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Hunter Mountain (New York)
Encyclopedia
Hunter Mountain is in the towns of Hunter
and Lexington
, just south of the village of Hunter
, in Greene County
, New York
, USA. At approximately 4,040 feet (1,234 m) in elevation, it is the highest peak in the county and the second-highest peak in the Catskill Mountains
.
While the mountain is closely associated with the highly popular eponymous ski area
built around the Colonel's Chair ridge at the mountain's northwest corner, that takes up only a small portion of the mountain. The actual summit, some distance from the ski area, is graced with a fire lookout tower
, the highest in the state and second-highest in the Northeast
. The former road to it is open to hikers
, horses
(and possibly mountain bike
rs in the future). It is the most popular route to the mountain's summit.
, rising steeply from Stony Clove Notch
in the east, then gently to the summit in the center, and gently back down to the west where the land makes a much less steep drop into Taylor Hollow, the col
between it and neighboring Rusk Mountain
. As with its eastern neighbor Plateau Mountain
, there is a considerable amount of level ground above 3,500 feet (1,067 m), the cutoff elevation for inclusion in the Catskill High Peaks
.
The relative steepness of the mountain's north slopes facilitated the growth of the ski area, but have made it an otherwise unattractive route up the mountain (only one of the several trails to the summit comes to it from the north). On the south side, slopes are equally steep and challenging to the southeast. However, a ridge splits off at a level area, known as Devil's Acre, midway along the mountain, rising to a 3,740-foot (1,140-m) summit unofficially known as Southwest Hunter Mountain
. Beyond that ridge, the slopes again steepen, reflecting the glacial cirque
between Southwest Hunter and Hunter that opens up into the Spruceton Valley.
The entire mountain is in the Hudson River
watershed
, with runoff from the north taking a circuitous route to it via Schoharie Creek
and the Mohawk River
. On the southeast corner, the route is much more direct, as water follows Stony Clove Creek
to Esopus Creek
and thence to the Hudson. The cirque on the southwest gives rise to a Schoharie tributary, the West Kill, also fed by Hunter Brook. Regardless of the stream, all of Hunter is part of New York City
's watershed, as the Esopus is impounded in Ashokan Reservoir
and the Schoharie in the similarly named reservoir
downstream.
While Hunter is traversed by the Devil's Path
hiking trail
and is often considered part of the range of the same name, it is distinct from the Devil's Path topographically due to the fork in the range.
in order to be sure they had indeed purchased the Catskills' highest peak, and were satisfied until an "unknown" peak appeared on the southern horizon — Slide Mountain, the range's true highest peak but not identified as such until 1886 (which makes this legend unlikely to have any basis in fact, as the necessary clearing at the summit for the fire tower was made well afterwards). For a time before Arnold Henry Guyot
identified Slide, either Hunter or nearby Black Dome
, central peak of the Blackhead Mountains, was thought to be the range's highest, in contrast to the claims of nearby hoteliers for Kaaterskill High Peak
.
Hunter, unlike Slide, was located close to settlements and saw considerable exploitation of its forest resources. Retired Colonel
William Edwards was so successful harvesting hemlock
bark
for tanning
during the mid-19th century in what is now the ski area that not only was the ridge named the Colonel's Chair in his honor, the village of Hunter was briefly renamed Edwardsville. On the other side of the mountain, the West Virginia
-based Fenwick Lumber Company logged
Hunter and Southwest Hunter so thoroughly between 1903 and 1917 that it is hard to find virgin forest
anywhere in the lands they once owned. Some of the roads and railroads they built on the mountains still serve as trails today, and other remnants of their operations are in the nearby woods.
made it possible for the mountain's forests to renew themselves after years of harvesting by humans. Four years after Fenwick cut down its last tree on Hunter, the state began buying the abandoned tracts, rendering them "forever wild" under the state constitution. By 1929, most of the mountain had been acquired and trails began to be cut, although it would be 1935 before most were finished.
The construction of the ski area put renewed development pressure on the mountain, especially as its owners dynamite
d areas to create steeper trails. A proposal to amend the state constitution and trade land closer to the summit ridge to the ski area for holdings elsewhere was vigorously opposed by environmentalists
and failed to pass the legislature in the early 1990s. Governor
George Pataki
's 1999 designation of most Catskill High Peaks as a state Bird Conservation Area, to protect Bicknell's thrush
and other threatened montane bird species, finally put the idea to rest.
, on Memorial Day
weekend in 1996, Monica Lewinsky
told a family friend, Dale Young, about her affair with President Bill Clinton
, during a vacation at a weight-loss
spa
in the Catskills. This event was later described as the first time she had confided in anyone about the affair. The spa was later identified as Vatra, located near the Becker Hollow trailhead north of Stony Clove Notch. The two were described as being in the middle of a 7.5-mile (12 km) hike up Hunter at the time, although it is unknown where they were on the mountain when Lewinsky made her disclosure.
describes Hunter as the "interior fire capital of the Catskills" since it has almost as much evidence of past burns as the Catskill Escarpment
further east. Most, but not all, he believes, were related to the logging operations on the mountain.
