Winter in the Catskills; Who's getting stoked?

[Sam]

Well, It's just about that time of year. Hunting Season closes on the 18th and "winter" begins on the 21st. For some of us that means working on peak bagging lists in order to fulfill winter requirements. In particular the "Catskill 3500 Club". I'll be out there on "opening day", if you will, with some fellow hikers to begin an awesome season of winter-hiking. Well lets hope that it's awesome! (snow, snow, snow, that will be the mantra)

Last weekend I believe it was I hiked up to North Point through 3-4in of powder and then wet snow, as the day progressed. It was a very solemn day with grey skies, snow/ice on just about everything, a decent wind speed for most of the day, and no one else out on the trail. However I find these conditions ideal for a day of winter play. Once I got to the summit the wind picked up dramatically and the snow pack turned into a sheet of ice. There were absolutely no views and this made it even more exciting. This is one of the few areas in the Catskills that gives you a feeling of exposure. With the howling wind coming out of the East, the rime covered DEC sign and vegetation, ominous skies, and the like, it actually felt like an alpine zone!

The day I chose to hit the trail was actually the first day Hunter and Bellayre opened their slopes. Pretty cool to see people coming back into the area with skies/board on their roofs and others out playing in the snow!

Feel free to discuss upcoming winter hikes here, or anything vaguely related to winter hiking in the North East.
-Sam

[mike]

I'm okay right now with dirt trails. This time of the year is nice because very few people go hiking. Which makes it even better.

I don't like the transition from dirt to snow. Once we get 1-2' of snow, then I like it a lot better. Hopefully, we have a good snow year.

I hiked the Escarpment trail today. I saw that you registered last weekend for NP. Looks like you were the only one that day. Not many have hiked there since. My knee has been bothering me, so I have cut back on my hiking. Today, I saw no one until I reached N-S lake.

[Sam]

I agree! It would be nice if the ground would freeze and some snow would show up!

That was my first time at North Point last weekend. What a great summit! I'm trying to explore some of the areas that don't have a peak over 3500' in the vicinity. During the tourist season North/South Lake is like Coney Island, as you know, so I typically go elsewhere, but this time of year is a completely different story. Had a pretty good time, while I was there. Very quiet, fresh snow, lots of fox tracks on the road, and I left the only boot prints everywhere I went that day (evidenced by the tracks in the snow).

I'm thinking of heading up to the Adirondacks to bag a few peaks this week. It seems as though winter is slow in showing up there, as well. They've got the freezing temps, ice, and crummy snow in some places, but nothing substantial. Far from being snowshoe season. I did check the "Higher Summits Forecast" and the wind speeds are crazy at the moment, 35-45mph gusts with the wind chill at subzero temperatures. So there are some aspects of winter, but snow is lacking!

[TrunksWD]

I'm definitely looking forward to Winter hiking. I've yet to go snow shoeing in the Catskills. I hiked the 4 winter peaks plus 3 others last winter and I didn't see more than 6 to inches of snow. Most trails were basically ice. I ended up sliding a good 20 or 30 feet down Slide even with Microspikes on. Luckily I didn't get hurt. With enough snow it won't be a big deal if I fall.

I'm going to seriously start working on my Winter Badge this year (7 done so far - 4 winter peaks for the regular badge, Eagle, Table, and Peekamoose). One of my 2 hiking buddies wants to start with Lone and Rocky on December 22 to get the hardest hike out of the way, however not sure how possible that is with it getting dark at 4:30. I'm guessing we would have to hit the trail at 7am. What do you guys think? If there is very little snow will it be worth it?

[Sam]

If you do Lone/Rocky very shortly after the 21st you probably won't be running into serious winter conditions, so the going won't be extremely slow. With that said, you are still going to need to get there at 7:00 at the latest (I would allow myself more time, if doing both Lone/Rocky). Maybe plan to do the harder of the two first (highly subjective, completely up to you to decide), so that if you can't get to the second peak at least you'll have got to one that is difficult. However that's just worst case scenario.

With the leaves off of the trees navigating through the mountains becomes way easier than it was back in spring/summer. I would probably walk in along the fisherman's path and tag Rocky First, and then head over to Lone via the Col. After tagging Lone the most sensible thing for me would be to walk up to the shoulder of Table and get on the blazed DEC trail. If you do take longer than anticipated you will be on a trail with reflective markers to guide you safely back to the P.A.

I like how you're going to tackle the difficult ones first. Just out of curiosity, do you know if peaks climbed during the winter for the regular badge carry over to a new list for winter? I've also climbed quite a few in winter, but was under the impression that I would have to repeat some of the marches.


Post Script.....Just got this response from the Club.
"Catskill 3500 Club Yes, they can be counted for both lists. But note you must qualify for the regular patch before or at the same time as you qualify for your winter patch. In other words, if you climb all 35 in Winter, that does not qualify for either patch, until you satisfy the requirements for the all season patch, repeating the 4 required peaks. There have been a few people that did this, even in a single Winter."

[TrunksWD]

When I hiked Lone and Rocky in the Fall we hiked Lone first then went over to Rocky. We did end up with about 20 minutes of night hiking but we didn't start the hike until between 10 and 11. The problem I see if we hike over to Table is the thick trees plus we won't have a coordinate in our GPS for where the trail is. The Fisherman's Path isn't too hard to follow once you get back to Donovan Brook. However one of my two hiking partners does slow us down. I've only done night hiking once when he wasn't there.

[Jon]

I'd say camp along the neversink, and you can get up in the morning and be right there. Winter camping!

Plus you don't have to worry cause world is gonna end Dec 21st anyways!

[TrunksWD]

I doubt we would camp. It will be quite cold and only one of the three of us has the right kind of sleeping bad. We would probably stay up in Liberty and leave the hotel by 6 - 6:30.

[mike]

Sam, there are two Lookouts between North Mtn and North Point. The upper one is the best one. Technically, they are called, "Lookout #1" (lower one - North Point), and "Lookout #2). Here is a picture of the spectacular views from Lookout #2:



There is a trail directly across from Lookout #2 that goes down to Winter Clove Inn. Very few people know about the trail.

If there isn't any snow on the ground on Dec 22, I would do Rocky and Lone. I would follow the Fisherman's Path all the way up. Then hike up to the col, and then up to Rocky. When I come back I would hit Lone. Then hike down the ridge line back to the Fisherman's Path. Trying to bag Table too is difficult. Hard to get down in the col. Lots of thick trees. the col isn't that bad. Then thick trees again. I would start as early as possible and bring headlamps.

I wouldn't camp on the Neversink. Easy way to get a ticket from the DEC. A lot of people do camp there because it is a great place to camp. I know some people hike up near Table and camp at the lean-to. Then tag both Lone and Rocky. But, you will have to carry your pack.

[Jon]

I wouldn't camp on the Neversink. Easy way to get a ticket from the DEC. A lot of people do camp there because it is a great place to camp.

Why would you get a ticket? Is there something special about that area that it's illegal to camp there? As long as you're 150 ft away from trails and water, and below 3500 feet (not that that matters after Dec 21) why would you get a ticket?