The End is Near!

Less than one week left for me here on the preserve, and then it's back to....civilization. At least what most people would consider a more appropriate version of society, when comparing life in a cabin with no plumbing nor electricity with that of a New York City apartment.

I don't want to go. I'm happy here.

But I must, and I will, with hopes that next year I will again be here, living in this special, special place.

My biggest surprise was the level of disgust many people openly expressed in my very willingness to even want to live this way. When I added that I wouldn't own an automobile, they seemed to get it. I had simply gone off the deep end. In their minds, that is.

Going sans car was the key to this kingdom, I declare, should anyone be interested. The simple matter is, that one just can not experience the natural world while whizzing from place to place at sixty miles per hour.

The Shongum Path has been my commute, and a pleasant one. Somewhere along the traverse I lost two entire clothing sizes, and gained an intimate connection with much of the plant-life along the way. Teddy and I were often alone on those journeys, not another person on the trail, and when another human happened along I was often initially shocked by the ingress. I had been that deeply immersed in the experience of...experiencing the path I was on.

Not to say I was always observing the many variances in moss, lichen, trees, bushes, flowers, leaves, caterpillars, birds, sounds and such; sometimes the thing one becomes most aware of, when walking quietly, is that which is the world within themselves.

There was plenty of time for me to delve; I walked that path back and forth several times each week. Mostly taking stock on the things I have to be grateful for, this time in the cabin being just one. My choices over the past ten years or so led me to this place; my distaste for corporate sustenance, which eventually expelled me, forcing me to find a way to be self-supporting. The interesting labyrinth I walked trying to find my way toward that goal. Climbing - the change in life that changed my life!

Now I see what life has to offer, and though I am to return to city life in a few short days, I am a bit concerned. Will I be able to stand it? The noise and urban bravado were taxing my levels of comfort in the months(years, more aptly) before I too this hiatus in the woods. Altercations between myself and others were occurring more and more frequently; I just couldn't keep my mouth shut when confronted with selfish stupidity.

Teddy has been unmolested by hostile, unhappy, people dipping their shopping bags of heavy groceries for three months. Nobody believes me when I say these types hit try to him with the bags on purpose. But I know. I watch, and I see their faces as they prepare for attack. It's intentional. No doubt about it.

No doubt about it – there will be problems with my return....

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The Last Round-Up

As many of my friends know(owing that I have a big mouth), I've been lucky enough to get a gig as caretaker at a spot with the Mohonk Preserve for a few months. Tonight I head into the city again; not for good, but as part of my transport to the Yosemite Facelift.

My flight leaves out of JFK on Friday morning at 7, and I need to be on the first bus from Grand Central in order to make the flight within my “no stress” early arrival cushion. That's a 5:30am departure....

And so, I must leave here this evening at some point, get the last train to Grand Central just before 11pm, and find ways to fill my time between 1 and 5am, when I can go to the bus pick up point. Will the police tool me, or will my white-girl, non-transient costume save my soles from their constant demand to “Keep it moving?”

Yesterday was supposed to be – SUPPOSED to be – a rainy day. So instead of climbing, I stayed near the cabin, anticipating marvelous thunderstorms and the musical percussion of rain as it tickles at, or pounds away against, the leaves of the forest trees.

It did not rain.

I tried to make do, sure that the precip was coming any time now. Bike ride, walks with Teddy, conversation with the dude manning the gate, a game of Scrabble(Me against Me 2), reading. Things like that.

Which left a lot of free time. Time which I spent walking the road and picking up trash along the way.

'Keep America Beautiful' and 'Give a Hoot, Don't Pollute' were the environmental educational phrases of my childhood era, and they were fairly well implanted on my forming mind. My parents did their part in the process; dad would have us 'police the area' when we went on country picnics, whether they were in roadside county parks or under the shade tree of a farmer's hay field. Mom always had a trash bag available for picnic pickups the moment we touched down. If a bit of wind tried to make off with paper plates from our picnic table, she excitedly encouraged us to save them before they were goners - drowned in the waters of a fast-running stream, or playing Dodge Ball with cars on the the heavily trafficked interstate we'd pulled off.

I'm going to Yosemite specifically to participate in a major clean up campaign. Sure, to climb, socialize and wonder at the wonder, too. But mostly for the Facelift clean up event. I'm happy being a picker-upper.

So it was a natural thing that I spent yesterday ...policing the area... before heading off on vacation. Scouring the roadside, bumbling through brambles, and sloshing over watery ditches, on a mission. In search of wayward trash.

Your trash....

Not “Yours” as in “You.” Buy you know what I mean.

Perhaps I should have written “Their trash.” Those despicable “They's.” It's always Them.... Or the They's and Their's. Those people who have no respect for the natural beauty of nature! No concern for the bitty fish who swallow their garbage, innocently mistaking it for food, in turn picking up the pace on their slow march to death. Couldn't care less for the cyclist who gets a flat from running over the shards of their broken beer bottle, slung from the window of the car. Let me tell you – DUI is alive and kicking, despite strong legal repercussions. Nearly all the cans and bottles are of the Budweiser brand, interestingly. Whiskey fifths are a distant second, so far as containers for intoxicating beverages are disposed of roadside. For the friends who – hopefully – don't let their friends drive drunk(but draw no distinction when it comes to littering), Snapple and Arizona Iced Tea bottles and cans are almost as abundant as their bud's Buds.

I don't really mind, so much, picking the stuff up. After all, it is part of my agreement in this situation. Well...not entirely. I'm just supposed to take care of a small area. But I have help with that. A group of regulars regularly sweep that area and, now that the summer picnicking season is passed, we're scraping the bottom of the barrel, garbage-wise. Lots of cigarette butts, to be sure. But the used tampons and rubbers, chip and cookie bags, and other such fair-weather trash has pretty much migrated to warmer climes.

And so....I wander.

Yosemite – what have you got for me!?

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Attack of the Tick Marks

Event: Trapps Boulder Cleanup
Event Start: 07/26/2008 @ 9:30AM
Location: Trapps Bridge (New Paltz, New York)
Description: Meet at Trapps Bridge and work until 4:00. The Preserve will provide water, a ladder, and an afternoon cookout.
You will provide enthusiasm, a soft bristled brush, ability to work with a team, and even a pad.

Complimentary barbeque with Mohonk Preserve rangers and raffle for all volunteers, 6:00 – 8:00p at Visitor Center
Contact Email: dlucander@mohonkpreserve.org
Contact Phone: 845-255-0919

I gotta tell you - this is going to be a day well spent, so if I were you, I would plan to be there. What is it? It's a volunteer clean up of all the chalky buildup on some of the most popular boulder problems in the Trapps.

I helped with this last year and had lots of fun, meeting new people and learning about some of the historical and FA's newer lines from some pretty good boulderers. We goofed around a lot, cleaned up a lot of greasy, gunky white crud and generally enjoyed the day.

Afterward, there was a barbeque cookout at the Visitor's Center, with burgers, chips, salad and beverages - vegetarian fare too, and plenty to go around. Then, there was a giveway of prizes. We weren't sure how to do the choosing, so we played Spin the Bottle. Don't worry - if the bottle points toward you, all you have to do is accept the prize you won. Last year, I got a YEARS MEMBERSHIP to the Mohonk Preserve. No shit. I did. But.....I had just paid for my own, and I just felt I didn't need it. So, instead it went to the guy who was next to me, an intern with the preserve, who really would have been hard-pressed to fund his membership. Things just work out.....

You can click the title of this post to get to the Home page of Gunks.com where the event is listed...under the "Events" headline over on the right. Let Dave know you'll attend, so he knows how much picnic food to prepare - or surprise people and just show up. I'm in, so I'll see you there!




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Near Trapps Guide Nearing Completion

Every Gunkie has been anxiously awaiting the arrival of Dick Williams' updated version for his guide to the Near Trapps. Today I asked him for the latest news while we were doing trailwork..... It's coming soon!

Maybe not as soon as you'd like, but look forward to a spectacular leaf peeping season from new vistas in the Nears this autumn. The book should be on the shelves in early August.

Dick said that there is a bit of work being done on the cover in the next week and then, off to the printer it goes. The final stage of production takes between six and eight weeks. He says he'll be happy if the book is available by August.

Now....there can be no promises, of course. But even with a buffer zone, I think it should be safe to say that the book will be ready to fly off the shelves at Rock and Snow for the high point of this year's Gunks season.

