Indian Head and Twin - Catskills

Summits: Indian Head (3,573 ft elevation) and Twin (3,650 ft elevation) Mountains of the Catskills
Mileage: 8.4 Miles
Elevation Gain: 2,763 ft
Difficulty: Moderate

This hike includes 2 of the 35 summits over 3,500 ft in the Catskills. It makes for a good day hike. The trail head is on Prediger Road. Most of the lot was full by the time I got there at 10 am on a weekend morning.

Part of what I love about hiking is the drive to the destination. The drive leaves from the busy parkways of Long Island, thru the bustling activity of NYC to the crowded highways and rest stops of upstate NY until gradually it thins out more and more until eventually you hit the singular roads sparse of another car and you know you've hit home. The moment when that first mountain comes into view and a sense of heightened anticipation creeps into the heart. Blue Mountain Road is a wonderful name for a road and it was on this road that my anticipation finally reached it's peak knowing I was almost there. Platte Clove Rd, the road preceding Prediger is wonderfully scenic and peaceful as well. This road is closed during the winter time, which is another reason to do this hike within the season.

For this hike, it is simple to follow. You will traverse a section of the Devil's Path which is famous for it's strenuous elevation gain. Just follow the red markers. When you come to the first intersection before you make the right turn to start the uphill climbing, if you keep going just a bit you can check you the Devil's Kitchen Lean-to. It is a nice set up for a shelter to spend the night at.

The trail's climb isn't too bad. It is gradual in some spots. Then there are sections you will get to that are more like climbing and you will have to use tree branches as hand grips to pull yourself up. One couple there was actually filming the section you climb up. It is after that climb that you get to a fantastic viewpoint over a ledge at the top of Indian Head mtn. I think I was expecting some sort of obvious sign that I had reached the summit, so I hadn't realized I had already summited Indian Head until I was off it. Oops! The only other Catskill mountain I had peaked was Slide and that summit had been obvious. This one I kept hiking wondering when I'd get there until I was descending and eventually realized I was on my way to Twin. So I assume this viewpoint after the climb is the main summit.

You will descend a few hundred feet and get to the sign for the junction with the Blue Trail. You will be taking the Blue trail back down to your car after coming back from Twin. What goes up must come down and vice versa. So up we go again! Twin seemed to be a bit steeper. The views were also more grandiose. There is a great viewpoint just a bit before the actual summit, but make sure to continue on to bag the peak. There had been a group at the summit so this time I verified I had reached the official top. After the summit, turn around and retrace the trail back to the junction and follow the blue trail back to the trail head.

This was my first time on the Devil's Path and I expected it to be very strenuous from articles I had read on it. In actuality, it was not too bad. I imagine the difficulty comes from doing the entire path at once, which is about 24 miles, hence the continuous ups and downs would be a lot more tougher. For a day hike, the Whites contain more of the Devil in them in my opinion. :) Nothing quite kicks my tush more than the NH mountains.



Links:
http://hikethehudsonvalley.com/indian-head-mt-and-twin-mt/
http://www.catskillhiker.net/Catskill35/peaks/indianhead.shtml
http://www.catskillmountaineer.com/IH-twin.html