Another Overnite Camp at Green Pond

Another Overnite Camp at Green Pond

The Lord gave us a terrific Labor Day weekend, and I took advantage of it to go camping in Harriman State Park on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 6 (after my noon Mass), into Monday morning.  I returned to one of Fr. Jim Mulloy’s and my favorite spots, a campsite high above Green Pond.  The elevation there is 1,110 feet.  I neglected to check the elevation at pond level—or at the parking lot on Kanawauke Road, by which I might have gauged the net gain in elevation on the hike in.

I reached the parking lot around 3:15 p.m.  It was just about full, and a day hiker pulled in right after me.  I think we got the last 2 convenient spaces.  Despite that, that chap and 2 women returning to the lot were the only people I saw that afternoon.

Ascending Island Pond Road

It’s a pretty easy hike, 45 minutes, from the lot to Green Pond by way of the White Bar Trail, Island Pond Rd., and either the Nurian or the Dunning trail.  However easy, since I hadn’t hiked in a while, my legs were ready to stop by the time I ascended the hill above the pond.

I was last in that area over a year ago when I passed by it to a site farther into the woods, off trail.  The site where Fr. Jim and I have camped multiple times (most recently in April 2023) looked like it hadn’t been used in weeks.  There was a bit of litter away from the main area (the fire pit and logs, above).  One bit was a large towel that was left on the grounds weeks or even months ago.  On Monday morning, I set it on the large rock at the fire pit to dry in the sun, then an hour later made a fire, put it by the fire, and eventually burned it.

Meanwhile—on reaching the site, first thing I did was pray Evening Prayer.  Then I put up my tent in the same spot I usually do (a nice mossy cushion beneath it).  To my chagrin, I found that after my last campout (with Bro. Lorenzo), I’d mixed up the tent flies.  I got the incorrect fly to do the job, however. 

Then it was time to prepare supper, already a little later than my confreres would have been eating at home.  I had freeze-dried mac and cheese, Crystal Lite, dried apricots, and a granola bar.  I gathered firewood, which was abundant, the site not having been used lately.  Most of it was small enuf that I didn’t have to cut it, but I did use my saw on a couple of larger pieces.

Red bear bag (left), tent (near center), backpack, fire pit

I hung the bear bag with the rest of my chow and the little bit of trash I’d generated.  I roamed a bit to take some photos, then laid the fire and lit it—not so much for warmth as for atmosphere.  I sat and read an issue of America for over an hour while also feeding the fire.  The insects were slightly pesky.

I retired after 9:00 p.m. and slept fitfully.  The only sounds were acorns falling from the trees prolifically and distant traffic (from the Thruway and possibly one of the roads cutting thru Harriman, Arden Valley and Kanawauke roads).

When I got up at 6:30 a.m., it was 53°--cool enuf for another layer of clothing.  I found a rock more or less flat and celebrated Mass.  After retrieving my food, I made breakfast:  oatmeal with freeze dried apples added, coffee, apricots, and mixed nuts.  Then Readings, Morning Prayer, some meditation, some more reading.  The sky was cloudless and the sun warm, but the area is well shaded.  I laid another fire in order to burn the ratty towel I mentioned above, and alternated between feeding the fire, reading America, and gradually breaking camp—all very relaxing and leisurely.

Green Pond from campsite

At 11:30 I brought out lunch (ham and cheese sandwich, Crystal Lite, apricots, granola bar), then finished packing up.  I doused the fire with a liter of water—and then didn’t have to carry any water in my pack; that’s always the heaviest item.  Even so, the pack must have weighd nearly 30 pounds (tent, sleeping bag, pad, hatchet, saw, cookware, rope, clothes, etc.).

Leaving Green Pond area on the Dunning Trail

At noon I departed, and 40 minutes later I was back at the parking lot.  I met one chap coming up Island Pond Road and saw 3 people way ahead of me returning to the lot.  But the lot was full, so evidently there were a lot of day hikers out on the various trails accessed from that lot.

