Nippletop and Dial

Nippletop

4,620 feet  |  ranked 13/46 in height  |  35th peak climbed 

Dial

4,020 feet  |  ranked 41/46 in height  |  36th peak climbed

This hike was rather spur of the moment, which for an Adirondack High Peak, is very unusual for me.  Normally I plan things out obsessively, reading and re-reading trip reports and poring over maps and buying special foods.  None of that happened here (except maybe the obsession part, that is ongoing).  What happened is this: I got a text from Erin Saturday saying that Alden was spending the night at his Dad's house and she couldn't stop fantasizing about driving up north and climbing a mountain.  She'd have very little time available, as she'd need to pick Alden up the next day, but was still sorely tempted.  Hmm. Lovely notion, right?  Initially, I dismissed it as pure fantasy, but the idea was lodged like an ear worm -- a mountain worm.

FLT/NCT: Maple Lane to Sugar Hill

We have taken so many endless walks in our neighborhood since March when we went into corona virus induced shutdown.  But our trip to Greece?  Cancelled.  Frankie's 3rd grade Adirondacks trip?  Cancelled.  Camping at the Pinery?  Cancelled.  I was restless, craving something adventurous, something different from our same old haunts.  I thought I had a good idea, but sadly, this hike did not work out as planned.

FLT/NCT: West from Cheningo Day Use Area

 

Today Frankie and I returned to the Cheningo Day Use Area, from which we'd hiked east a few weeks ago, only this time we hiked west instead.  This section of the Finger Lakes Trail (FLT), from here to the next road crossing, was a bit long for us to complete given our available time today, but that didn't bother me.  I completed this section in May 2017, so didn't "need" to go all the way to Telephone Road today.  We planned we'd go 3 or 3.5 miles and then turn back. 

FLT/NCT: Hammond Hill State Forest

This hike is a repeat of one I did in 2018, on a cold wet October day in the middle of a rain cloud.  Today I parked at the same spot on Star Stanton Hill Road and turned around at the same point on Harford Slatersville Road, but it was a very different experience.  It was warm and sunny, and I had my dear boy along for company.  Instead of endless white mist, we saw wildflowers and a beaver dam and amphibians.  He jabbered endlessly about Pokemon and we just had a great time together. 

FLT/NCT: East from Cheningo Day Use Area

For this hike on the Finger Lakes Trail (FLT), I parked at the Cheningo Day Use Area.  Frankie and I hiked east, up and over a ridge and back down to Cheningo Solon Pond Road, which we used as our turnaround point.  This is a repeat of a solo hike I did in very early spring back in 2017, so it was nice to return under different conditions to see the area greening up.  We knew there was a risk of rain, but Frankie reviewed the weather forecast and decided today would be the nicer day of the weekend, so out we went.  There were many spring wildflower in bloom, which always slows me down, but it didn't matter since this is a shorter hike.

FLT/NCT: Hoxie Gorge South from McDermott Acess

Frankie very much likes it when Erwin comes hiking with us, but it complicates trail selection, since he prefers shorter hikes with water features and minimal elevation gain.  The Finger Lakes Trail (FLT) is pretty much *all* up and down, up and down.  I love it, but Erwin, not so much, and after getting dragged along on a few hikes at Morgan Hill that were tougher than he wanted, he was firm in negotiating this time: we'd just have to turn back after 3 miles.  I decided on Hoxie Gorge, because it has some super charming streams, and I have already hiked the entire FLT through Hoxie Gorge, so wouldn't fret about orphaning part of the trail due to a premature turnaround.

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!