Rapp Barrens

Went for a short walk with Benny this morning in the Albany Pine Bush. Parked at the trailhead on Rapp Road and did a counter-clockwise loop on the red trail. The trail was slippery in spots with about 1/2 inch of fresh powdery snow covering ice. Walked about 1.2 miles on a sunny, but cold and windy day. The northern half of the loop is very open where they did a lot of tree clearing unfortunately.

Hewitt Pond Mountain

Went for a winter hike in the Central Adirondacks today. I climbed Hewitt Pond Mountain  (Vanderwhacker Wild Forest). Luckily, Hewitt Lake Club road (a gravel side road of Route 28N) was plowed - including the parking area at end. I signed in the trail register (last person to sign in was a month ago) and started out on the state DEC trail (red markers). I didn't bring snowshoes as the snow was not too deep. The trail climbs partly up a small hill before dropping down to the pond again after about 1/2 mile. Here I left the trail and headed across the frozen pond to the opposite side. It was a little unnerving walking across, but the ice was solid from the cold winter we have had. I reached the other side and then headed uphill through deciduous woods. The climb was a bit steep in spots and slippery due to ice/packed snow, so I put on Microspikes for added traction. I was trying to reach a viewpoint that I had recorded in my GPS, so I had to sidehill a bit in a westerly direction to reach it. The woods turned more coniferous as I got farther up. There was a nice view at the open area, to the south and west. At this point, I picked up an unofficial trail (marked with flagging) that I followed to the wooded summit. It continued down the other side, but I didn't follow it too far. I returned via the same route. Got back to the car and decided to bag the other hike I had planned. My legs felt like jello after trudging through the snow for three hours.

Summit Elevation: Hewitt Pond 2454 ft
Round-trip Distance: 4.75 mi
Elevation Change: 1100 ft

Hewitt Pond

Hunger Games

Went for a short walk with Benny today in one of the newest additions to the Albany Pine Bush - the Hunger Kill Barrens. I parked at the Volunteer Firefighters Memorial Park lot in Guilderland on Dibella Drive. I followed the paved trail past the ballfield and the basketball court and then to the edge of the woods. Entered the Pine Bush and then took the blue loop trail. Also followed the white trail which leads to a neighborhood at a cul-de-sac - TallyHo Court. Walked about 1.5 miles altogether on a windy day.

Hunger Kill

Peebles

Went for a short walk with Benny this morning at Peebles Island State Park. Followed the yellow-marked perimeter trail in a clock-wise direction. Almost 2 miles of walking on a cloudy day. Had some sprinkles, but made it back before it started pouring luckily.

Garnsey Park

Went on another local hike this weekend with Benny. Visited Garnsey Park near Rexford, NY. Did a clockwise loop using the meadow trail and the scout/ridge trail. Easy walking on mostly flat trails through a mix of open fields and forest. Walked about 2 miles on another cold January day.

Garnsey

Niskayuna

Visited some local parks/preserves today with Benny in the Niskayuna area. First stop was at Ashford Glen Preserve. There is a short trail that follows along a creek - a nice wooded ravine.

Next we visited Fieldstone Park - a nature preserve nestled in a housing development. I couldn't find any trailhead or signs, so I parked on Fieldstone Drive where the nature trail appeared to cross. I walked a loop on the south of the road, and then followed the trail on the north side which ended with another loop. There were a many sections of boardwalk where the trail crossed through wetland areas.

Lastly, we stopped at Woodlawn preserve in Schenectady- which is the western most part of the Pine Bush barrens. Parked at the trailhead on Gifford Lane. Took the pond trail (blue) and forest edge trail (yellow). I also tried to follow the dune trail (red), but it lead to a maze of competing ATV trails. Met a couple of dudes who were out with metal detectors - possibly look for treasure.

Altogether, walked around three miles on a cold, gloomy day. Got done just before the snow started to fly.

Nisky

Greenport

Went for an easy hike/walk with Benny this afternoon at the Greenport Conservation Area near Hudson, NY. Parked at the trailhead near Daisy Hill Road. Did a loop using the main blue trail, with side trips to various lookouts using the red, green and yellow trails. Walked about 3.5 miles altogether on this sunny but cold and windy day. A good way to start off the New Year.

Greenport