I made a stop at the Marian Shrine on my way home; got home at 2:45 p.m.

On Tuesday I had an appointment with my dermatologist (happy to know that I use sunscreen and a hat); she found a tick in a spot not readily visible to me, removed it, and prescribed a dose of antibiotic as a preventive.

Photos: https://linkit.shutterfly.com/tx4-BZ

Another Hike-Campout Past Green Pond

Another Hike & Campout Past Green Pond

Photos from July 4-5 campout: https://link.shutterfly.com/A8Xy1RVILUb

On Friday, July 4, I left New Rochelle ca. 7:30 a.m. and reached the Kanawauke Rd parking lot where the White Bar Trail crosses (the westernmost of several lots on the road) about 8:40.  There were 2 other cars in the lot, and shortly a couple came down the trail after an early morning trip to Island Pond, and left in one of the cars. They were the only people I saw all day (besides cyclists on the roads).

above Green Pond

I took the WBT a short distance to Island Pond Rd, which took me to the Nurian Trail after 3/4 mile. I bore left (west) to Green Pond (3/10 mile), where I've camped many times with Fr. Jim M., and I reached that site at 9:30.  Some gavones left a big pile of trash there, some of which I picked up on my way back on Saturday.  Another 15 minutes and 2/10 mile (estimated) southward brought me thru a ravine and up to a little plateau where others have established a neat campsite (photos) and I've camped solo several times.

This hike doesn't entail a lot of elevation, unlike my last one.  In many places there were patches of wild blueberries, many of them ripe, and I sampled some.  But overall there weren't a lot of berries.  I got a fleeting view of one deer and heard lots of birds; otherwise, not much fauna this time.

As I unpacked, I realized I'd left my lunches at home in the refrigerator next to my backpack; so lunch (later) consisted of trail mix, nuts, and a granola bar.  But before lunch I celebrated Mass, not having done so before leaving NR; 

then set up my tent.  

I descended to the little creek that runs out of Green Pond to try to get some water--not that I really needed it, but I wanted to try out the new Katadyn water filter that I got with some Xmas gift funds.  That required some experimentation, but eventually I brought up enuf to fill my coffee pot with potable water (which I boiled, besides, for making supper).

The sun was comfortably warm, but other than a bit of exploring the area I sat in the shade to pray the Office and read most of the afternoon.  Having had a light lunch, I started supper at 4:30--freeze-dried chili with beef and some trail mix with Crystal Lite.  

After hanging the rest of my food in a bear bag,

I decided it had gotten cool enuf for a fire and made one easily in the established fire pit, then sat there and read till it got dark. 

Also because of the chill, I put the rainfly onto the tent.  I could hear but not see fireworks from the west (Sloatsburg, Tuxedo, Harriman, Woodbury)--and of course could also hear some traffic from the Thruway and Rte 17.

I retired at 9:30 and slept fitfully (as usual).  I'd erred in bringing just a sleeping bag liner (in view of the hot weather) and had to put on some extra clothes; but I was still uncomfortable.  It was 57 degrees when I got up at 5:30; by 6:00 I was celebrating Mass.  Breakfast was granola cereal with coffee.  After Readings and Morning Prayer, I decided to pack up and head home, not in any rush.  I left camp around 9:00 and, after picking up the trash at the "main camp" above Green Pond, was back at Island Pond Rd at 9:25 and at the parking lot by 10:00.  I met 2 guys hiking toward Island Pond; otherwise, saw no one.

Green Pond

But there were 2 cars parked at the Island Pond Rd trailhead and 10 more (besides mine) in the parking lot.  Obviously, there were hikers out there (some of the cars may also have belonged to bikers).  I snacked on what would've been my lunch if I'd remained in the woods, then headed home and reached NR at 11:00.  All in all, a good trip.

Camping near Green Pond

Camping near Green Pond

Fr. Dominic asked me to drive Fr. Hugo Orozco to the Marian Shrine on Thursday, Oct. 10.  Instantly, I saw a chance to go camping that wouldn’t have come up otherwise.  After all, Harriman State Park is less than 10 minutes from the Shrine.

