Black And Long Ponds - Part 2

My sister and I were hiking with the dogs along the Adirondacks' Black Pond (see also Part 1, posted yesterday). It was not only beautiful, but also aromatic, thanks to the Balsam Firs along the trail:

We reached the end of Black Pond but stayed on the trail, which continued northward:

At the north end of Black Pond was a fish barrier, dividing Black Pond and Long Pond and designed to prevent the spread of invasive species. We checked it out but then continued on our original trail so we could see Long Pond:

Long Pond was both smaller and narrower, yet still incredibly beautiful:

We stopped to enjoy the wild scenery and quietude at the Long Pond lean-to:

And then walked out onto the pier which jutted into Long Pond. It had deteriorated and was much shorter than it used to be:

The dogs walked out onto it also, but none of them fell off (which I had thought might happen):

Seamus and Fergus got some loving attention at the lean-to:

And then we turned back southward toward the trail head:

All along the way were places for the dogs to access the water and they often made use of them:

As we neared the trail head, Black Pond narrowed, and we looked back at the bigger pond which we had just visited:

Jack and Daphne played in the water. None of my dogs actually swim, but they've gradually become comfortable with splashing and wading:

My sister spotted the Common Merganser family again and pointed them out:

But this hike was almost over. Our car was just ahead. We called the dogs and put them on leashes for the last little bit of trail:

Black And Long Ponds - Part 1

My sister usually visits me each autumn and the visits are mostly brief, so I try to make good use of our time together. This year we took the dogs south to the Black Pond trail in the Adirondacks. We parked and began at this small section of Black Pond. It was lovely, but I knew there was much more up ahead along the trail:

We saw some ducks, apparently a family group which was traveling north up the lake at about the same speed as we were walking. We used a zoom lens for a better look and identified them as Common Mergansers, diving ducks. We got a chance to see them in a communal feeding frenzy, apparently when they'd located a school of fish:

We approached the first of several lean-tos:

We walked to the lean-to and stood, taking in the wild beauty of Black Pond:

And then we continued on our way up the trail. The trail is mostly level, but not entirely flat and easy to walk for a guy like me with leg braces and awkward gait:

The trail never left the shoreline, and the dogs were able to take a drink whenever they pleased:

There were patches of Balsam Fir trees, and we knew when we entered one of them by the heavy Balsam perfume:

Parts of the trail were easy even for me:

And there were planks across the marshy places:

Seamus waded in up to his chest to get a drink and cool himself off:

The little dogs liked the water also, though they picked shallower spots and only got their feet wet:

We saw evidence of beaver activity, though most of it looked old:

The trail ran between a tall esker on the left, and the pond on the right. An esker, by the way, is a gravel ridge, left behind by melting glaciers:

My sister stopped beside a Winterberry Holly, laden with scarlet fruit. We were headed north along the shore of Black Pond and there was much more yet to see. I'll post Part 2 tomorrow:

Jenkins Mountain Trail, Part 3

The dogs and I had hiked the trail alongside Black Pond and Long Pond, then continued on when we intersected the Jenkins Mountain Trail. My formerly weak legs had been feeling fine until the trail turned steeper and then they began to tire rapidly. I was well past that rocky crag I'd thought was Jenkins Mountain and decided that new mountain just visible through the trees must be our destination:

My legs continued weakening noticeably, and I lay down in the leaves to rest while I enjoyed the views. I immediately noticed that my reclining was presenting me with a new, wonderful look at the local flora like these Trout Lilies:

And my own dogs were thrilled to have me down at their level. Daphne came leaping over a small log, headed directly for my head:

I was resting on a rather steep incline and the dogs kept a watch nearby:

Fergus and Seamus were happy to relax with me:

But Clover and Daphne, AKA "The Silly Sisters," continued their high energy woodland exploration:

I stood up to continue hiking but immediately realized my legs would not go any farther. I reluctantly began returning toward the trail head. The consolation for my disappointment was seeing so many beautiful things I'd missed the first time along the trail. These Spring Beauties, for example:

The dogs stopped at the base of an uprooted tree to sniff:

And that, I presumed, was Jenkins Mountain. I felt sad that I wouldn't get to see the view from its peak, but will surely have other opportunities in years to come:

And we began traversing the trail back the way we'd come, along the tops of the eskers. I'll post more tomorrow:

Jenkins Mountain Trail, Part 2

My formerly weak legs were still feeling fine as we hiked the gradually ascending trail toward Jenkins Mountain. The trail was conveniently located high atop glacial eskers. I would have suspected that there'd been a railroad track there once upon a time if I hadn't read otherwise:

When the trail took us close enough to one of the many beaver ponds, Seamus of course went into the water for a drink and a cooling off:

A small bridge led us beneath a small, secondary beaver dam. It appeared to me that after the pond rose sufficiently, the beavers had to block this low spot to keep the pond deep enough. Amazing engineers, those beavers:

After the dogs all crossed the small bridge (you can see Seamus' giant footprints), they all trotted over to the water's edge again:

But then the trail led up and away from the beaver pond to once again follow the tops of eskers:

More Red Trilliums and Trout Lilies along the way:

We were almost past the biggest of the beaver ponds, so I snapped a photo of it one last time with that rocky peak in the background. I still suspected that was going to be our destination:

This was on April 30 and the spring flowers were just getting started. Even though the winter had been mild and spring had come early, with temperatures near 80 degrees in early March, these northern mountain plants seem to have known better than to begin ahead of schedule:

Happy dogs in a beautiful setting:

The Trout Lilies which hadn't yet been in full bloom at the lower elevations were in their full glory higher up. I guessed that to be because they got more sunlight. I'll post more tomorrow:

Jenkins Mountain Trail, Part 1

I'd hiked with my four youngest dogs from the trail head near Paul Smiths College north along the western shores of Black Pond and Long Pond. The trail had been exceedingly level and easy. When we reached the intersection with the Jenkins Mountain trail, I had a decision to make. Would my formerly weak legs make it to the summit? I didn't know, but they were feeling fine just then so I turned west toward Jenkins Mountain and began a slow, gradual ascent:

The trail was easy and it appeared we had it all to ourselves. The day was sunny and warm:

As we climbed higher into the hills, the conifers turned to hardwoods. This was on April 30 and none of the trees had yet leafed out. I guess those northern trees knew better than to be fooled by an early spring. I could see several mountains just ahead. Could one of those be Jenkins Mountain?:

There were plenty of Trout Lilies but even they were just beginning. Only one or two had flowers beginning to open:

There were Red TrilliumsTrout also, but they were either past their prime or not particularly pretty for some other reason:

The trail took us to the top of a long series of glacial eskers which had beaver ponds on both sides and mountains just ahead:

One mountain had a particularly rocky and open top, and I guessed that must be Jenkins Mountain:

We continued along the crest of eskers with the beaver ponds comfortably below us:

There were beaver lodges out in the water and several dams of considerable length and complexity. Sadly, my photo of the biggest dam did not turn out well:

I was getting better views by then of that rocky mountain top:

I zoomed in for a closer look. Yes, I was sure that the scenic vistas from atop that rocky peak would be wonderful. But we were just getting started. I'll post more tomorrow: