AboutWounded Knee Expertise I can advise on anything having to do with hiking and backpacking skills and equipment, including map and compass and orienteering skills. I cannot advise on the use of GPS devices. I cannot advise on car camping or group camping (10 or more people). My primary geographic expertise is in the US Northeast, but I know how to find information on hiking and backpacking just about anywhere.
Experience I've been hiking and backpacking for about 40 years, including ongoing section hiking of the Appalachian Trail (almost 1300 miles so far). I have hiked extensively in the New York Metropolitan Area, as well as various other areas from Virginia north, including upstate New York, New England, and Eastern Canada.
Publications New York Walk Book, 7th Ed. New Jersey Walk Book, 2nd Ed.
Education/Credentials Not applicable to this area of expertise.
Question QUESTION: hello and thank you for taking the time to consider my question. i'm looking for perhaps a few recommendations for trails in the upstate new york, whether harriman, adirondacks, etc that will impress my girlfriend who happens to be from vancouver. tall order i know! but i'm a former boy scout and i love the country up there, but it's been decades since i've been back. it's us two for labor day weekend. basically what i'd like to do is some back country wilderness hiking staying in one location and walking teh trails back and forth. my questions include:
--are there any trails with potable water sources
--can i make a fire, what are the fines for doing
--basically looking for a 3-4 mile hike with gear and camping several hundred yards off a trail.
thanks again for all the help!
ANSWER: Since I don't know your girlfriend, I can't speak to what would impress her.
I'll deal with your specific questions first:
1. Potable water: No water in any wilderness environment is potable -- it must be treated, filtered, or boiled to ensure that you won't get sick from drinking it.
2. I've never been fined for building a fire, so I don't know what the fines are. If the area has an absolute rule against fires, there's usually a good reason. Almost every place that allows fires permits them to be built only in established fire rings. This is a good rule, so obey it. The places that permit fires require you to use only downed wood -- if it's still on the tree, don't touch it. Every place that I know of prefers campers to use stoves, primarily because fires are risky. Having hiked through areas that have been blasted with forest fires, I accept such rules as valid.
3. Several hundred yards off the trail is a long way -- you probably shouldn't be much more than a couple hundred feet off the trail If you go further into the woods, you stand a significant risk of getting lost. Most places want you to camp in designated sites. While "stealth camping" is a common practice, even that should be done in sites that have been used before in order to minimize impact on the wilderness. As for the distance of your hike -- do you mean 3-4 miles in, spend the night, then 3-4 miles out? I need to know before I direct you to some specific hikes.
Regarding Harriman: I have answered a whole lot of questions about backpacking in Harriman, so if you look through my past answers, you will get a good general sense of what it's like there, including locations of the better campsites and the nicest scenery/views. If after you've looked through these answers you still have some specific questions, feel free to send me a follow-up.
Regarding the Adirondacks: I have only day hiked in the Adirondacks, but I've chatted with a lot of folks who backpack up there regularly. Getting to the more spectacular stuff requires some pretty demanding hiking, well beyond your 3-4 mile limit. Plus, the bears up there have gotten pretty clever and routinely steal hiker's food. Some areas (the High Peaks region in particular) require the use of bear canisters for food. They loan them out, so you don't have to buy one, but you have to use the things. I read an article recently indicating that one or two bears have even figured out how to get into the canisters. All of which isn't to say that you shouldn't go to the Adirondacks, only that you need to be aware of the realities of hiking up there. Again, if you still think that the Adirondacks would be a good destination, send me a follow-up and we'll get more specific.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Dear Whitestag,
Thank you, your reply is extremely helpful and yes i completely agree with all you say with regard to distance off trails and fires. it sounds like a better bet to stick to harriman since we're not ready to do too grueling a trip with our full packs.
to clarify, we'd like to park our car, hike on a trail 3-5 miles and then go off trail say a couple hundred feet and camp out there. during the following days, we'd keep the same camp, but do some hiking with lighter packs on the trail, nothing too intense. i will also read through your previous answers.
again appreciate whatever advice you have!
Answer Nearly all of the decent campsites in Harriman, whether or not they are "official", are within one or two miles of the nearest parking area. In order to give yourself a 3-4 mile hike, you have to intentionally select a starting point other than the nearest road crossing.
For example: The Fingerboard shelter at the intersection of the Hurst and Appalachian Trails is 1/2 mile from the road via the Hurst trail, but there's no parking at that point. It's 1.4 miles from the Tiorati Circle parking area via the Appalachian Trail (AT) and a short connector trail. But it's about 4 miles from the Elk Pen parking area on Arden Valley Road near Highway 17, also via the AT. If you hiked in from the Elk Pen, you'd have some pretty nice scenery/views along the way, including Island Pond, the Lemon Squeezer, and portions of the abandoned Surebridge iron mine. You can set up camp a couple hundred yards down the Hurst trail from the shelter -- there are a number of fairly good sites available. From your camp, you can head in a number of different directions for pleasant hikes.
The above is one several possibilities -- again, take a look at my past answers. Also, get your hands on the NY-NJ Trail Conference map set for Harriman and study it thoroughly -- it will give you a good sense of what would be good hikes from any given base camp.