There wasn’t any point in asking Fr. Jim Mulloy to come along; he teaches at DBP.

I decided to go to a site I used in May, about an hour’s hike from a parking lot along Kanawaukee Road (Rte 106), near the woods road that leads to Island Pond.  Fr. Jim and I have camped at Green Pond (actually, on a height above the pond) perhaps half a dozen times.  It’s in the village of Tuxedo Park, and you hear the traffic on the NY State Thruway all the time.

But the site is roomy, has a good fire pit, and is almost always quiet (except for the traffic) even tho it’s adjacent to 2 trails (Dunning and Nurian).  While exploring and hunting for water on some of those trips, I found a little plateau about a quarter mile beyond that Green Pond campsite.  Someone had set up a marvelous campsite there with a large and a small fire ring and stacked up a big pile of cord wood.  A little creek flowing out of Green Pond had water.  It’s quite secluded.

When I was there in May, I didn’t make a fire; it was plenty warm.

There were 3 cars in the parking lot on Thursday afternoon:  1 each from New York, Illinois, and Virginia.  The drivers of the Illinois car (a South Asian couple) showed up shortly after I arrived and drove off.  A couple more cars were on the side of the road where Island Pond Road starts into the woods.  As I headed north, I met 2 hikers coming back toward their cars.

Both the Nurian and the Dunning trails cross Island Pond Road (so does the Arden-Surebridge farther north), and both lead to Green Pond by slightly different paths.  I stopped to shoot some pictures on my way, and some pictures of a pair of deer on the Green Pond heights.  There wasn’t a lot of color in the foliage yet.

On reaching my campsite, I noticed that most of the cord wood had already been used.  But there are a lot of fallen trees and branches around; so firewood is no problem at all.

I pitched my tent—and used my phone to take a photo that I could share at once; in the photos I’ll link you to, it’s a little out of chronological sequence between pictures of Green Pond and the deer.  That done, I went down to the creek for water.  Oh, oh!  It was completely dry except for one stagnant pool, which didn’t appeal to me even thru a filter.

Green Pond has plenty of water, but it’s inaccessible because of thickets of reeds all around it.

So I hastened back up the hill to camp, almost emptied my backpack and put water filter, coffee pot, and 2-liter plastic bag into it.  (I filter water into the coffee pot, which has a much wider mouth than the plastic bag, then pour thru a funnel into the bag.)  I headed down the Nurian Trail (it descends steeply) into what the map labels the Valley of Boulders, where a brook flows down from Island Pond.  It takes about 20 minutes from Green Pond.  Alas, that also was completely dry!

It had never occurred to me that the creeks would be dry.  We had rain only a few days ago.  I was glad I’d added the half-liter of water to my load and sorry I hadn’t carried 2 liters instead.  (But my pack weighs about 35 pounds without that.)

And by now it was only about a half-hour before sunset.  So I hurried back to camp to do with the water I’d brought with me—a quart canteen and about half a liter in a bag.  That proved to be enuf for both supper and breakfast—but I skipped the freeze-dried dessert at the former and a 2d cup of coffee at the latter.  Supper was Ramen noodles with beef stirred in (left over from tacos), crystal lite, some trail mix, and dried pineapple.  Breakfast was granola, coffee, more trail mix, more pineapple.

With my water used up, I had to adjust my plan, which had been to stay until afternoon.  I didn’t even celebrate Mass, tho I’d brought my kit.  (I celebrated after I got home and cleaned up.)

The nite was starry (which usually betokens a chilly nite) with more than a half moon.  The northern lights showed briefly, but not where I could take a photo (largely obscured by trees).  I made a fine fire and sat by it, praying Evening Prayer and then reading a book till it got a little too chilly.  I retired around 9:15.