I wish I'd thought to ask him a few questions about the new additions in the guide, but I can tell you for sure there will be descriptions of not only old routes not noted in "the Black Dick," as the last guide to the Nears is affectionately referred to, but newly established lines as well.

The big joke I heard was when he was talking about some of the FA's he'd been doing(this was in 2006) and someone said "Hey! In your old guide you said not to bother with the part of the cliff between..... and that the reason you gave was that it was loose and chossy! Now we know the truth is that you couldn't get all the FA's before the last book went to print!!!!" At the time. I looked over at him and though he did blush....he didn't deny it either!

But seriously, Dick, with the help of his climbing partners, spent a considerable amount of time working over in the Nears in order to bring a book that promises to be as well done as the "Grey Dick" guide to the Trapps. Which is to say - an extraordinarily researched and detailed book. Following the same formula, he reclimbed every route on the cliff, or had someone else whose opinion he valued do the routes he was unable to.

Not only that, but he spent many, many, hours cleaning choss and trundling killer blocks from lines where the cliff is known for the loose stuff. This work had to be done very carefully, as you can imagine, due to the dangerous nature of it. From what I understand, there would be people at the trail up and down from the areas where they were working, to alert people of the potential for falling rock and to stop them when active trundling was occurring. Walkie-talkies were used for communication amongst the team.

Back in 2005 I was lucky enough to tag along when Dick walked someone along nearly the entire length of the Nears, giving them first-hand beta on all the classic routes. During that time, he pointed out many lines that were not in the old guide, some recent FA's and even some of the unclimbed lines he had in his sights. Last season I followed a new 5.5 of his down just past "Up In Arms," which is the last route listed in the existing Nears guide. There is also an interesting 5.7 in the same area that he had people climb and provide feedback on called "The Shadow Nose." Go down there on a sunny day and take a look....The name is a good giveaway to find the route!

So....that's what I've got for info on the upcoming book. In other news, today was our first day of trailwork this season and we kicked things off, appropriately enough, on the trail going up to "Welcome to the Gunks."

If you've walked that access route, you know that it needed a little attention. What begins as a solid set of stone steps transitions about halfway up the slope into a sometimes steep bit of dirt, with bad footing if you don't stay attentive. If you haven't been there....it looks like this:


The established trail was steep and fairly straightforward, and that was a contributing reason as to why parts of it had washed into a slippery slope. During wet periods, water found the path of least resistance to be a great escape, which eroded the slope and increased the grade in places.

We had a couple options in fixing the situation. We could have rebuilt the existing route by adding more stone steps to replace the dirt sections, or we could reroute the line to include switchbacks. We chose the latter. In this scenario, the angle up the slope is more gradual. This is easier on the user, but also helps lessen the rate of erosion on the slope.

Here's the start of our new section, angling off from the original trail:


This is a better shot of the work we started today. It's far from finished. We will need to reinforce the trail in places on the downslope, and add some stones in areas where we need to protect tree roots. We'll also do finishing work to make a solid, even, route that will hold up for years to come.


The section heads upwards in a slight rise for about 30 feet before making a switchback to continue the path. Now the Welcome to the Gunks access trail will have a hairpin turn, reminiscent of the infamous one on highway 45/55 down below!

Here's Dick Williams and Al DiMaria working in that upper section, which reconnects with the original trail about 10 feet below the cliff base.


Again, this is just our initial work, and more fine tuning will be done on our next session. Which will be Sunday, June 1st, weather permitting, in case you were wondering.... We can always use volunteers and if you would like to join in, we meet atop the Steel Bridge at 9am!

As a special bonus for our work, we were graced with the beauty of a pink LadySlipper Orchid.


If you are in the area, keep an eye out for her. Go up the trail, and when you rejoin the old section, she's located just to the far side of the route, a few feet uphill(the flower will be on your right side as you ascend the trail). Be careful; the flower is quite delicate and is one of only a few examples you will find in this part of the Gunks. The LadySlipper Orchid is, obviously, coming into season now, and can be seen for the next few weeks before spring turns to summer and she fades away until next year.


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Good Old Marty from Alpine Endeavors - What a Guy...de!

Quick Post: Here's an offer found on the front page of Gunks.com you might be interested in - A day of climbing with a guide going for his AMGA Cert in Single Pitch, at no cost to you. They need six people to act as clients while the guides go through their test. Check it and, if you're interested, better act quickly.

Here's the details:

Event: Free Day of Guided Climbing Instruction
Event Start: 04/18/2008 @ 9:00AM
Location: Shawangunks, NY
URL: www.alpineendeavors.com/courses/SPI
Description: We are looking for six people to participate in day of rock climbing in the Gunks, free of charge*.

The day will consist of beginner to low-intermediate climbing with a guide candidate on routes from 5.2 to 5.7 under the supervision of an AMGA Certified Rock Instructor and Rock Guide.

The purpose of the day is to evaluate AMGA SPI guide candidates during their final assessment of the AMGA Single Pitch Instructors Certification. All guide candidates up to this point have successfully completed an AMGA Single Pitch training Course (three days of training) and have successfully completed a one day assessment of their technical and rescue skills.

The day is to provide each candidate a realistic opportunity to teach basic climbing skills - knots, belaying, and climbing techniques to beginners as well as to asses their ability to clearly communicate the skills, manage the group, and facilitate the days progress to a group of actual beginner climbers.

For more information on the AMGA Single Pitch Instructors Course, please visit:
http://www.amga.com/programs/SPI.php


*day passes are not included. They are required and are the responsibility of each participant.
Contact Email: info@alpineendeavors.com
Contact Phone: 845-658-3094

I can personally vouch for Marty, as can just about any other climber on the east coast! In fact, I climbed with a guy in Jtree who was there for his AMGA multi-pitch cert. that knew Marty. This guy was from West Virginia, if I rememebr correctly.

Actually, it's interesting, because I did something similar that day, with this guide. His name is Karsetn, and he approached me asking if I would be interested in following him on the classic Josh route "Walk on the Wild Side."

The caveat was that we'd need to do the walk-off descent, instead of simply rapping off the route. he wanted to familiarize himself with the descent as it might have been one of the "tasks" he'd be graded on for the certification.

I'm always up for adventure, even if I'm a pretty big chicken when it comes to JTree walk-off and scrambling, and I am really glad I agreed to the offer. For one thing, I'd not yet been on the route and definitely wanted to do it. I was not disappointed; it's a great line.

The walk-off was involved, to an extent, although for the most part the route-finding was extremely obvious. The route ends at a bolted anchor, and one 3rd classes up a ramp to the crest of the formation and toward the back for the descent passage. There was a decision to be made shortly after a section one must rap to a lower level at, but the wrong choice shows as a dead end(or....ballsy jump, I suppose...I didn't look, taking Karsten's word for it!) within a very short time.

There was definitely a section I was glad to have Karsten short-roping me on, and one other where it was nice, although I would have been okay without it. And, I got to do something that most visiting climbers to the Tree don't do. The rap from the route anchors is definitely more expedient....

We were smart, getting on the route fairly early. The sun was just coming over the formation as we topped out, but not high in the sky where the heat would be a problem. By the time we reached the floor and got back to our packs, it was becoming hot. We'd had perfect timing.

Afterward, we went and did some other routes. Well - I belayed Karsten on a 10D(Pinky Lee) which WAS in full on noontime desert sun. Ouch! He sent the route, with one fall at the start of the crux. It may have helped if I hadn't referred to the line as simply a 10 when I showed it to him....(one: Karsten had only been in Jtree a day or two, and I am fairly familiar, and Two: I don't climb 10, so....I forget the distinctions in those letters....ummm yeah.)

Next, I suggested Touch and Go, which is a beautiful route that I thought he would enjoy. i wanted to give it a good shot myself, as I had a past story with the route(no time for telling it right now....). Karsten, of course, led the route with a fair amount of ease, though he did have some pump going on. Pinky Lee and the Sunshine Band took their toll. I did okay for the first part, though it was defintiely at my limit. Then I hit a cruxy move and gave up.... Pretty much I sat on the rope after every move for the duration. Pretty awful on my part.

We finished the day at the Gunsmoke area, where Karsten onsighted 3/4 of the traverse's north wall before coming off. Then he rested and did the same on the eats wall. Strong. THEN....this is sort of wrong.... I suggested he try The Chube. He walked over and said "Too bad I left my shoes over there." I offered to go get, but he then said "well....it looks like it's not about the feet."

There was a group of 4 or 5 people who had been working the problem.... Karsten got on it and sent it on the first attempt. In approach shoes.

