We arrived at the trail head around 1:30PM and were quickly off following the 1777 trail to the AT/Timp Torne trails. The ascent was relatively mild, our total elevation gain for the day was around a thousand feet.
After hiking for about a mile we came to a nice rock ledge with views of the Hudson Valley and River as well as Bear Mountain and Perkins Tower.
Britt on the rock ledge overlooking the Hudson Valley
Bear Mountain and Perkins Tower
After hiking for about an hour we came to the top of the ridge and the grade leveled off for the most part. On the way up there are a bunch of rock ledges that face west with views of the Anthony Wayne recreation area parking lot, the Palisade Parkway, etc. We saw a bunch of Turkey Vultures and hawks on the way up - I think at one point we counted over 20 Turkey Vultures overhead.
There were some Pitch Pines and what I think is a blooming Dogwood tree
The contrast of the white blossoms with the blue sky was very sharp. The tree provided a nice reminder that Spring was in full swing. We encountered a couple more of these at the top of the ridge as we continued to the West Mountain Shelter.
As we continued along the ridge, there was an adjacent hill to our west with very clear signs of fire damage on the ridge line - I think it was a hill along the 1779 trail just north of the intersection with the AT. There were some conifers growing along the ridge as well.
This is one of my favorite sections of the park despite the fact it is generally very crowded. As we continued we arrived at the West Mountain Shelter after the Timp Torne trail and the Suffern-Bear Mountain trails split.
View of the West Mountain Shelter from the rear
View from the front of the shelter facing south east towards Timp Torne with the Hudson river in the background
Inside the West Mountain Shelter
When we arrived at the shelter it was clear there was a group of hikers that had recently left the shelter as there were very evident signs of their fire in one of the shelters two fire places.
The shelter itself is very old and from the photo above you can see there is a hole in the roof. In general the shelters that are scattered through out Harriman are not in great shape and are in need of repair. I generally do not camp in the shelters in Harriman for a number of reasons, primarily because I don't fancy the company of strangers when I am hiking/camping.
The views from the shelter were expansive and you could see NY City to the south east and Newark, NJ to the South.
We spent about half an hour enjoying some snacks at the shelter and talking to a trail runner before heading north back to the car. I took a little detour from the Suffern-Bear Mountain trail to stop by an area I had camped at in the fall. It is a nice little area surrounded by scrub. It is not the best area to camp because there is little wood, a very high fire risk and very exposed to the wind.
I tried to snag a panoramic shot but I missed a couple spots around the edges
Britt and I continued north on the Suffern-Bear Mountain trail through some steep sections until the trail eventually leveled off and we dropped back into a more heavily wooded area with some conifers.
The photo above is one of my favorite scenes in the woods - where the sun manages to poke through the trees and light up the forest floor.
It was a great day after all and even better, we got out taxes done!
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