Sunday, October 22nd, 2006
I thought this might be fitting, since it is almost Halloween.
If you grew up in Brewster, NY and went to Brewster High School, you almost certainly know about the Satan Caves. Ok, I am pretty sure no one from Brewster is reading this, so let me explain. The Satan Caves are actual caves situated in a very strange area between Brewster, Carmel and Mahopac. The area is home to many man-made reservoirs that feed New York City. As such, you can imagine all the construction all those years ago that made the area mysterious…reservoirs and lakes, tunnels and caverns, canals and…well, caves.
Laura and I went to a very nice engagement party yesterday in Katonah. On the way home, since we were all the way over on the other side of the river, I decided to take a little detour. Heading up Rt.22, I decided to pull off onto a dirt road next to a reservoir with a nice stepped overflow. On this dirt road is the old garbage dump that my father and I used to go to when we needed to get rid of stuff. I remember that well…riding in the dump truck full of stuff. It was always an adventure. Anyway, I wanted to show it to her. I know…it’s strange, but it was a nice Autumn day and I was feeling nostalgic. I forgot that there was so much more to look at besides that beauty of a dump. We pulled over on the side of the road so we could climb the hill to get a look at the reservoir.
This next photo is of the single vehicle bridge that you have to pass through to get to the dump. It is old tradition to honk your horn before going through. You can see through to the other side, but it is still fun to honk the horn. I gave it a few honks to show off my mad skillz to Laura.
Right past the bridge on the right hand side is the weirdest, strangest thing. I should mention that when these reservoirs were created, tunnels and channels were made too…to connect them all. In the next few photos is one of the channels that connect this reservoir in Brewster to one in Carmel. I think the building was some sort of a dam. I am not sure. Maybe if someone reads this and knows about these types of things, they will leave a comment explaining what we are looking at. All I know is, it was very quiet and the channel was very creepy. It doesn’t help that Laura gets into this kind of stuff. She likes horror films like there is no tomorrow. I hate that stuff. I am a comedy man, myself. Moving on…
You know, if the wrong type of person came back here at the wrong time, they might try to do some sort of drug. Good thing we were here to keep a lookout. So, you get the picture. Pretty Blair Witch looking.
So here is the exciting stuff. We left the canal area and passed by the old dump entrance. It wasn’t very exciting…just an overgrown dirt path type road. They closed it years ago and covered the entire area with dirt. It looks like a field today. We continued on the dirt road and I got an idea…I would show Laura the hill that leads to the Satan Caves. I read somewhere that these caves are the abandoned Tilly Foster mines.
That is some freaky stuff. We got to the hill and I opened the door to go up the hill. What the heck…it looked shorter than I remembered. It has been a while though…
I used to go up to these caves with my friends Rob, Gary, Pete and Frank. It was kind of like “Stand By Me.” We lived that movie. We used to hear so much about the place, but hadn’t gone up yet. Finally, when Gary got a car, we made the trip. We hiked up the two hills and made a right towards a huge ravine type side of a mountain. There she was…a huge cut out of a rocky cliff, dripping with water…and a small steel double door. It was dark and wet, with lots of green moss. Like stated above, there were beer cans and junk left over from partying. We slowly creaked the door open and inched through to discover there were tracks on the ground. We had to balance on them because there was about 6 inches of water covering the entire area. We continued through in the pitch black, just a small light from one flashlight. There were multiple caverns, divided by large steel walls and a door in the middle. Everything was covered with rust and water. There were smaller tunnels leading to nowhere along the sides of the main cave. We continued through a few more caverns to come to an odd end. There was a large rock dead ahead with a rubber hose hanging from above. We looked up about fifty feet and saw a small hole…about one and a half feet from side to side. There was daylight shining through. We hung and bounced on the hose a few times to make sure it was strong enough to hold us. Slowly, each one of us climbed the hose to emerge out of a large, steep funnel type hole at the top of the mountain. We crawled up the sides of the funnel in the leaves and realized where we were…about a half-mile from where we started. This whole trip was completely different than anything we ever expected…
Ok, back to the present day. I talked Laura (without much effort) into climbing the hill with me to see the entrance of the caves. I thought this would be the perfect Halloween type thing to do. The caves are enough to freak anyone out. We made it up the hills pretty quickly, even though the ground was wet. When we came around the corner, we saw what we came for…only there was a huge pile of dirt covering the steel doors.
This is the entrance to the Satan Caves from below. The photo below I took from the top of the hill, right at the doors. I guess the town or someone came and closed the entrance off.
You can see a little closer in the photo above. It looks like the entire cave system is filled with about ten feet of water.
The building on the right is totally ruined and full of beer cans. I have no idea why anyone would want to be in there drinking beer. Laura loved the caves and I bet she would’ve gone in, if it wasn’t filled with water. I have to watch this one…
So there you have it…the Satan Caves in Brewster. They do exist, but you won’t be able to go inside unless someone goes up there with a backhoe to move that dirt and drain the water.
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Monday, October 9th, 2006
We waited and we waited, all year long, and then came time for Oktoberfest 2006 at Hunter Mountain. And then it rained. We kept looking out the window and checking the weather report last weekend, but there was just no way we were going to get a good day of drinking German beer and riding the skyride, It actually cleared up later in the day on Sunday, but still, by the time we got there would’ve been time to leave. We also would’ve been beating ourselves up for not going yesterday, because of the perfect weather we had.
Yesterday was the day. It doesn’t happen too often. You know…those days that just couldn’t be better. It was 63 degrees all day, it seemed, and half of New York was on Rt. 28 driving through Phoenicia, NY. When we drove through that little town, there were Harley Davidsons lined up and down both sides of the street. Again, it just couldn’t be better.
We took Rt.3 from Kerhonkson, so I could show Laura what I discovered when I went up to get the bluestone for the pellet stove. It wasn’t what I discovered really, but what we were missing every time we took the Thruway North to Kingston and then onto Rt.28 West. It is probably the best Catskill country road I have been on yet. It follows the valleys of mountains and passes beautiful farms…and not to mention the patches of crunchy leaves to drive over while watching out of the rear view mirror at them being tossed into the center of the street. Lots of shade and lots of White Pines and Hemlocks. You know what I think of Hemlocks…
We made it to Hunter Mountain and just passed the mini-golf place at it’s base, when I saw the first shot I wanted for this entry. I kept laughing and telling Laura that this whole day was a blog post and she was living it. I am not sure that went over too well, being Autumn and romantic and all. Yeah, a guy with a camera and his blog on his mind…Hmmm.
So there it is. If you haven’t been to Hunter in the off season, now becoming the on season, this is what it looks like. Personally, I like it in the Summer better. Grabbing your mountain bike and cruising down the mountain is more of a rush, I bet.
We parked the car and went inside for one thing…the beer. We come for the beer. It just tastes better up here. I have this illusion of steam boats leaving the docks in Germany loaded with wooden barrels of dark Oktoberfest beer settling for the ride. It takes weeks to get the ports of Boston, where they place the barrels in horse drawn wagons for the trek to the Catskills. I think that’s how it works, right? Well, that’s how it works to these people…the die-hards who make it every year, just like us.
They dance and dance and dance. These guys love to dance and love to be watched by all the folks sitting at the tables drinking their dark German beer. This is one tradition that will be with me for life, and I’m sure for these guys too.
So we had our beer and had a stroll around to see what the vendors were offering. Some nice sweaters, candles, fudge and jewelry. Ok, what now…well let me tell you. It’s something that I have been waiting to do for years. Good thing I am a patient person. Take a look at the next photo and take a guess.
I have always wanted to go to the top of a ski mountain without the snow, just to hike around. I always thought that we would be the two people going up, because it wasn’t that popular. Well, remember all those people I told you about that we passed in Phoenicia? They arrived here right after us and hopped on the skyride too. What a cool thing to do. There were so many people and so many smiles and the best day of the year.
We got near the top and the guy asked us if we were getting off. To tell you the truth, I never even gave that a thought. I just assumed we would ride up and ride down, until I saw everyone up here walking around taking pictures. Sure, we hopped off to enjoy the view…and to pose for some pics. By the way, my sister Steph saw this photo and called me granola. Can you believe that?
There was one thing that disappointed me…there were none of the wooden barrels of Oktoberfest at the top of the mountain. We would just have to make do with that we had. We took a bunch of pictures and hiked around to every possible point we could, when we started heading towards some sort of action near a cliff with a cable handrail.
We started down the path and asked a couple what that engine revving noise we heard was. They said it was the statue. What? The statue. Neato. We continued on the path and made our way to…well, the statue. Right in the middle of the woods at the top of the mountain, there were two guys carving Rip Van Winkle out of a large stone.
This is undoubtedly going to make for some good stories for the snow boarders. I can hear it now, “Yo, did you see the old man in the woods?” “What old man?” “You know, the old dude up near the double diamonds…” Yeah, this was going to give Hunter some buzz.
We stayed on top of the mountain for quite some time and I really wanted to get a picture of my favorite trail, “Belt Parkway.” So, we wandered over and took a few pictures of Hunter Mountain’s longest trail.