I have some photos - but gotta go to work. I'll come back in later on and add them in.







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Upcoming - Fred Beckey Slide Show

The man is scheduled for a visit at Rock & Snow on Saturday, October 27th.

This may be a hot contender for the largest audience in the venue...AS some may remember, last season when Lynn Hill did a show, the place was packed tighter than a pair of 38DD's in a 36B brasierre(c'mon - this post is about Beckey; that makes the turn of phrase appropriate).

Lynn is a Gunkie from back in the day, who put up hard, sparsely protected routes, so that may give her an edge. But....the meeting of Mr. Beckey is something on most every real climber's tick list.

Mentioning the show to another world class climber the other day, he said (something like)"Beckey's put up more routes than any other climber in all of history." No doubt - I remember seeing a photo of him on a route and he must have been in his early 20's. He's been climbing for how many years? He's something like 80 years old now - and STILL throwing down.

Fred Beckey, as a symbol of climbing, is sort of important to me. I have only been climbing 4 years, and I'm 45 years old. When I started, I was hooked. Hard. I devoured any materials I could find on the topic, wanting to immerse myself at every opportunity, whether I was out there on something or not. And so - like many others - I'd grab climbing magazines of the racks like they were bags of chips and could snarf them down in one sitting.

One day, I was thumbing through an issue, and all the pictures of young, beautiful climbers climbing incredible stuff(posed on sport routes, most likely) started to get me down. I started to think about how much I had missed out on. Here I was(I thought) beginning a thing that would probably be over for me in a few years. Climbing was..... the pursuit of the youthful(as well it may be; if age is only a state of mind, but that's not how I was thinking that day....).

So, page after page, beauty after beauty, I found myself slinking into self-absorbed sadness. I was pretty well suckered into the depths of that emotional off-width, really feeling sorry for myself.... And then, as with OW's, I moved the smallest muscle (I turned the page), and was free and clear. The sun was shining on my cloudy day, for there was a full-paged photo of Beckey, pulling up over a bulge, with the biggest grin on the wrinkliest face I'd ever seen. The myth I'd been believing in that moment, that climbing is for the kids, was busted wide open. And I owe that to Beckey, for being SO out there.

The man does live up to his various legends; that I can say is true. Having been introduced informally to him one evening in Jtree, the moment I made eye contact, he lit up like the panty-melter he's suggested of being. Maybe I started it, looking at him with gratitude, but he sure wasn't missing a step. An octagenarian - and STILL getting down? Surely, I couldn't say, but....that's the rumor... You'll just have to come to Rock & Snow and see for yourself.

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No Climbing For YOU(I mean, for me)!.....

How could I have said no? My client, who rarely goes away, asked a month ago if I could do a dog sit for her blind Cairn Terrier, Cali. I knew it would mean a weekend stuck in the city - away from my Gunks home away from home - and no climbing. But I heard that stupid little voice ("Be a good girl, Terrie") reminding me how lucky I was, with my luxe dirt lifestyle(definition to come at some point in a future post), and how well I understood the need to get away. What sort of person would it make me, in denying another that luxury?

So - while you all are out there being weekend warriors, taking road trips or out living the life - I'll be here waiting. Waiting for next weekend, for my next road trip(Halloween SushiFest in the desert!) waiting for April First of next year, when - if all goes to plan(plans that haven't even been laid yet) - things will be changing on this Sucks In The City Grrrl's life.

Ahhhh...pre-reminiscing.....I'll just keep that in my head for now. But, I suppose, with the fall season started, it's time to look at the already-been-had part of this season(which is what's propelling me to take actions to change, as you'll see....).

2007 marks only my 4th year climbing, but I've been lucky. Being self-employed has, at times, given me a lot of freedom to travel and take extended weekends. But this year, it seemed like it stalled out on me.

Returning from my spring trip out west, I found myself in yet another micro-financial crisis(I say micro, because the amounts involved were a pittance compared to what many others would require to feel the squeeze. But when one lives on a cash basis, relying on zero credit, the reality of one's cash flow is a little more clear). At the same time, my newly hired assistant bailed after having worked with me for only a month. With the summer slowdown coming, I knew it would be impossible to hire a new person (But now fall is here - Craigslist Want Ads - here I come!).

So I was stuck doing the weekday work(thank you Nicole, my weekend assitant!). Which meant I finished my work week at 3pm on Friday, and had to be back for Monday....grrrrr. In comparison to last year, when I had my van and could drive whenever I wanted, and was taking off Thursday night or Friday whenever, and could come back some time on Monday....well, you do this math. The answer to the equation is "2007 season = Sucks!"

Well.....not really. I mean, I have been upstate nearly every single weekend since May(late start this year due to weather). I think I missed 3 weekends in total.

Alas - my most regular climber partners were AWL(Absent WITH Leave). One was in Europe for the summer, and the other was tending to her newborn baby. Having been out of the "blind day" partner loop, I found it difficult to locate partners to climb with, and found myself taking plenty of hikes instead. It was so bad that I even considered creating a faux username ar rc.com and pretending I was a newly arrived to the area woman..... Don't laugh! When I started climbing, each time I posted for a partner, I had scores of replies, from guys who had tons of experience(and appreciative of them all, I remain, for through them I learned climbing ethics).

Add to the mix that I dedicate Sundays to trail work. Though my time available at the cliffs has decreased this year, there's just no way I would think of giving this up. I know this season has been an anomoly, and that change is on the way.

So......this year has been a low-impact climbing season for me. I have led only a handful of routes this year and the only "first" that I achieved was taking a lead fall onto a nut (P1 crux of Frog's Head).

In comparison to moments like the lead I took on Bitchy Virgin, this was fairly a non-event.

So - autumn is here - and I have been besieged with so many request for partners that I can't fit them all in. I've got to make up for lost time! I still lead 5.5, still find myself deferring to others when they want to lead, and still give the world's most patient belay while wondering why it's sometimes not reciprocated....

Let's hope the rest of this year brings me many pitches to climb, good leads, and an improvement in making sure I take my share in partnerships.

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Gunks Fall Season Has Arrived!

The e-connection of my computer's still funked, but at least now I have exhauseted all hope of doing a self-fix..... Resignedly, I'm packing the thing up and taking it to the shop this afternoon, where I'm expecting to receive a diagnosis of "fried modem" or something similar.

In the interim..... Despite a slow start on Saturday(morning climbing called on account of rain), the day did an about-face around 10am and a splendid "feels like autumn" day stepped forth. Though it had been raining steadily since late night Friday, the cliffs hadn't even gotten wet. Must have been the direction and angle the precip dripped. Nature had thrown a curve ball in the team's favor and the backside of the Trapps got a nice watering, while the front side stayed cool and dry to the touch. Climb on!

Plenty of people out there, too. Teddy couldn't move ten paces without someone from his fan club stopping to say hello and shake his paw.

I flailed lightly before slipping into the void of "the move" on Shockley's Ceiling. Luckily, I brannish a pair of prussiks like a cowboy does his pistols. Embarrassing - but true.

Still, it was a good day, and later we headed into town for the John Bragg slideshow - first entertainment event of the season. Beautiful pictures, incredible scenery, fun stories - If you missed it, you missed a good one.

The event was in support of the Gunks Climber's Coalition Rescue Fund, and $800 was raised.

Perhpas even more valuable.... was the announcement updating us on the status at the Rosendale Water Works.

If you don't know, this is an area that came into the spotlight a short while back; bouldering has been going on there, to climb what is allegedly(I've never been, nor spoeken to anyone with firsthand knowledge) world class third class..... Word was spreading and whispers of access issues arose in the mix.

Something had to be done....

The GCC has been working with the Mohonk Preserve and Open Space Institute on acquiring this land, and a Letter of Understanding was signed last week. So far as I have seen, the Open Space Institute gets things done, and if all goes as hoped....the Gunks 2008 season will be seeing an incredible new venue for serious bouldering.

I like to boulder, and even though I climb less than V0, can't wait to see how this pans out. Hopefully, many of the area boulderers will be interested in stewardship for this new locale, and will avail themselves of the considerable amount of work that will go into developing and maintaining the space. The Rosendale Water Works will be part of the Mohonk Preserve, which excels in educating preservation ethics, so the place should become a crowning gem in the US bouldering scene.

In other news - when I recently spoke with guidebook author Dick Williams about his progress on the lates edition(updated guidebook to the Near Trapps), he said the writing had been completed!

