Catskill Road Conditions??

I'm mostly curious about the "seasonal" section of Platte Clove Rd. between West Saugerties and Kaaterskill High Peak/Indian Head, etc. I know it isn't plowed. Has anyone been over, or by, there? Is it full of snow? A little snow? Maybe cleared by some kind soul w/ a plow?

Also, Dr. Wu was asking on another thread about the roads around the Blackheads if anyone has been over there since the last snow. It looks like we may not get any more snow for a while, but I suppose we could keep this thread live for awhile, if necessary. If anyone has or needs any Catskill road info, feel free to post. This could include bridges as well as road conditions.
But remember, my original question is the most important thing.

Matt

Catskill roads

Matt,

Don't even think about using the road up the Platte Clove. Save a life and go through Tannersville. There must be at least a foot of snow on it.

I climbed Thos Cole and Black Dome from Barnum road last Saturday. The trail had 1.5-2 feet of light snow and trailbreaking was slow. It took me 4.5 hours to go 3.5 miles! And I made the return trip in 2 hours. Anyway, back to your question, the roads around there were completely clear and dry. With the good weather this week they must be even better. Don't worry about roads in the Catskills this week, except the Platte Clove.

Joe

Ditto On JoeCedar, I wouldn't drive down that road in winter (besides they do usually put those wooden sawhorses up with signs and stuff.). I wouldn't ski down that road cause I'm not that good a skier yet!

You'll see lots of dirt and sand used on the side roads in catskills so many of the dead ends that go towards trailheads (Spruceton Road, Big Hollow Rd, Denning Rd) can be hardpacked snow with lots of sand on it which can be tricky in any car but usually not a problem. Sometimes you'll even find the trailheads at the end of dead ends not to be plowed but that is usually a day or so after a major storm. When my friend and I did BlackHead for winter, we did it right after a storm and Big Hollow Road was unplowed to the official trailhead parking but my friend and his Jeep Cherokee did venture out into the unplowed area but didn't want to really park there for fear of getting plowed in or stuck there if somebody else decided to go in and get stuck (it's a dead end). So, we parked along the shoulder on the plowed section. When we came back there was already a huge amount of cars joining us. (Blackhead is a winter peak so it remains a common winter hike), however, big hollow is the shorter route rather than from Barnum so it remains more common.

Jay

Thanks guys. I was mostly just concerned about Platte Clove Rd. and assumed it was snowed in, but figured it couldn't hurt to ask. If we get another major storm this season we can bring this post back to life if necessary.

Matt

PS Tannersville is a cool little town to drive through anyhow