Indeed, the nite was cold.  I shut off my phone before I could check the temperature, but it was 42º when I was ready to get up at 6:45 a.m. on Friday.  Inside my tent.  I erred in not bringing my winter sleeping bag, and wasn’t very comfortable during the nite, tho I did sleep some.  I brought layers of clothes, but most of those became my pillow, stuffed inside the sleeping bag’s stuff sack.  More clothes on, less pillow.  But I coulda done better than I did.  Still learning better camping skills.

Well, I put on 6 top layers (and long johns under my pants) when I got up.  After breakfast and Divine Office, I broke camp methodically and was heading out around 9:15.  I got to the car about 10:20, having met just one hiker coming in toward Island Pond.  His was the only car up on Kanawauke Road, and my car was the only one in the lot.  All in all, a good trip that could’ve been better with more water and the winter bag.  The weather was perfect for hiking.

14 photos: https://link.shutterfly.com/Gb5uQSOyCNb

 

Beyond Green Pond

Beyond Green Pond

With Fr. Jim Mulloy and on solo jaunts, I've camped a good number of times at Green Pond in the western sector of Harriman State Park.  There are 2 very fine sites on the hill west of the pond.

On one such trip, I went looking for the creek flowing out of the pond--the pond itself isn't accessible because of swamp, reeds, etc. all around it.  I hoped to find water easier to get to than by hiking down the Nurian Trail toward Southfields, which has a steep, rocky decline to a creek.  I found the creek and followed it a ways to see where one might collect water.  On my way back to my camp, I ascended the western ridge (plateau?) and found area that would be fine for camping; indeed, someone had already created a magnificent site up there.

Island Pond Rd. was paved back in the day.

On Tuesday, May 21, I returned there.  I parked in the hikers' lot on Kanawauke Rd. near Island Pond Rd. late in the afternoon; mine was the 3d car into the lot.  At one car a woman conversed non-stop with a friend, apparently on a phone.  At the other, a chap emerged with a big camera and headed up the White Bar Trail in the direction of Island Pond Rd.  I caught up with him as he was photographing some caterpillars (which proved to be super-abundant).  He was the only other hiker I saw on either Tuesday or Wednesday.  We talked a little before he diverted eastward off IPR.

I continued on IPR till I came to the Nurian Trail, and I took that and part of the Dunning Trail to Green Pond.  It took about 45 minutes at an easy pace.  

About 15 minutes hiking beyond the Green Pond campsites brought me to the well established campsite I knew of:  a large fire pit, a smaller one, a slab set as a table on supporting rocks, a neat woodpile against a boulder; there's even a mallet carved out of a short log, which I gather was used to pound an axe to split the wood for the woodpile.  The site appeared to have been used not very long before and was perfectly clean and neat.

I checked the elevation at just under 1,100'.  I hiked a couple of hundred feet down into the ravine to filter and fetch 2 liters of water.  

It was after 6 p.m. before I prepared supper:  freeze-dried 3 cheese and macaroni, which is pretty good, Crystal Lite, and some trail mix, and dried fruit.  

There was still plenty of time to set up my tent and hang my bear bag.  

The mild, dry weather meant I didn't have to put the fly on the tent; I slept under the screening, the stars, and a full moon.  Beautiful.  It wasn't quiet, tho.  Motorcyclists (I presume) roared up and down Kanawauke Rd. for quite a while, and the rumble of traffic from the Thruway was constant all nite.

The sun set around 8 p.m. and dusk lingered.  I prayed the Office and read part of a Smithsonian magazine till I was tired enuf for bed a bit after 9:00.

I slept decently enuf cushioned by 2 sleeping pads and the grass under the tent floor.  I rose well after sunrise, about 6:15 a.m.  It was cool enuf to put on a windbreaker over the thermal I'd worn to bed.  I celebrated Mass on the slab, then prepared breakfast:  oatmeal with peanut butter (a camper's meal, but not freeze-dried like the macaroni), some nuts, and some dried fruit--and coffee, of course!  Readings and Morning Prayer followed.

The only wildlife about seemed to be birds, including at least one woodpecker; perhaps some crickets.  And plenty of flying insects and tiny caterpillars, some black and some green.  I saw a couple of frogs on the trails.

