Yesterday's Elk Photos

Personally, I love the Tiffany Elk torso that sits on a cliff near the Bear Mountain Bridge. Some people think it looks cheap and tacky and is totally out of place. (People love to complain about everything! ) This elk has always made me happy, though!


The elk, along with a herd of real elk, was a donation to the park. The real elks faded away, but this memorial to them remains.


Kids love to see the elk. (That's Peekskill in the distance)


I circled the elk yesterday.

Stepping Out

I was given a couple of pedometers last month, and adjusted them to my stride. Day One: an average day, a non-hiking day and I wanted to see -- on a somewhat sedentary day, how many steps I took. (around the house, out shopping) The pedometer said almost twenty thousand steps. I doubted I'd taken that many steps. I tried the higher tech pedometer on another "sort of sedentary day" and it was over twenty thousand steps. So I don't need a pedometer, I'm walking plenty, even on days when I'm around the house.


Fourteen miles one way? Not a problem. Although lately I've been hiking by *my old childhood method. Walk for 2-4 hours then turn around and come back. I never get bored walking.



Hiking all day ( ten hours let's say) isn't hard for me since I've been a dedicated walker since I could toddle. My feet don't hurt and my bones don't creak. I wake up feeling physically and mentally great, and I've come to the conclusion that walking, strolling, and hiking is really good for me.

*When I was a little kid, I was often on my own on summer days. My parents both worked and I'd get up with them at dawn, have breakfast with them. My mom would pack a nice lunch for me to take to the park. But instead I'd walk off into the day, walking across the city, trying some new routes, for 3 or so hours, stopping to observe whatever, eat my lunch, then slowly walk back the way I came. That took care of my 6-8 hours of being on my own. Walking became addictive and I became a collector of maps. On weekends my dad would take me on strenuous hikes-- he never got tired, but was a meditative sort of person, so our hikes were blessedly quiet ones, with stops to look at a particular tree, enjoy a view, think about nothing,

Napping Cat Pic

Eddy when he was a kitten.

Walking in Tallman Mountain State Park


Another path


Rock Steps made in the 1920's.


Nice place to picnic.

Rewarding Climb In Highlands, NY

Carefully wending my way over and around boulders, I climbed down off the trail, and then walked along the widest ledges, looking for an easier way back up. There was no easier way, so I decided to just take my time and enjoy the climb back up. It was a good workout and I did enjoy it very much.


Surprise! I found myself atop a tunnel that ran through the mountain I was on. A freight train tunnel along the shoreline.


One reward for climbing around was this view. I went way off the trail and climbed down over boulders to reach a place with a new view. In the distance you can see Sugarloaf Mountain across the river in Hudson Highlands State Park.

Where I Usually Walk

One of my favorite places to walk --across the Popolopen Creek footbridge and over to Fort Montgomery from Bear Mtn. State Park. I could hike all day at Bear Mtn. several times a week--there are so many trails, plus museums, the zoo, fishing areas, the tower, the Tiffany Elk, bridges, a beautiful Merry Go Round, and interesting people from all over the world visit the park. I'm always asked if I can take a photo of a group or a couple. The drive is only a little more than a half hour, so I can just go without much preparation.

Tallman Mountain State Park is nice if I only have a hour or so to walk. It's less than ten minutes away by car.


Rockland Lake State Park is less than 4 minutes away-- and people are always walking there. The path around the Lake is about 3 miles and if you stop and stand still, you see a lot of wildlife.


I watched this heron catch a fish and do some stunt flying a few days ago.

Changes to the Blog

I'm changing the blog so I can post more photos. The blog will still feature the Hudson Valley Region and The Catskills, but will include hikes and walks all over the tri state area, including NYC. It will also include a very occasional visit from a tuxedo cat with a napping tip. I'm hoping to include walking tips and photos of walks taken upstate and in Vermont as well.

On April 3rd we hiked for 4-5 hours at Bear Mountain State Park. We returned on April 7th for another 2 + hour hike in another area of the park. This week I want to showcase the many beautiful trails and fun things to do there.

Today's Photo: The Bear Mountain Bridge as seen from the shore of Popolopen Creek.