Friday July 3rd - Finger Lakes Trail at Sugar Hill State Forest - Near Watkins Glen NY - 6 miles about 500 feet elevation gain estimated
It's hot here this week. Despite that we headed out very early (before 8 am) to a spot described in our 50 Hikes in Central NY book. The book is kind of old and it suggested parking on the 'abandoned road' that becomes the first part of the hike. That road isn't abandoned anymore though it is a rough dirt road. I cautiously parked in a little gravel area in a field which I believe is part of the State Forest.
After walking a quarter mile up the not so abandoned road we were supposed to get on the Finger Lakes trail but interestingly there was a sign saying trail closed and pointing further down the road saying 'new trail'. The road itself was blazed as a horse trail and a snow mobile trail. Soon the road came to a T junction and there were signs for Mohawk trail, Seneca trail and Finger Lakes trail. Of them only the FLT was really what I'd call a trail, the others being more forest roads at least at this spot. We pretty much gave up on the book at this point because we couldn't tell where we were picking the trail up. So we just walked on the FLT and it was very peaceful and nice. No really long grinds up or down hill but it was also never truly flat so it was the right level of exercise for this very warm but thankfully not super humid day. We were about half way back to the car before we saw the first and only other 2 hikers we encountered all day. And that itself made this hike a success because even at 9:30 am Watkins Glen state park was swarming with people and we wanted the opposite of that!
After walking a quarter mile up the not so abandoned road we were supposed to get on the Finger Lakes trail but interestingly there was a sign saying trail closed and pointing further down the road saying 'new trail'. The road itself was blazed as a horse trail and a snow mobile trail. Soon the road came to a T junction and there were signs for Mohawk trail, Seneca trail and Finger Lakes trail. Of them only the FLT was really what I'd call a trail, the others being more forest roads at least at this spot. We pretty much gave up on the book at this point because we couldn't tell where we were picking the trail up. So we just walked on the FLT and it was very peaceful and nice. No really long grinds up or down hill but it was also never truly flat so it was the right level of exercise for this very warm but thankfully not super humid day. We were about half way back to the car before we saw the first and only other 2 hikers we encountered all day. And that itself made this hike a success because even at 9:30 am Watkins Glen state park was swarming with people and we wanted the opposite of that!
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