Hike #1335; Kakiat Harriman Loop

Hike #1335 Kakiat Harriman Loop

6/25/20 Kakiat Harriman Loop with Professor John DiFiore, Kirk Rohn, Brittany Audrey, Ken Zaruni, and Galya

This next hike would be a loop mostly in Harriman State Park, and meeting at the Kakiat Park in Rockland County NY. I had worked the previous weekend, which required me to do night hikes, but that gave me four days in a row off the next.

Mahwah River bridge

With this, I had more time to do more day hikes I was interested in, so I planned one that would have some epic swimming stops in Harriman State Park.
I had only hiked into Kakiat Park once before, on a hike from down in the Ramapos of New Jersey, and across into Harriman to Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail. I had not been back since, but I figured this spot would be a little less popular, and a good spot to start a loop hike up into Harriman that would feature Pine Meadow Lake.
The name Kakiat is actually a native American name. They called the land “Kackyachttaweke”, and it was called Kakiat in a land grant from governor Benjamin Fletcher dating back to 1696. The Kakiat Farm was located in this area.

Mahwah River

French and Indian War veteran Aaron Blauvelt settled here and had a stone house and saw a grist mill. Generations of Blauvelts lived on the site and engaged in the milling industry.
The Kakiat Trail came to be when the Tramp and Trail Club of New York rented a lodge at the corner where the park is, and they blazed a trail from this point out to Stony Brook. Trail builders Frank Place and Raymond Torrey often referred to it as the “Tatcony Trail” because it was the initials of the club.

Dam in Kakiat Park

Kakiat Park has two trails that ascend to the top of Cobus Mountain, part of the Ramapo Ridge, and I was first intent on using the Orange Trail to the top, but then I changed my mind.
The Kakiat Trail itself was the way to go.
Once everyone had arrived, we took the trail across the Mahwah River on a good foot bridge, and then turned right on the trail along the river heading upstream. This was a wide and pleasant path. Old ladies were walking it, and abruptly pulled their masks over their faces as we walked by. When the trail started to turn uphill, there was a dam ruin in the river.

Dam ruins on Mahwah River

The original Kakiat Lodge used to be directly across the river from this point, and the dam probably had a bridge at it for the original alignment. It would have been moved in the 1960s when Rockland County purchased the land for the park.
Soon, the Kakiat Trail turned to the right and began climbing the Cobus Mountain. It was not too terrible at first, and much of the way it followed old woods roads on the way up rather than its own foot path. We passed along a stream and steadily ascended.

Along Kakiat Trail

We took a little break and let everyone catch up when we got to the intersection with the orange trail. Another woods road that goes to a dead end leads off to the right, but the Kakiat Trail turns left on it and then right uphill more steeply.
We continued up the slope, and stopped once again when we came to the intersection with the yellow blazed Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail. We continued straight on the Kakiat Trail from here, and passed through an area of large boulders. Torrey and Place named the two big ones the ‘Grandma and Grandpa Rocks’ when they laid out the trail.

A view on Kakiat Trail

We continued along the rocky terrain, and the route was rather tougher than I was expecting it to be. I’d never followed this part of Kakiat Trail that I remembered before.

Along Kakiat Trail

We came to a nice viewpoint to the south, or a couple of them, and took a break at the top of a hill. We should have gone a little bit further, because it was much nicer a little further on.
Ken, Galya, and I went ahead a bit, and no one was catching up with us. The tough rocky section is rather easy to lose the trail on, and there is a gas transmission line that had been widened in recent years to the left that we should not turn on. There was a young Asian girl on the trail looking for her way back to the yellow trail she said, and I directed her to the Suffern-Bear Mountain because it is that color.

Ramapo Rampart

It turns out the others had fallen behind because they tried to climb up some big interesting rock and were not able to get back down easily.
The descent in this area is known as the Ramapo Rampart, and it’s not exactly the easiest bit of trail.
I decided to have a drink while we waited for them to catch up, and it was some sort of bock that was frozen at some point and then thawed again. I’m not particularly fond of that taste, but it was something I suppose. When they caught up, we continued on to the north.