Wednesday's sky was cloudless, and there was a slight breeze.  It was very pleasant in the shade, but gradually the day got pretty hot, as forecast.  I read more of my magazine, sitting in my camp chair in the shade, prayed a bit, and napped a bit till the sun pierced the tree canopy.  So I slowly broke camp and departed at 11:30; got back to the car at 12:20.  There were 4 cars parked at the head of Island Pond Rd. and several more in the parking lot.  I suppose all their passengers had gone to the pond to cool off a little; but I didn't see anyone.

An enjoyable 20 hours or so in the woods--a mini-retreat.

Escape to Green Pond

Escape to Green Pond

Fr. Jim Mulloy and I were able to make an escape into the woods—into Harriman State Park, specifically—on Friday, April 22, for one nite of camping.  Events on his schedule at Don Bosco Prep kept us from going earlier, and longer, in the week.

Approaching Green Pond on Nurian Trail; 

campsites are on the ridge above the pond.

We parked behind 2 other cars on Kanawauke Rd. at the start-point for Island Pond Rd., an old woods road, and got on the trail at 11:08.  We hiked a bit over a mile, up Island Pond Rd. to the Nurian Trail, and got to our destination shortly after noon—one of the campsites above Green Pond a short hike off the Nurian.  It's one of our favorite sites.

Just a short distance from the car, I almost stepped on a snake in the road; it slithered off and camouflaged itself at the base of a tree (you'll have to look hard!).  It resembled a rattler but had no rattles; I looked online to ID it but wasn't successful.

Fr. Jim saw one backpacker behind us as we cut off onto the Nurian, probably heading to Island Pond; otherwise, we saw not a soul all Friday.  On our way to back to the car on Saturday, we met 3 day hikers. On the road as we headed home, we saw a big party of Koreans and dozens of bikers.  The parking lots along Kanawauke Rd. and at Reeves Meadow were mostly full.

Green Pond from camp

Friday was a perfect day for camping except for a lively wind that lasted all day with a few moments of relative calm.  It blew away my tent before I staked it down (not very far, before it snagged in the shrubbery), and later it gave me a hard time putting on the fly.

On reaching our campsite, we set ourselves up:  Fr. Jim with a hammock, me with a tent.  We gathered firewood, of which there was an abundance, seasoned, and then relaxed.  

Fr. Jim napped, and I read half an issue of Biblical Archeological Review.  I used the camp chair that I bought at REI’s “garage sale” a while back—1st time, and it was just fine:  sturdy and lightweight.  We each did some exploring; I think I found a relatively convenient water source beyond the south end of the pond.  Otherwise one has to hike a rocky quarter mile down the Nurian Trail to a creek, then back up [and it IS up] with the water.  We also prayed the Divine Office, as always.

During Holy Week one of our confreres went to St. Patrick’s Cathedral for the Chrism Mass and came back with fresh holy oils.  The next day I changed the stocks in our sacristy and packed up the oil-soaked cotton and the tissues I used to wipe things down.  When it was time to start our cooking fire, that was outstanding primer along with some newspaper and the dry wood we had.

We grilled hot dogs for supper, with sides of cheese, crackers, nuts, apricots; then kept our fine fire company for a couple of hours, doing a lot of talking and gradually adding layers of clothing as the sun headed toward the horizon.  

The afternoon temp reached 80, according to my little (and possibly suspect) thermometer; but with sunset, it cooled considerably.

When I awoke at 6:30 on Saturday, the same thermometer registered 40 inside my tent.  By 7:15 we were celebrating Mass on a big granite cube; unfortunately, I didn’t take a photo of the rock.  Fr. Jim did a thorough check of the site, which was pleasantly free of litter when we got there, and of course we left it that way.  After breakfast and breaking camp, we hiked out at 8:35 in sunshine and warming air.  Going mostly downhill, it took us only 45 minutes to the car.  By 9:45, we were back at Don Bosco (for more coffee and a real bathroom!).

Always hang a bear bag!