Monthly Archives: November 2017

The Sunset At Ward Pound Ridge

9 Replies

It was truly an odd feeling to be on the trail today and after almost always being a party to the woods waking up, I was instead for once looking at the coming night. Being pretty deep in the woods and surrounded by many hills, the darkness enveloped me much quicker than the morning light does as the sun rises. As I exited the woods in almost total darkness, I was able to catch the last of the sunset off in the distance.

1127004

The sky at Ward Pound Reservation as the sun sets.

1127003

More of the same sunset.

Happy Hiking!!!

2017 Mileage:

11/27/17-3.8-342.92

The Naked Tree

6 Replies

“All our wisdom is stored in the trees.” 
―Santosh Kalwar

“Trees there were, old as trees can be, huge and grasping with hearts black as sin. Strange trees that some said walked in the night.” 
―Neil Galman

If you have read some of my more recent posts, you know how much I love photographing trees this time of year. The lack of leaves gives them an eerie quality that suggests a sense of power that I don’t see or feel any other time of the year.

This morning when I was at the Appalachian Trail Rail Station (see post from this morning) I saw some pretty cool looking trees. Being totally devoid of leaves, I couldn’t resist taking a couple of photographs.

Is there anyone out there that loves “naked trees”?

1126017

 

112628

The Harlem Line in B & W

2 Replies

“Black and white creates a strange dreamscape that color never can.”
-Jack Antonoff

“Black and white are the colors of photography. To me they symbolize the alternatives of hope and despair to which mankind is forever subjected.”
-Robert Frank

After dropping my daughter at her 8:00 am hockey practice this morning I drove two miles to the Appalachian Trail rail station and took a series of picture that I included in the previous post. The top photograph was taken at the station and the other two at a crossing just off of route 22 about one mile south of the station.

027

The Harlem Line looking north from the Appalachian Trail Station.

029

A crossing just off of route 22 in Pawling, NY.

112626edit.jpg

The Appalachian Trail Rail Station

2 Replies

1126016

The Appalachian Trail runs just about 2,200 from Georgia to Maine. A little known fact about the trail is that although you may encounter many freight lines along your journey, there is only one commuter rail station that is directly located on the AT. Stopping only on weekends and holidays, the MTA transports hikers and campers to the Appalachian Trail Station throughout the year.

Located just off of Route 22 in Pawling, NY, the station was the idea of George Zoebelein, who did a great deal of hiking in the area and was a veteran of the NY/NJ Trail Conference as well as both the NY/NJ Appalachian Trail Conferences, and also served as a member of the Metro-North Railroad Commuter Council of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA. The station, as you can see in the picture below, was built in three months by Metro-North Railroad in 1991 for the cost of pretty nominal cost of $10,000.

1126008

The Appalachian Trail Railroad Station.

1126011

A small kiosk with trail information.

Happy Hiking!!!

 

Another Beautiful Day, Another Great Hike…

6 Replies

003

It’s a rare day in late, late November when you can actually hike for a few hours in shorts and a t-shirt and not feel chilly at some point. Today, I decided to hold off starting my hike until around 10:30 am. My original thought was that it would be much warmer than the usual 6:00 am start which would make things a little more comfortable.

004

The one thing that I tend to forget when I start my hikes later, especially on days like today, are the number of people who come out to hike. Because I usually get out so early, I rarely see anyone with the exception of some trail runners. On my hike today it seemed like I was running into someone ever couple of minutes. I actually started wondering where they were all coming from…

All in all it was another excellent hike. I got to meet a couple of nice people and as usual they had some incredibly friendly dogs who were eager to make my acquaintance. I really should start taking picture of all of the dogs that I meet when I am hiking.

002

Happy Hiking!!!

2017 Mileage:

11/25/17-7.7-339.12

 

Transformation

3 Replies
“I believe the world is incomprehensibly beautiful — an endless prospect of magic and wonder.”
— Ansel Adams
“We must go and see for ourselves.”
— Jacques Cousteau

008

One of the things that I love most about fall hiking are the trees. No longer covered in leaves, the bare branches stand a lonely guard over the rest of the woods. I don’t know why, but I find that once they have been prepped for winter, they are truly fascinating. At dawn or under a clear blue sky, each branch, large and small, present themselves as the one true guardian of nature as it sinks into its winter slumber.

001

The transformation that has taken place in the woods at Ward Pound Ridge over the last month and a half has been incredible. My first exposure to these trails was late July, when summer was already in full swing. Now, as time passes and the leaves have fallen, the view changes almost daily.

004

003

006

Happy Hiking!!!

2017 Mileage:

11/24/17-4.1-331.42

Transformation

A Thanksgiving Hike

Leave a reply

WP_20171123_005

WP_20171123_006

Have you ever had a day when you were hiking where everything just clicked? Where each stride you took was effortless and you felt like you could hike forever? These days don’t happen very often, but when they do, watch out!

Luckily for me, today was one of those days. From the minute I started, I knew that I was going to be able to add a few miles on to what I had originally intended to do. My legs were loose, the air was a crisp 27 degrees and with no discernible breeze, the woods were silent.

2017 Mileage:

11/23/17-8.2-327.32

Winter Is On Its Way

Leave a reply

“Nature is not mute. It is man who is deaf.”

-Terence McKenna

Even though I don’t know anyone who had pink eye, I managed to get a rather nasty case of it in both of my eyes. After waking up with both of my eyes crusted shut, I made my way into work and after about an hour was banished by the school nurse to seek medical treatment.  A trip to my local urgent care confirmed the obvious…that I had pink eye in both eyes. The remedy? Eye drops every six hours for five days.

Since I couldn’t return to school and didn’t want to sit at home, I decided to…you guessed it, go hiking! The day was clear and the temperature hovered around fifty degrees. Even though a steady breeze made the relatively warm day for November seem just a little cooler, it was still a perfect day to be out in the woods.

Heading out to Ward Pound Ridge, I figured it would be smart to carry a whole bunch of paper towels to wipe my eyes if I needed to. Besides the gritty feeling I had in my eyes every time I blinked, I felt pretty good and was ready to move! Crusty eyes be damned!

003

001

002

Overall it was a decent hike. I took it a lot slower than I normally would have, but that’s ok, just being able to clear my mind was good enough. As you can see by the pictures, the colors of fall are now gone and the long dark days of winter are almost here.

2017 Mileage:

11/21/17-5.2-319.12

 

 

It’s Hockey Time!

Leave a reply

From October through the end of March every year, my life is practically consumed by the sport of hockey. Either watching it on television or traveling to see my kids play, it has been my life for the better part of the last sixteen years. When my son played, I had to shuttle between he and my daughter teams for practices, games and tournaments. Now that he is in college, I have felt like I have been on “Hockey Parent” vacation for the last several years!

Below you will see two pictures of my daughter playing hockey on her travel team (she is on the left in both pictures). Although checking is not allowed in women’s hockey, don’t let anyone tell you that these hockey players are not as aggressive as the boys. They fight just as hard for the puck, throw elbows and will scrap with their opponents if they have to.

hope hockey 1

My daughter against Ridgefield 11/18/17.

hope hockey 2