Bock

There was another uphill bit and an interesting boulder with a big crack in it.
We continued along and had a bit of a climb until we came to the Raccoon Brook Hill Trail on the right.
This was another trail I’d never done before. It passed through some scrubby blueberry brush, and we were all wishing that they were in season.
We headed from here onto a very open smooth rock, and then into some woods where the trail started climbing its namesake Raccoon Brook Hill steeply.

A cracked boulder on Kakiat Trail

The trail was in fact so steep in one spot that a ladder had been installed to help with the climb.
Once at the top, there was a pretty good west facing view into the valley, and then down into the gully between the Ramapo Rapart and out to the west.
We continued through the woods on Raccoon Brook Hill, and another opening offered a little bit of a view toward Pine Meadow Lake, but none of the lake was visible from where we were at this time of year.
We continued along the ridge, and I warned everyone to watch for Rattlesnakes.

Raccoon Brook Hills Trail

We saw none this time.
The Raccoon Brook Hills Trail was first opened by Paul H. Schubert of Queens NY in 1931. He called it “Trail of the Raccoon Hills” and started it further south. However, fellow trail builder Kurson Nurian soon after started what became known as the “Great Ramapo Trail War” when he started painting out others blazes, and Schubert relented and started his trail further on.
Some of this land as well as other lands we would be hiking were the Ramapo Land Company property owned by the Pierson family, and the trails had to be given permission to pass.

Raccoon Brook Hill Trail

Raccoon Brook Hills Trail was one of these ones that had to be partially closed down. It wasn’t until the state acquired some of the Pierson property in the 1960s that the original Raccoon Brook Hill Trail could be reopened.
We followed the trail downhill for a bit, and eventually came out to the yellow blazed Poached Egg Trail, which leads in a short distance down to the shore of the Pine Meadow Lake. We then walked along the west side of the lake out to the dam where we stopped and took a nice long break for a swim.

Ladder on Raccoon Brook Hill Trail

There were a lot of people out there. There was a young couple out on the rocks across from the dam, and a group with lots of kids on the far side of the dam on more flat rocks.

View on Raccoon Brook Hill Trail

We decided to just put our stuff down on the near side of the dam and go in there since no one else was there.
The water wasn’t really cold, and it was just as easy as can be to get in it.
Pine Meadow Lake was completed in 1934 as part of a project to put lakes all throughout the park. This one was intended to have a large camp on it, but a lot of that went out the window when the second World War started. A lot of the infrastructure including a huge buried pipe and never used septic tank are abandoned.

View on Raccoon Brook Hill Trail

This was a really relaxing break. As we were there, two guys showed up, having hiked in I think from the Pine Meadow Trail. They were looking over a map.

Glacial erratic on Raccoon Brook Hill Trail

I commented something like it was a nice day to be out or something, and I can’t remember exactly what he said, but there was some sort of joke about it.
They were ball busting about something, and I had some remarks to follow that made them laugh. I wish I could remember exactly what it was!
We continued from here beyond the dam to the red blazed Pine Meadow Trail, which leads way out to the west side of the park by Reeves Brook Visitor Center. It originally continued up the old road from near the Sloatsburg area I understand, but the busy roads change that these days.

View on Raccoon Brook Hill Trail

Pine Meadow Trail was first described in the New York Walk Book in 1923, although it took until the 1940s before it was finally blazed.
We headed down and across a brook on a footbridge, then turned left down Pine Meadow Brook on the trail. We soon passed by the ruins of a building, which was one of the headquarters buildings of the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s when they were building park infrastructure.
There was also reportedly at one time a cabin up there, and a couple of prostitutes from one of the nearby towns were bringing their customers out there.

Weird tree on Raccoon Brook Hills Trail

Owner Frederick Snow found out about this soon after he purchased the cabin in 1902, hiked up there, and burned it to the ground.
We continued down the trail and Pine Meadow crossed to the south side, and Kakiat Trail joined to follow the north. We passed through a pretty area of huge boulders along the brook known as the Cascade of Slid. We got off of the trail by accident in this area and I found the correct way by bushwhacking down closer to the stream itself. It was kind of surprising that it hugged the rocks so closely.

Pine Meadow Lake

The name of the site comes from trail builder Frank Place, who had been reading the works of Edward Plunket, Lord Dunsany. In his book “The Gods of Pegāna”, it is described as a place where geography ends and fairyland begins. The character Slid was he “lord of gliding waters” among other things.

