[June 24, 2017; Iona Overlook, Dunderberg Mountain, Harriman State Park, New York]. The morning’s drizzle ended about noon and the afternoon was bright and cool. I parked on Route 9W by Iona Marsh. Standing on Iona Island Road – a nearby side street - I could see a small overlook on the north flank of Dunderberg Mountain. It was my destination; I expected that it would provide a very nice view of the marsh and surrounding Hudson River. Nor was I to be disappointed.

I took the Cornel Mine Trailhead (CM, blazed in blue) westward. It parallels Doodletown Brook before turning the south and ascending Dunderberg Mountain. I took a short detour down to a small waterfall, perhaps six feet high. The surrounding trees, backlit by the sun, were glowing green; the water was tinkling as it fell into the pool below. Returning to the trail, I began to realize that very many of the oak trees were rather sparse leafed-out and that the ground beneath them was covered with still-green fragments of leaves. Gypsy moths have taken their toll. I encountered no live caterpillars, though, and many dead ones clinging limply to the trunks of trees. I suppose that they are succumbing to the maimaiga fungus, which thrives in damp weather.

The ascent of the hill is very steep and sustained. I took it at a moderate steady pace, stopping only when I reached the ridgeline and joined the Ramapo-Dunderberg Trail (RD, blazed in red). I first headed for the summit of Bald Mountain. It commands a very nice view of the Hudson River and surrounding hills to the north. My hiking map places the 1859 Cornell Mine on Bald Hill, but except for a small pit near the CM-RD intersection, I have never found any workings. Today, I made a thorough search of the hilltop, roaming about fern and blueberry covered terrain beneath sparse trees and found three additional workings: another pit, along the RD just below the summit; a steep-sided pit, six feet across and ten deep, just north of the trail; and an open cut on the northern hillside, perhaps 20 feet long. In all cases, I found the workings by their tailings piles. A few pieces of the dark grey iron ore (mostly magnetite) were lying about; I verified that they strongly deflected my compass needle. The ore is less shiny than at some of the other Harriman Park mines. The presence of dissolution cavities in some of the pieces made me think that the deposit has undergone considerable alteration by hydrothermal fluids.

I the tool RD eastwards, along the ridge of Dunderberg Mountain. It passed an overhanging rock scarp that exposes some of the iron ore. This looked to me to be a natural exposure, but it’s hard to be sure. The ledge above the scarp is composed of leucogranite; it commands a very nice view of the Bear Mountain, to the north. Bear’s eastern flank has almost been denuded by the moths. I stood at the overlook for a very long time, waiting for a large cloud to drift by, for I wanted bright sunlight for my photography. A few Turkey Vultures circled about as I relaxed. Finally, after the mountain was lit up, I resumed my walk eastward along the ridge. I did not stay on RD, but rather bushwhacked through the grass, fern and Blueberries, staying just above the northern slope-break, and making for the overlook I had seen earlier. I first encountered a one rock ledge with an open view of Bear Mountain. It was very nice, but not the one I was seeking. After zigzagging back and forth across the north-facing flank, and having to pick my way through rather too much Mountain Laurel, I finally found the overlook. It was quite a bit lower on the mountain that I had been expecting, though still high enough to provide an excellent vantage. The rocks ledges were tilting downhill steeply, so I had to pick my way very carefully to avoid a fall. I made my way to a boulder nestled on a small terrace and sat there, admiring the view. I was looking down on Iona Marsh, its smooth cattail surface cut by several sinuous tidal channels. The rocky hump of Iona Island protrudes through the marsh and extends past it up-river, making a small bay. A rail line crosses the bay, cutting it off from the main part of the river. The high points of Bear Mountain, to the left, and Anthony’s Nose, to the right, emphasize the form of the Hudson Valley. The Bear Mountain suspension bridge, looking rather delicate at this distance, spans the Hudson in the middle of the view. The green hills of the northernmost Hudson Highlands are beyond the bridge. I spent about a half hour at the overlook, enjoying the fruits of my labors, and then bushwhacked straight up the hill, to a sparsely-treed grassy meadow at its summit. I crossed the meadow, hoping that my heading southwest heading would take me to the RD. It did, but only after ten or fifteen minutes of bushwhacking.

Once back on the RD, I followed it back to the CM and the hustled down off the mountain. I encountered a Black Rat Snake sunning itself. I shooed it off the trail, lest some hike accidentally step on it. In a few minutes I was back at my car. I took a final stroll down Iona Island Road for the views. I spotted a Great Blue Heron wading in the shallows of a tidal channel, for the tide was low. I then headed home. About 5 hours.