This results in the boreal forest at higher elevations on the mountain having a notably higher proportion of paper birch
and red spruce
to balsam fir
compared to Slide and other major Catskill peaks. These pioneering species are often found in areas regenerating themselves (red spruce is also found as an associate to hemlocks at lower elevations near Stony Clove Notch, reflecting the extensive tanbarking there).
According to Kudish, it is clear from a popular viewpoint over Southwest Hunter near a trail junction a short distance east of the summit that there has been a great disturbance in the forest. The many scrubby birches visible on the slopes down to Devil's Acre from here are the result of an extensive 1903 fire. Its telltale red spruce understory
and birch canopy
are also evident along the long level section of the Devil's Path just under 3500 feet (1,066.8 m) leading to the Acre from the east.
The fire damage and steep slope have also led to a small patch of boreal forest growing on the Hunter side of NY 214
as it ascends into Stony Clove Notch. The elevation there is around 2,100 feet (638 m), far lower than such forests are usually found in the Catskills.
aspiring to join the Catskill Mountain 3500 Club
.
also use it in the winter as well.
It begins at a parking area near the end of Spruceton Road (Greene County Route 6), past the point where pavement
ends, seven miles (11 km) from NY 42
at West Kill. From the trailhead
, 2,083 feet (634 m) above sea level it is 3.4 miles (5.5 km) and 1,957 vertical feet (596 m) to the summit. Facilities for riders to easily mount horses have recently been added to the parking lot.
The road heads north, following Hunter Brook for a short distance, climbing very gently on a somewhat rocky stretch of road until it crosses the brook on a wooden plank bridge. Eventually, 0.5 mile (900 m) from the trailhead, it reaches a hairpin turn
commonly used as a jumping-off point by hikers beginning the bushwhack up Rusk.
After these turns, it begins a more pronounced climb up the side of the brook valley, heading more to the northeast. This levels out at about 2,920 feet (890 m) when the road reaches Taylor Hollow, the low point between Hunter and East Rusk. An abandoned road continues north down the hollow to private property in the Schoharie Valley below. It is a wide, grass
y clearing, and hitching post
s are available for horses that wish to take a break.
The Spruceton Trail begins its toughest section next with a steady climb to the east. This used to be made more difficult by severe erosion
and rutting of the trail, but in the early 2000s DEC did extensive trail work that leveled many turns into gentler switchback
s, making it much more accessible for horses.
In the next half-mile (1 km) it will climb 600 feet (183 m) to a spring where a barrel
and a hitching post
has been installed (again for the benefit of horses) and the site of the John Robb Lean-to
, a popular log shelter that burned from causes still unknown in late 2005. Camping is forbidden here until the new lean-to is built (note - a new lean-to has been constructed as of Dec 2009 with a fireplace, extensive views into the Spruceton valley, and additional designated camping spots). The spring also makes it possible for hikers to only bring one bottle of water
and refill at the spring. From the rock outcrops opposite the trail from the lean-to site, there are excellent views to the west of Rusk, West Kill and the Spruceton Valley.
After the lean-to fir and spruce become more pronounced in the surrounding woods, and at about the Colonel's Chair Trail junction the 3500 feet (1,066.8 m) line is crossed and the forest becomes boreal. The trail climbs a bit more, then begins long level stretches through the boreal forest with only occasional uphill portions. Drainage is poor in this area, and many hikers are reminded of the Adirondacks
by the mud
dy patches and deep puddle
s that develop during periods of heavy rainfall. But there are occasional views to the north from outcrops near the trail, and as the summit approaches two short spur trails lead to the north and good-quality reliable springs
. The road gets noticeably more winding and steeper as it makes its last climb to the summit.
A loop route can be, and frequently is, made by following the Spruceton Trail to the junction with the yellow-blazed Hunter Mountain Trail, descending to Devil's Acre for the bushwhack to Southwest Hunter, then returning to the Spruceton trailhead via a combination of the western portion of the Devil's Path to West Kill Falls and then the Diamond Notch Trail.
at Stony Clove Notch. The red-blazed trail begins steeply, switching back past some impressive shale
cliffs known as the Devil's Portal, then following an old barkpeeler's road through an area where the hemlock are beginning to regenerate and red spruce have sprung up as associates. It returns to a more standard trail at the upper limit of the hemlocks and levels out just under 3500 feet (1,066.8 m), an ascent of about 1,500 vertical feet (457 m) in its first mile.
The next 1.15 mile (1.9 km) is a pleasant, level stroll through the heavily logged areas now dominated by paper birch and red spruce. Just before the Devil's Acre Lean-to, the yellow-blazed Hunter Mountain Trail departs to the north. It reaches the trail junction at the site of the old fire tower after 1.35 miles (2.2 km). From there it is 0.2 miles (400 m) to the summit on a level but often wet extension of the Spruceton Trail, for a total hike of 3.7 miles (6 km) and vertical ascent of 2,060 feet (628 m).
This approach also offers the possibility of visiting Southwest Hunter as well as a detour on the return trip.
The summit can also be reached by accessing Devil's Path from the West via either trailhead of the Diamond Notch Trail. This route allows hikers to view the scenic Buttermilk Falls at the junction of Devil's Path & the Diamond Notch Trail.
on the eponymous ridge, about 3,300 feet (1,006 m) in elevation. It follows some of the ski area's snowshoe
trails, and a short remainder of the former Mossy Brook Trail through this area (eliminated by the ski area's construction) for about 0.75 mile (1.2 km) to the beginning of state land. From there it is a gentle 0.45 mile (720 m) walk through boreal forest to the junction with the Spruceton Trail, and 1.2 miles (1.9 km) to the summit.