Pine Meadow Lake

We continued along Kakiat Trail downhill, and in this area of wonderful boulders, there was a bit of a pool off to the left of the trail. We had to go over and sit in it.

Pine Meadow Trail bridge

After this refreshing sit, we continued downstream along the Kakiat Trail. I had originally intended to go as far as maybe Claudius Smith’s Den, Lake Sebago, and more, but the mileage the gps was telling us we’d done was way higher than what I was planning.
Instead, I opted to change direction and save some of those other swimming spots for future hikes. We continued down Kakiat Trail a bit, and I made the decision to change the route when we got to the intersection of Stony Brook Trail.

CCC headquarters building ruin

This trail was always an informal, unmarked one before 1991, but well known and used by hikers. It was finally decided to formalize it that year.

Foot bridge on Kakiat Trail

This well shaded trail looked like the right choice for us to head out along to the east. The brook itself was pretty nice, and Kirk spent much of the time walking right up the middle of it rather than on the trail.
I didn’t bother going into this one as much since I’d just been in, and because it was starting to look a little mucky in spots. It did have some pretty swampy sections along the way.
The yellow blazed trail led us out to the Tuxedo-Mt. Ivy Trail just a little south of Lake Sebago. From there, we turned right and climbed part of Halfway Mountain.

Along Kakiat Trail

My plan now was a bit different than before, because it wouldn’t include the swimming spots to the north, but we would still be going to Lake Wanoksink.
We passed by a nice rock shelter on the way uphill, and fortunately only had to cross the flank of Halfway Mountain. We crossed Seven Hills Trail, and then came to a steep woods road intersection. We turned to the right here and went downhill somewhat steeply on the eroded road. There were no trail markings on this route at all.

Pine Meadow and Kakiat Trail area

The woods road came to the intersection of another woods road, originally part of the Woodtown Road, but now renamed the Conklin Road.

Along Stony Brook Trail

Woodtown Road dates back at least to the 1800s, when there were wood cutters living in the area making their living. This was the main road before the predecessor to what is now Rt 202, and it was pretty rough. Still, it was a necessary thing to haul iron from the mines further to the north, as well as charcoal and other goods necessary for that process. The Woodtown Road was said to have been completely overgrown until the park started the lake construction and TERA (Temporary Emergency Relief Administration) cleared it open to about twenty or so feet.

Stony Brook Trail

The section of the road in this particular area was renamed the Conklin Road in later years, after a family that lived up in the area, making baskets and such.

Along Stony Brook Trail

Baskets known as “Bockeys” were used to carry charcoal and such, which is why there is a place in Harriman known as Bockey Swamp.
We turned right on the Conklin Road through some very nice woods, and passed by the former site of Lake Minsi.
Like Pine Meadow Lake, Lake Minsi was intended to be a camp lake, but the state cut their funder when the construction was going on. The dam was just about finished, but without funding, the CCC were pulled from the site in 1934.

Shelter on Tuxedo Mt Ivy Trail

After being abandoned, the drain in the dam was clogged, and the lake actually came to be anyway. It remained in place until 1984 when it was removed.
“Minsi” is the name of the northern sect of the Lenape tribe, and it is said to mean a group of rocks piled together.
We continued along the old Conklin Road with some lovely old maple trees and stone rows, and eventually came upon Lake Wanoksink.
Lake Wanoksink came to be the same time as Pine Meadow Lake also, with the intention of building children’s camps along its shores.

Big Sugar Maple

The name is said to mean “Place of Sassafras” in the Mohegan language.
The original Woodtown/Conklin Road used to go through where the lake is today, but the dam covered it over.
We made a left turn up slope to the dam, stepped up, and found a whole group of people enjoying the water and using floatation devices. I was surprised to see anyone else here, because it’s not on any of the marked trails.

Lake Wanoksink

They didn’t seen unwelcoming in any way, and there was plenty of room along the shore of the lake for all of us to be in it and not bother one another.

Goose at Lake Wanoksink

We all got in for a dip, and I started chatting with some of the guys. It was surprising that none of them could float without some sort of tube. It was particularly easy here. As things tend to go, I got talking to them about all of the virus craziness, but they were the ones that brought it up. These guys actually all work in a sort of home, and on their days off they hang out together, and they said that everything going on is complete bullshit.
It’s interesting that I hear so completely different stories from different people involved.

