[Journal
entry for November 17, 2007] Afternoon hike around Queensboro Lake, Harriman Park, New York. I parked
at the huge and now rather under-utilized parking lot at the Anthony Wayne
Recreation area, which is about a mile south of Queensboro
Lake. The day was rather cloudy, but with thin clouds through which the sun
still shone faintly. The fall folliage is on its way
out, but still rather beautiful, especially the beeches,
which are amber hues of yellow and brown. After giving directions to some folks
in a car, I crossed the Parkway via an overpass and headed north through the
woods along the Anthony Wayne trail. The path here has been eroded down into
the earth by several feet, giving almost the appearance of a stream bed, but
nevertheless is quite smooth and walkable. The forest
litter is mostly brown, but with a few bright red maple leaves, here and there.
I passed several large rock outcrops that are being slowly split by the roots
of trees. After a few minutes, I connected with the 1779 trail, and took it
across Seven Lakes Drive. Queensboro Lake is the
north of those seven lakes, which are named Silver Mine, Nawahunta,
Tiorati, Askoti, Skannatati, Kanawauke and Sebago.
All of them, including Queensboro, are anthropogenic;
my path would take me by the Queensboro dam later in
the hike. I passed by one of the main inflow streams, Queensboro
brook, which originates at the Silver Mine's dam. It is in a bit of a gulley,
and surrounded by brambles, so I did not attempt to walk along it. Instead, I
walked a bit along the road and then cut through the woods to the shore of Queensboro. The view here is very nice. I could see both
Summer Hill and Bear Mountain, both showing colorful fall folliage.
The phragmites marsh on the west shore of Queensboro, tan in color, was highlighted by occasional
bright red bushes. Parts of the lake's shoreline consists
of rocky pennisulas that jut out into the lake. I
walked to the end of one and discovered that beavers has
built a lodge just off its end. Looking about, I was able to find many trees
that showed signs of gnawing. One of the more interesting trees that I passed
was the Tamarack Larch, a deciduous conifer. Its needles were turning a bright
yellow. I passed a half-dozen individual larch trees, the larger ones bearing
small cones. I spotted an Eastern Bluebird flying above a boggy meadow to the
east of Queensboro. This is a smaller and more
delicate bird than the more common jay. I have sighted bluebirds only very
rarely. I picked up the 1779 trail at the eastern side of the lake. It winds
westward, following the northern shore of the lake. I passed many small streams
and damp sections of ground covered with hummocky grass. One of the streams has
nicely-developed meanders, with a point bar that is ten yards or so wide. I was
suprised to find a rather deep gully - almost a small
gorge - with mossy, vertical sides fifteen or twenty feet high. I suppose the
gully to have been carved by some glacier during the ice age, for the stream
flowing in it was tiny. I bushwacked back along the
west side of the lake, for the 1779 trail takes a route that is further up the
flank of Summer Hill. Most of the lake shore is marshy, thick with phragmites - and some brambles, too - but I managed
to find one drier area with tall pines that afforded a view of the lake.
Unfortunately, the beaver had gnawed those pines rather badly. I encountered Queensboro brook again, and followed it back to the
highway. I then retraced the path I has taken earlier, back to my car at
Anthony Wayne. My circuit of the lake was over relatively flat and easy
terrain, except for a few areas of boulder fields, where the footing is
difficult. Time: about two and a half hours.