Climbing Bear Mountain
At 1,284 ft. above sea level, some would say that Bear Mountain hardly qualifies as a true mountain. That's if you compare it to one of the looming ranges of the Rockies, or even the modest, yet formidable, peaks of New York's Adirondacks. But to me and to many, Bear Mountain is a mountain and it can proudly take its place in the Appalachian chain to which it belongs. For one thing, Bear Mountain hosts the oldest portion of the Appalachian Trail which is the way to hike up it from behind the Bear Mountain Inn. You can drive your car up the mountain on the winding Perkins Memorial Drive.
June 30th was a hot, sunny day when Janet and I decided to meet some friends and, with Cinnamon our dog, climb Bear Mountain. The hike is light to moderately strenuous. The ascent is 1,000 vertical feet at a distance of eight tenths of a mile. An easy Saturday outing? Not. With the temperatures in the nineties and a sun staring down hard, the light to moderate hike went up a notch or two on the difficulty scale. Frequent stops for rest and water kept us going. Cinnamon eagerly lapped up water from her own portable canine water bottle and tray setup. We huffed and puffed our way to the top.
Much of the trail, recently rebuilt by the Trail Commission, more resembled a stone staircase than an actual hiking trail. I thought of it as taking the stairs up the Empire State Building, until we reached the road. From there, the trail took to the dirt, negotiated fallen trees, and meandered around boulders the size of cars. A little over half way up, we came to a clearing overlooking the Hudson River looking south. We could hear the serpentine freight train winding its way across Iona Island, a bird sanctuary occupying what would have been a large bay in the west bank of the river.
Continuing onward, we struggled around more boulders. Cinnamon's panting highlighted our own exhaustion when I announced that the summit was just a few dozen yards off. Walking over the edge, I noticed that the trail dipped into a small depression with no summit in sight. False alarm, although we enjoyed the respite of a fairly level walk. One more scramble upward and we then reached the top. There we saw tourists leaving their parked cars and motorcycles to take in the scenery. To the south one could make out the towers of Manhattan some fifty miles away. Washington Irving's "Lordly Hudson" ruled the landscape where the mountains kept watch like an honor guard around a monarch. Lounging in the shade, we drank water and ate granola bars while Cinny flopped in the cool grass. Would have to check her for ticks when we get to the car. And while Pike's Peak might offer exhilaration at 14,110 feet, nothing quite satisfies like a hike up one of my local mountains overlooking a familiar landscape that I never tire of admiring.
June 30th was a hot, sunny day when Janet and I decided to meet some friends and, with Cinnamon our dog, climb Bear Mountain. The hike is light to moderately strenuous. The ascent is 1,000 vertical feet at a distance of eight tenths of a mile. An easy Saturday outing? Not. With the temperatures in the nineties and a sun staring down hard, the light to moderate hike went up a notch or two on the difficulty scale. Frequent stops for rest and water kept us going. Cinnamon eagerly lapped up water from her own portable canine water bottle and tray setup. We huffed and puffed our way to the top.
Much of the trail, recently rebuilt by the Trail Commission, more resembled a stone staircase than an actual hiking trail. I thought of it as taking the stairs up the Empire State Building, until we reached the road. From there, the trail took to the dirt, negotiated fallen trees, and meandered around boulders the size of cars. A little over half way up, we came to a clearing overlooking the Hudson River looking south. We could hear the serpentine freight train winding its way across Iona Island, a bird sanctuary occupying what would have been a large bay in the west bank of the river.
Continuing onward, we struggled around more boulders. Cinnamon's panting highlighted our own exhaustion when I announced that the summit was just a few dozen yards off. Walking over the edge, I noticed that the trail dipped into a small depression with no summit in sight. False alarm, although we enjoyed the respite of a fairly level walk. One more scramble upward and we then reached the top. There we saw tourists leaving their parked cars and motorcycles to take in the scenery. To the south one could make out the towers of Manhattan some fifty miles away. Washington Irving's "Lordly Hudson" ruled the landscape where the mountains kept watch like an honor guard around a monarch. Lounging in the shade, we drank water and ate granola bars while Cinny flopped in the cool grass. Would have to check her for ticks when we get to the car. And while Pike's Peak might offer exhilaration at 14,110 feet, nothing quite satisfies like a hike up one of my local mountains overlooking a familiar landscape that I never tire of admiring.
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| Hudson River and Iona Island from Bear Mountain |
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