Geese at Wanoksink

These guys are not medical professionals by any means, but some medical professionals are totally knocking the management, while others are saying it’s very serious.

Goose at Wanoksink

A friend that’s worked in the medical field for over twenty years is saying that her hospital has people dying all the time from it, and if anything, the CDC is underwhelming when it comes to what is going on.
At the same time, the head of the lab department in Newton, working directly on the testing, is saying it’s complete bullshit.
It was interesting having the discussion with people who are care givers as a regular job nonetheless, and the difference of opinions between different professionals is weird.

Lake Wanoksink view

When I finally got out of the water, these geese were just approaching me like crazy, begging for food. In a way, it was kind of cute, but these things destroy water quality.

Pine Meadow Trail along Pine Meadow Lake

Brittany was taking one of her sandals and slamming it against the ground trying to scare them away, but they were just begging for more all the time, then hissing at us. Fortunately none of them attacked.
We headed from Lake Wanoksink to the east a bit, and then turned left along the west shore of it.
Soon, there was another path to the right that started going gradually uphill over the hillside toward Pine Meadow Lake. The Christie Brook fills Lake Wanoksink, named for the Christie family that operated a saw mill on it. The Conklin Road comes out of Lake Wanoksink and goes through a hill to Pine Meadow Lake near the former cabin of Ramsey Conklin, the last family member who lived there until the 1950s.

Pine Meadow Lake

Ramsey Conklin and his family used to farm the area that is now where Pine Meadow Lake is today, but when there were no fields left and the water came and covered the garden, they moved to an abandoned school house in Ladentown, and after that further in the hills.

Pine Meadow Lake

We headed down the trail rather steeply and soon reached the red blazed Pine Meadow Trail again. This section of it follows along the buried pipeline that was intended for the sewer system at Pine Meadow Lake. At times, that pipe shows itself or some of the infrastructure.
The trail follows along some very pretty little precipices along the rocky shore, and the water with the mountains and clouds created unparalleled scenery.

Pump building along Pine Meadow Lake

Soon, we passed by the ruins of the pump house created to be part of the camp system, but no other buildings exist on the shore. Ramsey Conklin’s cabin has been gone for the better part of the last fifty years, if not more.
The next order of business was to find one more good swimming spot before we headed back over the Ramapo Ridge into Kakiat Park. I knew exactly where I wanted to go, I just had to find it. Fortunately, there were only a couple of other people around when we got to the site.

Pine Meadow Lake

The Conklin family had lived at Pine Meadow at the cabin since colonial days, and Ramsey Conklin and his sons were the last of them.
Ramsey Conklin’s sons went to work for the CCC to work on construction of the area lakes and roads, and persuaded the CCC to leave one of their family cemeteries alone.

Conklin Cemetery site and epitaph on my last visit

One such cemetery, which reportedly held the graves of Ramsey Conklin’s parents and sixteen others, was reportedly to be covered over by the lake. As the lake was being completed in 1934, then park Superintendent John Tamsen had a pyramid of earth covered in rip rap constructed on top of the grave sites, then planted mountain laurel, so that it would protrude from the water to mark the site even after the lake filled.
Today, the Laurels are gone, but the cemetery rock pile still protrudes from the lake, so long as the water is not too high.

NYC skyline view on SBM Trail

Unfortunately, this time the water was too high. I didn’t realize that I wouldn’t be able to find the stone. I looked up my own post with it using Kirk’s phone, and I was sure I found the correct spot, but we just couldn’t see the pile of rocks protruding.

View on SBM Trail

No matter, if swimming, we should be able to find the thing easily I thought. If we scoured the area, there would be one place where we could stand strangely out in the middle of the lake. Still, I could not find it.
I swam out half way across, then back, then out again, then back. I came in to shore and looked at the photo to make sure I was lining up correctly with the stones, and I was, so I swam out yet again. I still couldn’t find it.
While I was out swimming, Ken and Galya decided they were going to head back.

NYC skyline

I finally gave up and came out.
From here, we walked the Pine Meadow Trail to the former Ramsey Conklin Cabin site, and then reached the Conklin’s Crossing Trail, which leads down into a gully and then up to the Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail.
This trail was in place back in 1935 from the Conklin Farm down to present day Rt 202, but a land owner closed it at one point, along with another trail that went up Horse Stable Mountain. Now it just ends at Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail.

