North Dome(yes) & Sherrill(almost)

[Peakbagr]

Dick, Jo, Boo and I set out on the Mink Hollow trail with the intention of bushwhacking North Dome from along there as I'd done a number of times in the past.
On Sunday, we decided to forego the steep going on ND's east side by climbing the ridge further to the north. We had a number of cliff bands to negotiate, but one stood out. We were most of the way up a steep one and Boo and I went left and Dick and Joann went right. Boo and I could not find a vertical escape, as everything was either too icy, too mossy, too steep or too dangerous, so I went out on a 4' ledge above a 50' drop. Picking up Boo I put her on a shoulder-high slab with the thought that there was enough vegetation on it that her 4 wheel drive would get her up and I'd find a way to follow...WRONG !
For every action, there's an equal reaction - as she scrambled for traction, she pushed back, so Boo, a large dead tree and I fell/slid back and down, periously close to the large drop. After a quick break to drain the adrenaline, we traversed and then up behind Joann and Dick. The rest of the way to the ridge and up the ridge was classic Catskills: Aromatic balsams, nice stands of dwarf hardwoods, pretty little grottos here and there. One interesting thing was playing hopscotch with day old bear tracks that Bookah couldn't get enough of.
We walked straight to the cannister, looked at the book, during lunch and followed our bearing right to the North Dome-Sherrill col. We decided to skip Sherrill at this point - steep icy going, racing daylight, and one of our party feeling under the weather made this the correct but difficult call. So we headed down Bennett Brook and out to Spruceton Rd. After just a few 1/10's of a mile on the road, a local stopped to give us a ride back to the cars.

We're hoping someone can provide a little more info on the route 42 parking area and the route to Sherrill from there. We went to check out the lot but were wondering how far the woods road leads up Sherrill and can anyong give us an idea of where it peters out? We want to plot a route and the approximate end of the woods road would help.

 

[Rob S]

The rest of the way to the ridge and up the ridge was classic Catskills: Aromatic balsams, nice stands of dwarf hardwoods, pretty little grottos here and there.

A day in the mountains, even without summitting, is better than anywhere else. You describe it well. And you did summit North Dome, so that counts toward November (or Fall, depending if you're working the grid or the seasons ..... ).

I haven't climbed these peaks yet, but am looking forward to it. Glad everyone made it out safely.

Rob

PS- PM Ralph regarding Sherrill. Or Mudhook. Those guys know EVERYTHING!

 

[Jay H]

I've never taken the road from the parking lot to 42 towards Sherrill but have followed a little bit of it back to the parking lot on the return. I get spooked following roads that aren't on maps cause at every bend in the road, I'm wondering whether I should just follow my bearing or follow the road...Usually I wind up just following my bearing.

Jay

 

[Tom Rankin]

I've never taken the road from the parking lot to 42 towards Sherrill but have followed a little bit of it back to the parking lot on the return. I get spooked following roads that aren't on maps cause at every bend in the road, I'm wondering whether I should just follow my bearing or follow the road...Usually I wind up just following my bearing.Jay

I'll get some beta from Laurie soon. I know how to go up that way, but I'd better not post it, for fear of not being precise enough...

[Never mind, a good write up was posted on ADKHP]

 

[rhihn]

A day in the mountains, even without summitting, is better than anywhere else. You describe it well. And you did summit North Dome, so that counts toward November (or Fall, depending if you're working the grid or the seasons ..... ).

I haven't climbed these peaks yet, but am looking forward to it. Glad everyone made it out safely.

Rob

PS- PM Ralph regarding Sherrill. Or Mudhook. Those guys know EVERYTHING!

Rob, agreed in regard to your PM suggestions -- plus Alan Shaefer's input, of course! And for us, when you're not really doing a list, anything "counts" toward the list, even though we're not really doing a list, at least not officially... (I hope that's sufficiently cryptic! ) The cliff bands were fun, and evaluating the best route through them was not unlike a chess game, as we had to think several moves in advance. Fun! This is not to make light of Peakbagr's situation, which was indeed quite serious. At that point, Joanne and I were oblivious to his plight, as we had chosen a different route. After summiting that particular band of cliffs, we called for him, but received no answer. I was not worried, as I knew that voice doesn't travel well in that environment. We knew in a general way what his route was, and it couldn't have been more than 50 yards difference. Finally hearing his voice, we talked him over to where we had ascended, and all worked out fine in the end. In spite of difficulties, this was a particularly beautiful stretch. As we rounded out toward the summit, we took pictures (to follow soon) of the fresh bear tracks. I hope they come out.

Our decision to forego Sherrill was difficult, as we were SO CLOSE D) Even from the car, Joanne was not feeling well. With that, combined with losing daylight, we canned Sherrill for another day (but it was SO CLOSE! ) The descent down the drainage was uneventful, though slow, due to considerably uneven terrain, and good conversation!

A hearty second to Peakbagr's request for Route 42 access to Sherrill! And a BIG thanks to Peakbagr for his great company and superb route-finding skills!

Dick (aka rhihn) and Joanne

 

[moose_mckenzie]

Sherrill

From the Parking area, follow the woods road and then cut off it, taking an 80 degree magnetic bearing to the summit. Nice woods, few cliffs and nice views. I have been planning a trip for a while, to search for the wreck near the summit. Dan Case, you interested?

Moose

 

[Rob S]

I have been planning a trip for a while, to search for the wreck near the summit.

Wreck near the summit?!?!? This trip just got bumped up a few notches on my list. I'd like to do a traverse over Balsam, Sherrill, and North Dome starting from 42 and ending on Spruceton Road. This Balsam does not appear to be on the Cat100 list, but that's OK. I'd like to climb her anyway.

 

[Jay H]

Balsam doesn't seem to have enough of a rise from the col from Sherrill...

It looks fun to traverse the ridge and hit the peak west of Balsam, I imagine it might have good views of Deep Notch now that it is late fall. NE Halcott is on the other side of the notch and that is on the list..

Jay

 

[Edelweiss]

Pictures of North Dome Hike

Nothing much to add to the telling of the tale of our hike up North Dome last Sunday. Alan's incident was potentially very serious, but thankfully ended well. I am reminded of how conditions and situations can change so quickly as we move into the wilderness in spite of our preparations and attention and experience. Very humbling!

Here are some pictures:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slidesh...e=fromshare&Ux=0&mode=fromshare&conn_speed=1J

Joanne (Edelweiss)