Tag Archives: Harriman State Park

Service For Gene Doleschal Sunday, November 1st, 2009 2:30pm

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Update 11/2/2009: A wonderful memorial service was held on a gorgeous Fall afternoon for Harriman Hikers Hike Leader Emeritus, Gene Doleschal on Sunday, November 1st, 2009 at St. John’s Church in the Wilderness, in Harriman State Park, Stony Point, NY. In attendance were Gene’s family, who planned the event, as well as many of Gene’s friends, including a number of Harriman Hikers.

  • Gene Doleschal Obituary in Star-Ledger Newspaper and online
  • Photo Slide Show: Remembering Gene
  • Remembering Gene – A Harriman Hikers Photo Set

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    From Gene Doleschal‘s family:
     

    Dear Friends and Family,
     
    Although many of you are already aware, for those of you who are not, we wanted to share the very tragic news that our father, Gene Doleschal, passed away this past Friday, October 23rd, 2009. His death was very sudden and unexpected.
     
    A service in Gene’s memory has been arranged as follows:

  • Sunday, November 1st 2:30pm
    St. John’s Church in the Wilderness (not to be confused with St. John’s Church in the Woods)
    16 Johnsontown Road, Stony Point, NY 10980-3624 (lat 41.22315724579835, long -74.09317016601562)

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    (GPS or MapQuest may recognize the town as Pomona instead of Stony Point)
     

  • Anyone wishing to share a few words about Gene will be welcome to during the service.

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    An informal reception will follow at:

  • The Mason Jar, 221 Ramapo Valley Road, Mahwah, NJ (MAP) (WEBSITE)

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    In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to:

  • New York – New Jersey Trail Conference
    156 Ramapo Valley Road
    Mahwah, NJ 07430
    or donate online at nynjtc.org in Gene’s name

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    Thank you for your thoughts and prayers and for being a friend to us all.
     
    Eve, Claire, and Adriana

     


    View Larger Map
     
    if you cannot view the map above please use the link or the map below
     

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  • Please note that while we strongly encourage anyone who knew Gene personally (all friends of Harriman Hikers are welcome) to attend his service, this event does not affect or replace Harriman Hikers regularly scheduled Sunday Hike. Harriman Hikers will have a hike Sunday, November 1st just as Gene did for some 20 years.
  • Please note that at 2:00am on November 1st, 2009, we will return to Eastern Standard Time. Please set your clocks BACK one hour Saturday night before you go to bed.

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    Harriman Hikers
    A New York – New Jersey Singles Hiking Club
    Established 1974
    www.harrimanhikers.org

    West Mountain, Harriman State Park, NY

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    The photo below was made at the West Mountain Shelter in Harriman State Park, NY on a recent hike by Harriman Hikers for one of our regular Sunday Hikes.

     

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    West Mountain has an elevation of about 1200 ft and from the shelter, looking southeast, spectacular views of the Timp (the mountain to the left), the Hudson River and several small towns in the area may be seen.

     
    Elsewhere on West Mountain, looking east-northeast, one can see Bear Mountain and the Perkins Memorial Tower; if you are in the right position and you look closely, you can see the Bear Mountain Bridge *just* peeking around the south end of Bear Mountain.

     
    West-Mountain-Pano3


     


     


     
    Harriman Hikers
    A New York – New Jersey Singles Hiking Club, Established 1974
    www.harrimanhikers.org

     

    Harriman Hikers at Elk Pens – Harriman State Park, NY

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    The Elk Pens in Harriman State Park is an occasional start / end destination for Harriman Hikers Sunday Hikes. The Elk Pens in Harriman State Park is rich in local history and is conveniently near the Appalachian Trail and other trails used on our hikes.

    From Harriman Trails, a Guide and History (First Edition), by William J. Myles:

    The first section of the Appalachian Trail was blazed in 1922 from Route 17 over Green Pond Mountain, across the north end of Island Pond to the Crooked Road and through the Lemon Squeezer. There it joined the A-SB (Arden – Sure Bridge Trail) up to the old fire tower. The entire trail through the Park, from Arden to Bear Mountain, was officially opened on October 7, 1923.

    In those days, there were about 60 elk in a great enclosure between Southfields and Arden, known as Elk Range. They had been brought from Yellowstone Park in December 1919. They did not thrive and their number gradually decreased until 1942, when the remainder of the herd was sold to a dealer from Hoosick Falls (Commission Minutes, 12/10/42).

     

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    Harriman Hikers at Elk Pens, Harriman State Park, NY.     Photo by Mary Jockel

     


    Harriman Hikers
    A New York – New Jersey Singles Hiking Club, Established 1974
    www.harrimanhikers.org
     

    Spring Time Harriman State Park, NY – Spruce Pond

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    Spruce Pond is in Harriman State Park, NY quite near Sterling State Forest, NY; so close, in fact, Yahoo Maps says Spruce Pond is in Harriman State Park, while Google Maps doesn’t indicate Spruce Pond being in either Harriman State Park or Sterling Forest!

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    Spruce Pond has a natural shoreline about 3/4 around its perimeter, but the SE end is built up with a quite lovely, small natural-stone dam.

