Upper NY State & Penn. Where are the best places to hang

[Chard]

Hi all,

Just out of curiosity, can anyone recommend places for a group hang in upstate NY and Pennsylvania?

Some considerations.

• Easy access by car and short hike (< 2 hours)
• Established State/National Park/Forest
• Awesome Scenery
• Hammock friendly (or at least not anti-Hammock)

Pictures would be fantastic if you have them.

Thanks

[nothermark]

Bump it Tuesday. A lot of folks are off for the long weekend.

There was a winter hang in the Finger Lakes National Forest that seemed to go well. I can think of one or two places in the Adirondacks. I also recall a group from Buffalo put something together down in the southern tier on state land.

[Chard]

B U M P ..

Hope everyone had a pleasant Memorial Day weekend...

Any info out there?

[adkphoto]

There are a ton of state forests, the Adirondack Park, and even the Finger Lakes National Forest where we held the Frozen Fingers Hang in January.

A lot of the state forests have group sites, some with covered pavilions. Most of the smaller state forests have a wilderness feel and do not have a fee to use (but may require a permit for a large group, or to rent a pavilion). Campgrounds, on the other hand, have facilities like bathrooms and showers, but also charge fees.

In my experience, New York is hammock friendly, and just as scenic as eastern Canada.

Help narrow me down to a smaller area. Will you be car camping, or hiking in to a camp site? What size do you think your group will be?

If you'll be in Central NY, I'd love to join you!

David

[nothermark]

Did a little poking around. Allegheny County is fairly sparsely populated and has a lot of state land. Hanging Bog Wildlife management area has campsites. There are other places one can camp but zero facilities. Groups larger than 10 require a permit. Probably 2 hr drive from the border, 2 Hr from Rochester, 3 Syracuse etc Roughly 3 to 4 from Harrisburg PA up Rt 15


Here are an area map and park area map:

http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/73957.html


http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/82971.html

If we need somebody to check it out I can do it or we may have somebody closer.

[Suede]

I was recently in Allegheny National Forest. I did not have enough time to really check it out. I stayed close to the camp ground but in an off-trail spot by the creek. It is south of western NYS down about an hour or so into PA.

Here is my trip report with some pics of where I was..

I am definitely interested in going back there and further exploring the area. I am also certainly interested in other areas that forum members come up with.

[Two Tents]

Just into Pa. in the ANF we just hiked a new trail out of an area called Tracy ridge. The new trail is called The Bullis Hollow trail. It is blazed very well but there hasn't been enough boots on it for a trail through the woods yet. It is different in that you can see blazes clearly but not an obvious path. Very large timber in the area. We saw no other hikers or established campsites.

[DuctTape]

Plenty of areas. I tend to go to the forests and find spots off trail. NYS forests allow camping off trail. (note: forest not park) Plenty of great spots can be found. A hammock makes almost any spot a viable campsite. Many of the State forests are reforested areas planted by the CCC, these red pines (mostly) were done in rows which makes some great stands for hanging lots of hammocks. A link to NYS Forests: http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/34531.html

[Chard]

Well, the reason I ask it that some of us Eastern Great Lakes hammock gang might be interested in hooking up with some of our elusive Eastern Great Lakes buddies on the south shore.

Basically just a reason to get together with some of our neighbours. As for where, I'd think a couple of hours hike (no more than 2) would be fun, and canoeing would be awesome!

[nothermark]

I thought that might be the answer. How does the Allegheny County area look in general? I'm willing to do some leg work here once an area is picked. I would also be interesting in a hang that was minimal walk in. I think that is manageable. Might be able to work in canoeing and definitely can work in day hiking as the Finger Lakes Trail runs through there.

I picked that area because there is not much north of there other than Parks and they have issues and costs. There is major highway access through and to the area in general. Allegheny National Forrest in PA is roughly the same drive time for you but a lot longer for the Rochester/Syracuse/Binghamton/Harrisburg folks. I'm willing to scout down that way unless there is somebody closer who wants to.

How many folks would be interested? It makes a difference when talking to the DEC. I don't think permits would be a big deal but no permit might... ;-)