This will change your perspective come Winter. We needed to get down and head back towards Rt.28, because I saw a vegetable stand on the side of the road and I really wanted apples. I wanted to be sure we got their before closing, so we headed back down the lift…
…and left Hunter to get some apples. What a view. We couldn’t get enough of it.
Just to let you know, we did make it before they closed and got some big, beautiful New York apples, but will hopefully have an entire apple picking post up soon…Cheers!
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Wednesday, September 27th, 2006
When you think you are getting in a rut with your life, one way to climb out of it is to go for a walk every evening. Make sure it lasts an hour or more. You don’t have to power-walk or do it for exercise…just do it for the pleasure of getting out of the house and having a decent conversation with your significant other. It’s amazing how much stress you shed off and how much of the town you live in becomes noticed and enjoyed.
When we lived back on the Eastern side of the Hudson River, we used to walk around the neighborhood, on the track up at the Trinity-Pawling School and at the Pawling Nature Reserve. By far, the best place to get away from it all is the Nature Reserve.
You get their by heading north of Pawling on Rt. 22 and making a right on N. Quaker Hill Rd. Continue East until you make a left on Quaker Lake Rd. Continue on this road, past both lakes until the road turns into dirt. You should see a sign on the left side shortly thereafter.
A short description of the reserve is here:
“The Pawling Nature Reserve covers 1,050 acres ecomapssing almost the entire 1053′ high western side and top of Hammersly Ridge in the northeastern corner of Pawling. South of Pawling, the topography is considered a part of the Hudson Highlands. From Pawling nothward, however, the topography and geology is the very foot of the Berkshire Mountains. The Pawling Nature Reserve contains many of the geological features of the Berkshires with deep ravines, sheer cliffs and rock talus slopes.
Much of the Preserve is covered with second growth timber as the area has been settled beginning in 1728. Sheep and cattle grazed the Nature Reserve land from 1750 until around 1930. Logging also played a major role in the area’s history. Remenets of an old sluiceway can still be found near the main entrance, along the Yellow trail. Foundations and stone walls dot the entire reserve.”
The feature that initially attracted me to this trail system is the Hemlock trees. I just love the shade of huge hemlocks!
When we start the approximate 5 mile loop, we immediately pass the little wooden map holder and donation box. We usually look through this for things that people write. You can find very interesting comments there. Then we continue through to the coolest ravine and waterfall. There is a wooden bridge set up that crosses the river and bounces when you walk on it. It is extremely fun to cross first and then jump up and down on it when someone else gets to the middle. It makes then hop up and down on it uncontrollably. Just don’t fall off while laughing at them. Remember, this is not a nice thing to do to someone. They may begin to walk away without you.
After you apologize and pass the river, you bear to the left and follow the trail markers. It is pretty basic hiking for a few miles, until you get to a little area with a very small pond on your left. Be sure to stop there to look for frogs. They have been there every time we visited.
Right after that, you will see a sign for the Appalachian Trail. This is very exciting because you can say that you walked the “AT” while hanging out at parties. People will think you are really cool. Just be sure to stop the conversation there, before they start to ask questions. You skirt the AT for a while and the landscape becomes a bit swampy. The people who maintain the trail built a wooden path that hovers above the swamp about two feet.
Continue walking and when you arrive at the big hillside, you will know that you are on the back half of the trail. It becomes kind of rocky, but really neat because everything changes to smaller trees and mountain laurels. Follow the hillside down and you will connect back with your starting place at the bridge, river and waterfall.
The hike usually takes about an hour and a half. I would say that the best time to go, like all hiking, is in late September and early October, but it’s nice year round. You will notice that when you hop back in your car to drive home, the conversation will have changed from everyday work talk to hiking and what you want to do with the rest of your life. Ahhh….what nature can do for you.
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Tuesday, September 19th, 2006
As I sat down tonight and began to write, I came very close to making my first sentence, “One of my favorite things to do is…” when I realized that I want to make that my first sentence for all my posts. I guess I have a lot of favorite things. Well, you should understand why what I describe in this little story is one of my favorite things.
Like many other nature lovers out there, I enjoy taking walks in the woods on some of the first warm days of Spring. Well, last Spring, Craig and I met at the Putnam Diner in Patterson, NY to go for a little walk in the woods. We parked our cars in the diner’s parking lot and walked about a half mile north on Rt. 22. It is always shocking to see how fast cars really drive when you are walking about four feet away from them. We came across a small dirt road on the right hand side of the road that leads into a little bridge that spans part of, none other than, the Great Swamp in Patterson.