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    Spring is currently well under way in the lower Hudson Valley! Surely you have taken note that the Forsythia has bloomed in all its golden glory; many of the other tree species in the area are showing leaf blooms which will soon turn the hills and mountainsides the lush greens of Summer we all love.



    Harriman Hikers
    A New York – New Jersey Singles Hiking Club, Established 1974
    www.harrimanhikers.org
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    Early Fall Color – Ramapo Reservation, NJ

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    It’s late September and the leaves are just starting to change here in north New Jersey and the lower Hudson Valley in New York State. Fall officially began on Monday, September 22, 2008, at 11:44:16 EDT (15:44:16 UCT) and in a matter of weeks going forward, the foliage in our part of the country will peak to its show of brilliant Autumn colors everywhere, before the Winter fallow period begins shortly afterward. A little like people on Saturday night! ;)

    Notice how the bright Fall colors are still mixed with the remaining lush Summer greenery. Interesting time of year, no?

    This post also serves to highlight the fact that while Harriman Hikers most frequently hikes its namesake, Harriman State Park, NY, we also hike in other wilderness parks and reserves / preserves in the area, such as Ramapo Reservation, a Bergen County Park, located a short distance from our weekly meetup at Ramapo College of New Jersey in Mahwah, NJ.

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    Early Fall color at Ramapo Reservation, Mahwah, NJ

    The photo above (and the cropped version, used for our website header) were made at Ramapo Reservation.

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    Harriman Hikers
    A New York – New Jersey Singles Hiking Club, Established 1974
    www.harrimanhikers.org
    ···

    Pine Meadow Lake

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    The photo below is a view of Pine Meadow Lake in Harriman State Park, NY from Diamond Mountain.

    Pine Meadow Lake, the terminus of the Pine Meadow Trail, is one of the more well-known lakes and a popular hiking destination in Harriman State Park, possibly due to its ease of access a relatively short distance from the Reeves Meadow Visitor Center on Seven Lakes Drive (not that Harriman Hikers would ever do a “baby” hike ;-)

    …well, except maybe Thanksgiving?

    (Per our “About” Page, “(Harriman Hikers) Hikes are intermediate and although no special equipment or experience is needed, hikers should be in good physical shape and capable of hiking 7-8 miles over hilly and rocky wilderness terrain where some hills can be steep.”)

    In any case, Pine Meadow Lake, as you can easily see is one of the many wilderness treasures we are all so fortunate to have an opportunity to enjoy in our great outdoors.

    …so don’t stay indoors all weekend! Take a hike!

    Pine Meadow Lake, Harriman State Park, NY - Photo by Greg Paret

    Photo by Greg Paret

    Click the photo for a better view :-)

    The photo above has been featured on our home page. Chk this page for other photos featured in the Harriman Hikers website home page header.

    Island Pond Summer

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    Harriman Hikers spends a significant amount of time in the Summer hiking to and at Island Pond in Harriman State Park, NY. The photo below is from the south end of the “pond” near Island Pond Road.

    The name “Island Pond” sometimes seems both appropriate and inappropriate – the island in the “pond” is descriptive enough, however, it often seems like a mighty big pond, no?

    Unlike many of the lakes and reservoirs in Harriman State Park, Island Pond is a naturally made, glacially formed body of water. It’s also one of Harriman State Park’s deepest bodies of water, about 100ft at its deepest point.

    Harriman Hikers - Island Pond Summer - Photo by Greg Paret

    Photo by Greg Paret

    Click the photo for a better view :-)

    The photo above has been featured on our home page. Chk this page for other photos featured in the Harriman Hikers website home page header.

    Skannatati Twilight

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    Lake Skanati in Harriman State Park, NY is one of the Seven Lakes for which the main park thoroughfare, Seven Lakes Drive is named.
     
    The boat launch / parking lot located at Lake Skannatati provides convenient, plentiful parking for our group as well as easy access to several trails we hike on frequently, not to mention allowing us an opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the lake itself.
     
    Lake Skannatati is pictured here as the last withering bit of golden daylight falls on the reeds to the far right, while most of the rest of the lake is already bathed in twilight.
     

    Skanatati Twilight

    Click the photo for a better view :-)

    A cropped version of the photo above has been featured in the header section of the home page of the Harriman Hikers website. For past photos featured on our website, please check this page.
     

     

    Green Pond

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    Green Pond is a pristine mountain pond in the northern part of Harriman State Park, about a 45 minute hike in from the Elk Pens. Note the beaver lodge on the right. The top photo was taken in the Winter and featured on our homepage; the lower photo was taken in the Summer.

    Green Pond is just one of the many beautiful natural settings Harriman Hikers encounters during the course of our regular Sunday hiking year. Come join us and enjoy for yourself!

    Green Pond, Harriman State Park, NY in Winter - L1010267sm

    Click the photo for a better view :-)

    Green Pond, Harriman State Park, NY in Summer - normal_IMG_0964a.JPG

    Click the photo for a better view :-)

    The beavers must have just recently moved in! – no beaver lodge visible in the summer photo from 2007.

    For past photos from our home page header chk this page