Over 200 Miles: The Shawangunks and Catskill High Peaks!

Scott and me on Slide Mountain - the highest peak in the Catskills!

What an incredible week it has been it has been along this astoundingly beautiful and challenging trail. We are presently just over 200 miles along in our journey, having traversed the Shawangunks and most recently the Southern Catskills.

Saying hi to John Dezzutti

But before I get started on the hike details, I would like to introduce you to John Dezzutti. While hiking the long hill out of Wurtsboro, packs heavy with resupply, this friendly face went zipping by in his car honking. We waved and walked on…when just up ahead we saw that he had driven by again and turned around. He hopped from his car and crossed the busy road just to wish us good luck on our adventure. He has been following the blog and just so happened to be driving through the area without even knowing we were in Wurtsboro. He offered us treats and cold drinks but we were already laden. He and his girlfriend are working away at a 41 mile trail in Connecticut. It was so nice to meet a fellow hiker and a blog reader! Thank you for introducing yourself!

The Shawangunks proved to be just as challenging as we remembered them to be. We had section-hiked the SRT from just outside of Wurtsboro to Sam’s Point last year over the course of 3 days. However this time, we did nearly all the same number miles in our first day out of town. The Shawangunk Ridge regularly experiences fires, it is essentially a part of its natural cycle. However nearly a century ago, the local berry pickers would light these mountain tops aflame because they found that it increased yield.

trail along Shawangunk ridge 

As a result, the vegetation atop these ridges is stubby and scratchy. The ground is a thick layer of pine needles and white sandy soil interspersed with white slabs of Shawangunk rock. With Autumn quickly approaching the plants that do call this place home, such as the High and Low-bush Blueberry, Wintergreen, and Sassafras were aflame with color.

Blueberry leaves (Vaccinium)

Sassafras leaves (Sassafras albidum)

Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens)

And with all this low vegetation, the views are breath-taking and the atmosphere is other-worldly. Both days that we walked the Shawangunk Ridge from Wurtsboro to Sam’s Point to Verkerdeerkill Falls to High Point and finally down along the Carriage Smiley Trail were blazing hot and nearly without a breeze. The views which you can see below were sweeping and to walk bare rock cliffs, sometimes just along the edge, with the multitude of changing leaves was an experience in and of itself. But, my God, we thought at times we were in the southwest!

Walk along ridge to High Point

Atop High Point in Minnewaska State Park Preserve

And we were not alone in the Shawangunks!

We again had the joy of Star Left coming to join us for a night down just outside of Minnewaska and for some sweet miles again from Sam’s Point to Verkerdeerkill Falls. Her weekly visits have been a highlight and we were glad that we were in such a special place when she was free to come join! Thank you Star Left! We are looking forward to next time!

Starleft an me at Sam's Point

We also met a group of sectioners along the Long Path! Meet Victoria, Ben, Karen, and Jeff! They are steadily hiking this trail piece by piece and predict they will have it complete in 2 years. It was so fun chatting with y'all...see you down the trail!

Meeting Victoria, Ben, Karen and Jeff in Roosa Gap along SRT/LP

 Once we descended from the Shawangunks, we had a day of long roadwalking through Warwarsing and Riggsville. However these roads were sometimes dirt leading down green country lanes and at other times leading us uphill of course but beside quaint farmland that had obviously been farmed for centuries, we even got to see a herd of cattle with the little ones frolicking about. We spied centuries old farmhouses and humble cottages, each one more intriguing than the next.

roadwalk through Riggsville

Crossing Rondout Creek in Warwarsing

We entered the Catskills on easy terrain in the Sundown Wild Forest. Here many of the trees were toppled due to the wet soil which truly gave the place an untouched feel. We lunched at Vernooykill Falls and enjoyed 9 miles of cruising through easy terrain before we hit the real stuff: the high peaks of the Catskills.

Vernooykill Falls

Our epic trek into the peaks of the Catskills began passing the Finger Lakes Trail eastern terminus sign on our way to Peekamoose. This was rather surreal! We took some pics and prepared for the climb. We saw on the map that this climb would be 2500 feet over the course of 3 miles, so we decided that we would tack it onto the end of a day and only hike about half way up. We have affectionately dubbed Peekamoose, Peekaboo instead, because it comes as a surprise!

Finger Lakes Trail Eastern terminus - this is where I finished my two month trek two years ago!

On our way up Peekamoose we also had our first glimpse of the boreal forest that has now persisted throughout these higher peaks. The forest is filled with sweet candy-like aroma of the Balsam Fir and Mountain Ash berries hang heavy and ripe from the trees overhead sometimes even littering the trail. The Wood Sorrel leaves are large and heart-shaped with purple undersides in the vibrantly green moss underfoot. Trail markers are nailed to peeling Paper Birches and Yellow Birches reach their roots long and snaking down the sides of large boulders. Hobblebush with its broad now darkening purple leaves brush at your elbows. It is a magical place.

White Birch (Betula papyrifera)

Hobblebush (Viburnum lantanoides)

After Peekamoose came Slide Mountain – the highest peak in the Catskills (4180 feet). The going up was easy and the views were so epic it almost made us weak in the knees but the coming down was far more difficult. We saw in the guide that there would be ladders we had to climb down rock faces but those 20 foot rock faces without the ladders were far harder. We ended up literally throwing our packs down to each other and using our whole bodies.

Scott descending Slide Mountain

one of the slick rock faces we had to descend from Slide Mountain

view while ascending Slide Mountain

On the next day we summited Cornell, Wittenberg, Cross Mountain, Mount Pleasant, and Romer Mountain. We thought five peaks in a day over 12 miles was pretty good!

view of Ashokan Reservoir from Wittenberg Mountain

We are now looking at a 40 mile section of trail with just two road crossings and a hike along...the Devil's Path, reportedly the most rugged hiking trail in NY! Wifi and cell service will likely be slim through here, if any at all, but we will do our best to keep you posted! Central Catskills here we come!

For those of you who are the botanical lovers...I have been posting regularly on our facebook pages the highlighted plants of the trail. It has proven too difficult to copy and paste them to the blog due to tech and lack of wifi. Please check our the facebook pages to see these! www.facebook.com/thebotanicalhiker  and  www.facebook.com/hikelocal