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August 2, 2004 |
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Spruceton - Hunter Mountain Loop
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One thing we don't have a lot of here in the Catskills are loop hikes, especially ones of moderate lengths. There are a few short ones, such as Kelly Hollow and Alder Lake, and a couple really long ones, like the Woodland Valley-Wittenberg-Slide circuit. On a sunny day last weekend, we hiked with our friends Justin and Katy and the dogs on one of the few moderate-length loops, perfect for a good day-hike. This trail leads out of the Westkill-Spruceton Valley, over Hunter Mountain, down through the col between Hunter and Southwest Hunter mountains, into the north end of Diamond Notch, and back to Spruceton Road - a distance of 8 miles.
The Spruceton Trail (blue markers) begins at a DEC parking area near the end of Spruceton Road (Greene Co. Rt. 6), in the Town of Hunter. The trail begins at 2,100', alongside Hunter Brook. The trail here is a wide, flat roadbed, open to both hikers and horse riders. The trail climbs gradually to the col between Rusk and Hunter Mountains, where an unmarked side trail enters from the north (after 1.7 miles, elevation 2,950'). The hiking trail to Hunter's summit becomes a bit narrower, and is steeper in places. Another half-mile brought us to the John Robb Lean-to. A boulder next to it afforded a great view (3,500' elevation). The dogs proved their mountain prowess by running/climbing up the steep face of the large boulder to join us at the top. Here the spruce and fir trees begin creeping into the hardwood forest (or vice versa).
Just two tenths of a mile after the lean-to we came to the junction with the Colonel's Chair Trail, leading to the top of Hunter Mountain Ski Area, but we kept going ahead for another mile, toward the summit. A thick tunnel of spruce-fir led us to the top of Hunter, where the fire tower and observer's cabin stand. We were not alone on the Catskills' second-highest peak (4,040') - there was an assistant forest ranger there, and 10 or 12 foreign, visiting hikers lounging around and resting. It turned out that Katy had gone to college with the ranger, so they chatted for a while. We climbed the tower and enjoyed the view in every direction. Even the thin white ribbon of Kaaterskill Falls can be seen from here, falling over its precipice just below North-South Lake.
Three tenths of a mile past the fire tower, we took the short side trail (just a couple-hundred feet) to a rock ledge with a sweeping west-facing vista, where we sat and had our lunch. The view was fantastic. The weather was fantastic. The company was fantastic. The food and drink were fantastic. It was a great moment - that is, until one of the dogs came back covered in very smelly $#@*& that she had just rolled in, and instantly ruined our reverie. There was nothing we could do about it at the moment, so we just tried to keep her away from us as much as possible.
Back at the trail junction we came across another 15-20 hikers, who were clearly part of the same group as those at the fire tower - quite a big outing! We began our descent to the southeast on the yellow-blazed Hunter Mountain Trail, and rounded back west to the junction of the Devil's Path and the Devil's Acre Lean-to (elevation 3,600', 1.4 miles from the previous trail junction). Here we found an old washcloth left by campers, so Amy was brave enough to wash the dog in a nearby stream. Chris did his part by carrying down a plastic bag containing the nasty washcloth (for disposal) and dog collar (for later cleaning). We followed the Devil's Path (red markers) west, steadily descending along the narrow, wet footpath, being careful not to touch too many of the nettles growing along the wet parts of the trail.
Two miles beyond the lean-to, we reached the junction with the Diamond Notch Trail, next to the beautiful Diamond Notch Falls at elevation 2,300'. Another 0.7 mile brought us to the trailhead at the end of Spruceton Road, and a short walk on the road brought us back to our cars at the other parking area. It was a very enjoyable loop - the perfect distance and setting for a five-hour, relaxed-pace day hike with lots of nice features.
- Aaron and Chris
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