2020-05-03: West Kill Mountain

On the first warm day of the spring, I headed up West Kill Mountain, a 3,880-foot peak in Lexington, NY. I hiked West Kill from the west back in 2016, taking an 8.6-mile round-trip path over the neighboring Saint Anne's Peak. This time, I ascended from the east, following a shorter 5.9-mile trail over East West Kill. This path also brought me past the Diamond Notch Falls, a 15-foot waterfall in the Spruceton Valley.

Rapids on the spring-swollen West Kill, running parallel to the trail at the hike's start.

Although the named waterfall was still distant, the creek was scattered with smaller, still beautiful falls.

Moss-covered rocks were scattered across the creek and the valley surrounding it.

Tiers of rushing water cut through the deep hemlock forest.

Tiny flowers bloomed along the trailside, welcoming the warm weather.

Many of these smaller waterfalls seemed more impressive than usual due to the spring melt.

The Catskill mountains are covered in spruce and fir forests. Usually the transition occurs around 3500 feet, but on West Kill it started far lower.

Oblique afternoon sunlight fills a spruce forest in a rare flat section of trail.

Sizeable May snowbanks made the summit approach difficult, as ice had yet to melt in many dangerous areas.

Summit view of mountain layers, looking east toward Leavitt Peak (right of center).

Towards the southeast, mountains give way to reveal the Mid-Hudson Valley.

The gradual descent of the Catskills from mountains to hills to plains was easy to see through the haze.

A view east over East West Kill's limb towards the summit plateau of Hunter Mountain, the second-highest peak in the Catskills.

View of the Blackhead Range, from left to right: Camel's Hump, Thomas Cole Mountain, Black Dome, Blackhead.

A view of forests in the Catskill foothills. Although this area is well-populated, a lack of farmland makes this difficult to tell.

A ten-mile view over the limb of Carl Mountain to Cooper Lake in Woodstock.

The ridge in the center is the Shawangunk Mountains, with the Sky Top Tower visible at its high point.

A view into Lanesville, a small hamlet on the Greene/Ulster border.

Fir trees on East West Kill stand out against the backdrop of Hunter's upper slopes.

A close-up on Hunter's summit reveals its glimmering fire tower at its top.

Spring snow clung to the ski slopes on Colonel's Chair. I revisited the area on Memorial Day to find the last patches of snow still remaining.

None of the mountains in eastern Ulster County are considered High Peaks, but they are still quite mountainous.

From the very edge of the overlook, Windham High Peak, at thirteen miles distance, was still impressive.

A south-facing view shows some of the taller peaks of Ulster County in the mid-afternoon sun.

A sign just past the overlook denoting the mountain's exact summit. This is the only Catskill peak I've climbed (out of 31 total) to have a formal summit sign.

Another view of the Blackhead Range, with less clouds and shadow this time.

A close-up of Thomas Cole Mountain, showing the clear line where deciduous forest ends and evergreen forest begins.

A closer view of Blackhead Mountain, with the ski infrastructure and towers on the nearer Colonel's Chair visible.

A panorama from the summit overlook.

A video panorama taken from the mountain's summit overlook.

This was the first mountain I brought my tripod to. Unfortunately I don't think it made any difference in the quality of my photos.

A view of the Diamond Notch Falls on the way down. They were crowded on ascent so I didn't photograph them then.

A wider shot, showing the two main streams of the falls. With spring melt at peak, this is the most powerful the falls get outside of rainstorm conditions.

The rocks atop the falls, worn by countless years of watery wear, looked very unlike the surrounding formations.

A panoramic view of the falls from a ledge on the opposite side of the creek.

A video panorama of the falls better portrays their motion and force.