it is fair distance away from where we are camping so I don't know if there would be strong interest. I would certainly include that hike on a Catskill sampler. But only if you had an extra day.

Maybe someone can set up a poll of what two hikes they want to do and let us see which has the most votes. I will go on and offer to lead whichever hikes the majority wants to go on.

 

[askus3]

I can also recommending flip flopping Friday & Sunday's hikes if people are coming in Thursday and need an early departure Sunday. If there is a strong desire for all three days being full hikes then the North Lake hike can be extended north of North Lake to North Point or if there is a strong desire for Thomas Cole, Black Dome & Blackhead that loop hike can be done for a third full dayhike.

 

[Puma concolor]

OK, Papa Bear and Mohamed, thanks for the information.

Now, if I could, I'd like to add an observation about something Mo said in his post about Bearpen being a county highpoint. This raised my eyebrows at first so I decided to research it. I'm guessing Mohamed is already aware of this, but to avoid any confusion with anyone else looking at this thread, I thought I'd toss this in.

The summit of Bearpen mountain (elevation 3600) is in Greene County as is the trailhead (or starting point) off County Route 2. As many know, Hunter is the highpoint of Greene County. The regular route to the top of Bearpen passes from Greene County to Deleware County and back to Greene County. There is an ante-summit of 3520' that lies exactly on the Deleware/Greene County line that is either right along or very close to the regular route to the Bearpen summit. This would be the highpoint of Deleware County.

Also, as a Catskill 3500 member, I'd also add to anyone looking to hike the Catskills for the first time that you WILL NOT be disappointed. I love these mountains perhaps even more than the Whites and Dacks (not that it's a contest).

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

Mark is, of course, correct, the HP of Delaware County is a subsidiary summit of Bearpen, not the main summit. My apologies for the sloppy writing.

 

[stopher]

I've never hiked in the Catskills so can't state a preference. I'm not doing the 4ks, P2Ks, 3500s, 111s, CoHPs, 50Fs, or even the list I devised myself (LPNP). I just wanna go on one or two nice hikes. I'm happy to let people familiar with the area convince me to go to any particular destination, but while scanning the USGS quads I got fixated on a ridge walk that goes over Indian Head, Twin, Sugarloaf and Plateau. Anyone done this? Is it worth the effort?

 

[Puma concolor]

Absolutely, Stopher! This is a great hike. Actually, I did the four as two separate hikes ... Indian Head and Twin one day and Sugarloaf and Plateau on another. If you want to do these four as a day hike, I hope you rated yourself a four on the fitness thread. This section of the Devils Path is a solid cardio workout filled with great outlooks. Of course, it would also be a great overnight trip. But there have been more than a few overambitious folks who have gotten themselves "caught" on this section of the DP.

 

[askus3]

Stopher, what you mention is the first (eastern) half of the Devils Path which was what the Devils Path walk for the Brain Tumor Society was. Excellent hike but many from this board just did that. Going west from 214 from that ridge line whose western peak is Plateau is Hunter, which is off the Devils Path.

 

[Rob S]

Aaron has posted many good points on this thread, especially the advice regarding doing just Slide & Hunter because they are 4K. I want to second the suggestion that you also do Wittenburg and Cornell with Slide. This is a classic and truly one of the best hikes in the Catskills. It offers everything from deciduous forest to steep rocky climbs, ladders, scrambles, and open scenic viewpoints.

The same goes for Hunter. This one can be done by a fairly easy jeep road, or by the much steeper Devil's Path (to the connector trail). It can also be climbed by the Becker Hollow Trail or from Diamond Notch. Aaron's suggestion to bushwhack SW Hunter is a great one. Or, for those who decide to take the jeep road, a bushwhack up Rusk Mountain is another option to make for a longer and more interesting day. And for the very ambitious, you can do all three!

The loop from North Lake on the Escarpment Trail (and Kaaterskill Falls) is a good hike, too. Very interesting and scenic area, but not as challenging. I think the "die-hards" may prefer a section of the Devil's Path. Indian Head and Twin for the "3s", then add Sugarloaf and Plateau for the "4s".

Since there will be a lot of people coming with a wide range of fitness levels, I think a lot depends on how people feel after the first day and how much they want to push themselves. I'm sure there will be at least 2 or 3 different groups of us doing different hikes. For those of us that are very familiar with these mountains, it will be a lot of fun sharing the trails with those who have not yet experienced all the magnificence that the Catskills have to offer. Bottom line - - - we'll give you some ideas for hikes, but no matter what you decide, you too will fall in love with the Catskills. After volunteering last weekend for the Devil's Path Charity Hike and meeting so many wonderful people from VFTT, I can't wait to meet even more of you ......... and this time I get to hike too! It will be a pleasure.

 

[stopher]

I hope you rated yourself a four on the fitness thread.

Didn't do that poll. I hate to get too introspective -- afraid of what I'll find. So, OK, my TOPO program says it's about 11 miles with 4600' of vertical. I admit that at my age that's darn close to the absolute maximum and I wouldn't be interested in bagging a 4k, or even a 3k, the next day. Still, it looks so inviting on the map, ya know?

 

[TomEske]

I got fixated on a ridge walk that goes over Indian Head, Twin, Sugarloaf and Plateau. Anyone done this? Is it worth the effort?

You know I'm getting pretty familiar with this section of the Devil's Path. I just came off of it again a few hours ago from a trip I started on Friday out in Spruceton. Still can't seem to do the whole things even in a few days! We bailed off at pecoy this time.
Doing Indian Head would be a neat one, and adding twin even better. I am officially re-rating myself at a 2.8.
I think Wittenberg will have te best view and tied into the full 3 peak route will certainly leave no one disappointed. You will come back again.
Tom