[Journal Entry for October 19 and 21, 2018; the Eagle’s Cliff, Black Rock Forest, Cornwall New York]. I had been wanting for a long time to revisit the Eagle’s Cliff, a south-facing overlook in the southern part of Black Rock Forest, for my previous (and only) hike there was in April, before the trees had leafed out. I wound up making two trips, one of Friday afternoon and the other the following Sunday afternoon. I had no trouble reaching the Cliff on Friday, but the weather, which has been good early in the day, turned very cloudy and dim, and did not do the wonderful view justice. My second visit was much more satisfactory.

On both days, I parked at the hiker’s lot off of Reservoir Road, and took the system of woods road (Reservoir, White Oak and Bog Meadow) to the Scenic Trail (blazed in White). This trail follows an east-west striking ridge, the western end of which hosts the Eagle’s Cliff overlook. Jim’s Pond is directly below the southern flank of the ridge.

I encountered a Northern Water Snake, sitting in the middle of Reservoir Road, close to the point where it crosses over Mailley’s Mill Brook (the outflow stream from Upper Reservoir). The snake was about three feet long. Its unusually bright and lovely brown and beige pattern made me think it was Copperhead. But the brown bands were widest on its backbone and thinnest on its flanks, whereas the pattern is reversed on the Copperhead. Furthermore, its head was not as triangular as a Copperhead’s. Still, I treated it respectfully. I gently lifted it with a long stick and placed it in the woods, where it would not get stepped upon.

I passed many different kinds of wildflowers, and especially Roadside Aster. I am surprised that the fall colors are not yet at all close to their peak. A few Red Maples and Black Tupelos are now bright red, but most trees are still summer green.

I liked the open feel of the Scenic Trail as passes through wood underlain by Blueberry Bushes, as I approached the Eagle’s Cliff. Its ridge-top position allows in lots of sunlight, especially in the later afternoon.

After visiting the Eagle’s Cliff, I continued along the Scenic Trail, and then connected with Arthur’s Trail (blazed in yellow). It crosses Sutherland Swamp via a very rickety puncheon. I then connected with Sutherland Road and took it all the way to the Two Gates intersection. For a long while, I had wanted to solve a mystery: the hiker’s map shows the Sphagnum Pond outflow bifurcating and leading both to Alex Meadow Reservoir and to Canterbury Brook – a very unusual configuration. I discovered that the outflow crossed continental Road and led to a small wetland adjacent to Two Gates. The outflow stream crossed the wetland via a channel that seemed to me to have been dug-out, and then entered the woods. This stream crosses White Oak Road twice before emptying into the reservoir. A second smaller brook starts in the wetland and flows across Hulse Road and enters a channel that has been cut into the bedrock and which directs it towards the Canterbury Brook. Thus, the bifurcation seems to have been engineered, perhaps when the reservoir system was built.

Near Two Gates, I found a rather large pile of walnuts, still shelled but lacking husks. I suppose that they must have been put there by the Forest Staff for browse.

I walked back along White Oak Road. The sky was almost completely dark by the time I reached my car.

About three hours and fifteen minutes.

Sunday’s weather was much nicer than Friday’s, with blue skies and occasional puffy clouds. I made one short detour, taking a short spur road to Aleck Meadow Reservoir. The vegetation is advanced enough to be very pretty, yet not far enough that I would call them brilliant. I also took a second, much longer detour, taking the Swamp Trail (blazed in blue) and the Scenic Trail (blazed n white) up to the top of the Hill of Pines. This is one of my favorite viewpoints, not only because of the terrific view of the surrounding hills, but the ambience of the summit, itself. Great rounded knobs of a beige rock (Highland gneiss) protrude from above the ground at a cliff edge. Blueberry Bushes and Scrub Oak grows between the rocks and a few solitary Pitch Pines grow on top of them. I love to sit beneath one of the pines and gaze off into the distance. The view of Rattlesnake Hill is good, but that nearby hill does not block the overall appearance of rolling hills stretching off into the south. Bog Meadow Pond is visible, way off in the distance.

I continued on the Scenic Trail, taking it off the hill and past a high and near-vertical scarp with giant boulders tumbled at their base. This is one of the many glacially-plucked cliffs in the park. Mostly south-facing, they mark places where the great glaciers of the Ice Age carted off pieces of hillside, as they crept inexorably down from Canada. The piles boulders at their base have slowly accumulated, as the remaining hillside has crumbled. The haphazard piling of one stone upon another has made many small caves – now homes to many furry critters, I suppose.

I rejoined the road system, bypassing the loop of the Scenic Trail over Rattlesnake Hill, and rejoined it again at the intersection of Bog Meadow and Continental Roads. This section follows the top of a ridge that has a prominent south facing scarp. The ridge is wooded, so that views are scarce, except for its extreme western end, which has an open view and is called the Eagle’s Cliff. Like Hill of Pines, the Eagle’s Cliff consists of a rounded knob of rock (but granite, not gneiss) that commands a broad view to the south. Also like Hill of Pines, the vegetation includes Blueberries growing in cracks and a Pitch Pine growing on the rock ledge. The ledge of the overlook is surrounded by a small scarp, only four or five feet high, yet difficult to scale. Once atop it, the view of the rolling hills to the south, like the Hill of Pines’, is terrific. The view of Wilkins Pond is pretty; a hillside that looks to have seen rather too much shelling, less so. I guess the latter is on US Military Academy land. Way off in the distance, the high-rises of New York City glitter in the sun. Jim’s pond is also visible, but its location – nestled up against the scarp of the ridge – makes it hard to see without standing perilously close to the cliff edge.

I found a second vantage, west of the main overlook and a little below it. This little valley area supports a lot of vegetation, including Blueberry, Scrub Oak, grasses and Pitch Pine, and is more picturesque than the more open ledge of the overlook.

I found another rather large pile of walnuts, on the side of Bog Meadow Road near where it crosses the Arthur Pond inlet stream. These still had their husks – more browse, I suppose.

I hiked out the way I came, except I did not make any detours. I was tempted to climb Hill of Pines again to watch the sunset, but I was concerned that then I would have had to walk back to my car in complete darkness. As it was, I reached it with just a few minutes of daylight to spare.

About three hours and fifteen minutes.