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Balsam Lake Mountain Fire Tower
The last on the list for the Catskills fire tower challenge was Balsam Lake Mountain Fire Tower/Observation. It was another cold day for a refreshing hike in the Catskills so why not? The drive to the tower started off as we headed in the wrong direction. Then we turned around and went the right way,…
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Mount Tremper Fire Tower Challenge
The last time we did Mount Tremper Catskills fire tower challenge, it was hot and the climb seemed endless. Today, it was a beautiful day so we decided to redo this tower challenge. Once we got to the parking lot there were already two cars there. Since it was President’s Day, people were off and…
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Hunter Mountain Fire Tower Challenge
One of the Catskills fire tower challenges that I wanted to delay doing was Hunter Mountain fire tower. In the summer when we did it, I was sweating, huffing and puffing and remember miles of uphill trail. Perhaps in the summer it seems worse that it is because of the mosquitos and heat. This time…
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Hiking to Upper Esopus Fire Tower
After completing the Overlook Fire Tower trail, back in the car we went to hike to Upper Esopus fire tower. This is located about 20 minutes from the the Overlook parking lot, in the Catskills Visitor Center. The Upper Esopus tower is the new addition to the previous Catskills fire tower challenges. It was added…
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Catskills Fire Tower Challenge to Overlook Mountain
When we first did the Catskills fire tower challenge we completed it in two days. There were 5 fire towers on the list but a new one has been added recently, the Upper Esopus. So while there are six fire tower challenges in the Catskills, our Peakquest scratch off only includes five. Since we never…
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Valentine’s Day Hike to Red Hill Fire Tower
Today was a great day to do a Valentine’s day hike to Red Hill fire tower and complete one of the five Catskill fire tower challenges. Okay, fine! It was a very cold day, in the 10F, with wind chills of 8, but it was sunny. All you need for motivation to go outside and…
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When to Hike with Shoe Traction?
If you do not hike with shoe traction in the winter, how do you hike? A lot of our friends choose not to hike in the winter because it’s cold or they hate winter. Winter hiking is magical and should be experienced by everyone, at least once in their lifetime. The trees are frozen icicles,…