I always wanted to go there, to the shawgunks. I heard there are many timber rattlers in that area though.
Lets go saturday. I'll drive, but I don't have air in my car.
Al and I have been on a pair of one-day trips the the 'gunks -- the first to Minnewaska State Park Preserve (which is beautiful, as well) and later to Sam's Point Preserve. This makes for a long, rigorous day, as the roundtrip alone is 8 hours. Sam's Point is less suited to the general public, hence, less traffic and no bicycles; the trails are rougher, wilder, but offer beauties just as fine as Minnewaska's and it's much easier to focus on the subtleties. When I took my family, we simply hiked to Verkeerder Falls (extraordinary!), but to see the ridgetop dwarves, it's best to use the trail from Sam's Point's access past the falls and to connect soon after with the High Point Trail, which can be used as a nice, if lengthy, loop trail back to the day's starting point. This trail is exceptional; it's exposed, requires a lot of rock climbing along the ridge and culminates in a long straightaway that gives one the sense that it's heading toward something very special.
It is. The hiker breaks out into the huge ridgetop dwarf-pine forest with views 360.
Jeff -- in response to your question about the size of the dwarf forest -- I'm trying to remember here. It's been a couple of years. The size is enough to impress the heck out of one, I'll say that. We had to be back at the entrance station by 5pm that day, which was when the park was closing. I remember taking a good look around, being mightily impressed, and wishing I had much more time to take in all I was seeing. Also, there is plenty of dwarfage closer to the access and along the beautiful ridge-side walk to the waterfall.
I'd like to return to the area during the fall color changes. I've seen some brush-foilage photos of this area that have knocked me sideways.
Bill
