[Route 106 east of Kanawauke Circle, Harriman State Park, NY, August 14, 2014] I parked at the eastern end of Harriman State Park at the pullout on Route 106 by the Suffern-Bear Mountain (SMB, blazed in yellow) trail crossing. It was the early afternoon of a windy and mostly sunny day, with big puffy cumulous clouds sailing by overhead. The Minisceongo Creek, which flows out of Lake Welch, crosses the road the here. The stream flows through fairly dense woods and its waters are mostly shaded by overhanging branches. I walked down to the channel and watched water cascade across wide rock ledges and amongst large boulders. I inspected one deep pool that looks to have been built up as a swimming hole.

I continued east on the highway, passing the entrance to the Beaver Creek Campsite. The creek is close to the road here and is surrounded by marsh grasses. A little further along, I took a short woods road north to Lake Welch Dam, the source of the creek. It is a substantial concrete structure, a hundred yards long and about twenty feet high in its center. I walked to the western end of the dam where I could see Lake Welch. It’s a large lake with a sandy swim area on it northern side. The sand has a yellow color; it has been trucked in, I suppose. I rejoined the highway and took another woods road down to a small grassy part of the lakeshore by an old stone cabin labeled BP-113. I supposed it to be some sort of pump house, for a large pipe connects to it. I then rejoined the highway.

Route 106 crosses the southern end of Lake Wench by a causeway favored by anglers. It offers a nice view of both the main park of the lake, to the north, and two narrow bays, to the south. The two bays are separated by a wooded island across which the causeway cuts. Wildflowers such as Queen Anne’s Lace bloom on the edge of the causeway and Water Lily and Pickerelweed bloom in the shallows.

I made a short excursion down a short woods road to view the lake from the boat launch, in the southwestern corner of the lake. It offers a nice view of two small islands and of Jackie Jones Mountain, in the distance. The mountain hosts two towers, the large Verizon Communication Tower and a smaller Fire Tower. I planned to visit the latter on my way back. A bronze plaque on a boulder near the launch identifies the area as the site of the Sandyfields School (1864-1947). The dam was built in 1928, so the area must have been rather different in appearance for most of those school years.

Route 106 then winds steeply downhill through mostly hardwood woods containing some tall and beautiful trees. After about a mile, I came to Spring Pond, an impoundment much smaller than Lake Welch created by a low earth-fill dam on its western side. It’s mostly covered with Water Lily and Milfoil, both in bloom.

Another quarter mile further, I came to Kanawauke Circle, where Route 106 crosses Seven Lakes Drive. I walked over to the shore of Lake Kanawauke. A stately stand of White Pine decorates it eastern shore. The lake is surrounded to the north and west by steep wooded hills. Several high, broad rocky ledges on their flanks suggest overlooks with good views.

I then started my walk back. I took a short excursion to visit the Rock House, a rock formation south of the highway near the Long Path (blazed in blue) crossing. It’s one of the many south facing scarps in the Park, formed by glacial plucking during the Ice Age. The cliff is about ten feet high and a hundred yards long and has many overhangs and shallow caves. A wide apron of angular boulders spreads out from its base.

The view of Lake Welch as I crossed the causeway was particularly beautiful, for the wind had abated and the sky had cleared since I passed the spot on my outward journey. The few remaining clouds were beautifully reflected in the still waters of the lake.

I seem to remember that an informal trail leads up from Route 106 to the Jackie Jones Fire Towers, starting somewhere near building BP-113, but I could not find it. Instead, I bushwhacked up a small stream bed – really just a subdued boulder strewn indentation heading uphill. I reach the ridge crest just a hundred yards south of the large rock ledge on which the fire tower is built. The basic structure of the tower is steel and in good condition, but the stairs and platforms were of ancient and rickety woods planks. Planks were even missing from the several stairs. I climbed up very carefully, as much as possible keeping my weight in places undergird by steel. The cabin at the top was locked, but the view from just below the cabin was very nice. I could see Lake Welch and its crescent-shaped beach to the north, and the tall hills of the highlands, including Long Mountain, Popolopan Torne, Bear Mountain and West Mountain to the north and east. To the southeast, I could see the Hudson River and High Tor and way to the south I could see the tall buildings of the Manhattan skyline.

I took a combination of the Verizon Tower access road and the SBM back to Route 106 and was soon back at my car.

About four hours.