2021-12-30: Alander Mountain

Over two years ago, I made a feeble attempt to hike Alander Mountain in the southern Taconics after a full day of work, but became lost and headed home unsuccessful. For my last hike of 2021, I returned to the mountain to actually reach the summit. The highest point of Columbia County, at around 2110', is located on the southwest slope of the mountain, while the true summit lies in nearby Massachusetts. Despite forecasts of fog, I headed up the hill to bag my forty-ninth peak of the year and another county high point.

To my surprise, the trailhead was absolutely packed on this foggy Thursday afternoon. Parking for Alander Mountain is actually located a good distance from the actual trailhead, and the road was lined with cars on either side along the way. I parked as closely as I could get and headed out along the trail, which is mostly flat for the first mile or so.

Twisted vines line farmland west of the trail in the December landscape of Ancram NY.

A number of these sideways, moss-covered crags lined the trail along the way. The geology of the Taconics is very distinct from that of the nearby Catskills, something that always strikes me when I hike in the area.

Fox Hill, a small hill to the southwest, could be seen along the open field section of the trail.

Soon the path veered off into the woods, after which it headed very quickly and very steeply uphill. Although I was hiking a different trail than I had in 2019 - this one marked as 'easier' on the state park signage - the hike was still fairly strenuous. Many trails in this region are incredibly steep, and while this particular path lacks dangerous scrambles or ledges, it does go pretty non-stop up the mountainside. Soon, however, those 1500' of elevation gain were mostly behind me and the trail became easier as I neared the top.

Low clouds pass by over the treetops, allowing only a glimpse of the surrounding terrain.

A view of Mount Alander from just above the treeline. Unlike in the Adirondack, Green, or White Mountains, the low treelines in the Taconics (~2000') are the result of poor topsoil, rather than extreme weather.

Clouds and fog, beginning to break up, fill the valley below Brace Mountain (L).

It was a short climb from here up to the county highpoint, a clear knob with an excellent view of both the mountains to the south and east (obscured by clouds on this hike) and the lowlands to the west. The actual highest point is a long, narrow upright stone, upon which I stood to photograph the landscape as God broke the cloud deck for just a few short moments.

Scrub oak covers Alander's slopes while clouds recede from the Ancram Valley.

Brown winter fields cover the nearer valley, while hardwood forests dominate beyond. The peaks of the Catskills, west of the Hudson River, would be prominent in this shot in better weather.

Little puffy clouds hang low in the sky, below the higher monotonous ceiling. It was different to see these small clouds moving from above rather than from below.

The north side of the valley was so flooded with clouds and fog that it was difficult to tell what were clouds and what were hills.

A lone pine tree juts out from the nearer ridge in this view of a farm in Ancram.

Although the fog and humidity make it nearly impossible to see, the more heavily forested areas in the background are very hilly compared to the flatter fields to their east.

More distant hills are more evident in this photo of wide open farmland beneath small, rapidly dissipating clouds.

A view of the center of Copake NY. Although the Alander trailhead is in the town of Ancram, the county high point is located in Copake to the north, and the true summit is in the town of Mount Washington (no not that one) in Massachusetts.

Another view of some more intense-looking clouds obfuscates the distinction between mountain and cloud.

It was a short and beautiful hike from the high point to the summit of Alander proper, the trail completely open with patches of scrub oak on either side. I was alone on the mountaintop, so I played some music aloud as I walked, something I rarely do out of respect to other hikers. Soon I arrived at the true mountaintop and stopped for a few moments.

Four of these concrete slabs are all the remain of a fire tower that once stood atop Alander Mountain.

Clouds engulfed the mountains to the southeast. At right is Mount Frissell, the highest point in the state of Connecticut.

Brace Mountain (L) was gradually re-enveloped by the clouds as they returned to fill the valley once more.

The USGS marker denoting the true summit of Alander Mountain. The six-pointed star at center is more likely a geological symbol than a religious one.

A few glimpses of the rapidly-refilling valley look towards Dutchess County and the corridor of farmland along Route 22.

Farms, rolling hills, and rolling fog characterize this view of Alander's southwest limb.

A view down the trail shows how open an barren the low-elevation alpine environment is. The openness provides excellent views all the way along the ridge, seen in the valley beyond.

Only a small portion of the earlier landscape was left visible above the bare county highpoint in the foreground.

I made excellent time descending the mountain; while the steeper, leaf-covered part of the trail were somewhat dangerous, a good portion was relatively straightforward and easy to jog down. A long section of trail runs parallel to a moss-covered river deep in a ravine filled with hemlock trees, but was too far away to photograph or to leave the trail to see up-close. Soon I returned to the trailhead and headed back home, my final hike of the year complete.

A small waterfall tumbles past rocks covered in thick moss in the hemlock forest.

More small waterfalls on the same stream, this time farther down the mountain where the trail crosses it near the trailhead.

A closer view of Fox Hill on the far side of Route 22, seen over fields near the trailhead.