Annual New Year’s Day Hike January 2, 2012
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking.5 comments
It has become my tradition to be outside on January 1. This year found me in the company of two old friends and one new friend – only one of whom is two-legged. Old friends Terry (2-legged) and Lolli (4-legged) joined me to introduce Terry’s Puppy (4-legged and still without an Official Name) to the trail at Holt Run in Allegany State Park.
Every dog should have a boy.
Puppy is very curious about everything, especially everything that Lolli is doing or interested in. Lolli likes to carry logs around while hiking. She was not very amused when Puppy kept trying to investigate. The expression on her face said it all.
Seriously. Whose idea was this puppy?
Our drive to the Park and the first few steps into the woods were sunny and warm (relatively speaking for a January 1). The further we walked, the colder it got, the cloudier it got, and then came the rain. It only rained off and on, though, so we continued. At the half-way point, Puppy was exhausted. When we sat down to eat a sandwich, he climbed right up on Terry’s backpack and snoozed. Here he is, just barely awake from his slumbers because I woke him up digging my camera out of my pack.
Why did you wake me? I'm still sleepy.
He went back to sleep after the Photo Opp, so I poked around in the dark woods to see what this new camera (Canon Rebel T2i) could capture in low light. I’m still getting used to it, but I like what I’m seeing. The following slide show contains some pictures I took under very dark skies just before the rain really cut loose!
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Happy New Year, everyone! May 2012 be filled with glorious nature adventures for you and yours.
Wolf Run Road June 26, 2011
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking, wild edibles, wildflowers.11 comments
There was a time when you could drive Wolf Run Road to the place where the Finger Lakes Trail crosses it. Not any more. You can drive to the bridge which is now closed. So we did. And then we walked.
This is a beautiful trail with lots of great views. And in June, there are lots of wildflowers.
Deptford Pinks
Canada Thistle
Day Lily
Common Milkweed (with Pollinator)
Rough-fruited Cinquefoil
Knapweed
Bird’s Foot Trefoil
Oxeye Daisy
Red Clover
Small Sundrops (this native flower is the size of my pinkie fingernail)
Cow Vetch
Yellow Clover
(another) Oxeye Daisy
Heal-all
There were also several delicious nibbles along the way. We ate Allegany Service Berries, mint leaves, Day Lily buds, and blueberries!
I ate the blue one…
Here’s where we parked:
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Hepatica Hunt April 9, 2011
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking, spring.5 comments
Beautiful weather today. So, I went to look for spring wildflowers… other than Skunk Cabbage and Colt’s Foot. But, I didn’t find any. Sigh.
Here’s what I did find, though!
Watercress
Shelf Function
Moss
Leeks
A Different Moss
Hepatica!!! (but no flowers… yet.)
We See With Our Emotions December 20, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking, photography, winter.12 comments
Twenty degrees. The heavy snow has stopped, for now. An occasional flake floats down now and again. Thick gray clouds block the sun. Perfect day for a hike, not so perfect for photography. I snap photo after photo anyway.
Back on my computer, the screen shows me what the camera captured: gray, monochromatic, dull. I suppose that IS what it looked like.
I am not satisfied. It is not a good representation of my memory of the day. I load the picture into Lightroom and play with the settings until the image matches my memory.
I mess with the other photos similarly.
Ta da!
But photographs can never really capture the beauty of our memories! ~Emily Schlick
Hiking During Hunting Season November 22, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking.6 comments
Archery opened several weeks ago. Shotgun opened Saturday. What is a hiker to do? I was delighted to learn that hunting is prohibited inside Allegany State Park on Sundays. (Thank you to whoever made that rule!)
I had been curious about a lean-to on the park map and decided to go check it out. It is reportedly on a section of the cross country ski trails – along the Ridge Run.
We parked at the Bova Creek area – where once upon a time there was downhill skiing – and headed up Patterson Run. We had a cup of hot chocolate at the point where Patterson, Ridge Run, and Snowsnake Run all meet up, then took the sharp right turn to follow Ridge Run.
