This is the Hike of the Week for 3/10/2006
(which was repeated this past week on 4/14/2011 in the Bergen Record) as described on the NY-NJ Trail Conference site.
The last time we hiked Hook Mountain was way back in June of 2006. At that time we parked at
Rockland Lake and took the Long Path south to create a loop of the southern section of the mountain. Today we headed north on the LP to complete a loop on the
northern section of the mountain.
The LP section of this hike (the entire first half) has a lot of ups and downs, and some are quite "up". In fact, I would say that this is the Palisades hike with the most climbing along the ridge (not even counting the climbing to and from the river, which all of the Palisades loops have). And the climbing begins right from the car. It's also one of the more remote Palisades hikes, with nearly the entire hike quite far from all major roads (the Palisades Interstate Parkway doesn't come anywhere near this hike). This would explain why we were fortunate enough to see not one, not two, but three coyotes on the LP. Alas, coyotes are very stealthy and quick, so I wasn't able to capture any photos. I recommend it highly, but be prepared for a lot of climbing, something the description downplays a bit. Total distance hiked today was 6.4 miles in just over 4 hours. (Click on the thumbnail to bring up a bigger image in a pop-up window)
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Quail near the trail head |
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Cemetery on the LP |
Gravestones like jigsaw puzzles |
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Me [photo by Laura] |
First Hudson vista |
View of Hudson looking south |
View of southern part of Hook |
View of path directly below |
Buoy |
Boat and buoy in Hudson |
View north |
Speed boat |
Storm clouds |
Croton Point Park |
Another vista |
Croton Point Park in Hudson |
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Climbing |
Boundary walls |
One of many climbs |
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View west |
Winding LP |
Seasonal view west |
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Sun pops out |
Climbing |
One of at least a dozen posts |
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Northern tip of Croton Point |
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More climbing |
Treason trail head |
Power lines: old and new |
View down powerline cut |
Barge in Hudson |
Indian Point in distance |
Heart-shaped rock |
Very steep descent |
Railroad tunnel into the mountain |
Millions of quarry tailings |
Ruins at bottom of Treason trail |
Abandoned park building |
View of bike parth north |
Inside park building |
Spring buds at ruins |
Laura and the Palisades cliffs |
Sumac and tiny lighthouse |
Spring blooms |
Ruins on bike path |
Quarry ruins |
[photo by Laura] |
Heading south |
Abandoned building |
Corrugated flag |
Laura inside |
Blooms over Hudson |
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Fishing |
Our lunch spot |
View NE |
Another abandonded cabin |
Buoy in Hudson |
Downy woodpecker |
Interesting structure in water |
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Vines on protective fence |
Sailboat |
Barge |
Quarry tailings |
Young eagle |
Another abanonded building |
Fireplace inside |
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Looking south |
The cliffs |
The sign is right |
Ruins off the park road |
Photographs and content copyright © Dan Balogh Web design by Dan Balogh |