Finishing it out...

On September 1st, 2010, I retired from the Raleigh Police Department. As this blog has documented, I have managed to climb all of the 35 Catskill High Peaks required for the 3500 Club. Last year, my wife and I tried to finish out the quest by climbing the last four required winter mountains. Unfortunately, time constraints held us to just three.

So... I have gone back to work but since social media constraints prohibit me from naming my new employer, at least it thankfully didn't stop me from getting a couple of days off to walk up one more mountain.

With time ticking away on the winter season, we packed up a rented mini-van with hiking gear, one wife, one son, a daughter-in-law, a (are we there yet?) grandson and of course, Sarge the "mountain climbing machine" dog.

In true "no plan survives the first contact, intact" fashion, Friday March 16th was a wash out with cold rain all morning. We improvised and waited to hike on a dryer day. That didn't stop us from getting couple's massages at the Emerson Spa and Resort that I had booked earlier. The weather forecast for the next day was much more promising.

St. Patrick's Day 2012 proved to be all we could have hoped for. Sunny and 65 degrees. We started up Balsam Mountain from the Ryder Hollow trail head. The remnants of Hurricane Irene were still obvious, but trail workers had replaced two main bridges that had been washed away. The rest... was up to us.

Balsam Mountain would never be thought to be easy, regardless of what direction you came from. The fact that you can do it as a loop trail is nice. As hard as it is for me to admit, my wife and my son are in much better shape than I am. I think that Sarge is actually the only one on this trip that is older than me. For anyone that actually follows the Catskill maps, we took the red blazed Oliverea-Mapledale trail to the junction of the Pine Hill West Branch trail to the summit. We stopped long enough to take pictures on the actual summit (about 100 feet off the trail) before we started our steep decent back to the trail head. Even though this was technically a winter hike, there was no snow and very little ice. The money that I had invested in "micro-spikes" was not
needed, but I guess it's better to be

safe than sorry.

It certainly was nice to finish up this quest with Sandy, Dave and Sarge by my side. It was equally great to have Kailyn and Connor as our support team. As I was told by a group leader back in 2010, it's not official until you make it back to the car. (Dave actually can quote George better than I can)

The trail on the way back had literally been washed away by the hurricane. A mud-slide didn't help us and poor Sarge was done. I'm glad that he had this one last mountain in him. It is time for him to retire too. We did manage to find our way back so that I could sign myself out of my last trail register.

It's hard to close out a blog that you have been working on for two years. Kailyn and Connor met us at the trailhead with cold beers. Corned Beef and Cabbage followed as is fitting on St. Paddy's Day. It is a bit surreal that it is done, but I do thank all my family that put up with me while I worked my way to the top of 39 mountains.

There will be one more post on this site when I receive my certificate and patch at the banquet next week. Thank you to all that traveled with me, especially Sandy, Dave, Kailyn, Connor, John Black, Austin and of course, Sarge...

On to the next adventure....

What was I thinking?!!

I started out on this whole quest a little over a year ago after retiring from a 29 year career in Law Enforcement. I really thought that this was the best ever conceived transition to retirement from the daily working world by traveling back up to the Catskills in September 2010 and climb a "bunch" of mountains. As I have explained previously in this blog and as any member or aspirant of the Catskill 3500 Club knows, completing all the requirements is no easy task. (If it was, it wouldn't be a challenge) So... after getting 32 of the 3500 ft. peaks in 28 days in September/October 2010, I returned and finished the last three warm season climbs a month later. My beautiful wife and I returned and did three of the four required winter climbs in early March 2011, leaving me one summit short of the goal. Only the calender prevents me from completing it as I wait for December 22nd 2011 to get here.

Now... here it is October 2011. The "What was I thinking" title refers to the fact that after retiring I took on another job. One day you are climbing mountains, enjoying the freedom of retirement and then all of a sudden you are back to work. Don't get me wrong, it's a great job, (somewhat top-secret) but it is still along the same lines as what I used to do except now there are 60 to 80 hour work weeks.

So... to stop whining,

On October 7th, 2011, my 29 year old son Dave, who is currently a member of the Raleigh Police Department SWAT Team (as I was for 11 years) came back up to New York with me (where he was born) to add to his mountain totals.

On a couple of previous Escarpment Trail hikes, he had picked up Blackhead and Windham High Peak. We also did Hunter together a couple of years ago with both of our wives who made it up the Becker Hollow Trail which is the most difficult of all the approaches to that summit. (Much respect goes to Kailyn who was a very new mom at the time to my grandson Connor to make that steep climb) Dave and a couple of other Raleigh Police officers joined me back in 2010 for climbs of Westkill, Indian Head, Twin and Katterskill High Peak. So, with those required peaks under his belt, we traveled back up to the Catskills to hit a couple of more mountains for his resume and for me to drink one or two beers.

Balsam Lake Mountain (again) 10/08/2011

When you have already completed all of these climbs and you are repeating some to help your son get closer to his goal with the 3500 club, why not hit the easiest first? Balsam Lake Mountain is the one trail head that starts out at the highest elevation of all the high peaks. It was a good and quick climb. Dave did notice the turn that leads back to the un-maintained trail that takes you to Graham (which would have to wait for another day). At the top of Balsam Lake Mountain the fire tower was open and staffed by two dedicated 3500 Club members.

We climbed the tower, took pictures, and headed back down to the the truck. Eight mountains down for Dave and another second mountain for me and Sarge.

Sarge (my dog) had been to this summit before with me and we have climbed most of these mountains together but he has recently acquired an ACL issue that hampers his progress.

Unfortunately, our animal (best) friends age quicker than we do and as far as Sarge is concerned, it's starting to catch up with him.

That being said... he never gives up.


Sugar Loaf - 10-09-2011 (again)

We started this day out heading toward a pre-planned climb of Plateau Mountain. I've done Plateau before, but Dave had not. We drove to the dead end of Mink Hollow Rd. in the Elk Park community towards what took us to a closed trail that I have used before. It is the easiest route to the "Devil's Path" and the shortest way to Plateau.

When we reached the "Col" between Plateau and Sugarloaf, I had to make the command decision (not all that important, just common sense actually) that Sarge had been to Plateau before but not to Sugarloaf. We made a last second decision to go left instead of a right and climbed Sugaloaf.

Sugarloaf is truly one of the more difficult climbs of the Catskill 3500's regardless of which side you come from. There was at least one point about half way up that I thought Sarge was about to give out and that he and I would have to to turn back and let Dave finish the mountain on his own, but Sarge does not have the phrase "give up" in his limited dog vocabulary.

We managed to make our way to the top, making this nine summits for Dave and 29 for Sarge although his back left leg "quivered" most of the way. Hopefully with a little rest, he will be able to make the last climb on Balsam this winter. Then he can retire as I should have last year.

Our trip this time brought us up on Columbus Day weekend, (a holiday in NY but not in NC) and we stayed once again in Phoenicia, but this time at the Phoenicia Lodge. It is a 50's style Motel, but the hosts, the cleanlinest, the location and the fire pit sealed the deal. Around the fire pit each night, we met new friends and tried to solve all the problems facing the world today. (that are truly all the Democrat's fault)

So... as I continue to help my family "peakbag" more summits, (Dave - 9, Sandy - 6, and Kailyn - 3) while I approach that last winter summit, I truly understand that there is something that keeps drawing me back to the Catskill Mountains whether I need to climb just one particular mountain or not.

It must be the "Wendigo."

At least I always have something to write about...

Wrapping it up for the season...

So... One more time, I'll pack this blog up for a little while and get back to reality. Even if we could have gotten the last mountain in, there likely would not have been enough time to submit my paperwork and still be able to receive my certificate and patch at this year's 3500 Club banquet in April. If everything works out as currently planned, I'll still be able to finish in 2011 which always was the original goal.

