GPS Track of the hike

Timeline:

  • 1:00 PM start
  • 2:30 PM at summit
  • 4:00 PM back at the car

Alex & I did this via Rider Hollow trailhead on our way to Andes, NY for a special picnic dinner at Brushland Eating House. This wouldn’t be the last time I used a trip to Brushland as an excuse to drop by a trailhead!

I had no idea at the time that Balsam was one of the 3500 Club’s four required winter peaks (the others being Panther, Slide and Blackhead). But it was fortuitous that I’d already done it when I started aiming to join the club in 2022. It meant I only had to hike Balsam once instead of twice.

Another memory of this hike is that we had to get back home for my 7pm online Spanish class with the Berges institute, where I was giving a presentation en español about Colombian singer Carlos Vives. Alex helped me practice on the hike and at the picnic.

Roots crossing the path Trail getting steep

Trail getting steep Dark, dense forest near the summit

Tree pose at viewpoint Summit Tree Pose

Alex in summer foliage Summer foliage

Ferns Alex amongst the ferns