Dick
08-12-2007, 07:25 PM
It was probably a great day for a hike just about anywhere in the Adirondacks! Forecast was for "mostly sunny" and in the low '80s for Keene, though some serious looking clouds did roll in during the afternoon. Having spent most of our time in recent months hiking in the Catskills, this change of pace was nice. The plan was to hike the Nun-da-ga-o ridge and the Crows. Regarding this name, I've seen references to the phrase “O-nun-da-gao-no” that is apparently translated “people of the hills” (Onondaga Nation). Does anyone know if this is correct?
On our drive up the Northway, we stopped at the rest area just before Exit 30 and happened to run into forum member adkjeff and his wife (a one-week-old 46R!), on their way to hike Giant. After a nice chat, we drove up to Keene and caught up to our hiking party: Peak_bagr, (Spence), peakbagr (Alan), bushwhacker (Brian), and Barbara. After a final drive to the trailhead off of Hurricane Rd, we spotted a car for the return and began our hike.
Shortly after some near level hiking we passed the first lean-to, started our ascent, and made our way quickly to Lost Pond. After stopping briefly for pictures of our four-legged companions Sonny and Bookah romping in the pond, we followed the trail around the pond to the second lean-to. At this spot the guidebook and trail signs indicate that we were now entering an area that was “unmarked and unmaintained.” For an unmarked and unmaintained trail, there was clear evidence of trailwork (blowdown cutting/clearing, side cutting), and even more trail markers and cairns than one might find on some “maintained” trails. It was obvious that someone is maintaining this so-called "sparsely used" trail, which clearly gets a lot of use. CAUTION: given the terrain, I can only imagine that it would still be a VERY difficult path to follow in winter (Joe Cedar?). In any case, it was very easy to follow at this time of year. We made our way up to Weston Mt., the highest point on the ridge, which had phenomenal views! This made for a fine lunch stop. I think Spence stopped counting after naming 21 of the high peaks that were clearly visible that day!
The remainder of the hike consisted of LOTS of in and out of woods, up and down hiking, with periodic viewpoints at ledges, always easy to follow, but somewhat more difficult than the short overall distance and modest elevation gain might suggest. Still, overall it was a moderate hike. We did part company at one point, when Spence and Brian decided to bushwhack off the path and climb “Coal Hill” (exact name?). We all met up again at one of the ledges, and Spence proudly displayed a foot he had found along the way, and in spite of its weight, carried it home with him (!!). Soon afterwards, we ran into a hiking family that had started from the opposite direction. After introductions, we realized that we realized that we had struck up a conversation with Phil Brown, editor of Adirondack Explorer (‘adkeditor’ on this forum). After a chat, we pressed on, though it was clear that Spence and Brian were in overdrive and that the rest of us were in a somewhat lower gear. We thought we had lost them for good, but ran into them again at the junction for the Crows trail (they had waited there for the rest of us oldsters for some time!). Spencer’s annual barbeque was awaiting, and we had to move on, so we decided to bypass the Crows loop and made our way back to the car.
A BIG thanks to Spence and Maddy for hosting the gathering! Though we couldn’t stay late, we had a nice time visiting with a very nice group of people!
Joanne’s pics will follow soon.
Dick
On our drive up the Northway, we stopped at the rest area just before Exit 30 and happened to run into forum member adkjeff and his wife (a one-week-old 46R!), on their way to hike Giant. After a nice chat, we drove up to Keene and caught up to our hiking party: Peak_bagr, (Spence), peakbagr (Alan), bushwhacker (Brian), and Barbara. After a final drive to the trailhead off of Hurricane Rd, we spotted a car for the return and began our hike.
Shortly after some near level hiking we passed the first lean-to, started our ascent, and made our way quickly to Lost Pond. After stopping briefly for pictures of our four-legged companions Sonny and Bookah romping in the pond, we followed the trail around the pond to the second lean-to. At this spot the guidebook and trail signs indicate that we were now entering an area that was “unmarked and unmaintained.” For an unmarked and unmaintained trail, there was clear evidence of trailwork (blowdown cutting/clearing, side cutting), and even more trail markers and cairns than one might find on some “maintained” trails. It was obvious that someone is maintaining this so-called "sparsely used" trail, which clearly gets a lot of use. CAUTION: given the terrain, I can only imagine that it would still be a VERY difficult path to follow in winter (Joe Cedar?). In any case, it was very easy to follow at this time of year. We made our way up to Weston Mt., the highest point on the ridge, which had phenomenal views! This made for a fine lunch stop. I think Spence stopped counting after naming 21 of the high peaks that were clearly visible that day!
The remainder of the hike consisted of LOTS of in and out of woods, up and down hiking, with periodic viewpoints at ledges, always easy to follow, but somewhat more difficult than the short overall distance and modest elevation gain might suggest. Still, overall it was a moderate hike. We did part company at one point, when Spence and Brian decided to bushwhack off the path and climb “Coal Hill” (exact name?). We all met up again at one of the ledges, and Spence proudly displayed a foot he had found along the way, and in spite of its weight, carried it home with him (!!). Soon afterwards, we ran into a hiking family that had started from the opposite direction. After introductions, we realized that we realized that we had struck up a conversation with Phil Brown, editor of Adirondack Explorer (‘adkeditor’ on this forum). After a chat, we pressed on, though it was clear that Spence and Brian were in overdrive and that the rest of us were in a somewhat lower gear. We thought we had lost them for good, but ran into them again at the junction for the Crows trail (they had waited there for the rest of us oldsters for some time!). Spencer’s annual barbeque was awaiting, and we had to move on, so we decided to bypass the Crows loop and made our way back to the car.
A BIG thanks to Spence and Maddy for hosting the gathering! Though we couldn’t stay late, we had a nice time visiting with a very nice group of people!
Joanne’s pics will follow soon.
Dick