With that, on Monday (03-28-2011) I go back to work after a six month sabbatical which included, of course, my climbing these 38 mountains. Since I've known nothing but Law Enforcement my entire adult life, I'll return to it, but this time with a State agency working directly for the North Carolina General Assembly. Politics and mountain climbing do kind of go together. Either way it seems like you are always fighting gravity...

Panther Mountain - Winter Hike #3 (03/20/2011)

I'm not exactly sure what criteria the 3500 Club used to choose Slide, Blackhead, Panther and Balsam as the select mountains that would be required for the Club's "four" Winter hikes, (maybe I could have researched that a little better before I open my mouth) but I'll go out on a limb and guess that at least one of the reasons was location. These mountains represent the Southern, Northern, Central and Western areas of a mountain range that spreads out over four counties in a huge part of upstate New York. Many people forget, or just don't know that upstate New York, (well beyond the confines of New York City) really has some of the most incredible scenery as well as having been a witness to much of the most important early history of our country. The geographical separation of the these mountains makes it difficult to do more than one summit in a day especially during the shortened daylight hours of the winter season. The trail heads for Slide and Panther are relatively close together compared to the others, but given the fact that a trip to Panther actually includes a climb over a second mountain (Giant Ledge) and back, it became our single goal for the day to get to the top of Panther and back to the car before we started the long drive back to North Carolina. The weather was perfect. You can't beat temperatures in the high 40's for mountain climbing when there is no threat of rain. This is one of those climbs that as soon as you step into the woods, you immediately start going up. You continue that climb until you get near the top of Giant Ledge. This is a mountain summit in its own right, but due to the fact that it's only 3200 feet, it doesn't count for the 3500 Club. The views however are spectacular and it is a very popular destination. The real climbers continue on to Panther. To get to Panther, we actually have to go back down in elevation to a col before we start the climb back up to the summit. I'm very lucky because Sandy is one of the toughest girls that I have ever met. She sticks with me, never complains and climbs mountains as well as any of the strong, young police dudes that my son Dave brought up with him back in the Fall. We (of course) made it to the top... Kind of surreal only because there is just one mountain left to go.

I won't get done on this trip. But...

After some careful consideration; I think that a trip back up in December with all of my family with me while I finish this on the top of Balsam Mountain might bring the perfect end to a long but fun journey... Hollywood couldn't have written a better script...

Blackhead Mountain - Winter hike #2 (03/19/2011)

This is the one mountain that during the Winter season seems to cause the most anxiety. That probably has a lot to do with the fact that an experienced hiker died there last year during a "freak" 8 foot snow storm. A number of different "perfect storm" issues had come together to cause that tragedy, but I had assured all of my family that voiced their concern about us that if anything didn't appear to be safe, we would turn back and live to climb another day. Having climbed most of these mountains by myself, I know that I have tempted fate from time to time and taken several chances. It's a little different when you are responsible for someone else's safety... When we reached the trail head in the morning, it was significantly colder than the previous day's hike and we had dressed accordingly. I had planned it out to take the red blazed Black Dome trail up to the col between Black Dome and Blackhead, push on to the summit (notice how the DEC sign in the picture to the lower left points up?) and then come down the back side of Blackhead along the Escarpment Trail. I have been over Blackhead on the Escarpment twice before and knew to expect an extremely steep descent.

The trail up climbs continuously through hardwood forests and is aided by a couple of "switchbacks." True to form, our "clear but cold" weather at the bottom changed to near blizzard conditions for about 30 minutes near the top. About an inch of snow accumulated quickly before it all blew past and and the sun came back out. It's this unpredictability that gives this northern Catskill Mountain it's reputation in Winter.

We actually ran into two people along the trail that I had previously climbed with back in the Fall. It truly is a "hiking community" of people that love these mountains and come back time and time again.

