[Journal entry for November 9, 2011; Lakes Kanawauke and Skanatati, Harriman State Park, NY]. In the late afternoon of a gorgeously sunny fall day, I hiked a loop around Lakes Skanatati and Kanawauke. I parked at the lot on the east side of Skanatati, just off of Seven Lakes Drive. I set off south along the lake shore, scrambling among large boulders, some ten feet high. The surface of the lake is deep blue and reflects the adjacent Pine Swamp Mountain, adorned with fall foliage, which, though past peak, is still beautiful. This hill has a nice south facing overlook, which I am hoping to visit at the very end of my loop, to catch the sunset. At first the lakeshore follows the highway, but then it curves westward, connecting with a low earth fill dam on the south side of the lake. I walk across the dam, past old iron valves that protrude from the lake surface. The view across the lake is very nice; several of the rocky areas are particularly picturesque. I then follow a woods road through the woods to the spillway of the impoundment, a concrete structure four or five feet high. The lake above the spillway is absolutely calm, reflecting the vegetation. It pours over the edge like a sheet. Below, the water is splashing merrily. I cross the outlet stream just below the spillway, stepping on large boulders. Downstream, the bed is highly eroded, with recent scarps carved into the gravel banks that I presume formed during the heavy rains of Hurricane Irene, back in August. I follow the stream down to where it flows into Lake Kanawauke. I visited this area before, a few years ago. The delta has grown enormously, and is now a bed of beige colored gravel that is four feet high in places. I spend several minutes investigating it, walking among its many distributary channels. I then head east along the Lake Kanawauke shore, crossing a little stream and detouring through a beautiful stand of White Pine with tall, stately trunks and a beige forest floor covered with their needles. I have to walk on Seven Lakes Drive at this point, since it hugs the Lake Shore, and then on Route 106. Route 106 has suffered storm damage from Irene, too, and is lacking pavement in places. I cross the bridge that divides Lake Kanawauke into northern and southern parts and another over the Little Long Pond connection. I don’t have time to visit the southern half of Kanawauke, but gaze down its long, skinny length. I chat briefly with the driver of a pickup truck, who advises me that eagles have been sighted in the area over the last few days. I then follow a woods road north. I come across a raccoon that quickly climbs up a tall skinny tree. I am astonished that it reaches the crown, towering fifty or more feet above me, in just a few seconds. The woods road heads uphill on the southern flank of Hogencamp Mountain and connects with the Dunning Trail (blazed in yellow), one of the main east-west hiking trails on the region. I take a detour, bushwhacking steeply uphill towards a ridge crest, hoping for a clear view. I come across a long trench that I suppose is part of the Hogencamp Mine, one of the many old iron workings in the park. The ridge crest does indeed provide a nice view of the surrounding woods. The rocks, grasses and solitary trees of the ridge are lit up by the low sun, and are very pretty. I follow the ridge northward for a while, crossing a rather deep gulley that that I was not expecting. Finally, well short of the summit, I descend and reconnect with Dunning, passing by several more mine workings. I hasten my pace, not wanting to miss the sunset, and take Dunning past Pine Swamp, which is already mostly in shade. I finally connect with the Arden-Surebridge Trail (blazed in red) and take it southward up the flank of Pine Swamp Mountain. I reach the overlook on the south side of the summit ten minutes before sunset and sit on the rocks enjoying the view. Lake Skanatati is right below me and, beyond it, heading off into the distance, is the long length of Lake Kanawauke. The southwestern sky and the distant hills are now pink. The sun sets, leaving a few bright orange clouds on the horizon to mark the spot. I sight a mature bald eagle flying above the mountain. I leave a few minutes after sunset and continue down the trail, which descends a gulley in a rather steep cliff face. I reach the Lake Skanatati parking lot a few minutes later and spend a few minutes watching the evening shadows on the lake. About two and a half hours.