BEAR MOUNTAIN

AT Day 083: Thursday  June 29, 2023

Mile 1392+ 19 miles/30.6 km

Total Distance Hiked: 1411 miles/ 2279 km

Fingerboard Shelter – Inn on the Hudson, Peakskill

A: 3563 ft / 1086m  D:4265 ft / 1300 m

A car alarm sounding bird went off at 4:30. The bird is called whip-poor-will (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_whip-poor-will) a bird that is active through the night. We’ve only heard it once before, in Virginia. It’s nice to have the mystery calls identified. It was very loud this morning and woke everyone staying near the shelter.  There wasn’t much point in trying to stay asleep so we broke camp and were on our way at 5:30. It was a glorious morning. The sun was shining, illuminating the fog through the trees. It was a little bit cool and not overly humid. Perfect hiking conditions.

It was easy hiking, we  saw a couple of deer and it was just nice to be able to skip over dry rocks and not to worry about sliding and slipping. They were also no tricky rock scrambles like yesterday so all around a great start to the day. We discussed options for getting over the freeway. The trail was officially deviated to avoid the Palisades Interstate Parkway and an alternate route was provided.   We decided to take the recommended deviation and cross on a footbridge over the interstate. We were really glad we did because the freeway was very busy.

It was the kind of day that made us feel like we could’ve hiked forever: the birds, the sunshine, the healthy looking green woods as far as we could see and no rocky scrambles it was just so lovely.

We were really excited to reach the approach to Bear Mountain with its promised views of the Hudson River and perhaps the New York city skyline. The trail onto Bear Mountain was a dream. Despite the 2 mile climb up to the summit, the trail builders did and amazing job constructing a trail through the rocky and difficult terrain. The views were nothing short of stunning. Considering the proximity to New York City the amount of green space was surprising. The dirt if place I could imagine coming to when you need to calm your mind. It was incredibly peaceful. We reached the fire tower on the summit of Bear Mountain. It was a solid structure not unlike a lighthouse. The views over the Hudson River were a bit more hazy but incredible nevertheless. We did learn later in the day that local air quality was rated as unhealthy due to the Canadian Wildfires. 

The descent off Bear Mountain  was on a rocky and steep staircase with big groups of day trippers heading up to the summit.  It got busier and busier as we approached the river. On such a beautiful day it was not surprising to find big family groups picnicking down by the river. Tables laden with so much food. It felt surreal to remember the proximity of where we were this morning to where we were now.

 

Passing through the Trailside Museum and Zoo was also a bit surreal, although we did finally get to see a bear,  albeit behind an enclosure.  Crossing the Hudson River felt like some kind of milestone. It felt like we were making significant progress up the trail. The Hudson River is huge. 

Amazing weather today, the sunrise this morning and then the climb up to the Bear Mountain summit were a highlight. It was great to have some distant vistas.

Once on the north side of the bridge we got an Uber to nearby Peekskill where we needed to resupply and will stay the night.