This was no small task, as the man personally (re)climbed most of the existing routes in order to insure as accurate a book as can be made, while putting in many new routes at the same time. (We joke, a while back, that when he'd written in the earlier guide not to bother with sections of the cliffs duew to loose and dangerous conditions, that he was actually trying to deflect interest because he hadn't been able to snag all the FA's he'd been eyeing!)

Of course, parts of the Nears ARe known to have loose, chossy sections and Williams, in his climbing research, safely trundled rocks that were ready to roll as he came across them. This made for slower progress with his book work, but it's of incredible benefit to our climbing community, and something most of us will never even be aware of. Thanks Dick!

The book has been(or is soon to be) handed to an associate who will put it into Quark for editing, and Dick is going through his picture collections to decide which photographs wil be included in the new guide. He expects the book to be available in stores early next year, in time for the spring season of 2008.

Though many will lament the sure to be expected production that might aptly be called "Gumbys at the Gunks" to quickly run through the Nears, the publication will certainly be a most welcome one by the majority. Not only will many existing routes that have not been included in previous editions come to light, but also variations and linkups, along with new lines put up since the last edition. As happened with the release of the Trapps guide a few years ago, the Gunks will suddenly seem bigger, as people explore lines they'd previously been walking past unawares.

I also heard that the Adopt-A-Crag Skytop CleanUp, which I mentioned a few posts back, went very well despite a rainy day start. Volunteers filled five large bags of trash, the majority of which consisted of plastic water bottles left in situ by hotel guests and day-hikers visiting the property. One need only think about this in juxtaposition to an average Peterskill CleanUp day to comprehend the difference in mindset between those committed to the area(such as climbers and dedictaed hikers) and the person for whom a daytrip to the outdoors is their adventure of the year.

Keep in mind that the next Adopt-A-Crag event will be on October 20th. This is a great way to meet others from the area, give a little back, and get involved.

As well, the New Paltz Film Festival takes place on Saturday, October 6th. There are plenty of events the whole weekend too. Kick off the weekend on Friday night with a slideshow at the Mohonk Preserve Visitor Center. There's a bagel breakfast and climbing clinics on Saturday at the Trapps, the Film Festival that evening, and another slideshow (or film?) at Rock and Snow on Sunday night.


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Extreme P&S Photography.....

A few posts back I mentioned one of my "Great Finds," Orion Magazine, and talked a bit about some of the quality work presented. One of the articles, entitled "Drive-bys", inspired me to follow the leader...

The piece was about photographer Dewitt Jones and one of his shooting styles; that of simply allowing the camera to capture nature in motion, while he was in transit. No manipulation of the camera, no framing shots and setting up compositions. The antithesis of the shooter's dogma.

Of course, these aren't your average out-of-focus blur shots.... The man's work is quite wonderful, and I hope that if you haven't already clicked the Orion Magazine link above, you'll do so now.

While I don't pretend to be anything near an accomplished photographer, I do like to try my hand, and a few weeks ago, while walking the cliffside trail in the Nears, I was reminded of this serendipitous style. I was in a mood where I felt the structured shots I was looking for weren't happening, and so it was with a sense of delight that I made a few basic manual adjustments to my camera settings, and took off down the trail, to see what I might ....see. Or something like that.

Here are some of the captures I later found in my files.















My camera is a very basic one, with just a few options to go manual, and I didn't really play around much at all. I am hoping to get my first dslr soon, and since I expect a period of frustration while I learn how to get what I'm looking for, I think I'll be revisiting this genre.

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Teddy Gets His Picture Taken by a Pro

This weekend, I was walking down the carriage road and ran into some people I'd met a few weeks ago. As usual, I would have walked right past them, caught in my own little world.... Someone stopped me and asked if I'd seen the pictures of my dog from the Trapps Boulder Clean Up Day I'd attended back at the end of June.

Well - I hadn't seen those pictures, and since I knew this man was a professional photographer - I certainly did want to! He gave me his card, and I put it safely in a pocket within my own camera case, so I wouldn't lose it. When I returned home yesterday, I couldn't wait to see Teddy's famous picture, and of course, I thought he looked adorable.... Don't you agree?


~photo by David Toth~

But the cool thing was that I discovered all these great pictures that the guy, David Toth, took from that day. Like this one!

~photo by David Toth~

David has an album of shots from that day on his Flickr account, and I hope you'll click that link and take a look.

He's also got plenty of great bouldering photos posted to the site. Here's the Main Page.

And finally - I'd like to put in a plug for the man, since he's a pro photographer for hire.... He does weddings, among other lifestyle shots, I see when looking at his web site, David Toth Photgraphy. How cool would it be, to have someone who knows how to shoot great climbing shots taking your wedding pictures while the two of you are 3rd-classing it on your wedding day!?

So - do take some time today, if you're feeling it, and have a look at David's work, and pass the links on to your friends(or simply send them a link to this blog entry by clicking the Email button below!

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Wanna Go To SkyTop(and Not Pay the Ginormous Fees)?

Everyone knows that climbing at Skytop has been unsanctioned (or off-limits, if you don't know what that means....) since the mid-nineties. Well, maybe not everyone, but at least most locals and people who've visited the place. Or have considered coming. Or might in the future, or have talked to someone who thought about coming.... Might as well be everyone!

And most of THOSE people people are aware that the start of the 2007 climbing season saw a hallamrk in history, where Skytop became officially available to the...masses....again.

Well, at least the masses who could afford a two-night's stay at the Mohonk Mountain House and a guide fee "adjusted slightly upward," to defray the costs of coordinating guests with the activity, I suppose.

Jealous? Wishing YOU had the guts to just sneak in and reach for the Skytops routes? I THOUGHT so!

Well - here's your chance.... Read the bulletin below, and sign up now!*
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On Sept 15th and Oct 20th, 2007 Two Adopt-A-Crag Days Scheduled

Note: This text was directly lifted from the Gunks Climbers Coalition site.

The Gunks Climbers' Coalition, in cooperation with the Mohonk Mountain House, is pleased to announce that our first Adopt-a-Crag event this year will take place at Skytop on Saturday, September 15, from 9 AM to 1 PM. We are seeking twelve volunteers on a first-register, first-served basis (the number is limited by insurance restrictions) to collect litter in the talus apron around the crag. Send an email to: GCC@gunksclimbers.org to register for this event. More details will be provided once your registration is completed.

In cooperation with Minnewaska State Park Preserve, we will also be holding a second Adopt-a-Crag day of trail maintenance and micro-trash removal at Peter's Kill on Saturday, October 20. Click here for more information.

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* I didn't specifically say, in this post's title, that you could climb. Just asked if you wanted to go!

I know, I know....You may be mad at me for "making" you read this post, all just to announce an opportunity to volunteer with your fellow climbers. I'm sneaky that way.

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Nature Photos from the Gunks

Here's a photo essay on a hike/walk I took last Saturday, instead of climbing....


Looking toward the Overcliff Trail


Colorful Boulder - Gateway to the Gunks!


Vines suctioned to a boulder


Interesting little colorful bug


Pretty yellow wildflowers dotted the carriage road


Snakes Alive!


Head Shot


Another yellow wildflower, and a big old bee getting some pollen


Yet another yellow wildflower


Funghi

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Work In Progress

Nearly anyone who's been a visitor to the Gunks in the last several years recognizes the location in the picture above. It's the "Bunny Slope!" Located in the Trapps, this steep section abuts the rock wall as you come into the Uberfall area.

It's not actually part of the cliff, as it consists of a mixture of loose rocks and dirt. Corralled by a low fence of Gunks conglomerate laid down by volunteers on a National Trails Day in the 1990's, the slope is anchored in place by a few small trees and partially buried boulders. It's not really talus, nor is it woodland. The Bunny Slope inhabits a sort of netherworld between rock and (carriage) road.

I've only been a preserve member for the last four seasons, but I've passed this spot hundreds of times. As for the natural beauty that dominates the preserve, this spot seems a bit of an apparition. Because the slope is very fragile, even the smallest amount of interaction with humans(a child allowed to scramble on it, a dog left to dig for buried treasure, or a belayer with a less than average level of common sense), the majority of the section is roped off with accessory cord, and hung with a sign that advises "Slope Restoration in Progress," reminding us to stay off.

I assumed that the timeline for this particular restoration process was to be measured in generations, if not centuries. Being that the ethic of the Mohonk Preserve is to allow the land to regenerate to a pre-industrial era state, I just thought that over time - lots of time - the idea was that silt would wash down from the enormous off-width fissure behind the Herdie Gerdie block, eventually creating..... well, something more attractive than what we see above, at least.

