5 and 6 Fire Tower Challenge Pillsbury and Bald Mountain

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Woke up to a beautiful day. For my 60th birthday, May 22, rather than presents I asked Paul to climb a fire tower or two. I researched the likely candidates, there are 23 in the high peaks area and 5 in the Catskills so I had plenty to choose from. We are still trying to get our hiking legs in shape so I put two smaller ones together with the idea we would climb the tougher one first.

 We picked Bald Mountain and Pillsbury Mountain. Pillsbury Moutain is described as a strenuous climb over a moderate distance, is a 3.2 miler with an elevation change of 1337. Bald Mountain is described as a short hike with only one minor steep spot, is a 2 miler with an elevation change of 390 feet. Paul, Foster and I chose to do Pillsbury first.

The drive was pretty. We drove through Tupper Lake and Long Lake and almost made it to Spectacular but were instructed to turn off onto this 6.3-mile logging road. The directions said the first 5 miles would be easy for most cars but the last mile needs a truck or a car with high clearance. We passed a logging operation and many campsites. Subi 1 made it to the parking lot with no trouble and parked next to many pickups but no other cars. The drive took over two ours, we arrived around 10:45 and by the time we loaded up with gear it was 11 am. The first part of the trip was downhill to a creek, over a bridge, flat for a little bit and then consistently up with no flats for about a mile. I thought I was gonna die. Climbing straight up is not easy. I was constantly having to lift my body up, not an easy feat. After about a mile or so we started to get some flatter areas between the steep, this was much easier. The trees are just starting to bud and there were some beautiful flowers and black flies along the way. We did bathe ourselves in OFF before starting so the flies were mostly an annoyance. There were not many views except through the trees on this hike. Near the top, it felt like we were walking across the mountain in search of the fire tower. Finally at about 12:15 pm we saw the fire tower and a dilapidated cabin near its base. The guide book said the top of the tower wasn't available but we could climb up to just below the lookout area. Although it was an overcast day, the views were spectacular but the fire tower was in questionable shape. The chicken wire around the stairs was missing on quite a few landings and I was worried about Foster. Unlike most dogs that don't like to climb open stairs, Foster is fine with it and will climb to the top of any fire tower. He doesn't like to be left alone either so keeping him off the tower while Paul and I went up was an impossible task. Paul made it to the top but I took Foster down after 4 flights. Don't feel bad for me, I was just as happy to return to the ground. This fire tower made me nervous. Near the base of the fire tower was a bench and an area for campfires had been set up. We sat on the bench to eat our PB&J sandwiches. That is where we saw the marker and we took the required photograph.

Going down the mountain was much easier. On the way up we needed to climb up some big rocks that had water and moss and I had been worried about climbing down those same rocks. No need for the worry, my "sticky' soles made me sure-footed over the rocks. The tree roots were the most slippery but we returned to the bottom with nary a scratch.

This mountain had been a bit more challenging than we had anticipated so we talked about skipping Bald Mountain. We had a 30-mile drive before we had to make a decision as the turn off to Bald Mountain was on the way back to Lake Placid. Once at the turn-off, we decided to go for it. We were already on the far side of the High Peaks and the guide book said this was an easy hike with only one steep part. We still had 30 miles to go to get to Bald Mountain thus giving us a bit more rest. We drove along RT 28 and found the lake names had lost some imagination. We were passing the chain of lakes known as the Fulton Chain of Lakes. The first one we came to was called 8, the next 7 and so on. I think we were near 4 when we finally came to Bald Mtn.



Bald Mountain is near a populous area. The parking lot was filled with cars and people of all ages were there to enjoy the hike. We felt silly breaking out our backpacks and walking sticks but we learned well during our skills course. It is better to be prepared. The book was right when it described this walk, other than one steep climb and the fact that we were on rock the whole time it was an easy climb. Because it was mostly large boulders it was hard to see the path and we took one unplanned detour but it led us to a different view of the lake. A pleasant surprise. We arrived at the top around 4:15 pm. The fire tower was well maintained but due to the large number of people we took turns with Foster at the bottom. He was fine with that. There were lots of people and dropped food that kept him entertained. The sky here was overcast but the view was not impaired. The way down was uneventful. Foster weaved himself in between a large group of people taking a break. I think he was looking for handouts. The people loved him and all reached in to pet him. Surprisingly Foster seemed to like this attention even with no food being offered.



By now we were glad to be heading back home. Other than PB&J sandwiches we had had nothing to eat. We knew of a brewery in Tupper Lake, Raquette River Brewery that would have a food truck outside. We arrived around 6:30 on a Saturday night. They were closed. So we knew the IGA in town had great sandwiches at their deli. Deli was closed. So we headed to Saranac Lake but then decided to just drive home so Foster could get fed too. All in all a very good day to celebrate the last day of being 59!

Tupper Lake Triad-Summer Fire Tower #4

Saturday, May 7, 2016

What a weekend!  Due to scheduling conflicts the girls came to Lake Placid to celebrate my birthday and Mothers' Day on the same weekend.  A win win for me.  For my birthday I wanted to climb a fire tower and the Tupper Lake Triad was just the ticket.  We would climb Mt Arab (fire tower), Coney Mountain and Goodman Mountain and we would all earn a "patch."

