Acra Point Loop
Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2011 10:54 pm
This morning we headed up to Batavia Valley to hike the Acra Point Loop. When we arrived at the end of the road, there was already 10 cars parked at the snowplow turnaround. The skies were cloudy with a slight breeze.
We popped on our snowshoes and headed up the road to the Acra Point Trail Head. At the registration box, we decided to hike up the left flank of the stream instead of trying to cross the overflowing stream. We had to bushwhack through the forest up to the col between Burnt Knob and Acra Point. There was a lot of slash on the forest floor. Part way up we had to take off our snowshoes because of the lack of snow. As we arrived at the col, the clouds went away and the sun was shining nicely. Today was going to turn out to be a nice Bluebird day.
As we headed up to Acra Point, we switched to our MicroSpikes. Once on top we stopped to enjoy the view from the ledges overlooking the Blackhead Mtns. That view is always a joy. We then headed towards Acra Point. We stopped at Acra Point, but it is now becoming very overgrown. We then headed south towards Blackhead Mtn.
With the sun shining the trail started to warm up. We started to have numerous break-thrus. We then switched to snowshoes. We stopped and had a bit to eat at the same time. It was really a nice day. Beautiful views over the valley. One of the best features of this hike is the narrow ridge line. Sometimes it was only 50' wide with views on both sides of the trail.
We reached the trail junction. We took the trail back to the Parking Lot. Two guys were lounging at the lean-to enjoying the afternoon. We stopped for a moment, and then headed back down the trail.
This trail is known for having lots of water. We ran into about 20 water crossings. They posed some challenges. We took off our snowshoes and switched back to our MicroSpikes. Before long we were back at the parking lot. 5.54 miles and a lot of fun and good views. Here are a few pictures:
Ledge before Acra Point - Views of the Blackhead Mtns
Ledge before Acra Point - Views of Burnt Knob and the Windham Valley
Just before Acra Point
Views from Acra Point
Conifer Forest section
I call this the Woodpecker Tree
Just before the Blackhead parking area
We popped on our snowshoes and headed up the road to the Acra Point Trail Head. At the registration box, we decided to hike up the left flank of the stream instead of trying to cross the overflowing stream. We had to bushwhack through the forest up to the col between Burnt Knob and Acra Point. There was a lot of slash on the forest floor. Part way up we had to take off our snowshoes because of the lack of snow. As we arrived at the col, the clouds went away and the sun was shining nicely. Today was going to turn out to be a nice Bluebird day.
As we headed up to Acra Point, we switched to our MicroSpikes. Once on top we stopped to enjoy the view from the ledges overlooking the Blackhead Mtns. That view is always a joy. We then headed towards Acra Point. We stopped at Acra Point, but it is now becoming very overgrown. We then headed south towards Blackhead Mtn.
With the sun shining the trail started to warm up. We started to have numerous break-thrus. We then switched to snowshoes. We stopped and had a bit to eat at the same time. It was really a nice day. Beautiful views over the valley. One of the best features of this hike is the narrow ridge line. Sometimes it was only 50' wide with views on both sides of the trail.
We reached the trail junction. We took the trail back to the Parking Lot. Two guys were lounging at the lean-to enjoying the afternoon. We stopped for a moment, and then headed back down the trail.
This trail is known for having lots of water. We ran into about 20 water crossings. They posed some challenges. We took off our snowshoes and switched back to our MicroSpikes. Before long we were back at the parking lot. 5.54 miles and a lot of fun and good views. Here are a few pictures:
Ledge before Acra Point - Views of the Blackhead Mtns
Ledge before Acra Point - Views of Burnt Knob and the Windham Valley
Just before Acra Point
Views from Acra Point
Conifer Forest section
I call this the Woodpecker Tree
Just before the Blackhead parking area