Cobble Hill

After bluebird skies on Mt. Jo yesterday, today was overcast with low clouds.  We decided on another short loop hike, one that was new to all of us.  Cobble Hill is a tiny little mountain on the east side of Mirror Lake, prominently visible from town.  I can't count the number of times we've wondered about Cobble Hill while walking around town, out on the ice, or paddling Mirror Lake.  Today we would climb it and finally scratch that itch!

Mount Jo

Last winter was our first foray into winter hiking in the Adirondacks, and since we loved our jaunts up Baxter and Big Crow, we booked another weekend trip this year.  We still don't have proper mountaineering snowshoes, so plan to stick to smaller peaks for now.  Mount Jo has perhaps the most classic of High Peaks views, and I was very excited to see it in the winter.  And I was was excited to share it with Frankie again.  We last hiked it 2014, when he was just 3 years old, so I doubt he remembers much (if anything).  We took the loop in the same direction, up the short trail and down the long trail.  The trail was nicely broken out with great snow conditions as we set out along Heart Lake.

FLT/NCT: Griffin Road to Cabin Road

I had another opportunity for an extended school day hike today, as my Dad was picking Frankie up from school and bringing him home at dinner time.  I decided to explore another new section of the Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) down by Ithaca, which due to it's location west of Cuyler State Forest, also carries the North Country National Scenic Trail (NCT).  I initially drove to the parking lot for the Stevenson Forest Preserve, where I had turned around on my last hike in the area, thinking to continue from there, but the lot looked a bit sketchy for my little car.  The next 1.9 miles of the FLT is a roadwalk, so I kept driving, looking for a better spot to park.  I ended up on Griffin Road, where the trail turns south and leaves the road, and the road was wide enough I felt safe parking there.  I could have walked back towards the snowed-in parking lot, but the call of the woods was too strong, and I orphaned the roadwalk.  I can always come back for it during hunting season.