2021-08-24: North Dome and Mount Sherrill

For my last Catskills hike before returning to college, I headed to North Dome and Mount Sherrill, two High Peaks in the town of Lexington. Like my last few hikes, these two mountains are accessed via bushwhack, and have no marked or maintained trails to their summits. I had tried to hike them a few weeks earlier, but injury and inclement weather had forced me to turn back. The most common approach to North Dome, over state land, scales a series of incredibly steep ledges, and it is considered one of the most technically challenging bushwhacks in the Catskills.

An unnamed stream runs through Mink Hollow, which separates North Dome from West Kill to the east.  

A view of mossy rapids along the creek at the crossing point. The Mink Hollow Trail runs parallel to the creek; after about a mile, I crossed over it to begin the trip up North Dome.

The first of several sets of ledges - and one of the easiest to get past - sits above an open field of waist-high stinging nettle (Urtica dioica).

Another set of ledges, blurred by poor lighting conditions in the overcast forest. The damp weather and dense moss made ascending the rocks on North Dome more dangerous than usual.

A few boulders stick out from another open field of tall nettles. While North Dome is infamous for its ledges, I contend that the nettles are the greater challenge, covering the entire forest floor all the way up to ~3000'. The unparalleled extent of the thorny, poisonous plants was both astonishing and annoying.

Crown coral fungi (Artomyces pyxidatus) growing from the side of a fallen tree. Late August is the best time to find large fungi and mushrooms in the Catskills.

A small cave underneath some of the ledges on ascent, large enough that a person could fit inside with some difficulty. Note the ever-present nettle sticking out in the foreground.

A lone beam of sunlight lands on some fern-draped boulders at the base of one of the more difficult ledges.

The farther up the mountain I went, the steeper and more challenging the rock faces became. The last major ledge required me to walk around its base for some time before finding a safe route up.

This was the 'safe' route I found up; the mossy rocks were very slick and it was still somewhat dicey, but a much better alternative to the sheer cliffs on either side.

At some point I touched my camera lens and got a smudge on it, lending a dreamlike quality to this shot of North Dome's orange summit canister.

North Dome is one of very few Catskill peaks to have a USGS survey marker at its summit. Aside from Windham and Blackhead, I haven't found such markers on any other high peaks.

Compared to the climb up North Dome, the traverse over to neighboring Sherrill seemed relatively easy, with a well-worn herdpath as opposed to the unbroken nettles from before. Steep rock formations, such as this one, are relatively rare.

The closest thing to a view I got all day. A small stream runs along the col between North Dome and Sherrill, and at the end of the little notch, glimpses of the landscape to the south are visible. A hike in the winter months would likely be much more revealing.

The earliest colors of autumn grace this maple leaf with lovely patterns of red and purple.

The summit canister at Mount Sherrill, sunlight again glowing due to the smudged lens.

North Dome and Mount Sherrill mark the 28th and 29th of the Catskill High Peaks that I've climbed, putting me closer to the 33 required for total completion; 27 of these I've climbed solo. However, as I did need to return to college, this hike marked the last activity I would do in New York for the next several months.