Hike #481; Lake Tiorati/West Mountain Loop

 Hike #481 4/20/10

4/20/10 Lake Tiorati/West Mountain/Harriman with Jillane Becker

Harriman Hiking

Jillane has most of the pictures from this one on one of her photo albums.

This hike was just the two of us doing a loop from Tiorati Circle. We went over our Harriman Maps and looked at possible routes. Jillane came up with the route on our way out and I came up with the quickest and easiest return route. It was a great hike to show what a great team we are.

We've had so many perfect days together. This one was special for me because it involved someplace I hadn't been that she had. I'd shared so many places with her and now she got to share one that had memories with me. I've never felt so deeply for anyone in my life, and days like this justified those feelings.

Harriman Hike, West Mountain

From Tiorati Circle, we hiked north on the Tiorati Trail to the AT. Jillane stayed on the road. We then got on the Appalachian Trail north. I had to run back for something...I forget what.

We continued on the AT with only one small view out to Seven Lakes Drive and crossed. On the opposite side, Jillane decided we'd follow an alternate woods road rather than the AT to the Menomine Trail, then a right on that to William Brien Memorial Shelter on the AT, north side of Letterock Mountain. We then continued on the AT, north. The section ahead was full of asian people meditating all over the next stretch of trail. We joked that the place was full of ninjas out to get us.

We continued across the dirt Silvermine Road and then ascended the steep edge of West Mountain. Jillane had been here before, with her ex boyfriend Ron, and they passed through at night. She commented on how beautiful the city lights were from the top of the mountain at that time, but that it was also scary that they didn't know one wrong step could have sent them on a hundred foot plunge off of a cliff.

The views around Black Mountain were incredible, and then we descended through thick striped maples to cross the Palisades Interstate Parkway. This was a weird crossing, no bridge or anything, just dashing across fast moving traffic as best we could. We continued across a stream on the other side and then began the ascent of West Mountain, which got pretty steep. The views on West Mountain were incredible though, as Jillane had told me. We made our way along passing viewpoint after viewpoint, and then descended the north end of it on flat exposed rocks. We descended I think via Timp Torne Trail to the Fawn Trail. This took us down to an abandoned looking recreation area called Anthony Wayne Recreation Area. We followed an old connector road past a big field with an amphitheatre, and we stopped by a maintenance building that had a truck in front looking for water, but no luck. The connector road went through some woods and to a large seemingly abandoned parking lot. I knew now we were close to a visitor center and book store in the middle of the Palisades Interstate Parkway, so after a break we bushwhacked out to it. There were all sorts of great books we looked at, plus water fountains, drinks for sale, and nice restrooms.

From here, we got back to the abandoned looking parking area and took a nice multi use trailway south parallel with PI Parkway, then turned off of it onto 1779 Trail.

We headed south, and then turned right onto the Red Cross Trail, which was blazed with red crosses in the markings, nothing to do with the insurance carrier. It took us across the PI Parkway yet again where we had to dash across traffic, then on the south side of Big Bog Mountain. This trail was on what was once a road. We crossed a creek, and I took a run up to rock outcroppings on the right because I thought I saw a little cave, but it wasn't much of anything. We continued from there past the site of an old house, then ascended to the right for a bit on Menomine Trail along a creek. To the left of this was an unmarked pathway that ascended only slightly through the saddle of Letterock Mountain, and I knew that would be the least strenuous route to get back so we took it.

The weeds were abrasive against our legs a bit, and the path was indeed obscure, but at the same time obvious. We crossed and descended to the intersection of the AT and the Ramapo-Dunderberg Trail. From there we ascended easily on the R-D Trail to the top of Goshen Mountain with limited views to the southeast, but I think we could see some of the NYC lights. It was really the best time ever to hike that section of trail. As the R-D descended the other side, we turned off of it onto a woods road, probably the former trail route, and came out to Tiorati Brook Road. We followed this back to where we were parked to finish the hike just a bit after dark.