Not to be so! In fact, the revolution has already begun. Volunteers who work on trail maintenance in the climbing areas of the preserve have spent the last few Sundays preparing for major restoration of the Bunny Slope.

A little over a month ago, we began harvesting rocks form the talus slope to the west of the area. Most of these have already been used though, in the creation of a "patio-type" surface at the base of the Herdie Gerdie Block, which was phase I in this project - to preserve, protect and highlight an area what is tantamount to the "Gateway to the Gunks."

Some might think that this is all simply an unneeded "beautification project;" even unethical, since the preserve looks to recreate an environment reminiscent of the early 19th century. But they would be incorrect in that supposition. The layer of rock actually serves to protect the fastly-eroding slope that fronts that highly-trafficked spot.

As you can see in the photo someone is just starting up "Nurdy Gerdie"(a/k/a "Dogs in Heat," a 5.10+(crack around the corner is off-route) face climb. That, and the two more popular routes on that short bit of rock easily see more than a dozen ascents on an average weekend day in season, frequently groups of three or more, including posses of families and other bystanders. People scamper over that short slope, set out picnics, kick at the dirt out of bored habit as they lock off their hang-dogging partner.....

In short, the area sees a tremendous amount of abuse, which is only increasing as gym climbers not yet (or never to be) experienced with placing gear on lead flock to the easily accessible top-roping climbs of the Gunks.

It wouldn't be so much of a problem had a few poor old trees not had the foresight to realize how much the neighborhood would change when they set down roots before most of us were saplings.....

Root damage.

It's an aspect of conservation that even the most conscientious of us may be unaware of. You see - when we tread over a tree's root system, we wear off miniscule bits of the protective layer that is utterly necessary to insure the health and natural life-span of that tree. Over time, any tree with exposed roots (which is a prevalent feature in the Shawangunks area) will suffer due to this loss of "skin." With extreme abuse, the tree simply cannot survive.

The Herdie Gerdie block is partially popular because it offers shade from a hot summer's sun. That shade comes from the few trees growing in the vicinity. Trees that see such a tremendous amount of irritation to their roots that they surely can't stay healthy if the trauma were to continue.

To counteract this problem, volunteers placed rocks within the spaces of the labyrinth of roots. Building up a sub-floor that allows for proper drainage(for built-up moisture would rot the roots and kill them even more readily than being trammeled), the "patio" protects the tree roots while at the same time also provides climbers a safer platform to work from. No more tripping over intertwining roots as belayers shift stances. Climbers coming off from a low level won't risk an ankle-breaking impact by hitting an uneven surface.

After completing that work, we went out in search of more rocks to use in our reclamation project of the Bunny Slope. Last Sunday, we spent an entire morning trundling from the lower talus slope in the vicinity of the "Stairmaster," or East Trapps Connector Trail, as it is officially know as.

As most people know, trundling rock is a BIG no-no at the Gunks. It's dangerous too, as impact from even an incredibly small rock coming from above can be fatal.

And that's just for innocent bystanders! Imagine standing in the talus field, amidst a herd of heavy smallish boulders(Gunks Conglomerate, the local breed of rock) weight 155 pounds per cubic foot). Each rock rests upon the one below it, sometimes solidly. Sometimes very precariously. Sometimes the top rock anchors the ones below.... Move one - and you have potentially upset the masses. Move the WRONG one, and the herd stampedes!

I was well aware of this aspect of talus-picking, as I got my on-the-job. I didn't want my tombstone epitaph to read "Trampled While Trundling." Even one of those bulls on the run would have snapped my leg like a tiny twig if it had cut loose. The fact that the rocks crash against each other, emitting a smell very much like that of explosives, also helps put everything in perspective.

In fact, I DID have a close call at the day's start, when a rock reoriented itself and landed on my pinky. I hadn't even touched it; simple vibration from....somewhere... seemingly launched the motion, and it made a minor adjustment. The pain was severe, and I really was worried about what I'd find when I removed my workglove. The rock had been only about the size of a Honeydew melon(which meant it weighed somewhere around 20 pounds), but I half-expected to see a mangled and bloody fingertip. I was very relieved to see just a red bruise.

In case you wonder why I mention all this - it's to apprise anyone not aware of the inherent danger. Do NOT try this at home(if your home away from home is an area where rocks hang out).

One unintended benefit of the trundling is that one intentional avalanche opened up a beautiful vista in the lower talus field we were working in. Al, a longtime trail crew volunteer, had nudged two small rocks(by trail crew standards, though the rocks weighed about 70 pounds each), and the shift set in motion a rock slide that brought down a great cache of sizable rock. We'll gather and use them for the retaining walls we create on Bunny Slope.

If you happen by the Connector Trail in the next few days, you may notice the pile. They sit at the talus base about 20 feet west of the wooden trail marker sign. You would recognize them because they seem to have been attacked my a Tick Marking Maniac! White chalk-like scars, about three to four inches long, seemingly point to many of the corners on these rocks. The pile has the appearance of a natural rockslide, which it was, even though started with a helping hand.

Bring your eyes upward to the large multiple-trunked tree that grows about 40 feet up from the carriage road, and notice the wonderful rock ledge the tree is growing from. It almost has the appearance of a sculpted oriental garden...on a grand scale, of course.

Another benefit that came of Al's slide was the displacement of "a few good men;" boulders that are going to be the cornerstones of our project. By moving two melon-sized rocks, the cascade let loose about 50 others, which in turn allowed the downward march of some hefty hunks of the Gunks. These rocks a BIG - probably weighing close to a thousand pounds and the size of dorm refrigerators. Earlier this week, Dick Williams, who leads the trail crew, worked with another preserve volunteer, on the removal and transportation of these boulders. They are to be brought down to our work-site in the jaws of a bull-dozer type machine.

You'll see the smaller rocks we have gathered already at the work area; we've plied them on the edge of the carriage road, near but not impeding, at the starts of Bunny, Retribution, Bo Solution and Nosedive. This rock pile consists of an estimated eight tons of rock! Thanks to ranger Bob Elsinger, who assisted in loading his Preserve tuck and hauling them to the destination. Eight times. The pickup had a load limit of one ton before the bed began to bottom out, and so back and forth we went. This constituted about 3 1/2 to 4 hours of steady work.

So - If weather permits, and enough volunteers arrive, we will begin placing these rocks on Sunday. This is going to be hard labor, and strong people are needed to do the job. If you've been wondering about how you can give back in a place that has given you so much, this might be your opportunity! We meet atop the Steel Bridge at 9am.

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I Got Good Guidance

Like so many people, my first "climbing" experience was in a rock gym. While it was sublime, it didn't take all that long for me to understand - clearly - that there was climbing(as I was "doing"), and there was "climbing" (as in....outside, or rock). Later on, of course I realized there was yet another kind of climbing (as in the crap-my-pants, 'GottaGettaPieceAndThere'sNoPlacement-AAAAGGGHHH!!!! Save me, Jesus!' run-out kind of climbing), but let's not get too far ahead of the story.....

Just as with "their," there" and "they're," the three "climbing's" may be spelled the same, but everyone except those still in Phase I (gymboree) understand that's where the similarity ends.

In the spring of 2004, there I was - no shit - stuck solidly in Phase I and knowing - with an aching, all-encompassing, kind of knowing - that I had to go out there and get it, if I wanted to climb for real. I desperately wished for some other gym members to take me to the Gunks. I knew they went up there; I could hear them making plans as the week rolled along towards Friday. But I was too intimidated to ask to be taken out. I do carry a card in the "Why Would Anyone Want Me" club, unfortunately, and that self-centeredness has cost me dearly.

One of those costs ended up being that of paid guides, who I hired to elevate my status from "gymboree" n00b to "Potential Hazard" (to the safety of my climbing partner, that is). All joking aside - I had incredibly rewarding experiences every time I went out with a guide, and I think I have a deeper respect for ethics and style than I would have gained on my own. Since, oftentimes new climber's are desperate to get out there, they might be apt to rope up with those who really are just a few steps ahead of them on the path. Some even latch onto another adventurous soul with the same lack of experience, and head for the hills.

I consider myself very fortunate, for having put myself in the hands of guides for the various "rite of passage" events in my early climbing daze (typo intentional). My first time climbing outside was with a guided group, and on the second day, I made seconded for the first time, following a guide. No welded nuts and over-cammed pieces for me! My first real road trip, to Seneca Rocks, was with Marty Molitoris, who operates Alpine Endeavors, a well-respected service up near the Gunks.

