{"id":108,"date":"2017-07-24T16:58:13","date_gmt":"2017-07-24T16:58:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/?p=108"},"modified":"2020-12-14T20:25:09","modified_gmt":"2020-12-14T20:25:09","slug":"peekamoose-and-table-mountains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/?p=108","title":{"rendered":"Peekamoose and Table Mountains"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I think the first four mountains I have officially done have all been done because something about them is known to me. \u00a0With the last two, it was because I wanted to do Indian Head in the Adirondacks and settled for the one close to home in the Catskills. \u00a0For this weeks iteration, it was Peekamoose Blue Hole, a wonderful swimming hole high up Rondout Creek. \u00a0I visited the Blue Hole years ago for the first time on one hot hot hot day. \u00a0I think the temperature was mid 90&#8217;s when I left home, and upon arriving at the hole an hour later, it was low 70&#8217;s, and the water I think was somewhere in the 50&#8217;s (I doubt it&#8217;s ever higher than that). \u00a0It&#8217;s like a refreshing dip into a water basin in the freezer. \u00a0See the video below. \u00a0I hate to start with a PSA, but, what I found at this little piece of heaven was a mess, discarded food containers and beer bottles. \u00a0Please take care of the places you visit, if it fit in your car to bring it, it will fit after as well.<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hanB_DXEv_M\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0620.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-109\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0620-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0620-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0620-768x1024.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Now on to the Mountains. \u00a0I got here early and I was literally the only car in the parking lot. \u00a0So it was a solitary climb, I started off on the Peekamoose-Table Trail on the Peekamoose side because I wanted to take a dip in that hole at the end of the hike. \u00a0This was the wrong plan, but you live and you learn. \u00a0I will say more about that later. \u00a0The hike started off with no reprieve whatsoever, no easy stroll to start, it just said let&#8217;s climb bitches and if you can&#8217;t handle this start, then what the hell are you doing here. \u00a0Turn around chump, turn around now, you still have time. \u00a0Yet, I didn&#8217;t listen to the mountain and chugged on. \u00a0Like a chump or a champ, I don&#8217;t know&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>The terrain in this hike was interesting, there were a couple of these maze type events where you are trying to figure out how to traverse the mazes that these rocks seem to form:<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/QivoO9q3-ng\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Now., when I hike alone I hike with headphones, one on one off if I am listening to a book, and dangling at times if I am listening to music. \u00a0I usually don&#8217;t pay attention to anything but my surroundings. \u00a0I look at the floor and pound away, not a care in the world, occasionally looking up for my markers to tell me I am in the right direction, or look at the offline trail map on my phone to see my elevation or see where I am in correlation with where I want to be. \u00a0 Walk, Climb, and continuously pound my feet into the ground, every step closer to whatever summit I&#8217;m headed for. \u00a0Chipping away at elevation as I go along. \u00a0That being said, at the start of this hike I was about 1\/3 into Stephen King&#8217;s IT&#8230; Not the right book to be listening to as I climb in the wee hours of the morning all alone. \u00a0The day before I also led a group hike for my CrossFit (<a href=\"https:\/\/empirestatecrossfitnorth.com\/\">The North<\/a>) gym where I detailed my encounters with Black Bears and Snakes on the trails. \u00a0I was asked how I managed and the truth was, I don&#8217;t think about it. \u00a0If it happens, I react when it happens. \u00a0Sometimes like a scared little pansy others in a calm and collected manner. \u00a0Today I was aware of everything. \u00a0Not sure if it was because of IT, or if it was because of the conversation the day before, but I was reacting to every noise and movement in the trees.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, I hear a quick fluttering. \u00a0Then I hear it again but closer. \u00a0I stop, and I am not ashamed that I was asking myself, what the fuck am I doing here all alone. \u00a0I hear the fluttering a third time and see something running STRAIGHT for me, fast too, like WTF am I looking at here? \u00a0 I see it&#8217;s a squirrel and it&#8217;s coming right at me. \u00a0My only reaction was to jump straight back and clap really really hard. \u00a0I mean hard enough that my hands hurt. \u00a0My mind must have thought it was a bear, but no cause with a bear you make loud noises and step back in a calm manner. \u00a0I literally jumped off my skin and the fucking squirrel just ran in between my legs. \u00a0At this point. \u00a0All I could do was laugh at myself, at the situation and at the fear. \u00a0I actually stopped paying attention at that point and started enjoying my hike a bit more. \u00a0I was reaching 3400 feet of elevation at this point and I was really starting to wonder where my money shots were. \u00a0The two on the map thus far had been lackluster and nothing to write home about.<\/p>\n<p>This trail has also been poorly marked. \u00a0When I got to 3800&#8242;, just reaching Peekamoose I realized that I never saw the infamous over 3500&#8242; sign I have seen my last couple of hikes of this magnitude. \u00a0As I reached the summit of Peekamoose Mountain I realize that the only way I can really tell is that it has flattened out a bit and my GPS says I&#8217;m here. \u00a0It took me a bit to find the tiny spur trail that got me to the view point for Peekamoose.