At the site of the supposed lean-to, there were a few pieces and parts that could have been part of a structure once, I suppose. Why I didn’t take a picture, I’m not sure.
From this point, the park map lists only two alternatives: turnaround and retrace your steps, or continue along the Ridge Run and eventually reach the summit. We were using an old map from an orienteering club* that showed more detail and discovered we could continue on another path that would loop back to the truck – by way of the old down-hill ski site! (Read about the history of “Bova Slopes” by clicking –> here.)
(* By the way, does anyone know where I can buy a new, fresh topographic/orienteering map of the park? UPDATE 11/26/2010: Here’s the link for buying that awesome map: http://www.hyatts.com/art/allegany-state-park-trail-map-Y79603)
Here are a few shots from the top of Bova Slopes:
This is a picture of the truck. Can you see it?
Patterson and Ridge Run are wide and recently groomed and grated in preparation for snow and the cross country ski season. Once that happens, dogs and snowshoes are not allowed on those sections of trail.
I have heard a rumor that new maps of the park are in the works. I am looking very forward to those!
I tried to make a google map of the area, but the software and my computer didn’t want to play nice with each other. Here is a link to a google map that I started (click here). Ignore what is labeled “Ski Touring.” If that exists, I didn’t find it…
Pleasant Walk on Chautauqua County Rails to Trails Segment November 7, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in autumn, hiking.3 comments
Saturday treated us to the first snow of the season, and it seemed like a perfect day for a hike on a section of the Chautauqua County Rails to Trails system. The boots I chose were sturdy and warm, but old and no longer waterproof. I didn’t think it would matter. The transformed rail beds are sometimes wet and muddy, but you don’t have to walk through standing water. Usually.
As we came into the clearing where the Beaver Pond opens out on the west side of the trail, we scared up a large flock of unidentifiable (to me) ducks, definitely not mallards or wood ducks, as their escape was voiceless.
And then we saw it.
Oh boy. Now how are we going to get around that?
I was ready to turn back, go to the house, stack some wood. Terry and the dogs had other ideas.
So, I followed their lead, stepping gingerly on the beaver dam, trying not to use the poison ivy-covered trees for support. I made it about three quarters of the way to the other side before I was forced to step into water that soaked through my old boots.
If only the beavers could be trained to build their dam on the pond side of the trail.
It’s a good thing wool socks are warm even when they are wet. I was able to forget about my wet feet and enjoy the beauty of the day. The air was crystal clear and there was barely the hint of a breeze. Every watery surface was a mirror.
One of the mirrors was being constantly disturbed by melting snow.
It was mostly a day for grand sweeping landscapes, but little things caught my eye now and again.
Had we a map, we might have hiked the full length of this trail; we didn’t realize how close the end of it we were. Next time, we might start at the north end and hike south to the flooded trail and back.
The Portage Trail is a spur off the main Rails to Trails system that starts in Mayville along Route 430 between Mayville’s 4-corners and the Hartfield airstrip. Parking is just to the left of the black and red Range Resources building. Bill Sharp was a naturalist and educator in Chautauqua County.
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According to an article in the March-April 2007 of Parks and Trails E-News (link below), this segment of trail began as a Native American portage trail between Lake Erie and Chautauqua Lake. In the early 1900s a steam-powered rail line was developed there. It was converted to an electric powered trolley in 1910. This section was dedicated to the memory of Bill Sharp in September of 2006 by the members of the Chautauqua County Rails to Trails organization.
Links
Traditions October 27, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking.5 comments
Apparently Sue’s family used to do this when she was younger: meet at the pavillion at the Quaker picnic area of Allegany State Park. Cook up and eat a magnificent breakfast, then head out to hike one of the trails. Sue revived the tradition and this year celebrated the third Annual Allegany Breakfast and Hike. I am pleased to say that I have attended all three and that THIS year, I actually stayed for the hike part.
Concetta "manned" one of the Coleman Stoves to fry up the bacon. (Womanned?)