At the summit, we met up with a group of SUNY Delhi students who had climbed up from the direction that we intended to go down (the steep backside of Blackhead). They passed on to us their concerns about the treacherous ice conditions that they had encountered on the way up and were nice enough to oblige us by taking our summit picture. I did listen to their comments, but I still thought that we could press on down through the icey conditions. I guess that the next clue that should have registered with me is that the trail down literally starts off a small cliff. At the bottom of this cliff, we met three other climbers who were adamant that they had so many problems getting up, they warned that our trip down would be extremely dangerous without ropes and an ice axe.

So... remembering what I had promised, we turned around and went back down the way that we had come from. We had made it to the summit so that qualifies the climb. The way that we come back out doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. It was actually a longer distance than the route that I had projected, but hey... we didn't slide off the back side of the mountain. We made it safely back to the car, pulled off all the climbing gear and set the GPS to take us to the Mountain Brook Inn over a peaceful back roads country drive. There aren't many places that you can still get Genesee Beer on tap. So, taking that into consideration and the interesting conversation (Sandy can truly talk to anybody) with a bartender who has a reputation for knowing everyone made for a good finish to this mountain.

The dinner that was included in our package at the Alpine Inn was.... (Of course) Corned beef and Cabbage. What else could you expect in the mountains of New York over St. Paddy's Day weekend? It was by far the best that we had eaten during the trip but it was only just one part of a multi-course dinner that was fantastic. We staggered, full of food, back to the room to prepare for our one last day of climbing...

Slide Mountain in Winter (03-18-2011)

As we drove north the previous day, I was relieved to see almost no evidence of snow even after we had crossed over the NY state line other than what had been piled up by plows near the edge of parking lots. The snow was really only a concern because neither of us had snowshoes and I wasn't sure if I wanted to take on that additional expense just for the short time that we would be up here. Checking out the weather forecast in the morning, we knew to expect uncharacteristically warm weather throughout the day, but as we drove into the higher elevations, it was obvious that it was still winter up there as the temperatures dipped and we saw how much snow was still on the ground.


At the Slide Mountain trailhead, I had some initial concerns (that Sandy had actually noticed and asked me about it) that started to seep in after I took a quick trip through the snow and behind a tree for a little privacy to "take care of some business." I was sinking in two feet with each step, making me start to question my equipment choices. To add to it, we then watched several other hikers don their snowshoes, but after signing into the trail ledger, I finally got my first glimpse of what appeared to be a packed down trail leading up the mountain.


Now... I wish that Kahtoola would give me a promotional perk for saying this, but their Micro-Spikes (even though they do look like a "Medieval" torture device) are really the best quality slip-on footwear for traction on hard packed snow or most ice conditions available. If you're not climbing Mt. Everest and the current conditions don't require "full crampons" and an ice axe, you will feel totally secure while climbing with this equipment.

Slide Mountain - The weather was great. You can't beat temperatures in the 60's when you are heading to the top of the highest mountain in the Catskills in mid-March. Other than the initial water crossings, (see Sandy's picture above on right) we didn't have any issues to slow us down. When approaching the summit from the front side of Slide, the trail is mostly a moderate climb and easy to follow. We made it to the top in less than two hours, and after a couple of great photo-ops, we worked our way back down.

First Winter climb out of the way, only three more to go... After getting a later than initially desired start, doing a second climb on the same day wasn't an option, so we checked into the Alpine Inn, cleaned up and headed to town for some pizza.

St. Patrick's Day 2011

One of the unintentional, but added benefits to making the trip back up this weekend was arriving on St. Patrick's Day. People in New York take this day so much more seriously than those in North Carolina. We spent most of the day driving around the Hudson Valley, eating "corned beef and cabbage" for lunch (and later again for dinner) and drinking a couple of green beers. The several different Irish pubs that we stopped at were all filled with green clad revellers and traditional Irish music even though it was "technically" still a work day. We settled in early that night to get some sleep before making the last push up into the mountains early the next morning.