Marty goes with a low guide to client ratio, and he had brought along one Nick Sisk, who had guided and dirtbagged at Seneca years before. Nick was my personal climbing partner on that trip, and every time another group of climbers came along the trail, it was like a reunion of old friends. Everyone knew Nick.

When Marty mentioned the other areas he holds guiding permits at(an extensive number of locations across the US), and I heard the word JTree(yes, one word), I signed on immediately. Again, Nick came along as my one-on-one partner, and during that marvelous 10-day trip, I learned he had spent some years out there, dirtbagging as well.

Nick's specialty seemed, to me, to impart the values of old-style ethics. Because of him, I learned that a campsite was marked "reserved" simply by the presence of a fuel canister on a picnic table, or an overturned Crazy Creek chair anchored in the parking spot.

So much more, of course, and I'll go into greater depth on my next post. It's time for me to get packed and head out for a weekend at the Gunks.

Have a great weekend, have fun and be safe!

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HitchHiking and the Mohonk Mountain House

Getting from New Paltz to the cliffs with no car is very easy. I have heard others - men, big and apparently able to fend for themselves men - say they just take a taxi from the bus station. I tried that. Once. It's a long story. Let's just say that I won't be doing that again.

Instead, I hitchhike. Getting off the bus, I hightail it down Main Street to the stretch of curb in front of The Gilded Otter. This is a good spot for thumbing it, because it allows oncoming drivers a distance of space in order to process the information they are receiving, which would be: Hitch-Hiker, female, backpack, climber. Minimal brain activity required to surmise that I am probably not dangerous; just looking to get out to the Gunks and go climbing.

If they have quick reflexes, and decide to stop where I stand, it is a section of the road that allows them to do so without being rear-ended by an unobservant driver in a following car. If they are smart, and decide to pass me and turn the corner a few feet ahead, they can stop and not concern themselves with unsafe driving practices at all. I'll simply run down to the corner, throw my gear in the back and hop in. Then we'll turn around and be on our way.

The reason I rush to this spot is because sometimes there is another person on the bus heading to the cliffs who has gotten their partner to pick them up at the bus station. They might have room for me, and I want to be in place when they drive by.

You might think "Why not look around at the bus station and ask for that ride?" I will tell you why not. Because more often than not, they won't have room for another rider and their gear. or they will be wanting to stop at Rock and Snow, and then at the grocery store for power bars and water. And then at the Mountain Deli for breakfast. Like the time with the taxi; I did that once. Another long story, which gained me the revelation that it is often a big waste of time and energy to tackle the project with that plan.

Anyway..... This past Sunday was like any other hitch-hike day and I got a ride directly to the cliffs within a few cars passing. New Paltz is one of the few cities in New York state, I am assuming, where it is still relatively safe for a woman to put herself in the hands of a stranger on the road. The place is special that way.

On Sundays, I volunteer on the trail crew. We have a small group that works steadily, during season, to reinforce eroding sections of the cliff side trails, improve areas that are difficult to manage when evacuating an injured person laid out in a litter, and maintain the thing in general. It's my pleasure to do so, and I look forward to the day each week. There are long stretches of the trail that I helped fix up, and the work will endure for years. That's a very satisfying thing, to me, and one of the few ways I have to give back to the climbing community that has given me so much.

But this Sunday, we didn't have much help. Just myself and the crew leader. Our current project involves rock collecting and though the old saying goes "Three's a crowd," that's certainly not true in this case. The rocks we are looking for are more aptly called boulders, at least by the layman. A
boulderer would call them "bad landings" if they happened to be under what THEY consider a boulder.... The rocks we want weigh between 100 and 1000 pounds and range in size comparison to basketballs, microwave ovens and dorm-room style refrigerators. They aren't moved by one person hoisting them, but with rock bars and grip hoists

So - with just the two of us, no work could be done. Disappointed, I headed to the Uberfall, which is to the Shawangunks climbing community what the barbershop was to Mayberry, R.F.D., in the hopes of picking up an impromptu climbing partner.

Now, I have never been successful in doing this, and unlike the taxi game, I still haven't learned it's a waste of my time. Maybe it's because so many other people have success in finding partners that way; I know that it works. At least for some people....

It's just a paradox that I can stick my thumb out on a state highway and ask a ride of someone I can't even really see, but am unable to do the same on a more personal level. I get uncomfortable, sulky and introverted. I pull out a book and burry my nose in it, hoping "the perfect partner" will stop, and ask me to climb with him. (Yes, it's a him. Tall, smart, long, curly hai....Ummm... Well at least someone with plenty of experience.).

The truth is that I am not good at saying no, and when it comes to life/death situations, which climbing entails, one had better be prepared to do so. I have heard way too many stories of people roping up and finding themselves in serious trouble because they didn't vet heir partner beforehand, and found themselves climbing with someone who had misrepresented their abilities, whether intentionally or through naivety.

Combine that with some of the assinine scenes I have witnessed being enacted by FWDKTDKS (Folks Who Don't Know They Don't Know S***)...and I get a little...scared.... just roping up on the spot with just anyone. While I have climbed blind with well over a hundred people over the last few years, and had great days of it, I DO vet heavily beforehand. Someday I'll write a post about that experience.

I pride myself in an ability to stay safe. That's another story in itself; this one's supposed to about the Mohonk Mountain House and hitching a ride. So - let's get on to the Mountain House....

After a weak attempt at searching for a partner, I decided I'd hike over to the Mountain House. Because I usually have my dog, Teddy, with me, and dogs aren't allowed on MH property this was a good day to do it. By the way, if you are not familiar with the Shawangunk ridge and the Mohonk Mountain House, it's an interesting story.

I knew the Undercliff Road eventually led there, and was fairly certain it would be easy to figure out. The carriage roads, paved with shale and well-maintained, are hiked every weekend by families. I have only once seen someone in duress while doing so, and that was a man who called a gentle incline of less than 5 degrees "a hill." And, I've never heard an horror stories of anyone being lost overnight out in the wilderness of the Mohonk Preserve. The walk would be cake for me, and though I was a little concerned I'd be bored(it IS a flat road-like trail, after all....), I cheered myself up with thought of being able to take photos along the way.

That lasted about two seconds, before I realized I'd passed up the opportunity to restock in double A batteries for my camera. It's an energy hog, and I knew I would be lucky if I had enough power for a day's shoot. Berating myself for neglecting the item(for it had occurred to me to restock at home and then again when I got off the bus that morning), I had to stop myself from stepping into the quicksand of self-pity.

Soon enough I came along a bit of greenery that was photo-worthy and unpacked my camera with intrepidation. I knew what I would find, and was not surprised when the thing would barely power up. The half-press to fix the focus shut the thing down. "No photos for you" I heard, in the chiding voice of Soup Nazi from the Seinfeld series.

Again, I knew it would be a bad thing to allow myself to wallow. Oh - I had ammunition all right. I had no man, nor a climbing partner, nor even my dog for company. I wasn't going to be getting the heavy duty workout that a day on the trail crew brings; an exhaustion that is surprisingly satisfying, in a sort of masochistic way. I didn't even have use of my (sniff, sniff, dab away the tears) crappy little, barely beyond a point and shoot, FujiFilm camera..... I would have to be - oh no! - comfortable in my own skin, staying in the present. Laugh if you will -but when was the last time YOU really did that? I don't even OWN an Ipod, and use my cel phone only for the most basic communication; can you say the same? Hmmmm?

Well - it was what it was, and what it was, was a walk along the carriage road at the Trapps, listening to people yell climbing signals, as I trudged my day's destiny....

Of course, one can't really have a bad day out at there, or at least I can't. Before long I was happy in my thoughts, looking at pretty plants and noticing other small details of nature. Just before I hit the trail I usually take for Sleepy Hollow, I noticed a big boulder(climbing-sized) that looked pret-ty sweet. With an impromptu access trail barely discernable. Definitely not an *approved* trail, but one that was a hella lot easier to walk on than the one that had been put in officially. With just a tinge of guilt, I took it.

In my defense, I made absolute certain of my footwork, stepping on rocks wherever possible. I went out of my way to tread open ground when no rock was available, and avoided delicate mosses at all cost. well - except to gaze at their beauty. Sleepy Hollow is quite wonderful, in it's heavy mantle of furry moss. If you are reading this, and are wont to go "off-road," please try to at least do the same. The difference between traveled areas and the places one doesn't go, when it comes to nature, are actually pretty astounding. It takes surprisingly little traffic to maim fragile growth, and the half-life for destruction is a long one. Recovery, when possible, takes a timeline measured in generations.

