Chapter Three, Panther Mountain (Coming Down!)

We'd reached the summit of Panther Mountain, the dogs and I, and it was every bit as beautiful as I could have hoped:

Fergus, my faithful but somewhat nervous friend, watched my every move and tried to keep close:

I could see Panther Pond far below. We were parked perhaps a hundred feet from its shores and I knew I'd want to pay it a visit when we got back down there:

We all walked around the summit exploring:

I'd forgotten exactly where the trail was, but it wasn't difficult to find again. We began our descent:

Going down is usually more difficult, at least on the toes and joints, than going up. In this case I didn't find it too bad. If it had been wet, however, I imagine it would have been quite treacherous:

We continued down the steep slope to Route 3, where I put the dogs back on their leashes to cross the road to our parked car:

But instead of getting in the car, we walked down to Panther Pond, which had looked so lovely from the summit. Seamus immediately went into the water:

And Fergus did also:

Clover kept her feet dry but had a bit of fun climbing across fallen tree trunks:

I had yet another hike in mind, so I gave the dogs a call and we began walking up to the car:

The Mountain Maples were already beginning to turn brilliant colors and drop their leaves. We got back into the car and began driving north toward home and toward another hike. I'll post more tomorrow:

Chapter Two, Panther Mountain (The Summit!)

We had reached the summit of Panther Mountain and it was glorious!

The trees were beginning to turn red but there was still plenty of green leaves and white birch trunks to add variety and depth, enlivening the landscape. And then there was the scenic overlook:

I thought there might be another summit and tried following what looked to be another trail. But it quickly ended in the forest and we returned to the summit:

My four dogs sniffed everything and were very happy. On the trail up the mountain I'd met a man and his dog coming down who'd said my dogs would find a treat when they got there. I guessed that to mean he'd left behind some dog treats but as far as I could tell, there were none. Or did my dogs find them and gobble them up so fast I didn't even notice? Perhaps he meant the wonderful scenery would be a treat. If so, he was right:

I lay back in the grass to enjoy some peace and serenity but was immediately besieged by dogs:

I was given the full kissy-face treatment by all four of them:

Help! Help! I'm being licked to death!:

With that bit of silliness over, I returned to the edge to again enjoy the view:

We walked around the perimeter of the summit and did a bit of exploring:

Little Daphne, Mountain Dog Extraordinaire:

Clover and Fergus, Faithful Companions:

But it was soon time to go and I had another hike or two in mind for that day. I'd forgotten where exactly the trail was and had to walk along the edge of the forest to find it. But first I wanted to return to the overlook. I'll post more tomorrow:

Chapter One, Panther Mountain (Going Up!)

It was Tuesday morning and still very early. I'd taken a photo tour of the hamlet of Keese Mill (previous two posts) and then continued south on Route 30 to where it intersects with Route 3 just above Tupper Lake. I turned east on Route 3 for 1.6 miles and found the trail head parking, just as the guide book promised! I could only wish that finding trail heads had always been that easy. The dogs and I crossed Route 3 and began the rather steep ascent:

This was mature forest, but showing some signs of erosion on its steep slope:

But we were all happy and the day was exquisitely beautiful. The bug season was behind us and life was good:

This was a short hike but every bit as steep as the guide book had promised. We walked up, up, up - and then up some more:

Daphne hopped up on a rock to take a look around. Perhaps she was wondering why I was moving so much more slowly than she wanted to go:

Seamus has lost weight, but is still quite a chunky monkey. He was happy to go as slowly as I wanted and take a rest as often as I deemed appropriate:

Up we climbed, and then up some more. Past old growth forest and glacial erratics:

Hi Dad. Isn't this fun? Can't you walk any faster?:

And then we arrived at the summit. It had a breathtaking view:

Clover and Daphne trotted right out to the edge, exploring everything. I was more interested in the long range scenic overlook:

I followed them out to edge:

I was feeling happy and awed by all that beauty. I'll post more tomorrow: