Life is Short but Days are Long

“We’re not here for a long time, we’re here for a good time” my father would joke, in the days before he passed, just a few years ago.  He was known for having a good time. After his passing I decided to up my game. I committed myself to getting out on at least one big trip a year, on the longest days of the year, to test myself.

avalanche pass hiker

A celebration of life and light with some type 2 fun mixed in. In 2019, I convinced two close friends, Freebird and Grapestomper, to traverse the 20+ mile Adirondack High Peaks Great Range Trail on the summer solstice.  Known as one of the hardest day hikes in America, it certainly lived up to its reputation.

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Stonetown Circular Trail

If the Paris – Roubaix bicycle race is called L’Enfer du Nord — the hell of the north — then I submit that Norvin Green State Forest’s Stonetown Circular Trail qualifies as L’Enfer de Ringwood. The 55+ kilometers of cobblestone sections in the bike race are a severe test of bike handling and endurance. The technical, straight-up-and-down-the-fall-line climbs in Stonetown test a trail runner’s endurance and joint integrity.

Board Mountain

This spring, people have flooded social media with hundreds posts celebrating late season skiing at Killington, Whiteface, and Gore. Due to personal obligations, I wasn’t able to get in on the late season fun. In fact, my workout routine has pretty much broken down and I’m trying to rebuild it.

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Mohonk Ramble to Guyot Hill

Let’s get the bad news outta the way first: I didn’t get up to Skytop, so no photos with stupendous views. It would have added 60 minutes to what was becoming a long day. Sunday was partly cloudy anyway. The good news: I found an important artifact of New York ski history, as we shall see.

lowland near Shawangunk ridge

When I think that there can’t possibly be anything I haven’t seen in a place, I’m often proven wrong. On Sunday morning, I flogged the shooting brake up the Thruway to New Paltz. Objective: Mohonk Preserve. Instead of the Spring Farm Road trailhead, or parking at the Mohonk gatehouse, I went to a trailhead off Butterville Road to explore the lower part of the trail network.

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