April Showers; Bring May Flowers. —Common Folk Proverb
The month of April is when in Albany we see the last snow showers of the year, and the winter is washed away by the occasional rain showers that dot the days. April in Albany is not a particularly rainy month, and indeed with the rapidly warming temperatures and dry weather leaves us with the highest wildfire danger of year.
By the end of the month, the valleys will start to show the first signs of green, and our world will start to return to it’s “technicolor” beauty. It will largely be a month of browns and grays in the mountains, occasionally with the lack of shade, the weather will be hot and brutal. We will all get bad sunburns in the next month, often the worst sunburns of the year, with no place to hide from the sun that is getting higher over our heads every day.
Over the next month, the daylight will grow by almost 2 hours, with the sun not setting until after 8 PM by the time May rolls around. The sun will start rising an hour earlier to. This bright springtime sunlight will start waking up nature’s cycles and engaging spring time weather by the end of the month. Green will be popping up everywhere.
April is in many ways November in reverse. November takes us from the delightful color of October into the wintry December. April leads us from the cold harsh weather of March back into the delightful color of May. Warm weather is heading our way, as is the beauty of springtime.
Enjoy the month, get out, and enjoy some of the bright clear days that make April such a charming month.
The two longest back country roads in Adirondacks — Cedar River-Limekiln Lake Road and Piseco-Powley Road — are generally closed during mud season. Other dirt roads like Moose Club Way tend to be muddy, and their is a risk you’ll get stuck back there.
It’s always a good idea to bring extra weight in your truck bed, a come-a-long or whinch, and snow shovel. You might not be far from a blacktop road at these campsites, but that is no guarantee you won’t get stuck.
1) NY Route 8 / East Branch of Sacandaga River
The campsites are all off NY 8, an all season plowed and maintained asphalt road. Some sites are reinforced with gravel. Be aware some sites may be plowed full of snow from the winter clearing of NY 8. Roughly 15 campsites along this road, however some may be too muddy for this time of year.
2) South of Arietta Town Line on Piseco-Powley Road
There are 7 campsites along Piseco-Powley Road, north of Stratford, prior to the Arietta Town Line gate, which is near the Potholers on East Canada Creek. This road is well packed dirt, reinforced with gravel up to gate, and should be accessiable year round, minus the snow.
3) NY 421 at Horseshoe Lake
NY 421 is an asphalt road, and there are 4 campsites prior to the gates for Horseshoe Lake Road and Lows Lower Dam Road. These gates will be closed, but the sites along NY 421 before the asphalt runs out should be good as long the snow is off of NY 421..
4) Mountain Pond
Mountain Pond Campsites are on an old routing of NY 30. While now unplowed in the winter, the road is mostly hard asphalt, asphalt chips, and gravel. Many of the campsites are reinforced with gravel, but be careful with some of the sites.
5) First Campsite on Wolf Lake Road.
There is a campsite on Wolf Lake Road, right before the parking area and winter road gate for Wolf Lake Road Extension. This campsite is grass, however if it’s relatively dry, snow and mud free, this is possiblity.
6) Reeds Pond Campsite.
Before the black top runs out, there is a campsite along Reeds Pond, which is nice for it’s solitude, but nearness to a dirt road. The campsite may be muddy, depending on the conditions.
Two weekends ago I was planning to go hiking up Huntersfield Mountain, but when the trail conditions and time remaining wouldn’t cooperate, I decided to head over to Mount Utsayathana in Stamford.
I fully expected to have to hike up the mountain because the steep and narrow truck trail would be unplowed, very muddy, and possibility icy. With the truck trail hanging right along the shoulder of the mountain without guard rail, you don’t want to fool around.
Quite to my surprise, it was only a little muddy up top, but the rest of the trail was dry. The top of the mountain had some snow drifts, but it had been plowed throughout the winter.
It was a beautiful early spring day out there, looking down at Stamford from the porch of the Utsayathana Mountain House. Things are starting to green up down there, and signs of spring are in the air.
Walked over to the fire tower, and climbed on up.
View out of the Firetower windows.
Looking East towards Huntersfield Mountain and the low lands towards Grand George.
And the western mountains of the Catskills, and the deep agricultural valleys within in them.
Towards the North the ridge continues on a little ways to Bald Mountain, then you get into the standard ridged landscape that covers most of Upstate New York.
On Saturday I went for a Day Hike up Bennett Hill in Clarksville. It was a beautiful day out, and signs of spring where all over. We first did some trail work, then hiked up Bennett Hill via. the Green Entrance Trail to Yellow Hilltop Loop to the Red descending trail.
It was nice seeing all of the green out this spring. It was not super warm out, but just right temperature wise. It was a short hike, but an enjoyable one for sure. All of the scouts enjoyed it, despite having just moderate hiking experience.
