Trail Conditions Forum

Mud? Ice? High water at stream crossings?

This is the place to let the trail community know what you encountered, where and when (be as precise as possible). Suggestion: Make the trail or park name your subject.

To report serious trail problems that need Trail Conference attention, including illegal trail use issues, visit our Contact Us page. Problems reported through our Contact Us page get to the maintainers fast and reliably. Problems reported on the forum below may help fellow trail users avoid problem areas until they get fixed, but not all maintainers read this regularly.

 

Ingrid's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/19/2012 - 3:24pm
Hi I want to hike on Saturday heading south on the AT from the AT stop on Metro North from NYC. I haven't been there since Irene and am wondering about the condition of the raised wooden walkway over the swamp that's just a short distance on the trail from the train station. I could go the other direction, but I did that last time I was up there and wanted to go the other way this time. Any info is appreciated.  -Ingrid 
Jim Haggett's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/19/2012 - 7:50pm
You should be fine walking south from the train stop.  There is about 100 - 150ft on either end where the boardwalk is not yet complete, but is very passable.  I was there a week ago and everything was fine.  You'll find it amazing to see what the beavers have done over the last four months.
Ingrid's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/19/2012 - 8:57pm
Yay! Thanks Jim! Supposed to snow on Saturday, so I'm looking forward to a rugged but pretty hike. 
PVPatrick's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/11/2012 - 10:43am
As part of the AT relo work at Bear Mt, there was blazed a blue connector trail that essentially cut off the summit portion of the AT along the old woods road. These blazes have been removed and was curious as to why. Anyone in-the-know here?
Daniel Chazin's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/12/2012 - 10:40am
As you may be aware, the standard practice along the Appalachian Trail is for side trails to be blazed blue.  When the new A.T. route at the summit of Bear Mountain was opened, there were four such blue-blazed trails:  (1) the bypass along the woods road that permits you to skip the entire hike to the summit; (2) the footpath, newly constructed as part of the Bear Mountain Trails Project, that leads down from the summit and permits one to reach the summit but skip the handicapped-accessible trail and its return loop; (3) the very short section of the loop of the handicapped-accessible trail (near the viewpoint at the end) that connects the Major Welch Trail with the A.T.; and (4) the short side trail below the summit that follows the route of the former Major Welch Trail and leads to a viewpoint. As you undoubtedly are aware, the trails on Bear Mountain attract mainly novice hikers who are not familiar with trails or their blazing.  Especially since the trails on Bear Mountain are marked only with blazes, and very few signs or maps are posted, some hikers got lost in this area.  It was felt by some people that deblazing the woods road summit bypass might help reduce this confusion, and for that reason, this woods road was deblazed.  Of course, the road is still there, and any hiker who comes equipped with a map and knows how to read it will continue to be able to use the road as a bypass if they so wish.
PVPatrick's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/14/2012 - 9:34am
Thanks for clearing that up Dan.
tree188's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/09/2012 - 8:33am
As of 1/7/2012 the trails to Mt. Slide from the Mt. Slide parking area were passable (yellow to curtis/ormsbee, blue to red to summit, red to PA), however, very slippery. Water appears to have frozen all over the trail making walking difficult. Traction gear strongly recommended. Reports from hikers that were out over the weekend on the steep side of Slide reported needing crampons & fixing ropes to descend & re-ascend this area.   Views from Curtiss / Ormsbee trail great. Views from summit of Slide marginal. While I'm a tree hugger and hate to cut down trees, in this case I think it would be justified. Many people I hike with want to see views, myself included, and this being the highest Catskills peak you would think most people would like to see the view. My recommendation to NYDEC, either top the trees (usually not good for the trees) or take them down ( topping may be a better choice in this case to hold soil and prevent erosion).
tree188's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/05/2012 - 9:08am
1/4/2012 Recently hiked the section from Peekamoose Mt. over Table Mt. over to the Slide Mtn. Parking area this past December 2011 w/brother Ray. What a great section, the views were great. I did miss the trees being green but the endless mountains were uplifting to view. The only unsettling observation was of a rather large white, domestic rabbit above the 3500' elevation level. Why it was there was unknown and its chances of survival appear to be slim depending how long & cold the winter is. Trail conditions at that time were good. A bridge across the stream at the Slide Mtn. parking lot would be an improvement for this area, instead of trying to navigate all of the ankle twisting, loose rocks in the stream bed. If the Trail Conference takes up this project, please let me know, I would volunteer to help w/the construction.   Has anyone been in the Slide Mtn. area within the last week or so? We are looking to hike Slide Mtn. to Woodland Valley but have no idea about thow much snow is there. Or if you have any good contacts to recommend in the area to get information I would really appreciate them. I've been depending on a local highway department supervisor for information but I don't want to wear out the welcome, so to speak.    
longdistanceman's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/04/2012 - 4:31pm
89 year old section hiker seeking hiking partner(s) to hike short sections (5 miles or less) in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut during May and June 2012.  Send email to [email protected] or call 540-869-3097 with name and availability."