Now, there is a reason why they call this swamp “Great.” The thing is huge. For decades, people have been using the area for fishing and recreational use, such as boating and kayaking. Here is an encompassing description I found on the web:
“The Great Swamp — covering over 6,000 acres — is one of the largest freshwater wetlands in New York State.
Situated in New York’s eastern Putnam and Dutchess Counties, the Great Swamp and its 63,000-acre watershed stretch 20 miles through the towns of Southeast, Patterson, Pawling and Dover. Located less than 70 miles from New York City, this vast and fragile wetland provides numerous benefits to residents of the Harlem Valley, including drinking water, flood control, recreation, open space and wildlife habitat.
The Great Swamp spans two watersheds, divided at Pawling into a north and south flow. To the north, water travels through the Swamp River and into the Ten Mile River, the Housantonic River, and eventually the Long Island Sound. Meandering south it is the East Branch Croton River flowing into the East Branch to the East Branch Reservoir of New York City’s Croton Reservoir System, making the Great Swamp the important headwaters of New York City’s drinking water supply.
The Great Swamp is listed in the New York State Open Space Plan as a priority project in the 2001 Plan that includes 132 projects statewide. Governor Pataki’s recent designation of the Croton Watershed as Critical Resource Waters includes the Great Swamp and provides greater protection. The Army Corps of Engineers is required to conduct a more far-reaching and public review of all projects, rather than their weaker Nationwide Permit Program. Of The Swamp, Governor Pataki has said: I had the opportunity to canoe portions of the Great Swamp and witness first hand what a marvelous resource the Great Swamp presents for the people and communities of this region.”
Now, that pretty much says it all. Here is a satellite photo of just part of it:
The reason that this particular area is of such importance to me is because my Uncle Richard brought me here when I was a very young little man for my first time fishing…ever. I can remember casting out my line and watching it float under the bridge. Through the years, I always wondered where that spot was and when I finally discovered it, I invited Craig to go for a little walk.
There is something special about hiking in early Spring, before there is any foliage. You can see through the woods much more and there is something different in the air. The Great Swamp is particularly inviting…and I recommend a visit when you have some time to spare.
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Thursday, September 7th, 2006
Welcome to one of the wonders of the world…well almost. It should be anyway.
Early this Spring, Laura and I decided to take our first motorcycle ride through the ridge. It was one of the first nice warm days of the year, so it was perfect for the type of ride we wanted to take. We decided to ride to Minnewaska State Park. I have heard a lot about the park, but from some reason, I always thought it was this big flat field. I was shocked at what I discovered.
We got there by taking Rt. 55 from New Paltz towards Kerhonkson, NY. It is a really nice ride on a motorcycle. When you get to the bottom of the ridge and start climbing the mountain road, it gets pretty intense. There is a sharp hairpin turn there that will scare the hell out of you if you don’t follow the 5MPH speed limit. We kept riding up the mountain and saw the best view over the Hudson Valley on the left and rock climbers on the right, through the trees. About 5 miles in on the left hand side is the park. There is a dirt road with a small booth run by New York State Parks. I rolled up and gave the lady $6 for the entrance fee. I asked where the waterfall that everyone talks about was (Awosting Falls). She said to follow the dirt road about two miles to the parking area (it was really about 25 feet in on the left. I am surprised she didn’t hear the water falling). Anyway, we followed the dirt road all the way in and arrived at some spectacular views. There were people playing in the field and the most tranquil lake you would ever see, just sitting all the way up at the top of this mountain. I was really impressed by it.
We decided to park the bike and hike to the other side of the lake, where you could see the Catskill Mountains as a backdrop.
We passed a really nice little wooden bridge with the path going underneath it and some quiet picnic areas.
When we got to the top of the area, where we could get the best view, we found a great field for football, baseball or whatever. The breeze was great up there, so you would be fine on even a hot day.
We must have asked about 5 people where the waterfall was. No one knew. They were all probably looking around just like us. We wandered back down the trail to continue our quest for Awosting Falls. With no luck up in that part of the park and with it getting dark, we decided to hop back on the bike and head for the gate. On our way to the gate, we noticed a little trail with a small sign on it: Awosting Falls. Ah ha! We parked the bike and walked down the path for a few hundred feet. The setting sun was so nice glistening off the river water. It is things like that I will remember forever. We finally got to the falls and were pretty excited. They had a very nice drop and reminded me of the falls up in Ithaca, NY
We stayed at the falls for a while and walked back up to the waiting motorcycle while putting our helmets on for the trip home.
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