EXPLORING CHENANGO
COUNTY BY HIKING – MAY 2016
Donald A. Windsor
The best way to
explore Chenango County is to walk it. I lead hikes every Sunday
morning, year around, for the Bullthistle Hiking Club and report them
on our Yahoo group site. Here are my reports for May 2016.
1 May 2016 –
Pharsalia Woods State Forest
Mayday. Mayday. Soaking rain.
Undaunted, 4 hikers splashed through the drenched Pharsalia Woods
State Forest on Sunday 1 May 2016: Anne Altshuler, John Carhart,
Maryann Weiss, and Don Windsor. We covered 5.0 miles in 3.0 hours for
a speed of 1.7 miles per hour.
We abandoned our intended
route and headed for higher ground. We parked on Hoag Road and hiked
north on Coy Street, cheered on by a long array of blooming marsh
marigolds waving from the flooded drainage ditch. At the landmark
foundation we bushwhacked west to an old trail and took it north to
the Truck Trail. We continued west and north to the blue FLT and
followed the main FLT to the leanto, where we enjoyed our
well-deserved break, as the rowdy rain pummeled the roof. We then
paused at Ed's Bench and scrambled back to our car at a quickened
pace.
8 May 2016 –
Frenchmans Road,
Plymouth
A
wildflower bonanza! Sunday 8 May 2016 was indeed the right time to
hike Frenchmans Road in Plymouth. We had 6 hikers: Anne Altshuler,
John Carhart, Peg Fuller, Joyce Post, Carol Smith, and Don Windsor.
We covered 5.7 miles in 3.9 hours for a speed of 1.5 miles per hour.
Our vertical ascent was 754 feet.
We parked at the DEC lot on
Elmer Harris Road at the Plymouth Reservoir and slogged on the muddy
trail southerly to the Truck Trail. We then took the TT easterly to
the end of state land and then went south into the woods for our
well-deserved break. Refreshed, we then hiked Frenchmans Road
westerly to its end and bushwhacked northerly through a recent
logging area to the TT and backtracked to our cars.
The sunshine broke out of the
dark clouds midway through our hike and illuminated our trek on
Frenchmans Road. The list of wildflowers in bloom is too long to
print here.
15
May 2016 - South Hill State Forest, Guilford
Dressing for winter in the
middle of spring was a good decision on Sunday morning 15 May 2016
when 6 hikers traipsed through the South Hill State Forest in
Guilford: Anne Altshuler, Joyce Mosher, Joyce Post, Art Sandberg,
Sharron Sandberg, and Don Windsor. We hiked 3.0 miles in 2.2 hours
for a speed of 1.7 miles per hour.
We parked at the DEC kiosk on
Charles Wicks Road and hiked southerly and then easterly on the
multi-use trail multiple use trail over to Horeiter Road. We then
took said road northerly to Charles Wicks, pausing at the large
beaver pond, taking a break near Junction Road, and paying our
respects at the South Hill Cemetery. We then ambled west on C. Wicks
to our car, stopping to observe the corpse of a road-killed
porcupine.
Why such a short hike? It just
worked out that way. We saw many spring flowers and migrating birds
and the sunshine lasted for most of the hike. We were probably
mellowed by the delicate beauty of the emerging leaves.
Fresh green leaves glowed
under subdued sunshine on the Sunday morning of 22 May 2016, when 12
hikers gingerly ambled through the Long Pond State Forest in
Smithville: Anne Altshuler, John Carhart, Peg Fuller, Joyce Mosher,
John Nesbitt, Joyce Post, Dot Rice, Art Sandberg, Sharron Sandberg,
Carol Smith, Maryann Weiss, and Don Windsor. We covered 5.6 miles in
3.3 hours for a speed of 1.7 miles per hour. Our vertical ascent was
749 feet.
We parked at the DEC kiosk on
State Route 41 near the remains of the Tarbell Farms. We then hiked
through the remains to the snowmobile trail and took it west and the
north east across County Road 2 to Nelson Road. Whereupon, we took
our well-deserved break and then bushwhacked southwesterly back to
the snowmobile trail and took that trail back to our cars. Some of us
examined the Tarbell remains south of Route 41.
One attached photo shows a
sign telling us to keep right. To be really helpful, an arrow shows
us the correct way. Another photo shows most of our group crossing
the bridge over the mighty Red Brook when we came to it. The
remaining photo shows the former elegance of the Tarbell Farms.
Eighteen years ago a tornado
blew down a large swath of the forest in the area we hiked through.
Its regeneration has indeed been spectacular. On Sunday 29 May, 2016,
we had 8 hikers: Anne Altshuler, John Carhart, Peg Fuller, John
Nesbitt, Joyce Post, Sharron Sandberg, Maryann Weiss, and Don
Windsor. We covered 6.1 miles in 3.9 hours for a speed of 1.6 miles
per hour. Vertical ascent was 788 feet.
We parked in the DEC lot on
Elmer Harris Road (south end of the Plymouth Reservoir) and took a
convenient path southerly to the Truck Trail. We the hiked westerly
on said trail, past Coy Street, to the FLT blue trail. We then hiked
that northerly with an easterly bias, to Coy Street. After our well
deserved break we continued northwesterly on the trail, past the
foundations, to the Plymouth leanto, (which is actually in
Pharsalia). Reaching the abandoned Huggaboom Road we trekked
easterly, pausing to pay our respects at Julia's grave. At a
foundation we took an abandoned road until it petered out, then we
bushwhacked, veering south and east to Cottage Lane, then into the
woods and back to our cars.
When we first arrived at the
DEC lot, John Carhart noticed a dead Woodland Jumping Mouse. We went
on to see a newly enlarged swamp, Red-shouldered Hawk, a Ruffed
Grouse, a large female Garter Snake, and a Luna Moth. Most of the
cherry blossoms were already spent, but a few, mostly Pin, were still
blooming. Near the end of our hike, we encountered a blooming Pink
Lady Slipper, the only one on our hike.