This route, at 2.3 miles (3.7 km) and 700 feet (213 m) of ascent, is probably the easiest way up Hunter, since the resort runs at least one chairlift
to the summit year-round. However, most hikers and peak baggers
frown upon claiming the summit this way unless the ski trails are followed from the base, without use of the chairlift. Most of those who use this route to the summit are patrons of the ski area who have rented snowshoes.
as has already happened with nearby Overlook Mountain and Balsam Lake Mountain
.
Some hikers have believed the site of the former fire tower to be the actual summit, as the land at that area seems to be higher when viewed from the fire tower. However, this is an optical illusion
similar to that experienced at the top of Mount Davis
, Pennsylvania
's highest peak, where lower bumps on the same ridge appear higher since there is nothing nearby for the eye to establish perspective with.
A flat rock near the fire tower (and visible when looking down from it) indicates north, with the words "4040 FT" on it. It may be the actual high point, but it is hard to tell since like so many other Catskill summits Hunter is wide and flat.
Hitching racks, and a mounting platform similar to the one at the Spruceton trailhead, have been built and/or renovated recently.
A wooden fire tower had been in existence at the summit since the state's Forest, Fish and Game Commission built it in 1909, during Fenwick's logging operations, but once those ended it was replaced by a steel one in 1917, then the current one in 1953. At that time, the location of the tower was changed from a smaller clearing 0.2 mile (400 m) east of the summit to its current location. The footings
at this location, a trail junction, are still visible and sometimes cause confusion as to whether this is, in fact, the mountain's actual summit.
Despite being closed after fire lookouts were no longer needed in 1990, its staircase and cab remained easily accessible to visitors and it was frequently climbed to provide a 360-degree view not normally found in the Catskills. Later, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
(DEC), which administers the Forest Preserve, decided that instead of tearing it down matching funds
should be raised from the nearby communities to renovate and reopen it, along with the other four remaining towers in the Catskills, to educate the public and enhance its understanding of the Forest Preserve. In 1997 it was further protected when it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
, and after renovations it was reopened to the public in 2000. The box used by rangers at the top of the tower has since been padlocked and boarded up.
Hunter (town), New York
Hunter is a town in Greene County, New York. The population was 2,732 at the 2010 census.The Town of Hunter contain two villages one named Hunter and the other called Tannersville. The town is on the County's south border.- History :...
and Lexington
Lexington, New York
Lexington is a town in Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 805 at the 2010 census.The Town of Lexington is in the southwest part of Greene County.- History :The town was first settled around 1788....
, just south of the village of Hunter
Hunter (village), New York
Hunter is a village in Greene County, New York, USA. The population was 502 at the 2010 census.The Village of Hunter is in the northwest part of the Town of Hunter on Route 23A.- History :...
, in Greene County
Greene County, New York
Greene County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. Its name is in honor of the American Revolutionary War general Nathanael Greene. Its county seat is Catskill...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, USA. At approximately 4,040 feet (1,234 m) in elevation, it is the highest peak in the county and the second-highest peak in the Catskill Mountains
Catskill Mountains
The Catskill Mountains, an area in New York State northwest of New York City and southwest of Albany, are a mature dissected plateau, an uplifted region that was subsequently eroded into sharp relief. They are an eastward continuation, and the highest representation, of the Allegheny Plateau...
.
While the mountain is closely associated with the highly popular eponymous ski area
Hunter Mountain (ski area)
Hunter Mountain is a ski resort located about three hours up the New York State Thruway north-northwest of New York City. It features a vertical drop....
built around the Colonel's Chair ridge at the mountain's northwest corner, that takes up only a small portion of the mountain. The actual summit, some distance from the ski area, is graced with a fire lookout tower
Fire lookout tower
A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness...
, the highest in the state and second-highest in the Northeast
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States is a region of the United States as defined by the United States Census Bureau.-Composition:The region comprises nine states: the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont; and the Mid-Atlantic states of New...
. The former road to it is open to hikers
Hiking
Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...
, horses
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
(and possibly mountain bike
Mountain bike
A mountain bike or mountain bicycle is a bicycle created for off-road cycling. This activity includes traversing of rocks and washouts, and steep declines,...
rs in the future). It is the most popular route to the mountain's summit.
Geography
Hunter takes the shape of a medium-length ridgeRidge
A ridge is a geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. Ridges are usually termed hills or mountains as well, depending on size. There are several main types of ridges:...
, rising steeply from Stony Clove Notch
Stony Clove Notch
Stony Clove Notch is a narrow pass, roughly 2,220 feet in elevation located in the Town of Hunter in Greene County, New York, deep in the Catskill Mountains. It is traversed by New York State Route 214, although in the past the Ulster and Delaware Railroad went through it as well.The notch divides...
in the east, then gently to the summit in the center, and gently back down to the west where the land makes a much less steep drop into Taylor Hollow, the col
Mountain pass
A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...
between it and neighboring Rusk Mountain
Rusk Mountain
Rusk Mountain is a peak located in the towns of Jewett and Lexington in Greene County, New York, USA. At 3,680 feet in elevation, it is the 20th-highest peak in the Catskill Mountains and considered a member of the Catskill High Peaks...
. As with its eastern neighbor Plateau Mountain
Plateau Mountain (New York)
Plateau Mountain is a mountain located in Greene County, New York.The mountain is part of the Devil's Path range of the Catskill Mountains.Plateau has a two-mile-long summit ridge above ....
, there is a considerable amount of level ground above 3,500 feet (1,067 m), the cutoff elevation for inclusion in the Catskill High Peaks
Catskill High Peaks
The Catskill High Peaks are all of the mountains in New York's Catskill Mountains above 3,500 ft in elevation whose summits are separated either by one-half mile or a vertical drop of at least 250 ft between it and the next nearest separate summit...
.
The relative steepness of the mountain's north slopes facilitated the growth of the ski area, but have made it an otherwise unattractive route up the mountain (only one of the several trails to the summit comes to it from the north). On the south side, slopes are equally steep and challenging to the southeast. However, a ridge splits off at a level area, known as Devil's Acre, midway along the mountain, rising to a 3,740-foot (1,140-m) summit unofficially known as Southwest Hunter Mountain
Southwest Hunter Mountain
Southwest Hunter Mountain is a subpeak of Hunter Mountain, located in Greene County, New York.SW Hunter is considered one of the Catskills' High Peaks in its own right, because of its separation from the main summit, and its topographic prominence.Hunter Mountain is named after John Hunter, who...
. Beyond that ridge, the slopes again steepen, reflecting the glacial cirque
Cirque (landform)
thumb|250 px|Two cirques with semi-permanent snowpatches in [[Abisko National Park]], [[Sweden]].A cirque or corrie is an amphitheatre-like valley head, formed at the head of a valley glacier by erosion...
between Southwest Hunter and Hunter that opens up into the Spruceton Valley.
The entire mountain is in the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
, with runoff from the north taking a circuitous route to it via Schoharie Creek
Schoharie Creek
Schoharie Creek in New York, USA flows north from the foot of Indian Head Mountain in the Catskill Mountains through the Schoharie Valley to the Mohawk River. It is twice impounded north of Prattsville to create New York City's Schoharie Reservoir and the Blenheim-Gilboa Power Project.Two notable...
and the Mohawk River
Mohawk River
The Mohawk River is a river in the U.S. state of New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. The Mohawk flows into the Hudson in the Capital District, a few miles north of the city of Albany. The river is named for the Mohawk Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy...
. On the southeast corner, the route is much more direct, as water follows Stony Clove Creek
Stony Clove Creek
Stony Clove Creek is a creek in the Catskill Mountains in New York. It is a tributary of Esopus Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Hudson River. It joins the Esopus in the village of Phoenicia, and has two smaller tributaries up north of Phoenicia....
to Esopus Creek
Esopus Creek
Esopus Creek is a tributary of the Hudson River that drains the east-central Catskill Mountains of the U.S. state of New York. From its source at Winnisook Lake on the slopes of Slide Mountain, the Catskills' highest peak, it flows across Ulster County to the Hudson at Saugerties. Many tributaries...
and thence to the Hudson. The cirque on the southwest gives rise to a Schoharie tributary, the West Kill, also fed by Hunter Brook. Regardless of the stream, all of Hunter is part of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's watershed, as the Esopus is impounded in Ashokan Reservoir
Ashokan Reservoir
The Ashokan Reservoir is a reservoir in Ulster County, New York, USA. The reservoir is in the eastern end of the Catskill Park, and is one of several reservoirs created to provide the City of New York with water. However, it is one of only two reservoirs in the Catskill Watershed. It is also New...
and the Schoharie in the similarly named reservoir
Schoharie Reservoir
The Schoharie Reservoir is a small reservoir in the Catskill Mountains of New York State that was created to be one of 19 reservoirs that supplies New York City with water. It was created by impounding Schoharie Creek...
downstream.
While Hunter is traversed by the Devil's Path
Devil's Path (Catskills)
The Devil's Path is the name of a mountain range and hiking trail in the Greene County portion of New York's Catskill Mountains. The mountains commonly considered to be part of the Devil's Path are, from west to east, West Kill, Hunter, Plateau, Sugarloaf, Twin, and Indian Head.The name comes from...
hiking trail
Trail
A trail is a path with a rough beaten or dirt/stone surface used for travel. Trails may be for use only by walkers and in some places are the main access route to remote settlements...
and is often considered part of the range of the same name, it is distinct from the Devil's Path topographically due to the fork in the range.
History
Early years
Originally named Greenland Mountain, in the mid-19th century the mountain was renamed. Like the town and the village, Hunter takes its name from John Hunter, a somewhat despised local landlord. It is not known when the mountain was first climbed, or by whom. A popular local legend has it that Hunter, or some other later landowner, went to the summit with a hand levelSpirit level
A spirit level or bubble level is an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface ishorizontal or vertical . Different types of spirit levels may be used by carpenters, stonemasons, bricklayers, other building trades workers, surveyors, millwrights and other metalworkers, and in some...
in order to be sure they had indeed purchased the Catskills' highest peak, and were satisfied until an "unknown" peak appeared on the southern horizon — Slide Mountain, the range's true highest peak but not identified as such until 1886 (which makes this legend unlikely to have any basis in fact, as the necessary clearing at the summit for the fire tower was made well afterwards). For a time before Arnold Henry Guyot
Arnold Henry Guyot
Arnold Henry Guyot was a Swiss-American geologist and geographer.-Biography:...
identified Slide, either Hunter or nearby Black Dome
Black Dome (New York)
Black Dome is a mountain located in Greene County, New York.The mountain is the highest peak of the Blackhead Mountains range of the Catskills.Black Dome is flanked to the east by Blackhead, and to the west by Thomas Cole Mountain....
, central peak of the Blackhead Mountains, was thought to be the range's highest, in contrast to the claims of nearby hoteliers for Kaaterskill High Peak
Kaaterskill High Peak
Kaaterskill High Peak is one of the Catskill Mountains, located in the Town of Hunter in Greene County, New York, USA. It was once believed to be the highest peak in the entire range, but its summit, at 3,655 feet in elevation, places it only 23rd among the Catskill High Peaks. It is, however,...
.
Hunter, unlike Slide, was located close to settlements and saw considerable exploitation of its forest resources. Retired Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
William Edwards was so successful harvesting hemlock
Eastern Hemlock
Tsuga canadensis, also known as eastern or Canadian hemlock, and in the French-speaking regions of Canada as pruche du Canada, is a coniferous tree native to eastern North America. It ranges from northeastern Minnesota eastward through southern Quebec to Nova Scotia, and south in the Appalachian...
bark
Bark
Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...
for tanning
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
during the mid-19th century in what is now the ski area that not only was the ridge named the Colonel's Chair in his honor, the village of Hunter was briefly renamed Edwardsville. On the other side of the mountain, the West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
-based Fenwick Lumber Company logged
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
Hunter and Southwest Hunter so thoroughly between 1903 and 1917 that it is hard to find virgin forest
Old growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
anywhere in the lands they once owned. Some of the roads and railroads they built on the mountains still serve as trails today, and other remnants of their operations are in the nearby woods.
Forest Preserve
The establishment of New York's Forest PreserveForest Preserve (New York)
New York's Forest Preserve is all the land owned by the state within the Adirondack and Catskill parks, managed by its Department of Environmental Conservation. These properties are required to be kept "forever wild" by Article 14 of the state constitution, and thus enjoy the highest degree of...
made it possible for the mountain's forests to renew themselves after years of harvesting by humans. Four years after Fenwick cut down its last tree on Hunter, the state began buying the abandoned tracts, rendering them "forever wild" under the state constitution. By 1929, most of the mountain had been acquired and trails began to be cut, although it would be 1935 before most were finished.
The construction of the ski area put renewed development pressure on the mountain, especially as its owners dynamite
Dynamite
Dynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...
d areas to create steeper trails. A proposal to amend the state constitution and trade land closer to the summit ridge to the ski area for holdings elsewhere was vigorously opposed by environmentalists
Environmental movement in the United States
In the United States today, the organized environmental movement is represented by a wide range of organizations sometimes called non-governmental organizations or NGOs. These organizations exist on local, national, and international scales...
and failed to pass the legislature in the early 1990s. Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
George Pataki
George Pataki
George Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
's 1999 designation of most Catskill High Peaks as a state Bird Conservation Area, to protect Bicknell's thrush
Bicknell's Thrush
The Bicknell's Thrush, Catharus bicknelli, is a medium-sized thrush, at 17.5 cm and 28 g . It was named after Eugene Bicknell, an American amateur ornithologist, who discovered the species on Slide Mountain in the Catskills in the late 19th century.Adults are olive-brown on the upperparts,...
and other threatened montane bird species, finally put the idea to rest.
Site of key conversation in Clinton impeachment
According to the Starr ReportStarr Report
The Starr Report was an investigative account of United States President Bill Clinton by Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr and released on September 11, 1998.-Background:...
, on Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
weekend in 1996, Monica Lewinsky
Monica Lewinsky
Monica Samille Lewinsky is an American woman with whom United States President Bill Clinton admitted to having had an "improper relationship" while she worked at the White House in 1995 and 1996...
told a family friend, Dale Young, about her affair with President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, during a vacation at a weight-loss
Weight loss
Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health or physical fitness, is a reduction of the total body mass, due to a mean loss of fluid, body fat or adipose tissue and/or lean mass, namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon and other connective tissue...
spa
Destination spa
A destination spa is a short term residential/lodging facility with the primary purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters...
in the Catskills. This event was later described as the first time she had confided in anyone about the affair. The spa was later identified as Vatra, located near the Becker Hollow trailhead north of Stony Clove Notch. The two were described as being in the middle of a 7.5-mile (12 km) hike up Hunter at the time, although it is unknown where they were on the mountain when Lewinsky made her disclosure.
Today
Currently, Hunter, Rusk and Southwest Hunter mountains are grouped by DEC into the Hunter Mountain Wild Forest, reflecting the extensive past disturbances to the forest. A change proposed in the pending update to the Catskill Park State Land Master Plan (CPSLMP) would combine almost all of that land with the neighboring West Kill Wilderness Area to create a large Hunter-West Kill Wilderness Area. Ironically, the summit of Hunter itself would remain in a thin corridor known as the Rusk Mountain Wild Forest, to accommodate uses of the Spruceton Trail that would not be permitted in a wilderness area.Natural environment
In addition to the extensive logging operations and ski development, Hunter's forests have been widely affected by forest fires, particularly on the eastern slope above Stony Clove Notch. Catskill forest historian Michael KudishMichael Kudish
Michael Kudish is an author, railroad historian, forester, and retired professor. He received his Ph.D. in 1971 from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse. His dissertation, on the history of Catskill forests, was the beginning of a lifelong...
describes Hunter as the "interior fire capital of the Catskills" since it has almost as much evidence of past burns as the Catskill Escarpment
Catskill Escarpment
The Catskill Escarpment, often referred to locally as just the Escarpment or the Great Wall of Manitou, and known as the Catskill Front to geologists, is the range forming the northeastern corner of the Catskill Mountains in Greene and Ulster counties in the U.S. state of New York...
further east. Most, but not all, he believes, were related to the logging operations on the mountain.
This results in the boreal forest at higher elevations on the mountain having a notably higher proportion of paper birch
Paper Birch
Betula papyrifera is a species of birch native to northern North America.-Description:...
and red spruce
Red Spruce
Picea rubens is a species of spruce native to eastern North America, ranging from eastern Quebec to Nova Scotia, and from New England south in the Adirondack Mountains and Appalachians to western North Carolina.-Physical description:...
to balsam fir
Balsam Fir
The balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada and the northeastern United States .-Growth:It is a small to medium-size evergreen tree typically tall, rarely to tall, with a narrow conic crown...
compared to Slide and other major Catskill peaks. These pioneering species are often found in areas regenerating themselves (red spruce is also found as an associate to hemlocks at lower elevations near Stony Clove Notch, reflecting the extensive tanbarking there).
According to Kudish, it is clear from a popular viewpoint over Southwest Hunter near a trail junction a short distance east of the summit that there has been a great disturbance in the forest. The many scrubby birches visible on the slopes down to Devil's Acre from here are the result of an extensive 1903 fire. Its telltale red spruce understory
Understory
Understory is the term for the area of a forest which grows at the lowest height level below the forest canopy. Plants in the understory consist of a mixture of seedlings and saplings of canopy trees together with understory shrubs and herbs...
and birch canopy
Canopy (forest)
In biology, the canopy is the aboveground portion of a plant community or crop, formed by plant crowns.For forests, canopy also refers to the upper layer or habitat zone, formed by mature tree crowns and including other biological organisms .Sometimes the term canopy is used to refer to the extent...
are also evident along the long level section of the Devil's Path just under 3500 feet (1,066.8 m) leading to the Acre from the east.
The fire damage and steep slope have also led to a small patch of boreal forest growing on the Hunter side of NY 214
New York State Route 214
New York State Route 214 is a short but scenic state highway in the heart of the Catskill Park. It runs north–south from near the hamlet of Phoenicia up near an old railroad route into the narrow pass known as Stony Clove Notch, then down into the upper Schoharie Creek valley to end...
as it ascends into Stony Clove Notch. The elevation there is around 2,100 feet (638 m), far lower than such forests are usually found in the Catskills.
Approaches
There are four available routes up Hunter. An unlimited number of trailless routes also, of course, exist but the mountain is rarely bushwhacked. Two offer the possibility of climbing Southwest Hunter on the same trip as well, an option frequently taken by peakbaggersPeak bagging
Peak bagging is an activity in which hillwalkers and mountaineers attempt to reach the summit of some collection of peaks, usually those above some height in a particular region, or having a particular feature.Peak bagging can be distinguished from highpointing...
aspiring to join the Catskill Mountain 3500 Club
Catskill Mountain 3500 Club
The Catskill Mountain 3500 Club, incorporated as the Catskill 3500 Club and often just referred to as the 3500 Club, is a peakbagging organization for hikers in the Catskill Mountains of New York...
.
Spruceton Trail
The blue-blazed old road to the fire tower from the southwest is the most commonly used route to the summit. While most who take it do so on foot, it is also blazed for horses and has recently been renovated and slightly rerouted for them. Cross-country skiersCross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
also use it in the winter as well.
It begins at a parking area near the end of Spruceton Road (Greene County Route 6), past the point where pavement
Pavement (material)
Road surface or pavement is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past cobblestones and granite setts were extensively used, but these surfaces have mostly been replaced by asphalt or concrete. Such...
ends, seven miles (11 km) from NY 42
New York State Route 42
New York State Route 42 is a north–south, discontinuous state highway in the Catskill Mountains region of New York in the United States. The southernmost of the highway's two segments begins at an intersection with U.S. Route 6 and US 209 in Port Jervis and ends at a junction with...
at West Kill. From the trailhead
Trailhead
A trailhead is the point at which a trail begins, where the trail is often intended for hiking, biking, horseback riding, or off-road vehicles...
, 2,083 feet (634 m) above sea level it is 3.4 miles (5.5 km) and 1,957 vertical feet (596 m) to the summit. Facilities for riders to easily mount horses have recently been added to the parking lot.
The road heads north, following Hunter Brook for a short distance, climbing very gently on a somewhat rocky stretch of road until it crosses the brook on a wooden plank bridge. Eventually, 0.5 mile (900 m) from the trailhead, it reaches a hairpin turn
Hairpin turn
A hairpin turn , named for its resemblance to a hairpin/bobby pin, is a bend in a road with a very acute inner angle, making it necessary for an oncoming vehicle to turn almost 180° to continue on the road. Such turns in ramps and trails may be called switchbacks in American English, by analogy...
commonly used as a jumping-off point by hikers beginning the bushwhack up Rusk.
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
y clearing, and hitching post
Hitching post
A hitching post is a post to which a horse may be tethered to prevent it from straying. The term can also refer to:* The "hitching post", a contentious punishment in the case of Hope v...
s are available for horses that wish to take a break.
The Spruceton Trail begins its toughest section next with a steady climb to the east. This used to be made more difficult by severe erosion
Erosion
Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...
and rutting of the trail, but in the early 2000s DEC did extensive trail work that leveled many turns into gentler switchback
Hairpin turn
A hairpin turn , named for its resemblance to a hairpin/bobby pin, is a bend in a road with a very acute inner angle, making it necessary for an oncoming vehicle to turn almost 180° to continue on the road. Such turns in ramps and trails may be called switchbacks in American English, by analogy...
s, making it much more accessible for horses.
In the next half-mile (1 km) it will climb 600 feet (183 m) to a spring where a barrel
Barrel
A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container, traditionally made of vertical wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. Traditionally, the barrel was a standard size of measure referring to a set capacity or weight of a given commodity. A small barrel is called a keg.For example, a...
and a hitching post
Hitching post
A hitching post is a post to which a horse may be tethered to prevent it from straying. The term can also refer to:* The "hitching post", a contentious punishment in the case of Hope v...
has been installed (again for the benefit of horses) and the site of the John Robb Lean-to
Lean-to
A lean-to is a term used to describe a roof with a single slope. The term also applies to a variety of structures that are built using a lean-to roof....
, a popular log shelter that burned from causes still unknown in late 2005. Camping is forbidden here until the new lean-to is built (note - a new lean-to has been constructed as of Dec 2009 with a fireplace, extensive views into the Spruceton valley, and additional designated camping spots). The spring also makes it possible for hikers to only bring one bottle of water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
and refill at the spring. From the rock outcrops opposite the trail from the lean-to site, there are excellent views to the west of Rusk, West Kill and the Spruceton Valley.
After the lean-to fir and spruce become more pronounced in the surrounding woods, and at about the Colonel's Chair Trail junction the 3500 feet (1,066.8 m) line is crossed and the forest becomes boreal. The trail climbs a bit more, then begins long level stretches through the boreal forest with only occasional uphill portions. Drainage is poor in this area, and many hikers are reminded of the Adirondacks
Adirondack Mountains
The Adirondack Mountains are a mountain range located in the northeastern part of New York, that runs through Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, Saint Lawrence, Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties....
by the mud
Mud
Mud is a mixture of water and some combination of soil, silt, and clay. Ancient mud deposits harden over geological time to form sedimentary rock such as shale or mudstone . When geological deposits of mud are formed in estuaries the resultant layers are termed bay muds...
dy patches and deep puddle
Puddle
A puddle is a small accumulation of liquid, usually water, on a surface. It can form either by pooling in a depression on the surface, or by surface tension upon a flat surface...
s that develop during periods of heavy rainfall. But there are occasional views to the north from outcrops near the trail, and as the summit approaches two short spur trails lead to the north and good-quality reliable springs
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
. The road gets noticeably more winding and steeper as it makes its last climb to the summit.
A loop route can be, and frequently is, made by following the Spruceton Trail to the junction with the yellow-blazed Hunter Mountain Trail, descending to Devil's Acre for the bushwhack to Southwest Hunter, then returning to the Spruceton trailhead via a combination of the western portion of the Devil's Path to West Kill Falls and then the Diamond Notch Trail.
Devil's Path and Hunter Mountain Trail
The next most popular route starts from the southeast, via the Devil's PathDevil's Path (hiking trail)
The Devil's Path is a hiking trail in the Greene County section of the Catskill Mountains of New York, often described as the toughest hiking trail in the Eastern United States...
at Stony Clove Notch. The red-blazed trail begins steeply, switching back past some impressive shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
cliffs known as the Devil's Portal, then following an old barkpeeler's road through an area where the hemlock are beginning to regenerate and red spruce have sprung up as associates. It returns to a more standard trail at the upper limit of the hemlocks and levels out just under 3500 feet (1,066.8 m), an ascent of about 1,500 vertical feet (457 m) in its first mile.
The next 1.15 mile (1.9 km) is a pleasant, level stroll through the heavily logged areas now dominated by paper birch and red spruce. Just before the Devil's Acre Lean-to, the yellow-blazed Hunter Mountain Trail departs to the north. It reaches the trail junction at the site of the old fire tower after 1.35 miles (2.2 km). From there it is 0.2 miles (400 m) to the summit on a level but often wet extension of the Spruceton Trail, for a total hike of 3.7 miles (6 km) and vertical ascent of 2,060 feet (628 m).
