Montauk Point Lighthouse - Paumanok Path - Long Island, NY - November 29, 2014

Location: Camp Hero and Montauk Point State Park on the Paumanok Path of Long Island, NY
Mileage: ~3.75 miles one way
Difficulty: Easy
Terrain: Flat, Woods, Coastline, Sandy Beach
Companion: Jesse
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Make a loop of it!
From the lighthouse connect up to the Money Pond Trail, making your way back to the Paumanok Path on the north side of NY 27. (About 2.5 miles)
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This hike is one of the most beautiful you can choose to do on Long Island. I would put it in the top 3 walks here. We made this last section of the Paumanok Path into a loop. This is the only section I didn't have to hike twice. Jesse also hiked this section with me which is the only section he's done.

We began the hike on Camp Hero Road. There is a short connector trail that meets up with the Paumanok Path along the right hand side of the road. Parking is roadside. To do a shorter hike you can also just go straight to Camp Hero State Park and you'll start out at the bluffs right away with less woods walking.

The fall colors were still sticking around in late November. A few colorful areas abound. 

The moss under the many fallen Beech leaves thrives in this habitat.

There were many holly branches which gave the hike a nice Holiday feel for this time of year.

Camp Hero will take you through an area with much historical importance due to it's past military use.

The woods will eventually lead you out to the gorgeous bluffs below. There was no one else up here surprisingly and the bluff makes a great break time spot.

Back on to the trail, you'll follow along the coast all the way to the lighthouse.

The trail is marked by white markers all the way. Once you reach the lighthouse there's one or two markers on the rocks but the they stop until you walk all the way around the lighthouse across the rocks. 

Since I wasn't exactly sure where the trail ended I thought it stopped abruptly at the rocks at first as the trail markers stopped. But when we reached around to the other side of the lighthouse we caught another marker and followed it up towards the gift shop. 

We then saw the end of the trail marked by the three white blazes below.

We did our trek up the top of the lighthouse on a separate day to have ample time to explore.

The views are amazing from the top. There is a small platform you can step out to take a look around. It is a little different than the Fire Island lighthouse as with that one you can walk around the outside of the top for a 360 degree view. The Montauk one offers a pretty view, but it would benefit from a 360 degree walkway as well.

We made our way down and came back to check out the annual Holiday lighting.

Instead of going back the way we came, we made a loop and took the Money Pond trail back. This trail was listed on a website as one of the best trails on Long Island. It was an average trail through the woods without any spectacular views. I don't think I'd put it in the top. The Seal Halout trail could make the list if you get lucky enough to see some seals. We didn't see any on our hike. They are both very short trails. From the list on the website I do agree with David Weld and Walking Dunes being on the list for the top 10. The others are also nice too. I'd add on the entire Paumanok Path too.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/offmetrocom/the-10-best-hiking-trails_b_3683620.html

Be careful of ticks anywhere you hike on Long Island, especially in the warmer months. Winter and fall are the best times to hike here.

View of Money Pond

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LINK TO SEE VIDEO OF HIKE: MY VIMEO

Important Paumanok Path Info: http://www.hike-li.org/ptrail/index.htm

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Pinkham Notch Winter Hike - January 2, 2015

Location: Pinkham Notch
Trails: Appalachian Trail, Raymond Path, Huntington Ravine, Tuckerman Ravine
Mileage: ~5.5
Difficulty: Moderate
Extra Gear: Microspikes
Companion: Jesse

The second hike for the second day of the new year was chosen by Jesse. I had picked out the previous two. He said this area had some nice trails and he was right. It was the most beautiful due to the fresh snow and solitude here. The day started off foggy so there were no grandiose views of Mount Washington, but the beauty on this hike lay within the heart of the trail itself rather than the view beyond it.

We begin the hike heading up Old Jackson Road or the Appalachian Trail. The increase in elevation here was gradual and not bad at all.

Jesse decided on our last day hiking up here that he should probably pick up some microspikes. I'd been wearing mine for all the other hikes, but as we started up on this one the ice was hard to see and covered by the snow so he decided they were necessary to have. We had already hiked a half mile so he hiked back to the visitor center to buy some while I continued on. He'd catch up to me, hiking an extra mile more than me. ( He hikes that fast and I hike that slow lol) While I waited for him to catch back up to me I took lots of photos of the trail and hiked leisurely.

I really loved hiking the Appalachian Trail here. It was quiet and peaceful, like another world.

Many times along the trail there would be sudden bursts of wind that blew snow strongly up the trail interrupting the calm. Sometimes I would fear the burst was really an avalanche starting up. It was  that windy. Once we got to the Raymond Path it was stronger. I didn't get too many photos/videos of the strong gusts though now I wish I did. At the time, I would throw my hood up and turn my back to the gusts and maybe let a quiet scream out in anticipation of it's burst on my back. Then I'd watch the snow flakes dissipate and settle back down again. It was really beautiful.

We met back up at the first turn, just before reaching the Raymond Path.

It was a chilly day out, but hiking made it warm up pretty fast.

Snowflakes on the brow of my honey

A view point

Jesse is in the picture above if you look very closely. It is a winter wonderland, a canvas of freshly fallen snow. I've come to love winter hiking for it's beauty alone, but also for many other reasons. Each season has it's pluses and minuses. Jesse would often hike ahead of me then stop and let me catch up. He'd be waiting there for me with some hot tea and crackers and then we'd start back up again. Tea was a great pick me up in the cold weather and I was grateful he thought to bring it along.

The Raymond Path had more changes in elevation and constant ups and downs. A bit harder than I had expected. Jesse was the first to plant footprints in it for the day.

We reached the intersection for the Huntington Ravine trail. Here we saw a few people coming down from Mount Washington with their ice axes. Conquering Mount Washington in winter isn't on my wish list. But whenever we come across ice axe wielding mountaineers they look a lot more professional than the average hiker and they still awe me.

The descent down this short section of Huntington Ravine was very steep and I was glad we were going down rather than up.

There were sections it seemed we were walking over ice as well. 

Huntington Ravine was short in mileage, but felt longer due to steepness. It was fun sliding down the steep parts. We then reached the Tuckerman Ravine intersection.

A waterfall off the Tuckerman Ravine trail

The Tuckerman Ravine trail was much wider and packed down with more frequent travel. From here it was an easy walk down.

Watch short video of trail here

and here (my vimeo)

Other recommended eats in the White Mountains:

Flatbread Pizza - I highly recommend the Punctuated Equilibrium pizza