<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/gD-5m96GSws\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><br \/>\nWhat a view!!! Even though it&#8217;s a bit choppy, I think I was trying to catch the experience of me coming out into the spur trail and being blindsided by this amazing view. \u00a0Here are a couple of pics:<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_114\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-114\" style=\"width: 525px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0641.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-114\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0641-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"525\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0641-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0641-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0641-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-114\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Top of Peekamoose 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_113\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-113\" style=\"width: 525px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0640.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-113\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0640-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"525\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0640-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0640-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0640-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-113\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Top of Peekamoose 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now., to quickly\u00a0descent only to climb again up to Table and just now I saw the first sign of civilization. \u00a0My first other hikers a nice couple just out on a stroll. \u00a0They seem to have come up probably at the same time as me but from the other direction. \u00a0The terrain stays the same. \u00a0Heavily wooded with not much to see but the trees and the sliver of a trail. \u00a0Sometimes lost in other small spurs but trust me, if you go too long without seeing that wonderful blue marker, stop and orient yourself.<\/p>\n<p>As I got to Table all I can say is meh&#8230; Don&#8217;t get me wrong, I just mean that as I stand on the summit I see nothing else but the same. \u00a0Just a little flatter, and after experiencing that with Peekamoose I was hoping for a bit more. \u00a0It just means that this hike was more about the trek up here. \u00a0Which was as always both fun and arduous at the same time. \u00a0 After a little decline, I found a small spur trail off to the left\u00a0where I got the following view. \u00a0It says a lot, when these views are not top notch. \u00a0I want to be wao&#8217;d \u00a0and while this was\u00a0wao, I guess I&#8217;m starting to expect bigger wao&#8217;s!<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EOa3lG72WR8\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_111\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-111\" style=\"width: 525px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0633.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-111\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0633-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"525\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0633-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0633-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0633-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-111\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Top of Table 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_110\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-110\" style=\"width: 525px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0632.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-110\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0632-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"525\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0632-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0632-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0632-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 525px) 100vw, 525px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-110\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Top of Table 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>After Table, I ran into two more hikers and asked about three\u00a0more interesting things I saw on the map that would add about 1.5 more miles to my hike, along with a decent amount of descent I would have to re-climb. \u00a0They told me the lean-to was cool and the spring was just a spring, those two would add another .60 or so. \u00a0I did not know what a lean-to was, I figured a point where you could lean from a tree or rock or something. \u00a0No though, it was just a hut, similar to the ones you see along the Appalachian at certain points. \u00a0A spring which was just that a tiny spring of water coming out of the mountain, had I needed water I would have tried it. \u00a0I thought it would look creek like, but it did not, it was just a pipe in the side of the mountain allowing the fresh water to spout out.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_123\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-123\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0643.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-123\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0643-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0643-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0643-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-123\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lean-To Actual a la AT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_124\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-124\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0642.