Daniel Chazin's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/02/2012 - 10:20am
The most accurate method of measuring trails is with a surveyor's measuring wheel, which is pushed along the trail and records the distance very accurately -- including each minor twist and turn in the trail.  Virtually all of the trails in Harriman have been measured in this manner, and the measurements are set forth in the hikng guide Harriman Trails: A Guide and History.  Another method is to use a GPS receiver.  With the improvement of the accuracy of GPS receivers in recent years, the distance measurements with GPS receivers have become more accurate, but they still do not capture every twist and turn in the trail.  Thus, wheel measurements are more accurate.  Measuring trails by scaling them on a map is generally not a reliable method, as many minor twist and turns in the trail cannot be shown on maps produced to the scale that we publish.
Dave A's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/05/2012 - 7:01pm
Nice info to have, thanks. What method was used to calculate the distances published in the latest Catskill maps?I've completed 45 of your Hikes of the Week and never needed to worry about the distance, you published it! Then I stared venturing out on my own (as it were). I now use a computer program called Meander to trace my proposed route. You put up a map on the screen, set the scale and trace. By slightly over exaggerating the turns I'm usually well less than 10% off from the GPS measurement I make when I hike the route. Good stuff.
Daniel Chazin's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/08/2012 - 9:37am
The distances that appear on the Catskill Trails map set were supplied by Carol White of the Adirondack Mountain Club and are used by her permission on our maps.  She has stated that she and her husband David White have wheeled all of the trails and that her measurements are based on this wheel data.
TrekkerHikes's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/14/2012 - 8:54pm
I do a lot of the hike of the weeks too. But, I love having the Harriman book - being able to come up with my own routes, and being able to add up the mileage of each trail segment. Catskill maps have the distances right on the maps. For other NYNJTC maps - would love a source of information for trail segment distances - for example, Fahnestock. I did find a list of each trail's total length.
svem175's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/01/2012 - 7:59pm
Thank you very much for your comments. I was able to change my hiking plans and ended up parking at Elk's Pen and hiked to the Lemon Squeeze and a bit further. It turned out to be a wonderful day and a great hike. Regarding the measurement of hike length or trail length, I'm wondering what the most accurate method is for doing this?
Michael K7's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 12/31/2011 - 9:37pm
There is a loose board on the bridge that crosses Stony Brook on the Stony Brook and Kakiat Trails (it's the only bridge in the area since Irene). If you're heading west to east, it's about the fourth board in. Only one nail is left, and if you step on it at the edge, it will "flip up", and could lead to an accident/injury. Report and picture sunmitted to the TC. Hopefully the maintainer (or someone with a hammer and some nails!) can get this fixed soon.
Daniel Chazin's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 12/30/2011 - 8:49am
Route 106, between Route 17 and Seven Lakes Drive, was damaged during Hurricane Irene at the end of August.  Apparently, most of the damage was just west of Seven Lakes Drive, and the section from Route 17 to the damaged area probably could be reopened with a relative minimal effort.  However, this road is not maintained by the Park but by Orange County, and it would appear that repairing and reopening this road is at the very bottom of the County's priorities.  You might want to contact Orange County directly to find out what is going on with this road.
banjolady's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/01/2012 - 7:58pm
on Sat 12/31 i went to skanatati via 7 lakes drive and was quite surprised to see that 106 was OPEN now west of kanawauke circle. i dont know if this is permanent or if someone just took down the barriers but people were driving in and out. i am going back tomorrow to try to get to white bar 106 trailhead from rt 17 and if it is closed again i will report back.  as far as i know tho the trails west of island pond rd are still pretty much a mess and the bridges are still out in the stahahe brook area.
munchoman5001's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/04/2012 - 3:59pm
http://www.nynjtc.org/news/route-106-now-entirely-open-harriman-state-park
Purple Octopus's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 01/03/2012 - 8:20pm
Was there on 12/31.  Would love to know what the story is because we have been wanting to go to some 106 trailheads for months now. 
svem175's picture

Submitted by Visitor (not verified) on 12/30/2011 - 12:59am
Hi, I'm planning on doing a hike this Sunday along the R-D toward Bald Rock Ridge, starting from the parking lot on 210/106. I want to stay on the R-D until the Times Square junction and continue along the A-SB to the AT until the SB (Old Arden Valley Road). I want to take the SB to the Nurian through the Valley of Boulders and stay on the Nurian until I'm back at the R-D to the Parking Lot. Now here's the thing.  Besides wanting to know about the trail conditions, I have another question that may or may not be appropriate for this forum. However, I don't know where else to ask this question. So here it is. I found this hike in the book, " 60 Hikes within 60 Miles," but the book reports this hike to be 11 miles. When I measure it on my NY/NJ Trails Conference Map I come up with approximately 8 - 8 1/2 miles. The book's 11 mile report and what I have found, seems to me to be a significant difference. Does anyone know how long this hike actually is? I've been using a piece of string to follow the trail and measure against the maps scale.