una_dogger
Well-known member
Mileage 7.5 or 4.5? I've read two references to mileage.
Gain 1500
Moderate difficulty, suitable for children
Every spring since I moved from the Hudson Valley to New England, I make a pilgrimage down to the Hudson Highlands, to enjoy some early spring hiking. The Highlands are great this time of year, because they are about a month or more ahead of the Whites in terms of trail conditions. The leaves haven't opened yet, so views through the forest are expansive.
Karen, who shall be known as "River Girl", her Aussie, Greta; and Terra and I set out for Cold Spring NY, to hike Mount Taurus. Usually, we do a Breakneck/Sugarloaf Traverse, but this year, I thought we'd do something different.
We took a right at the corner of Rt 301 and Rt 9D, and parked directly across from Stony Point Park, less than a mile outside of the village. I've done this hike a handful of times, always counter clockwise, but had recently read an online report of someone who had done it clockwise, and thier observation was that the best views could be had in this direction on the descent.
So we headed north out of the parking lot on a small herdpath which joined an abandoned old carriage road about a half mile up. The paved carriage road took us past the now abandoned Cornish Estate. The ruins were very interesting and included a main structure, a large two story greenhouse, and several stone outbuildings.
The trail beyond the estate climbed gently through open hardwoods. Some Oaks must have been over three hundred years old. Karen, the dogs and I were very happy to be out hiking on such a sunny spring day.
After about 1.5 miles, the trail began to climb steadily through a beautiful mountain laurel grove, which extended to nearly the summit. We passed a few groups of hikers, but not many.
Just below the summit we enjoyed lunch on a broad rock shelf. Directly in front of us was Breakneck Ridge and the Hudson River. The Shawangunk Ridge stood out in the distance, and the entire view was framed by a blue silhouette of the Catskills, although, my point and shoot really didn't do the view justice.
The trail casually winds its way down around Mt Taurus, offering a birdseye view of the village of Cold Spring, and then turns north again. This is a really nice stretch of trail and I'm glad we opted to do the loop clockwise, because the views of Storm King on the descent were stunning.
About a half mile before the trail reaches the parking lot, it passes alongside a HUGE old quarry. The entire base of the quarry is filled in with meadow grass and small trees. The walls are towering. Its interesting to think of how much work was involved in mining this area.
Terra and Greta had a wonderful time, and were perfect little doggy diplomats. We met several groups along the way, some with dogs, and shared wonderful yet brief conversations -- who couldn't be happy on a sunny day like Saturday??
For those looking for some apres hike refreshment, I highly recommend the cafe on the corner of 9D and 301 in Cold Spring. Really yummy burgers and my first ever encounter at a "Make Your Own Bloody Mary" bar!! Eight bucks buys you a huge glass generously filled with vodka and a trip to the "Bloody Mary Bar", featuring hundreds of hot sauces, fresh horseradish, and all the fixings for a killer Mary.
Full album may be found here, scroll down to the "Recent Adventures" section:
http://unadoggerspictures1.shutterfly.com/
Gain 1500
Moderate difficulty, suitable for children
Every spring since I moved from the Hudson Valley to New England, I make a pilgrimage down to the Hudson Highlands, to enjoy some early spring hiking. The Highlands are great this time of year, because they are about a month or more ahead of the Whites in terms of trail conditions. The leaves haven't opened yet, so views through the forest are expansive.
Karen, who shall be known as "River Girl", her Aussie, Greta; and Terra and I set out for Cold Spring NY, to hike Mount Taurus. Usually, we do a Breakneck/Sugarloaf Traverse, but this year, I thought we'd do something different.
We took a right at the corner of Rt 301 and Rt 9D, and parked directly across from Stony Point Park, less than a mile outside of the village. I've done this hike a handful of times, always counter clockwise, but had recently read an online report of someone who had done it clockwise, and thier observation was that the best views could be had in this direction on the descent.
So we headed north out of the parking lot on a small herdpath which joined an abandoned old carriage road about a half mile up. The paved carriage road took us past the now abandoned Cornish Estate. The ruins were very interesting and included a main structure, a large two story greenhouse, and several stone outbuildings.
The trail beyond the estate climbed gently through open hardwoods. Some Oaks must have been over three hundred years old. Karen, the dogs and I were very happy to be out hiking on such a sunny spring day.
After about 1.5 miles, the trail began to climb steadily through a beautiful mountain laurel grove, which extended to nearly the summit. We passed a few groups of hikers, but not many.
Just below the summit we enjoyed lunch on a broad rock shelf. Directly in front of us was Breakneck Ridge and the Hudson River. The Shawangunk Ridge stood out in the distance, and the entire view was framed by a blue silhouette of the Catskills, although, my point and shoot really didn't do the view justice.
The trail casually winds its way down around Mt Taurus, offering a birdseye view of the village of Cold Spring, and then turns north again. This is a really nice stretch of trail and I'm glad we opted to do the loop clockwise, because the views of Storm King on the descent were stunning.
About a half mile before the trail reaches the parking lot, it passes alongside a HUGE old quarry. The entire base of the quarry is filled in with meadow grass and small trees. The walls are towering. Its interesting to think of how much work was involved in mining this area.
Terra and Greta had a wonderful time, and were perfect little doggy diplomats. We met several groups along the way, some with dogs, and shared wonderful yet brief conversations -- who couldn't be happy on a sunny day like Saturday??
For those looking for some apres hike refreshment, I highly recommend the cafe on the corner of 9D and 301 in Cold Spring. Really yummy burgers and my first ever encounter at a "Make Your Own Bloody Mary" bar!! Eight bucks buys you a huge glass generously filled with vodka and a trip to the "Bloody Mary Bar", featuring hundreds of hot sauces, fresh horseradish, and all the fixings for a killer Mary.
Full album may be found here, scroll down to the "Recent Adventures" section:
http://unadoggerspictures1.shutterfly.com/
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