New Tappan Zee Bridge from SBM Trail

We continued down and uphill until we reached the Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail and then turned to the right.
The Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail is one of the oldest trails in the park, having been first proposed by Major Welch, the head of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, in 1924 to connect the two points.
It’s one of the more rugged trails in the park, and it was said when it was first blazed that some of the builders chose the most difficult routes possible for it.

View on the SBM Trail

I quite love the trail for both its challenge and scenery.
There was a good climb up right from where we got on it, and soon we came upon our first views to the south.
In the distance, we had lovely views of the New York City skyline. We stood and admired it from afar, and how it seems so strange that we could be so close to it. I spotted the new World Trade Center first, as well as the other very narrow looking tall building that had recently been built uptown.

View on the SBM Trail

Still after all these years, the Empire State Building is a defining presence on the skyline as well, right between the other two.
We pushed on ahead along the trail with a view good southeast facing views, and then John pointed out that we could see the white looking tops of the new Tappan Zee Bridge, officially called the Governor Mario Cuomo Bridge. I still refer to it as the Tappan Zee, but I wonder how long it will be before everyone either stops calling it that or what.

View on the SBM Trail

We weaved around on often open smooth rocks, and after a few more nice overlooks, eventually came to a steep section downhill to where we had come up on Kakiat Trail.

A nice south facing view

From there, we ust started heading back downhill rather steeply. Soon, we reached the woods road section where the orange trail comes in from the right. We turned here.
The woods road in that direction brought us back uphill a little bit, and then to a utility clearing with a bit of a view.
I thought it would be easier beyond that point, but the Orange Trail continued to take us further and further uphill. I started wondering if this route was really going to be worth it or not.

Glacian erratic on Orange Trail

We soon turned right after another section of power line crossing, then passed a sign that let us know we were leaving Harriman State Park and entering Kakiat Town Park.

Along the orange trail

We had seen similar signs on Kakiat Trail coming up. They said to turn back of you don’t have a map, trails are rugged, etc. True, they are pretty rough and it’s easy to get lost wandering for long distances there, but the same signs were at the entrance to Kakiat coming from the other way.
To be clear, Kakiat Park only has three trails, and none of them are all that tough.
At around this point, we reached the best overlook of the day. There was a large glacial erratic and a view out across a gully to Horse Stable Mountain.

Orange Trail

It was quite a beautiful spot, and we could see out along the back of the Palisades formation and a bit of the NYC skyline again.
We headed downhill from here, which got a bit steeper. Some of it was a woods road, but it was really pretty washed out. More so than the other trails, we couldn’t go fast because the footing was so loose. It would be easy to fall on this bit.
At one of the corners in the trail as we got a little closer to the bottom, I noticed another mask on the ground. It drives me crazy that these are on almost all mountain ascents.

Orange Trail

People try to climb mountains with them on, get frustrated that they feel like they’re being water boarded, and they throw them down in anger.
We first saw this when we ascended the Major Welch Trail up Bear Mountain, and since then I’ve been seeing it on all mountains, especially since they started requiring them more places. At this point, NJ, NY, and PA state parks and forests only require them when it’s impossible to maintain a distance, but some places require them at all times.

Another mask on the trail to the left

Essex County NJ is one of the ones that are requiring face coverings everywhere in parks at all times. You can be sure that I will not be visiting any of those parks soon.
The trail went by a couple more very steep spots, and eventually started to get more gradual as we reached near the bottom.
We pretty abruptly came out ot the area of mowed lawn like stuff, with picnic grounds. The pavilion and benches and such all had been caution taped off I guess it was, but there were people picnicking along the Mahah River below. The trail went right to the foot bridge we crossed earlier.

Orange Trail down

We soon reached the cars, and Ken and Galya were probably long gone by this point.
I will likely not do another hike out from this parking lot since I’ve now connecting to the area pretty well, but I’m satisfied that I’ve covered all of the trails at that point for now. It ended up being pretty good for avoiding the crowds going to the popular places. I’ll have to plan another one where we visit some of the other spots I’d had in mind for this one, and do it as another sort of loop. There are definitely plenty more trails up there I’ve not yet covered.

HAM