The boulder, by the way, was a good one. Local boulderers know which one I'm speaking of, of course. Already chalked up extensively, I still noted several virgin paths of least existence. Lines I would never follow, simply because I didn't have the skill, but also because I was traveling alone and couldn't risk making one of those "bad landings."

That was good for a bit of time and soon I was back on the road, headed for the Mountain House. I figured I would do a rock scramble I had heard of along the way, called the Giant's Workshop. The walk was pleasant and, with just a few people passing by on bicycles, I was pretty much in solitude the whole while. At one point, I came to an intersection of paths (at Rhododendron Bridge) and decided to follow the Laurel Ledge Road.

Rounding a corner, I came to a very small cliffband right along the way, which reminded me of a mini Uberfall area, and shortly thereafter, a deer in the woods caught my eye.

Upset with myself about the situation with my low-energy camera, I slowly and quietly unpacked, hoping to try for a picture or two. She was happily grazing, but became aware of my presence immediately. I was able to get a few shots off, but wished for a better vantage point. She was further away that I'd liked and there were downed branches and trees hindering the sight line, being the woods and all.... However, I knew stepping so much as one foot off the road and into the wooded area would scare the deer off. She looked so content, laying down and munching greenery that I knew it would be incredibly rude to invade the territory in even the smallest way.



Not much further along, I came to a side road, The Old Minnewaska Road. To the west, this comes out to a bridge running over the Coxing Kill, and Split Rock swimming hole, a nice little summer laze-about spot that can be quite the local scene on a hot summer weekend day. It was interesting to put another disjointed piece of my Mohonk Preserve topographical puzzle in place.

This part of Laurel Ledge Road was fairly picturesque, carriage road-wise, and is a trip that would be incredibly beautiful in autumn with the foliage color change.

To the right, soon came a marker for the Giant's Path, which I assumed led through the Giant's Workshop. I took it, and soon enough found myself in that scramble.

For some reason, I had assumed this area was going to be a much larger maze to meander, but was not disappointed. The 'trail' through the thing is, in my opinion, not as clearly marked as it might be. I am a chicken, frankly, but considering that people who may not be aware of just how deadly a fall onto rock can be, the level of 'think for yourself' that folks are left to surprised me.

At one point, I misread the marking and headed in a way I thought would be a natural route. "Holy crap!" I thought, removing my pack to get through a tight spot. "This is a pretty big move for a novice to make, and a fall would definitely have potential for a broken ankle." Not the brightest start in the galaxy at times, I continued....

An easy step or two and the route I was on led through a slim vertical shaft toward daylight. I moved ahead...and looked down. "Holy crap!" I thought. "Sure, you can sort of shimmy/chimney through here, but the foothold is friggin' thin! Miss it and you are going down for a while, until you wedge into a constriction!" Knowing that families bring young children out to scamper in this thing, I was....beginning to think I may be off-route.

Still....I proceeded. The route WAS there, after all. I saw it clearly. I moved through that fissure and out towards the corner. The point of no return was one step ahead, and at least I had the sense not to blindly go forward. Stretching as far as I could, I saw that - yes - one could work their way to the outside. It was 4th class climbing though, and that was just the next few moves. Once past the corner, I'd be on a rock wall, and at least twenty feet above the ground, into 5th class range.

"This ....must not be right." I told myself, and headed back. Reversing the "big" move mentioned earlier wasn't difficult (again, for someone who has climbing skills) but still....

Looking at the trail blazes again, I realized that the person who had marked it used a symbol that hikers know as "turn this way" more as if it were an arrow, with the center pointing the way. I guess that was the crux.... At any rate, the "correct" way was.....just a little easier than how I had almost gone.

Coming out the top, one gets a very nice panorama of the valley below and the Trapps, Near Trapps and Millbrook ridges off to the southwest. And, a choice of several routes going forward. Being that I wanted to get to the Mountain House, I chose the one that said...."To Mountain House"....and had a nice little walk though, again, the trail was not well marked. It's just obviously been a while since someone's been through to touch up the blazes and though I suppose it's difficult to get lost out there, I wondered why the maintenance hadn't been done. (Probably for the same reason I was out there that day, instead of doing the trail work I'd intended; a lack of volunteer help!).

At any rate, in not to long a period, I came to more choices in my path, by way of carriage road. I couldn't help but be impressed, knowing as I do, that all these carriage roads were created in the late-nineteenth/early-twentieth centuries, and the work was done with manual labor using hand tools.

Headed in a northwest direction along the outer edge of a highpoint in the topography, I came across a pretty wooden pagoda, one of many that I knew had been put in place by the Smiley family, owners of the Mountain House, for the pleasure their hotel guests out enjoying their nature walk. Thinking back to what it must have been like, to be a young woman in corset and long dress along on this road, I can imagine it must have felt like quite the workout. Thinking back even further, hundreds of years before the slate roads and wooden scenic lookouts, to what it might have been like to be one of the area's original human inhabitants.... I couldn't help wondering how romantic it all must have been.



Eventually, I came to a clearing and saw that I was coming to the Mountain House grounds proper. A baseball/soccer field led way to tennis courts and soon enough I was...in a different world, and feeling a bit like a dirtbag, with my casual clothes, disheveled hair and huge, seen-a-bit-of-backcountry backpack, and my climbing shoes and camera bag dangling from daisy loops. Casual attire by way of being a Mohonk Mountain House guest is just a wee bit different than the casual attire I had on.

But! I knew there was a gift shop. And that meant I could replace my camera batteries and try for some photos of the place. Boy....did I feel weird, walking past the valet parking, moving off the road for fancy cars. I knew that, as a preserve member, I was allowed access to the grounds, but it sure didn't feel right. I kept expecting a butler in tuxedo to appear at my side, nose tilted to the sky as if I had BO, affecting that tone and asking "May we help you?"

No butler that I could see, though there were plenty of young, attractive guys in green polo shirts, the uniform of the hotel. Plenty! Almost an equal ratio to the guests, it seemed....

I can steel myself as well as anyone, and though I definitely felt out of place, I emboldened myself and stopped one of these guys to ask about getting batteries for my camera. I didn't think I would be "allowed" in the hotel, but thought maybe there'd be "some way" I could get those batteries. I'm not sure if I was supposed to be given carte blanche, and maybe I caught him guard but he directed me to the main entrance and gave directions as to where I'd find the gift shop.

The entryway was a zoo. Busy with arriving and departing guests, I felt like the obvious interloper at the wedding, or a salmon swimming upstream, instinctively needing to do so in order to carry on. Walking through the maelstrom as if I belonged there - as if I were, in fact, a paying guest and gawd help me but I was just that cool, not deigning to wear fashionable designer dungarees....

The hotel is...beautiful, and after I got my batteries, I headed out the back, where I understood Lake Mohonk resided. Just before exiting, I found a wonderful old Stickley settee. I touched it. How could I not!? I really love Stickley and though the pieces I have in my apartment are recently produced reproductions, there ARE Stickley, and have been made to the same standards as this antique; of radiant quarter-sawn oak. And I felt the energy, from the hands that crafted the piece in the first place to the years and years that piece has been standing, like an old tree in the forest, having seen it all and stood by, quietly.

Mohonk Lake is indeed very pretty, but I have to say - I did not really like the feeling I got, standing on the back porch of that hotel. I hadn't gone unnoticed, and though I generally don't really look at people, I DO glean sensation. It's a trait I've had all my life. It's not very helpful when running into people throughout my travels, since I rarely recognize faces or remember names. Such a problem it is, since I am apparently known by an awful lot of people, that I have no option but to be honest and let people know this is something that's "wrong with me;" I simply do not recognize people I have met before, nine times out of ten.

But I get their drift all right. And the drift I got at that time was one of riff-raff, myself being the cause of the rift. There were all these....lazy...I'm sorry but that's how it felt....wealthy men sitting in rocking chairs, impatiently waiting for...something. Looking at me as I walked by, and wondering to themselves - in a Thurston Howell the Third voice - on earth I was doing there. I got away from there as soon as I could!

I had decided to go walk along the lake, figuring that, though I definitely was no supposed to be in the hotel itself, there would probably be plenty of other preserve members and day use visitors on the grounds. Well....I can't say whether that was the case or not, but it wasn't so bad.

