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Backpacking to Bald Rocks in Harriman - 3/00
March came in more like a lamb than a lion this year and a group of Scouts from Troop 75 enjoyed the near-perfect weather on the weekend of March 4-5 on a backpacking trip to Harriman State Park. A science fair, NYSMA tryouts, SAT prep classes and a variety of other events combined to limit the crew to only three Scouts -- Tim, Jim and Nick. They were joined by Mr. Buono, Mr. Carlson and Mr. O'Brien. The day started cool and windy as we set out from the trailhead at Lake Skannatati. Once into the woods the wind died down, and the steep climb over the first quarter mile quickly banished all feelings of chill. When we reached the top the trail was pleasant and level with several nice overlooks, streams and even a small waterfall, leading eventually to the multi-way trail junction known as Times Square. Two more trail junctions later, as we neared Bald Rocks, we spotted a pair of deer not far off the trail. They froze, as did we, and we watched each other for a while. Eventually they must have decided we were no threat and they started moving around again, but always cautiously, freezing and looking up any time one of us moved or spoke. |
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After the deer wandered off, we moved on and were soon at Bald Rocks, our destination for the weekend. The experienced crew had set a Philmont-like pace and we arrived at the campsite by 11 AM. On other trips to this campsite, we had always shared the area with other campers. But this weekend we had it to ourselves. We found a couple of nice tent sites out of the wind, which was brisk on the exposed summit, and took our time setting up camp and having lunch. With plenty of time on our hands, we checked the map and found a nearby loop that would make an interesting day hike so off we went for another few miles. This took us past couple of pleasant streams and two more overlooks and we stopped to watch a circling flock of turkey vultures gliding above the overlook at Black Rock.
We had dinner at 5:30 with plenty of light to eat and clean up by, a nice contrast to our last backpacking trip in January where we ate by candle lantern and cleaned up by flashlight. After dinner, we had a fire in the fireplace of the empty shelter and turned in.
The morning organization that we had learned recently seemed to fail us on Sunday and we left the campsite a good hour later than we planned. Nonetheless, we were back at the trailhead by late morning, time enough to enjoy a second breakfast at the famed Red Apple Rest and still return home before 1 PM.
All in all, the weather was perfect, the trail was fine, the views were enjoyable and all of those present had a great time. The only disappointment was that so few Scouts had come along and so many had missed out on a great weekend.
- Mr. Carlson
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