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-124\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0642-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0642-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0642-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-124\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lean-To Past Table Mt<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As you can see not much to write\u00a0home about! \u00a0I did get to see the infamous 3500&#8242; sign, meaning I descended over 300&#8242; for these shots. \u00a0Ouch!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Well, now the easiest, hardest part&#8230; Coming down the mountain. \u00a0In this case down and up a few times since I have to ascend back up to Table. \u00a0Descend Table then Ascend Peekamoose again&#8230; Ufff&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>Anyways, I stopped for lunch on the Peekamoose View Point\u00a0and now for real, headed down! \u00a0It&#8217;s easy because it&#8217;s no longer strenuous and it becomes more of an art form than anything else. \u00a0You are coming down fast, yet your legs are jello and your knees are feeling the brunt of every piece of descent as you take it, which makes it hard as fuck.<\/p>\n<p>As I go down, now I start seeing people. \u00a0They all ask me the same thing how much longer to the summit, I ask which one. \u00a0I explain there are two and let them know I am not really sure. \u00a0I recite how long I have been out here and they can try to figure out the rest on their own, my brain is not working to compute time and distance right now. \u00a0I keep trekking down, looking forward to the dip in the blue hole that will take me out of commission for the next week with a terrible cold.<\/p>\n<p>When I arrive at the parking lot it is a different sight\u00a0I see. \u00a0It is no longer pristine! The parking lot is packed\u00a0to the gills, there are park rangers guiding traffic letting people know they cannot park on the side of the road and guiding them to other lots from 1\/4 mile to a 1\/2 mile in either direction. \u00a0 You hear the loudness of a Peekamoose Blue Hole filled with people. \u00a0I take off my boots and everything else I don&#8217;t need and head down to the hole and quickly jump in. \u00a0My body is telling me no, it&#8217;s actually yelling it at me. \u00a0Yet I think, how can I be here and NOT take a dip, it would be sacrilegious. \u00a0 So I jump in once and the cold hits my body with the weight of a few tons. \u00a0I mean it was a SHOCK and a half. \u00a0Yet, I want a video and give my iPhone to one of the watchers, cause few are really swimming. \u00a0It&#8217;s hard to jump into 50 degree water! They shoot this video!<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fXrOIakNk7E\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>I get out, grab my towel \u00a0and shirt&#8230; Leave my Beats wireless headphones for some lucky person to find and give the people around me a PSA. \u00a0I talk about the state of the hole and how I hope they are not part of the problem and please tell other people to pick up their crap.<\/p>\n<p>As I hit the winding road back home, \u00a0I reflect on the mistake of jumping into that water after having burned close to 3000 calories over almost 6 hours of hiking these two summits&#8230; Oh well, it&#8217;s all part of the experience I would pay for over the next week.<\/p>\n<p>Next up, Wittenberg Mountain and maybe Cornell&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>This hike was actually done on July 9th, but the last two weeks have been the end of my Master&#8217;s program so I have been concentrating on rewrites of my thesis, I will try to log my thoughts and rants of the next hikes rather quickly instead of this 2 week delay. \u00a0I knew it would be a delay so I recorded myself throughout the hike with my thoughts, the recordings were hilarious, specially the one about the squirrel. \u00a0FUCK IT., don&#8217;t laugh too hard, here&#8217;s my squirrel incident recording right after it happened:<\/p>\n<!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('audio');<\/script><![endif]-->\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-108-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Squirrel-jump-Back.m4a?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Squirrel-jump-Back.m4a\">https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Squirrel-jump-Back.m4a<\/a><\/audio>\n<p>&#8216;Till Wittenberg! \u00a0Scheduled for July 30th.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_134\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-134\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0938.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-134\" src=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0938-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0938-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/img_0938-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-134\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Final Stats &#8211; Peekamoose\/Table<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I think the first four mountains I have officially done have all been done because something about them is known to me. \u00a0With the last two, it was because I wanted to do Indian Head in the Adirondacks and settled for the one close to home in the Catskills. \u00a0For this weeks iteration, it was &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/?p=108\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Peekamoose and Table Mountains&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[8,7],"class_list":["post-108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hikes","tag-catskills","tag-hiking"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=108"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":248,"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108\/revisions\/248"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=108"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=108"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpimentel.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=108"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}