Recent content by oswegatchie

We last visited Baxter in June of 1982. At that time, access was easy...no lines, no reservations required. We are going to be in the area this year from about June 8 through the 18th, and would like to revisit the park for a day. Based on experience, what do you think our chances are of...

Thanks everyone for the astute suggestions. They are not planning to camp at Baxter, just to visit once or twice for day hikes. Can anyone predict what their chances might be to get in under those circumstances without reservations? They could probably arrange to go midweek rather than...

I've been down to the lower Hudson Valley a few times recently and there was basically no snow to be seen, although I suppose its possible there is still some ice in shaded spots. With temperatures in the sixties predicted for later this week, I would guess these will be gone soon. I can't...

My wife and I spent two weeks in Maine every June from 1974 through 1982, but have not been able to return since. We have fond memories of Acadia National Park, Baxter and the Moosehead Lake area. We shared these memories with our daughter, and she and her future husband have decided to...

I can't be of much help, but a few years ago, while paddling around St. Regis Lake, we stopped at a couple of the Paul Smith's lean-tos. I have no idea which one you're heading for, but perhaps what we saw is typical. They were both secluded and heavily forested, and both were located up a...

The Peterson Field Guide to Ferns is excellent. It covers ferns as well as clubmosses, horsetails, spikemosses and quillworts, and also has essays on life cycle and other topics, even gardening with ferns. But I was sometimes frustrated in using the keys and illustrations to make positive...

No, I don't think so. I don't believe this variety has ever been cultivated, and its quite common here in the Catskills and also in the Adirondacks. (I don't get to New Hampshire much). There's also another variety, Geranium maculatum, whose common name in Wild Geranium that blooms from April...

It is Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum). I have found it as early as late April and it blooms right up until the first frost.

Although I use a Peak I stove rather than an MSR, I present the following cautionary tale, because the overall design is the same- both use a separate fuel tank. We were canoeing along a river in central New York one April day when we decided we needed a cup of coffee to take the chill off...

Kerry wrote: "I wonder if those nest are even tent catipillars. We have tent catipillars around here but they don't start becoming noticeable till late summer. This would be very early for them and I have seen no evidence of tent catipillar nests in my area which is only 30 miles south of you."...

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/8833811/detail.html?rss=bos&psp=news

My worst trailhead moment was in about 1970. My friend and I had parked at the Denning trailhead in the Catskills and gone on a two night backpacking trip. When we got back to the car pretty late on Sunday night, I got a sinking feeling when the starter just clicked and wouldn't turn over...

As far as location is concerned, Rollins Pond is your best bet. There are plenty of waterfront sites, most nicely separated. My one (minor) objection to the place is that access is only by a long drive through Fish Creek Campground- it seems to take forever. Buck Pond, further from Tupper...

I'm pretty sure this is the nest of bald faced hornets. See: http://www.fcps.k12.va.us/StratfordLandingES/Ecology/mpages/bald-faced_hornet.htm According to the website, the nest is abandoned in the fall, and therefore should pose no threat, though bringing it indoors would clearly be an act of...

For about three years, I've been carrying a Slik Compact-XL tripod that has served me well. It weighs a tad under two pounds, stands about 13" collapsed and 54" fully extended. It lacks features like quick-release legs (the legs extend with twist locks, like trekking poles) and the head does...