From the Chair County and State Gives Us These Beautiful Gifts to Enjoy
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MARCH – MAY 2017 Newsletter of t he Mohican Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club Serving Westchester, Putnam, and Fairfield Counties ...and Beyond From the Chair county and state gives us these beautiful gifts to enjoy. Come and join us on all our planned activities in these ----------------------------------- parks and on these trails. From the Chair Jean Dolen Save the following dates… WTA 2017 HIKING WEEK Mohican Chapter “MEETING” at Westmoreland BACK TO THE BERKSHIRES Sanctuary in Mount Kisco is planned for Wednesday, Thursday, May 18 - Thursday, May 25 Reserve before April 1st!! APRIL 5, 2017 7:30 pm. The room will open at 7:00 p.m. with a potluck supper....Bring a dish to share! Don’t forget to make your reservations for this year’s Mohican Chapter “PICNIC” at Franklin Roosevelt State hiking week in the Park in Yorktown is planned for Saturday, Berkshires. We’ll be SEPTEMBER 16, 2017---Eat…Fun…Games---Spend exploring many of the the whole afternoon starting at 11:00 a.m. to set up, trails in western cook, eat, and play…Covered shelter and bathrooms Massachusetts and nearby…More info will be in the next newsletter. southern Vermont, with hiking opportunities ranging from easy strolls in some According to the calendar it is winter and our of the state forests and local preserves, to longer and snowshoes were gathering dust for a while. Finally the more challenging climbs over Mt. Greylock and on the snow is falling in parts of NY other than in the northern Appalachian Trail. Naturally, we expect the weather to regions. We don't have to travel too far to play in the be perfect all week. But, just in case it’s not, there are snow anymore. Some parts of the Adirondacks have plenty of cultural and other activities available in the received a good bit of snow to start off the season. It area, including the Clark and MassMoCA art museums, was a little slow in the Catskills, but maybe now the Hancock Shaker Village, the Norman Rockwell and downhill areas don't have to make snow anymore. I Bennington Museums, not to mention an array of great recently climbed Mt. Tremper in January, and the trail restaurants. was dirt most of the way until we ran into ice created from the melt-off from the previous two inch snowfall. We’ll be staying at the Williamstown Motel, located at Even the muddy sections were drying up. 295 Main Street in Williamstown, MA. The motel offers modestly priced, comfortable accommodations with But you can't let a slow start to winter fool you as we free Wi-Fi, a complimentary continental breakfast, in- have witnessed. A warm 60o one day followed by a room coffee, and a refrigerator and microwave in each blast of snow the next day. Also, we could still have a room. Rates for our group (per room, not per person) cold March and April. Keep the equipment ready! are: $64 on weekdays and $74 on weekends for a Dress warm! Drink plenty of fluids! We plan a lot of room with one queen bed, and $79 weekdays $89 activities and have no control over Mother Nature so weekends for a room with two queen beds. There are a always be prepared for what she gives us each day. limited number of rooms available at the motel and the st rates are only guaranteed through April 1 , so you are Or if you are fooled, you can think of the beautiful urged to make your reservation as soon as possible. peonies at Rockefeller Park in early May, the wonderful You can book online at www.williamstownmotel.com gardens at Lasdon Park, the cherry blossoms, the and completing the information requested on the tulips, and lilacs, etc. Westchester has many beautiful booking engine at the top of the home page. List the parks which are well groomed with beautiful flowers Promo Code as "WTA", then click the "Check for and pathways to enjoy for walking or biking. The Rates" button, select the room you want, and provide your information directly on the site. If you’d prefer to 1 MARCH – MAY 2017 book by phone, the number is 413-458-5202. Be sure to tell them you are part of the Westchester Trails Association group when you call. If the motel is fully booked, there are many other motels in the Williamstown area where you can stay, while joining us New Members – October 2016 for our daily hikes, “happy hour” and dinner forays. Daniel Love, Tom and Anna Martone, Sharon Peura, Once you make your reservation (whether at the Joan Ratner, Kathryn Riccobono and Jill Wecht Williamstown Motel or elsewhere), contact Eileen West at [email protected] to let her know you are Rejoined Members coming, so she can keep you “in the loop” about the Dr. Philip Cristantiello, Sherry Fraser and Michael and trip. Laura Strober WTA has invited us to their Annual Dinner to be New Members – November 2016 held on Sunday, April 23, at Casa Rina Restaurant, Jeanette Bennetti and Leslie Zureiqi 886 Commerce Street in Thornwood where, for a fixed price of $30 including tax and tip, you can enjoy a New Members – December 2016 complete dinner and choose from: an appetizer, soup Erik and Susan Marvin and Keith Tallbe or salad; 11 different meat, fish, chicken and vegetarian entrees; four different desserts; and coffee, This column is dedicated to you, tea or soda with the meal. WTA is paying part of the our members, whose lives, events, beverage cost to keep the price at an even $30, and and achievements on and off the the only items not included are orders from the bar. trail are to be recognized and Visit www.casarinarestaurant.com and click on their shared. “Sunday thru Wednesday” menu. Join us for cocktails starting at 5:00 p.m., and we’ll order dinner around If there is a special event, vacation 6:00 p.m. We’ll also be treated to a talk by Donald or achievement in your life you would like to share, (“Doc”) Bayne, the president of Friends of Sterling please send in your news to Annette Grau at Forest and a former Environmental Educator who will [email protected]. tell us all about the wildlife that inhabits our local forests and how to find their tell-tale signs. Please note that payment for the dinner must be received by April 17. Make your checks or money orders for $30 payable to Westchester Trails Association, and mail Saturday, December 3 them to Art Adelman, 17 Miller Circle, Armonk, NY Dennytown History Hike 10504-1357. The ten hikers who joined Mark Jelley on this history hike were rewarded with everything as advertised and On November 2016, more--information about the actual town called atop Turkey Mountain Dennytown, the structure seen from the parking lot in Yorktown Heights, which looks like it could have been a church but Mark Jennifer, Debbie Lisa told us it was a chicken coop (very fancy to say the and Kathy celebrated least), several mines, lots and lots of beaver activity, Lisa Weismiller’s final and streams which without the previous two days of Westchester 100 hike. downpours were probably dry. Then we needed to Lisa and Debbie are cross on logs and wet rocks, several unmarked trails wearing the “100” and Sunk Mine Road which many hikers had never crowns--Lisa’s consist- hiked. Thank you Mark for a wonderful day. ing of birch bark. Twenty people witnessed Lisa’s finale Submitted by Carol Harting and celebrated with chocolates, chocolate mint brownies and champagne. Submitted by Debbie Farrell 2 MARCH – MAY 2017 Saturday, December 4 the Sound and the post-plunge goodies contributed by Osborn Loop various hikers. So how about it? Start next year with a not-so-bad invigorating Sound plunge. This hike started out with a problem right at the Submitted by leader Jane Restani meeting place. The intent was to go through Manitoga to get to the Osborn Loop. However, when all hikers Martin Luther King Jr Weekend at the ADK Loj arrived at Manitoga, it was closed for “deer January 13-16 management”. But undaunted, we just moved down the road and parked at Castle Point and took the red 6 ADK Mohicans headed up trail up to the Osborn Loop. We decided to do the Loop to Lake Placid and the ADK first and hiked over to the Curry Pond Loop where we Loj at Heart Lake for the had lunch and then continued on the Loop back to long MLK weekend. We Sugarloaf. Some hikers went up to Sugarloaf while were hoping for lots of snow others stayed behind and “rested”. They didn’t see any but because of rain the day of the cactus on top, but we think they were just before we arrived, we were covered with too many leaves. A good day was had by greeted with ice and LOTS all. Submitted by Carol Harting of it! Jane Restani and Janice Miller went up a day December 10, 2016 early and did a "warm up" Woodstock, NY hike up Colvin for Jane and Colvin and Blake for Janice. Our seasonal hike up Saturday, Carol Harting ventured to Van Hoevenberg Overlook Mt. followed by Olympic Center for x-country skiing and found very little a town visit for holiday base and icy conditions. Saturday, Janice, Jane, shopping went well, at Kathie Laug, Carole Ehleben and Lisa Weismiller least from the standpoint headed to Scarface Mountain, which is one of the of contributing to the mountains in the "Saranac 6 Challenge".