This approach also offers the possibility of visiting Southwest Hunter as well as a detour on the return trip.
The summit can also be reached by accessing Devil's Path from the West via either trailhead of the Diamond Notch Trail. This route allows hikers to view the scenic Buttermilk Falls at the junction of Devil's Path & the Diamond Notch Trail.
Colonel's Chair Trail from ski area
The yellow-blazed Colonel's Chair Trail begins at the ski area's "summit" lodge at the end of the promontoryPromontory
Promontory may refer to:*Promontory, a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water*Promontory, Utah, the location where the United States first Transcontinental Railroad was completed...
on the eponymous ridge, about 3,300 feet (1,006 m) in elevation. It follows some of the ski area's snowshoe
Snowshoe
A snowshoe is footwear for walking over the snow. Snowshoes work by distributing the weight of the person over a larger area so that the person's foot does not sink completely into the snow, a quality called "flotation"....
trails, and a short remainder of the former Mossy Brook Trail through this area (eliminated by the ski area's construction) for about 0.75 mile (1.2 km) to the beginning of state land. From there it is a gentle 0.45 mile (720 m) walk through boreal forest to the junction with the Spruceton Trail, and 1.2 miles (1.9 km) to the summit.
This route, at 2.3 miles (3.7 km) and 700 feet (213 m) of ascent, is probably the easiest way up Hunter, since the resort runs at least one chairlift
Chairlift
An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel cable loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs...
to the summit year-round. However, most hikers and peak baggers
Peak bagging
Peak bagging is an activity in which hillwalkers and mountaineers attempt to reach the summit of some collection of peaks, usually those above some height in a particular region, or having a particular feature.Peak bagging can be distinguished from highpointing...
frown upon claiming the summit this way unless the ski trails are followed from the base, without use of the chairlift. Most of those who use this route to the summit are patrons of the ski area who have rented snowshoes.
Becker Hollow Trail
The least popular route up Hunter is also the shortest ... the Becker Hollow Trail, which begins along Route 214 north of Stony Clove Notch. It is only 2.05 miles (3.3 km) to the summit from here, but the vertical ascent of 2,270 feet (692 m) is the greatest of any approach and as a consequence the trail is infamous for being a continuous upward slope with no level stretches. It can be followed either to the trail junction at the old fire tower site, but a short connector leads past a spring and directly to the summit.Summit
Hunter's summit is a large clearing dominated by the fire tower and observer's cabin. The former may once again be climbed although the cab at the top is locked save for days when volunteer interpreters go up to help; the latter is locked but may eventually be turned into a small museumMuseum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
as has already happened with nearby Overlook Mountain and Balsam Lake Mountain
Balsam Lake Mountain
Balsam Lake Mountain is one of the Catskill Mountains, located in the Town of Hardenburgh, New York, United States. It is the westernmost of the range's 35 High Peaks...
.
Some hikers have believed the site of the former fire tower to be the actual summit, as the land at that area seems to be higher when viewed from the fire tower. However, this is an optical illusion
Optical illusion
An optical illusion is characterized by visually perceived images that differ from objective reality. The information gathered by the eye is processed in the brain to give a perception that does not tally with a physical measurement of the stimulus source...
similar to that experienced at the top of Mount Davis
Mount Davis (Pennsylvania)
Mount Davis is the highest point in Pennsylvania. Located in the 5,685 acre Forbes State Forest in Elk Lick Township, Somerset County, it rises to 3,213 ft...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
's highest peak, where lower bumps on the same ridge appear higher since there is nothing nearby for the eye to establish perspective with.
A flat rock near the fire tower (and visible when looking down from it) indicates north, with the words "4040 FT" on it. It may be the actual high point, but it is hard to tell since like so many other Catskill summits Hunter is wide and flat.
Hitching racks, and a mounting platform similar to the one at the Spruceton trailhead, have been built and/or renovated recently.
Fire tower
Foundation (architecture)
A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...
at this location, a trail junction, are still visible and sometimes cause confusion as to whether this is, in fact, the mountain's actual summit.
Despite being closed after fire lookouts were no longer needed in 1990, its staircase and cab remained easily accessible to visitors and it was frequently climbed to provide a 360-degree view not normally found in the Catskills. Later, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is responsible for the conservation, improvement, and protection of natural resources within the U.S. state of New York. It was founded in 1970, replacing the previous Conservation Department...
(DEC), which administers the Forest Preserve, decided that instead of tearing it down matching funds
Matching funds
Matching funds, a term used to describe the requirement or condition that a generally minimal amount of money or services-in-kind originate from the beneficiaries of financial amounts, usually for a purpose of charitable or public good.-Charitable causes:...
should be raised from the nearby communities to renovate and reopen it, along with the other four remaining towers in the Catskills, to educate the public and enhance its understanding of the Forest Preserve. In 1997 it was further protected when it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, and after renovations it was reopened to the public in 2000. The box used by rangers at the top of the tower has since been padlocked and boarded up.
External links
- Hunter Mountain Hiking Information Catskill 3500 Club
- CatskillSearch.com Photos- Becker Hollow Trail / Hunter Mountain
- Hunter Mountain at 24Hour Museum
- Hunter Mountain Fire Tower at the Fire Towers of New York Site