Climbed Mt. Beacon

This past Sunday,my 16 year old grandson and I climbed Mt. Beacon (officially called Beacon Mountain) on the banks of the Hudson River in Beacon, New York.  The top of this mountain is 1,531 feet above sea level.  With the trees just starting to bloom, I was able to see further into the woods.  I listened and watched for any bird I might see.  However, we only heard two birds and they were nowhere to be seen.  The trail that we chose is a dirt and gravel road used for maintenance.  The locals call it the "fire road."  The topology varied from level to steep and leveling off again, and so forth up to the top.  This is considered the easiest approach to the top.  On the way up, we passed the reservoir, which supplies the City of Beacon with its water.  The photo above shows the Hudson River with Dennings Point (in Beacon) on the eastern side of the river and Newburgh, NY on the western bank.





As we started to leave, my grandson told me about the monument commemorating the Signal Fires used on Mt. Beacon during the American Revolution.  We found it on the edge of the mountain behind an old fenced-in communication tower.  The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) erected a monument at the site in 1901 and repaired it in 1929.

As I wrote above, we only heard two birds, but high on the mountaintop were two butterflies.  One lit on a rock enabling me to photograph it.

The mountain was the site of an incline railway.  For years there has been talk about rebuilding it.  Also, in the 1920s and 1930s, there was a hotel, restaurant and a casino near the top.  I told my grandson that I would definitely like to see what remains of the buildings.  We'll do that on my next climb.

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Climbed Mt. Beacon

On Monday, My 14 year old grandson and I climbed Mt. Beacon in Beacon, NY. Well, sort of.... We climbed a stairway of 200 steps to a level of about 600 feet.   The mountain is 1,610 feet high.  I wanted to get above the tree line to take some photos to the area.   The stairs are very sturdy and I had no problem climbing.  Then I saw the path at the end of the stairs and that was the end of my climb.  The path with slanted slabs of rock was too steep for me. 

So, there ended my quest.  The mountain seems to be a popular hiking spot.  The hikers passed right by us traveling up and down the path.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to climb high enough to photograph the scenery I wanted, due to haze over the Hudson River.

At one time, there was a casino (circa 1902), hotel, and restaurant atop Mt. Beacon. Many people rode an "incline railway" to the top. Presently, there are plans to rebuild the "incline." I hope to experience the ride when it is completed.   At the top of the mountain there is also a reservior, which provides the city of Beacon with water.  My grandson told me that the area up there is relatively flat.  On the way down, he told me about another way up the mountain.  There is a dirt road at the end of East Main Street.   Actually, Wikipedia says that way is the easier way to climb Mt. Beacon.

Near the bottom, we checked out the remnants of the "incline" and what is left of the old "lower railhead"structure.  We also found a strange looking remains of a tree (see photo at right). 

Just before we exited Mt. Beacon Park, my grandson pointed to the "gum" trees.  Apparently hikers plant their chewing gum on a tree either before or after their climb. 

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