[Bill Menke’s Journal for September 4, 2013; Breakneck Ridge, Hudson Highlands State Park, near Cold Spring NY] Breakneck ridge is a prominent hill on the east side of the Hudson River, in Hudson Highland State Park, just north of Cold Spring NY. It is mostly wooded, except for a spine of rock that extends from river level up to the ridge crest. I parked on Route 9D, just north of where it passes through a tunnel. The trail begins on the west side of the highway, and ascends up onto the rock that forms the tunnel’s roof. The rock ledges here provide the first view of many great views of the Hudson River and of Storm King Mountain on its west bank. The trail, called the Breakneck Ridge and Notch Trail (BRN, blazed in white), heads steeply up the bare rock spine of the ridge. I clamber over ledge after ledge. The going is not especially tough – it’s like climbing stairs – but is sustained. I am reminded of the Abol Trail, on Mt Katahdin in Maine, which I climbed this spring, for it too is steep and rocky, though with far more elevation gain than the BRN. I spot a Blue-tailed Skink running across a sunny ledge.

After a half hour or so, I reach a level spot with a flagpole. A stiff breeze is blowing out of the north. The view here is great! I can see way north and south along the valley of the Hudson River. Storm King is right across the river from me. Mt Taurus (Bull Hill) is a prominent peak on my side, just to the south. Way to then south is Constitution Island and way to the north is the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge. I continue upward. Much of the rock appears to be granite, shot through with coarser granitic dikes containing big black hornblende crystals. I ascend past a cliff face that faces towards the south. Looking down, I can see an old quarry, far below. I ascend a little knob, thinking it is the summit, but no, the trail descends down into a saddle and then up onto a higher knob. This one may or may not be the summit. I’m not sure, but certainly the view is great. I can see Pollepel Island below me and on it, the ruins of Bannerman’s Island Arsenal, an abandoned an abandoned military surplus warehouse built in the early 1900’s and affectionately called “Bannerman’s Castle”. I can also see Dennings Point, a hook of land that extends out from the Hudson’s eastern shore. The Fishkill flows into the Hudson just to its south, creating a marsh that I must someday explore by kayak.

The trail then follows the ridge crest, on fairly level ground though with occasional ups and downs, across rock ledges, low woods and fields of blueberry bushes and grasses. I connect with the Breakneck By-pass Trail, blazed in red. It descends on a fairly moderate grade though woods on the western flank of the ridge. I find one spot with a view of Sugarloaf North, a low hill between Breakneck Ridge and the Hudson River. I soon connect with the Wilkinson Memorial Trail, blazed in yellow. It descends back to Route 9D, through open woods with unusually tall trees and surprisingly little underbrush. I cross a little stream – a few puddles in a gulley without any real flow. The final section passes several meadows ringed by tall trees, well lit by the afternoon sun. Some show damage from this year’s swarm of Brood II Seventeen Year Cicadas. I spot the caterpillar of a Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly. It has a yellow body and huge black eyespots. A few minutes later, I am back at the highway, a few hundred yards north of my car.

I drive over to Storm King before heading home. This detour adds an hour to my trip, but gives me the opportunity to view Breakneck Ridge from the Hudson’s western shore. I drive Route 218, which is notched into the side of the mountain and stop at the tiny pullout along this precipitous road. The view is beautiful! I trace out the BRN Trail by eye, seeing how it ascends up the rocky spine of the ridge, past the several individual knobs of rock.

About three hours of hiking.