Folks bring dishes to pass, but Coleman stoves are also on hand for cooking.
Sue scrambles the eggs.
It has traditionally been Matthew’s job to deep fry the donuts. Since he was late in arriving, the girls took over.
The Donut Brigade
I liked them dusted with cinnamon sugar best of all.
Donuts! (That's my dutch oven... many delicious things have come out of that over the years!)
…
The Patterson Trail
I didn’t manage to snap a shot of the table, laden with food, and surrounded by people having a blast. I guess I was too busy eating bacon, eggs, donuts, two kinds of apple crisp, and blueberry buckle and washing it all down with orange juice and coffee… which is why I really NEEDED the after-breakfast hike.
We drove through to the Red House side of the park, left 2 vehicles at the Bova ski area, and all piled into one vehicle to drive up to the Art Roscoe Cross Country Ski area so that we could hike the Patterson trail from top to bottom. My daughter has skiied that section in winter, but I never have. It is a gentle, easy descent and I think I might want to try it one of these winters! (I’m intrigued by Snowsnake Run… but I think I’ll come back and do that in Autumn and not try this “most difficult” trail on skis!)
I’m sure the trail has its own winter beauty, but I can’t imagine the trail being any more beautiful than it was in Autumn.
We took a short breather where Snowsnake Run re-joins Patterson.
It was a delightful day… surely to be repeated next year – probably the 3rd Sunday in October at 10am at the Quaker picnic area. Consider yourself invited. Bring a dish to pass and/or your Coleman stove, your picnic dishes, and your hiking boots. See you then!
A view from Patterson Trail
The Escape – Part II October 18, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in autumn, hiking.6 comments
Allegany SNIT Program Mystery
We neared the end of the narrow side trail and could see the wider main trail ahead. There in the branch of a tree was a one gallon plastic tub. Hmm… I wondered if it was a geocache. We took it down to have a peak. You could still just barely see that someone had labeled it “ASP SNIT.” SNIT? It was all in caps, so we assumed it was an acronym.
Inside was a laminated photocopy of a section of the same map we were using with an arrow pointing out “You are here.”
When I got home, I googled “SNIT Allegany State Park” and found that in summer of 2009 there had been a “Senior Naturalist in Training” program in the park (click here for the program PDF). I’m not sure how this tub fit into the program, but, well, there you have it. Mystery solved.
This picture didn’t turn out well because it was getting darker and darker in the woods:
Black Cherry Fruits
Have you noticed that the black cherries this year have been heavy laden with fruit? Seems like every tree I see is just dripping… and the ground under them covered with shiny little cherries. The animals are enjoying this, as evidenced by this:
Bear Scat
There were strange new things along the trail that delighted me:
Strange Fungus
This weird fungus was something I had never seen before. All jelly-like and nearly colorless. I haven’t tried to find out its name yet. Do you know? Here’s a closeup:
Weird Fungus Closeup
A little further on beech tree had lost its top… And look at the way it forced some greenery out the broken trunk in an effort to keep living:
A crown of leaves atop a broken Beech.
After completing the Sweetwater trail, we drove over to the Stone Tower for another view of the colorful hills.
Stone Tower - Allegany State Park
I feel blessed to live so near this beautiful State Park, where a couple of hours of walking can so refresh and relax the soul.
View from the Stone Tower
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An Escape… October 9, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in autumn, fruits and berries, fungi, hiking, trees, wild edibles.8 comments
Fire Tower Trail, Allegany State Park
Sometimes when the world is weighing down heavily on your shoulders, the only thing that helps is a little escape… a chance to walk, explore, breathe crisp Autumn air. A chance to surround yourself with the familiar, yet be open to the novel.
The Art Roscoe Ski area at Allegany State Park is a wonderful place for cross-country skiing in winter. Turns out, it is also a wonderful place for hiking when there is no snow.
