We love New York. When it comes to parks and wilderness management, they do things right. Instead of making resorts out of every available location, they direct the budget to maintaining trails and protecting land
. They also don't require permits and tedious paperwork for backpackers. We had a great experience hiking the Adirondacks in the fall. We couldn't wait to return to the state and check out the smaller, more southern range: the Catskills. We planned an out -and-back hike over several of the area's most popular mountains. One of them is the highest in the range- Slide Mountain. The drive went fast, and we've never had such an easy time finding a trailhead. I've had more trouble finding a McDonald's. It was nice to start a hike free from the frustration that normally follows trying to find a place. We got started hiking and crossed a few streams right off. They were clearly in flood stage from the past several days of rain. The trails were typical northeast business- steep, rocky, and washed out. We spent most of the day climbing up Slide Mt. Towards the top, the trail became snow covered. It was considerably colder than when we had started, and the thick pine trees kept the tem
peratures low enough. We found a rock outcrop with beautiful views of Giant Ledge and Panther Mountain (another popular area to hike). We sat down for a quick meal and climbed a fallen tree for even better views. Then it was onto the last stretch of snowy trail before we topped out. The only official marker on the summit was the concrete foundation of an old sign long removed. Slightly ahead and downhill, the trail opened into a large clearing. There we met and chatted with some other hikers. They all were just out for the day, with the exception of one gentleman ending a several day trek at the trailhead where we started. In a ledge below the clearing was a plaque. It was in memory of the writer John Borroughs. It described how he enjoyed and frequently spent nights on this remote mountain. Many of his writings take place in this area as well. It was time to make distance before we ran out of daylight. Our map and other hikers warned us that the trail ahead dropped near vertically. They were right. There was a constant barrage of sketchy ledges and rock walls to descend. On a couple occasions we had to lower our gear down ahead of us. After losing over a thousand feet of elevation in a third of a mile, we found an incredible campsite. We were sti
ll at a decent height, and in the middle of the descent. This campsite had such a view that we ditched our original plans to camp further ahead, where things leveled off. From this spot you could clearly see the mountains we were planning to climb the following day- Cornell and Wittenburg. We set up camp and appreciated the sunset, while things became chilly. We attempted to make a fire, but despite our best efforts, and to the shame of boyscouts everywhere, we couldn't keep it burning. Everything was just too damp to take a spark. It was probably a good thing anyhow because later we learned that no open fires are permitted above 3500 feet. We kept warm by cooking dinner (rice with chicken and broccoli) and hopped in the tent. Sleep comes quick after a day like that and a good dinner, plus a nice down sleeping bag (shout out to P. Andy). We woke up to the sun rising through the tent vestibule. It was Sunday morning, and I laughed to myself thinking that this was more spiritual of an experience than could ever be found in a pew. We skipped a warm breakfast for a cold one in a effort to make good time. Things picked up right where they left off with the tense down-climbing. Things finally started leveling off and we passed the campsite we had 
originally planned on. It was a sweet one, but we got the better deal for sure. The trail became soft with pine needles underfoot and stayed that way until the summit of Cornell. This was a wooded mountain with few views. There was one, however, that was spectacular. From a certain rock outcrop you could get an eyeful of Ashoktan Reservoir. We would see it in even more dramatic fashion from our next stop- Wittenburg. It took about an hour before we walked onto the bald summit. There was about 50 yards of open grass and boulders to enjoy, if you could take your eyes off of the views. This took the cake as my favorite hiking destination to date. We took our time and had a meal while watching hawks fly below. It was quite a job to peel myself away from there, knowing that we would have to hike up the walls on Slide. Nevertheless, we made good time and distance, beating the setting sun back to our vehicle. Of all the hikes we have done, this is one that I would most recommend to someone looking for a challenge, and a great payoff.
. They also don't require permits and tedious paperwork for backpackers. We had a great experience hiking the Adirondacks in the fall. We couldn't wait to return to the state and check out the smaller, more southern range: the Catskills. We planned an out -and-back hike over several of the area's most popular mountains. One of them is the highest in the range- Slide Mountain. The drive went fast, and we've never had such an easy time finding a trailhead. I've had more trouble finding a McDonald's. It was nice to start a hike free from the frustration that normally follows trying to find a place. We got started hiking and crossed a few streams right off. They were clearly in flood stage from the past several days of rain. The trails were typical northeast business- steep, rocky, and washed out. We spent most of the day climbing up Slide Mt. Towards the top, the trail became snow covered. It was considerably colder than when we had started, and the thick pine trees kept the tem
peratures low enough. We found a rock outcrop with beautiful views of Giant Ledge and Panther Mountain (another popular area to hike). We sat down for a quick meal and climbed a fallen tree for even better views. Then it was onto the last stretch of snowy trail before we topped out. The only official marker on the summit was the concrete foundation of an old sign long removed. Slightly ahead and downhill, the trail opened into a large clearing. There we met and chatted with some other hikers. They all were just out for the day, with the exception of one gentleman ending a several day trek at the trailhead where we started. In a ledge below the clearing was a plaque. It was in memory of the writer John Borroughs. It described how he enjoyed and frequently spent nights on this remote mountain. Many of his writings take place in this area as well. It was time to make distance before we ran out of daylight. Our map and other hikers warned us that the trail ahead dropped near vertically. They were right. There was a constant barrage of sketchy ledges and rock walls to descend. On a couple occasions we had to lower our gear down ahead of us. After losing over a thousand feet of elevation in a third of a mile, we found an incredible campsite. We were sti
ll at a decent height, and in the middle of the descent. This campsite had such a view that we ditched our original plans to camp further ahead, where things leveled off. From this spot you could clearly see the mountains we were planning to climb the following day- Cornell and Wittenburg. We set up camp and appreciated the sunset, while things became chilly. We attempted to make a fire, but despite our best efforts, and to the shame of boyscouts everywhere, we couldn't keep it burning. Everything was just too damp to take a spark. It was probably a good thing anyhow because later we learned that no open fires are permitted above 3500 feet. We kept warm by cooking dinner (rice with chicken and broccoli) and hopped in the tent. Sleep comes quick after a day like that and a good dinner, plus a nice down sleeping bag (shout out to P. Andy). We woke up to the sun rising through the tent vestibule. It was Sunday morning, and I laughed to myself thinking that this was more spiritual of an experience than could ever be found in a pew. We skipped a warm breakfast for a cold one in a effort to make good time. Things picked up right where they left off with the tense down-climbing. Things finally started leveling off and we passed the campsite we had 
originally planned on. It was a sweet one, but we got the better deal for sure. The trail became soft with pine needles underfoot and stayed that way until the summit of Cornell. This was a wooded mountain with few views. There was one, however, that was spectacular. From a certain rock outcrop you could get an eyeful of Ashoktan Reservoir. We would see it in even more dramatic fashion from our next stop- Wittenburg. It took about an hour before we walked onto the bald summit. There was about 50 yards of open grass and boulders to enjoy, if you could take your eyes off of the views. This took the cake as my favorite hiking destination to date. We took our time and had a meal while watching hawks fly below. It was quite a job to peel myself away from there, knowing that we would have to hike up the walls on Slide. Nevertheless, we made good time and distance, beating the setting sun back to our vehicle. Of all the hikes we have done, this is one that I would most recommend to someone looking for a challenge, and a great payoff.
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