Queen of the Catskills

 Cornell and Friday Slides I've been feeling pretty anxious this summer about school, which was kind of interfering with my drive for making progress on my outdoor goals. However, the universe continues to bless my love for adventuring by bringing opportunities to me when I lacked the motivation to actively seek them out myself.  This week's gift was when @Mikegross asked me if I wanted to join him and @stevesiergard hike the Cornell and Friday slides in the Catskills. This checked off two boxes as it was reconnaissance for a future project and allowed me to finally hike with Mike.  We went up the spine of Cornell. Part of the way was hiking up a beautiful logging road. The rest of the way was navigating through formidable cliff bands. We took in close up views of Friday and Balsam Cap at the Cloud cliff, descended some elevation, and arrived at a slide where you can actually see the boulder that triggered it lodged at the base.  The next part was the most slow movin...

Table, Peekamoose, Lone, and Rocky This was a reconnaissance mission to strategize the best way to ski two Catskills high peaks that I'm a little nervous about: Lone and Rocky. They are in a desolate part of the Catskills with no cell service. Although I have a Garmin for emergencies, it still adds an extra layer of stress. They are also mostly bushwacks that pack a decent amount of mileage (at least 12 miles, but probably more depending on route). I've hiked these peaks before, but it's been a while and I needed to mark some key waypoints on my map before I ski them.  The weather prediction was totally off. It was supposed to be sunny to partly cloudy. When I left, the sun was shining and it looked like it was going to be a magical day hiking with a friend. By the time I arrived, there was a foreboding cloud of doom right over my target peaks that provided on and off light rain and then a downpour during the last quarter of the hike. It was still a magical day with a frien...

  A very delayed post from a trek to Burnt Knob.

Blackhead Loop I did a sunset hike of Blackhead because the only way to get a parking spot is to go early or late. (Plus, I like having the mountain to myself.) And, unlike my excursion to Palenville Overlook, this hike was bug free. There were occasional muddy spots, but you could easily bypass them.  I went up the Escarpment trail, which I hadn't done in a long time. I forgot that it can be a pretty steep ascent on the last mile to the top. When I reached the summit, the sunlight was perfect. It was that warm yellow glow that makes any setting look beautiful -- even the city. As I walked down the Blackhead Trail, through the canopy of trees I saw the literal light at the end of the tunnel that indicated a small clearing.  I was really excited to walk through it because I knew I was going to see an amazing view. It got me thinking about how being on the precipice of things  is often more intense than the arrival of the event itself.  The positive anticipation is thr...