Hiking Schedule - May 2009

Dayhike to Stokes State Park - Sunday 05/10

Leader: Josef

This is a combination of two smaller hikes:

Tillman Ravine Trail - 2 miles (easy)

Tillman Ravine is an easy hike through tall evergreens that evoke Hansel and Gretel's wooded path. Bowser will enjoy the forest's primeval quality. Here, the Tillman Brook slices through the northwestern slope of Kittatinny Mountain, creating a dramatic gorge with a racing stream, waterfalls, and places to chill on a hot day.

Stokes Select:

For fear of overselling a park, we normally resist assigning it too many superlatives. But in Stokes we're stumped: This solitary, mountainous jaunt is so darn beautiful we can't help but beat the drum for it. It's a strenuous outing that alternates between lowland bogs and high-country terrain, providing several hours' communion with an extended patch of unspoiled nature.

Moderate
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Dayhike to Breakneck Ridge/DIA Beacon

- Sunday 05/17

Leader: Raj

Wikipedia entry

Breakneck Ridge presents one of the most rugged hikes in Hudson Highlands State Park, which is known for its craggy rock faces. The views, however, make the difficult terrain well worth the challenge.

The first mile of the hike is almost a completely vertical climb. Start at river level and gain almost 1,000 feet as you scramble up the rock faces with both hands. With each tier of the mountain, the vistas get more and more breathtaking. At the top of the ridge, we will take a break to rest, picnic and enjoy the Hudson River landscape. From this vantage point, discover the locations of Bannerman's Castle, Westpoint, Storm King and Mount Taurus.

Then onto Beacon. After Lunch from Beacon we'll visit the DiaBeacon gallery in Beacon.

Note: There is a $7 charge for students. http://www.diabeacon.org/dia/visitor/index.html

Rigorous
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Hikes are rated using the following difficulty levels:

	Easy 4-5 miles, 100-800 ft elevation gain. Everyone should be able to go on this.
	Moderate 5-8 miles, 800-2000 ft elevation gain. A reasonably fit person can go on this.
	Rigorous 8-12 miles per day, 2000-4000 ft elevation gain. You need to be very fit.
	Hard 12-15 miles per day, 4000-6000 ft elevation gain. You need to be in excellent shape, to be able to go all day, and to have had experience climbing more than 4000 ft. in a day before.