Well...it sort of was, actually. I came to a path that led to the famed "rock scramble." Deciding to take it I started down the path only to be quickly overtaken by families and young couples, moving like cars on the expressway upset that the little old lady(me) was driving too slow and in their lane. I had to "pull over" and let them pass, or feel their irritation as they impatiently tail-gated.

Almost immediately, a mom, dad and two young boys zoomed past. The youngest boy became frightened when he had to step over a crevasse. Not knowing how bad it was, I could see he was definitely scared and felt sorry for him. He cried and balked all the while she pulled and finally launched him over the thing and finished him off with a belittling remark. wow....

Now, I got lucky, because while I had pulled back to let this family get past and gain some space, I had taken time to look around. And you know what I saw? I mean besides several plastic drink cups, soda bottles, and food wrappers stuffed in the crannies between the rocks....

I saw - a porcupine!

Yes, I did. He was, believe it or not, coming out of what was probably his den, right there at the start of that rock scramble.



The little buy ahead was still crying, now with shame as much as the residual affects of being scared silly and I thought. "Hey! I them about the porcupine, and that will break the negative feeling! Nobody expects to see a porcupine, certainly not...here... and the kid will be amazed!"

Well....not quite.

No response/reaction whatsoever from the two boys, but the mother crisply said "Unfortunately we can't make our way back there to see it." Only what she meant was "And why is it, may I ask, that you are speaking to us?"

Oh.....

Well, I decided to let them have a LOT of space. And so I stood waiting for the porc to come out and let me see him, and sit for a portrait. He did rollover onto his haunches and give his belly a good scratching - long claws, I'll say! - but he realized that I was probably going to be stupid and tell everyone I saw that he was down there and point him out, and then he'd probably get poked at with sticks and have his day messed with. So...he stuck it out, and waited until I admitted defeat and moved on....

Within short order, another set of people came up from behind and overtook me. Now - this rock is polished. I'd much rather have been scrambling over talus at the base of the cliffs than this stuff; it's got a strange smoothness in places and though it's easy stuff, the mix of smoothness, trash litter and impatient scramblers was a little disheartening. I didn't like it at all. At one point two people went ahead of me and stood in an opening. I could hear they were talking to others in their group, who had taken a different path, and were waiting for them to catch up. Since I could see them coming, I waited, and decided to let them go as a group rather than try to get ahead or go in between.

This, apparently, upset someone who came up behind me, who nearly pushed me out of the way while asking "Are you going?" wow.....

The rest of the scramble was pretty much the same, unfortunately, though it's probably much less icky on a weekday or in a less busy time of year.

Once out of the scramble, its a shale-graded path rising up a hill to the top, where the Alfred Smiley Memorial stands. People seemed much nicer up there.

There are some very nice views from Skytop, like the rockface of Lake Mohonk.



And the memorial is a nice piece of craftsmanship too. Here is the iron gate at the front entrance.



On the way down(Nooo...I didn't take the scenic way down. I walked the road, thank you.) there are pretty vistas, with stopping spots and those nice wood pagodas. Some give way to views of the majestic old hotel.


As pretty as it is, I can't believe they have this ugly dock running through the lake. But I guess they have to be able to accommodate the leisure traffic, and a rustic smaller dock wouldn't be able to handle the load.


Getting back to ground level, I realized that my day had been burning along fairly well, and it was probably past the time I should have started to make my way back to New Paltz. I had....wrongly...figured I'd simply get a ride back to town in much the way I do from the cliffs. That is - to go to the parking area, and ask people heading to their cars if they had room for me and my gear. I had dawned on me - sometime between walking in the back door of this resort and that moment - that my plan was flawed.... Little did I know just how badly.

I had wanted to walk the cliffbase of Skytop, and get a look at the fantastic climbing routes. But I was tired; I have no idea how far I'd walked, but had been pretty much going nonstop since 10am, and by my guess it was at least 3:00 at the time. As well, the sky was darkening as rain clouds began brewing.

Uh oh....

I decided to save Skytop(the real Skytop - the rock climbing!) for another day, when I was fresher, and make my way toward the parking area. I was worried about the ride situation; I could simply not imagine the reactions I was going to be getting from these people when I asked if I could hop in....

And so, I headed in the direction I knew was the exit. Along the way, I passed a section of formal garden, filled with pretty flowers. I took but one photo, probably because, as I said earlier, I was becoming tired.



On the road to the exit, there is a truly magnificent old tree. It's not a Weeping Willow, but it has a similar sweeping mass of tendril branches. Up close, he tree is fantastic - an ancient, windy limbed beauty. Just spectacular. The hotel has placed a rather large and obvious sign asking to respect the tree's age and beauty, and to please not climb on it or carve it. Nonetheless, the limbs are scarred with cutwork initials.

So...I headed out, and off what I thought was the hotel grounds. I believed I was heading down a drive that would shortly lead to the road leading back to New Paltz.


Wrong.

Oh, and when I am wrong, I am wrong.....

I had not known that the hotel had a two-miles plus long driveway. I had been to the gatehouse entrance a few times in the past, only to find out the parking lot was full, or they wouldn't allow me in because I had a dog. I had simply assumed at the time that the hotel was just down the road, well camouflaged behind a heavy bank of trees. Suddenly I understood why I had seen several short-busses with "Mohonk Mountain House" emblazoned on the side......

Uh oh.

I knew, I just knew, that it would be bad to put my thumb out on the resort driveway. Disrespectful, and.... just bad. And so, I committed to the walk, thinking perhaps someone might see my pack and recognize me as a hiker, take pity and offer me a lift.

Then I came to a sign that said walkers MUST use a side path to get to the gatehouse, 2.3 miles down the road. The good news, the sign promised, was that the path was a half mile shorter than the road.....

Even if I had wanted to disobey the rule, the road really was too thin to walk along. There was absolutely no shoulder, and it was not a lazy country road. It was one way and winding, with cars winging around the curves every few seconds.

Oh, crap.

I had no choice.

Eventually I came to what I thought was the road..... I put my thumb out and each car stopped, only to say that no - they weren't headed to New Paltz, and unfortunately could not give me a ride. I had been wondering why the road seemed....thinner...than I had remembered it, since I'd driven it a few times last year when I had a car. But, as I said earlier ...sometimes I'm not so bright.

This road didn't have much of a shoulder either, and it was sort of scary. I had to go quite off into the woods edge in order to be safe and not frighten the drivers; I didn't want to upset them - it really was a thin pathway.... and I didn't thumb it if the road wasn't clear enough that I felt the car could stop without being in danger of traffic coming up behind.

Finally, another car stopped and strangely, they didn't roll down the window for me to query about a lift. Well - I was about out of steam. It was obviously going to rain at some point, I was worried about getting back to own, and had realized - some of these people...were not nice. At all. This was NOT the same as hitching a ride to the cliffs. These were not climbers and hikers and locals of the area, used to quirky climbing bums. At all.

So, I shouted through the window. And at the same time, I noticed the lady passenger was speed-dialing something on her cell phone. "Oh christ" I thought..."Do I REALLY look like an axe murderer?"

The man let the window down a crack, and I repeated my request. As if I were a moron (well...if the show fits, now that I think about it), he said "This road goes to the hotel."

Oh. Crap.

When I came off the walking path, I had mistakenly thought I'd hit the road, when it was actually the entry drive into the hotel. Now wonder it seemed like a one-laner..... It WAS!

The driver cheerfully told me that the road wasn't far back, really.....

I DID remember to thank them, by the way.


And so....I walked. It wasn't that far. Not really. Probably 10 or 15 more minutes. But then the fun really started.

If you know that road, you are aware that it is a very winding one, with lots of blinds sections and curves around steep embankments with guardrails set very close to the roadway.

Not a good place to be walking, much less hitching a ride. Especially from wealthy patrons to an exclusive resort hotel.

I walked for half an hour, listening very carefully for oncoming traffic. It wasn't their fault I had been stupid, and I intended to be considerate. If the road was not a clear enough stretch fro them to safely slow and stop, I would step well off to the side and not signal for a lift. In the instances where I could thumb, not a one of those expensive cars so much as slowed down even the slightest.

Thinking I was screwed, and wondering how many hours walk it would be back to New Paltz, I tried to make the best of it, while hoping I was forecasting wrongly in thinking rain was less than an hour away.

FINALLY a car stopped. Oh my god, was I relieved. It was a man who worked at the Mountain House, on his way to New Paltz for another shift at a second job.

And thus ends my little Sunday trip report.....

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