Fire Tower at the Art Roscoe Ski Area, Allegany State Park
A side trail runs parallel to the main trail and takes you to a Fire Tower. I pushed my fear deep down into my boots and climbed the stairs, hoping for a glorious vista from the top. There were hand rails and the stairs were sturdy. Still, my heart pounded hard and my breath came in short, shallow fits.
It was indeed worth it! The view from the top was spectacular and very much justified the climb.
The Allegany “Mountains” are really a big old ocean bed that was carved out over time by melting glacier water and various other forms of erosion. When you climb up for a view from the top, you can see that all the “peaks” are the same height.
View from the Top
It was helpful to have my hiking buddy in front of me on the descent… much easier looking at his backpack than at the steep stairs that went on and on. Back on the ground, it took a while before the adrenaline left my muscles and I could relax again… and turn my attention from big sweeping views to the forest’s minutiae.
A tiny moth kept trying to hide from me under the leaves...
Most of the Sweetwater trail is wide and in winter two trails for skiing are groomed making for fast, easy skiing. Along the way we found a narrower trail that crossed Sweetwater. Always favoring the road less travelled, we took a right hand turn.
Loose and peeling bark is back-lit by the Autumn rays.
It was late afternoon and the long, slanting rays of the sun were golden, creating vibrant, colorful mini-landscapes.
The log we chose to rest on was decorated with a familiar "Icicle Fungus"
A bit further down the trail, there was an opening and the combination of “plant” life was simply delightful… Some I recognized and knew the names of… Others I recognized, but have no names for… And one brand new! (I put the word plant in quotes… because back when I studied biology the first time, there were only two kingdoms: Plants and Animals. And under that scheme… all these things would have been classified as plants…)
Lichens and Mosses
The first thing I noticed was a thick carpet of lichens – some 6 or 8 inches tall, punctuated with mosses competing for space. Tucked in here and there were mushrooms… so bitty it would have been easy to miss them altogether…
A tiny mushroom manages to pop up through the thick mat of moss and lichen.
A little trail nibble was provided by a patch of Wintergreen that was sharing the soil with the others.
Wintergreen... not the juiciest of berries... but a very pleasant flavor.
Very near the bushy-shrubby type lichens were stalks that resembled small cups on stems, decorated with a bit of red. I’m not sure if they are a structure of the the shrubby type, or a whole separate species…
This seems to match other photos I have found labeled "Lesser Sulpher Cup Lichen."
And then there were the Lycopodium…
These little "club mosses" or "ground pines" are considered "exploitatively vulnerable" in New York State. They have been over-harvested for wreath-making.
If I have seen the next one before, it was never in such abundance and so easy to investigate… It warrants several pictures…
Running Club Moss
Oh dear… this post is getting very long and there is still so much more to tell… I guess I’ll click “publish” and tell you more later…
A Gorge-ous Day August 9, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in hiking.4 comments
It is hard to convey the beauty of Chautauqua Gorge on a summer day. It really must be experienced first hand… But, of course, I shall try with my photos and words.
We arrived at around 9:30am and the light was greenish gold. There were forests above us, and below us:
Straight overhead, the sky was cloudless and deep blue.
The water was higher than we expected it to be on a summer day. Yesterday’s rain must be the reason. We switched from boots to Tevas and found we had much better traction and could walk right through the creek… The water was refreshing.
Terry brought his fishing pole fitted with a small spinner.
It seemed every pool he tried yieled a fish. Many were small, like the one on the left below. But there was one nice big brown trout, too.
This one could have made a meal! But it was a catch and release kind of day.
Because the woods are pretty, too, we switched back to boots at one point and hiked a trail we call “The High Road”. It climbs a razorback – with cliffs dropping off on both sides – one to the main creek, and one to a feeder creek. At the summit you can no longer see the creek through the canopy. You can still hear the water rushing, though, and the breeze up there was cool and refreshing.
The trail eventually descends back to the creek – further upstream. We put our sandals back on and followed the creek downstream to our beginning point. Along the way, we could not resist sitting in this mini-waterfall. Very refreshing!
I took… way too many pictures… because every which way I turned there was more incredible beauty.
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