Lara, Alex and Chris arrived at 11 pm on Friday night.  It was pouring rain and driving was difficult.  Lara's trip from PA was awful.  She left the office at 2:30 pm.  Ugh!  She headed straight for bed and said not to wake her.  Brodie had other ideas and woke her up earlier than all of us.  We had breakfast and loaded ourselves, including Brodie and Foster into Subi 1. First on our list was Mr Arab. The black flies were in abundance and we brought out the bug spray.  The little buggers liked me too much.  I spent a lot of time swatting at them and adding more OFF.  The trip up Mt Arab was short but steep, exactly one mile to the top. We got to the top at 10:40. We, including Foster, climbed to the top of the tower to see the views of the surrounding countryside.  It was a beautiful day.  After all the rain the night before the views were stunning.  The trees had not yet budded so the views were more winter than spring.  There were some flowers along the path.  I believe they are called Trillium Flowers.  They are white, red and a combination of white and red.




After Arab we replenished at the Stewarts in Tupper Lake. Water, root beer and beef jerky and more OFF. We then went to Coney (pronouched Cooney). The guide said it was a short hike, 1/2 mile each way, the sign said 1.1 miles to the summit. The sign was spot on. The path seemed to do a lot of back and forth. It may have been changed to a serpentine trail to make it more family friendly. Who knows why there was a difference from the website and trail marker. The black flies disappeared, of course, we had more bug spray. Brody was on a leash and kept a good pace, I had trouble keeping up with him but I managed to bring up the rear and was comfortable with that spot.



Onto the last of the Tri, Goodman Mtn. This was the longest of the hikes 1.6 miles each way but the first mile was a paved walking path with what appeared to be wooden runouts every 10-15 feet. We surmised that runaway roller blades would have a place to bail out should need be. The remainder of the trail was a gentle switchback. There was no medallion at the top so we improvised with a discarded orange peel. We were back down the mountain by 2:50 pm. Total mileage almost 8 miles. Great day for mom!

3 Fire Tower Overlook Mtn Catskills

Onto the third of our Fire Towers.  We needed to head to Pennsylvania so we planned to attack one of the fire towers in the Catskills.  The weather seemed iffy and calling for rain right about the time we expected to be at the mountain so we waited to make a decision until we arrived at the exit.  Overlook Mountain was near the Thruway near Woodstock, NY so if it looked like rain we would drive by and arrive in PA earlier than planned.Overlook is a 5 mile round trip with an elevation change of 1400 ft.  Difficulty is considered moderate and never very steep.

We began the day with a hearty breakfast at the ADK Cafe in Keene. It was a warm and dreary day.  The rain held off so we leashed the dogs, Foster and Brodie, and headed up.  It was a continuous, steep, excuse me, moderate climb, at least 2 miles on an old stone and gravel carriage road way.  The trees were thick along the road which alloweafforded no views.  We did see a shell of a hotel, originally built in 1833, burned to the ground on April Fool's Day 1874 (no one believed a small child tried to convince the staff that there was smoke from the chimney darker than usual) rebuilt in 1978 and burned down again in 1924.  The struggle to keep it opened ended in 1939.   Past the ruins is a large ugly communications tower.  From there it was a short climb to the fire tower.  The rain held off and the overcast sky did not block the 360 views of the Hudson River Valley to the east, Hunter Mountain to the north, Ashokan Reservoir to the south, and Slide Mountain to the west. At the base of the fire tower is a path for more views.  We were on a cliff that looked down on the tops of trees and the Hudson River.  Brodie seemed keen on jumping off the cliff to get something in the trees.  Thankfully he was on a leash.  Paul noted the changing winds and movement of the clouds and suggested we start heading down, fast.  About 3/4 of the way down the mountain the sky's opened and we were drenched by the time we reached the car.

Fire Tower 2 Hurricane Mountain

Technically tax season was in full swing but the ladies we had met at Ubu's in January sent us a text to say they were hiking Hurricane Mountain and would we join them.  Paul and I thought we would be holding them up but we agreed to meet with the understanding they did not have to wait for us. Turned out to be a wonderful day.  We met up at the 46 Sandwiches in town.  They added Blake to our group.  a young filmographer of the 46er film. A hit among the local crowd and hikers everywhere.  After breakfast we went to the second entrance to Hurricane up Rt 9N. This is the shortest route to the summit

.   Lots of uphill driving to the trail head.  Good for us, less uphill to climb.  Morning was cold and sunny.  We waited for Blake..long dull story.   The beginning part of the hike was flat through a forest then started uphill.  There was more ice than we expected.  It had been very warm the week before and not much snowfall for the year.  Our micro-spikes came in handy.  And because they were so new they were thankfully very sharp.  It was a short hike 2.2 miles from the parking lot to the tower.  When we arrived at the top it was a glorious day.  We could see Whiteface as well as many other mountains.  We spent a couple of hours on top of the mountain lounging in the sun, Blake practiced yoga, Chrissy brought out the whiskey and vodka.  The girls were very instructional as to what items are needed on a hike.  In fact both Chrissy and Angie strongly recommended the Skills Training workshop held at the ADK Loj at the end of April.  They would be head of "cook groups" during the weekend.  The trip down the mountain was a bit harry.  Walking up the ice was one thing but Chrissy's webbing came in handy.  It was a flat webbed rope 50 feet long that you would put around a tree and climb down the ice patch backward. It was truly a lifesaver.