Exploring A Boreal Forest Along Quebec Brook

I was spending a full day up at the farm and had already hiked Elephant Head Mountain. But it was only just past noon when I arrived back at my little farm apartment, let Wally and Winky out and ate lunch. I was still anxious to see one more place I'd read about, Quebec Brook. I put the four younger dogs into the car and headed south just a little way to Blue Mountain Road, driving past the trail head for Azure Mountain which I'd hiked just a few weeks earlier. But I had difficulty locating the trail head and had to turn around several times as I searched the road. I saw this bald mountain up ahead with a fire tower on its peak and realized it was Azure Mountain. The fire tower is difficult to see in the photo, but it was clearly visible in real life. I knew I was on the right track but had to turn around and drive farther south:

A few miles down the dirt road and there was our trail head! Once again, the dogs and I had it all to ourselves:

The trail follows the shoreline of Quebec Brook along what was once a railroad bed. It traverses through what was described as lovely Boreal Forest. Indeed, the path was carpeted thickly with mosses and bordered with fragrant Balsam Firs:

In with the mosses were Reindeer Lichen and Bunchberries:

And just off to my left, the wild and scenic Quebec Brook ran its course:

I began to spot giant mushrooms of various kinds:

A tiny Balsam Fir grew among the Bunchberries:

The entire forest was perfumed with Balsam, so very strongly that I felt as if I'd gorged on candy. The aroma became stronger and stronger as we hiked and I never became used to it. In fact, it seemed to stay in my nostrils for several days after going home:

The forest was quiet, peaceful and wild:

And everywhere I looked I saw (and smelled) Balsams:

This was turning out to be one of the most beautiful hikes I'd ever taken. The dogs and I hiked on, but I'll post more about it tomorrow:

Descending Elephant Head Mountain

It had been a brief but beautiful hike through a wild Adirondack forest to a spectacular view over Lake Titus north toward the St. Lawrence Seaway. But it was still early in the day and it was time to hike back down to our parked car. Daphne, Clover and Daphne were all excited - but then they get all excited about everything. I guess that's part of why dogs are such a joy to have around - everything fills them with happiness:

We hiked back down the mountain past giant boulders strewn about by the retreating glaciers:

And these exquisite bushes filled the forest with color. The are called Hobble Bush or Witch Hobble, Viburnum lantanoides:

Down through the hardwood forest:

Through shrubby sections, probably once clear cut by loggers:

While all the while the "Silly Sisters" wrestled, raced and played:

We made a left turn at the trail sign (notice Daphne's great joy):

And arrived back at the clearing which should have been the trail head and parking area:

We, however, had parked about two miles down the road. So we began walking:

Even the road was a pleasant hike:

There was another car parked where I'd parked. It was there when we arrived, though we saw no one the entire time we were there:

I stopped once again at a very deep, water filled hole in the road. I'd driven through it on the way up but it was the final straw which had convinced me to go no further on the access road. But our hike was over and I had to drive home for lunch and to let Wally and Winky out. They were waiting for us back at the farm apartment. And I had yet another hike planed for the afternoon:

The Summit Of Elephant Head Mountain

The trail sign said that the distance to the summit was only a half mile, but I'd have sworn it was longer than that. Or perhaps I was swayed by the added couple of miles we'd walked because the access road was in such poor condition. At any rate, it was a pleasure to see this nice view looking off to the south:

I had to look over the tops of the trees to see the nearby mountains:

Well, this was all very nice but to be honest, I was fighting feelings of disappointment. Perhaps I've been spoiled by all the spectacular mountaintop views I've recently experienced, but this was not much of a view to be a hiking destination:

But I tried to stifle my dissatisfaction and be grateful for the beauty before me. And then I walked to the north side of the summit and was encouraged to see that the view there was better:

In fact, it was not only better - it was magnificent! That's Lake Titus below. My farm is located off to the upper left of the photo (behind the tree branches), not too far away. As you can see in the lower right of the photo, Clover and Daphne went exploring:

And to the northeast was a rather large, unidentified mountain covered with trees just beginning to clothe themselves in autumn colors:

The view to the northwest was even more colorful and I sat down to relax and allow the mountaintop quiet and serenity to fill me up:

When it came time to leave, I made one more pass by the southerly view:

And then we began hiking back to the car. When we arrived at the rough stairs, Fergus and the Papillons ran down them with great joy:

Seamus, however, waddled down them with his extra-wide hips swaying like an obese hula dancer. Oh, how I wished I'd have been able to capture it on video! But this photo is all I was able to save:

Almost To The Summit Of Elephant Head Mountain

I was hiking up Elephant Head Mountain with my four youngest dogs and so far it had been a lovely and rather easy hike. I spotted Shining Clubmoss in large quantities along the trail:

And its relative, the Princess Pine, also known as Ground Pine or just Club Moss:

Daphne and Clover, the lively young Papillons, were as active as ever and I'd venture to say they covered ten miles for every one mile I hiked:

Small mountain brooks occasionally crossed the trail and all the dogs had the opportunity to take a drink. As for me, I'd brought along a bottle of iced green tea:

The trail was sparsely marked but easy to follow. Large rocks ornamented our ascent to the top and gave the Papillons another reason to play:

I was surprised to find a set of steps in such a wilderness, but it was clear from their condition that they'd been built decades ago. And, of course, the stairs were another place for Daphne and Clover to play:

And I spotted the most amazing pumpkin-colored mushrooms. This was a short, pleasant and beautiful hike, and I was quite sure that the summit had to be just ahead. But I'll post about that tomorrow:

The Day's First Hike: Elephant Head Mountain

I'd arrived at the farm late on Sunday afternoon and spent the night there. On Monday morning I drove to the trail head for a hike which I'd discovered on the internet, to the summit of Elephant Head Mountain. The access road was in such rough shape that I parked along the edge of it and hiked up to the trail head, perhaps another two miles. The Mountain Maples along the way were already turning red:

I wasn't sure if I was still on the access road or if I was already on the trail. Its condition improved considerably beyond where I'd parked and I kept thinking I could have driven in farther. But who knew? Besides, there were few places to turn around or park (as you can see here) and it could suddenly become impassable at any moment. So the dogs and I just kept walking uphill:

It was a pleasant walk, certainly not too difficult, though it brought us steadily uphill. There was no doubt that we were heading toward a mountain summit:

Eventually we came to a clearing which I decided should have been the parking area for the trail head. But we'd already walked this far and the hiking trail was listed as being very short, so I located the trail and we headed off into the forest:

The trail was unmarked but easy to follow:

We came to a trail sign which said Elephant Head summit was only a half mile thataway:

The dogs arrived at the sign before me and waited for me to catch up:

The trail took us up through a lovely Adirondack forest:

Mountain Maples were already dropping their red leaves in many places. This looked like it would be a pleasant hike and I had high hopes for a magnificent summit view. I'll post more tomorrow: