2023-12-31: Cotton Hill

Cotton Hill, elevation 2114'. Solo ascent via Long Path. 0.74 mi, 89' gain, 14m RT. Schoharie/Wright town highpoints, Schoharie County town highpoints 4-5/16.

I was home from college for the interterm and my priority for the winter was accumulating town highpoints in upstate New York. I had just finished Coeymans and Bethlehem earlier in the week, and on the last snowy afternoon of the year, I headed out after church to bag a few more in eastern Schoharie County. A dusting of flurries didn't faze me much as I got changed into hiking clothes and prepared to color in some more towns on my metaphorical map.

Schoharie and Wright, both in Schoharie County, are somewhat unusual in that they share a highpoint. This is even more unusual, as their borders are randomly-drawn lines, not defined by mountain ridgelines. Cotton Hill, easily accessible via the Long Path in Dutch Settlement State Forest, has a very wide summit area. However, the USGS "Babcock 2" benchmark lies within the 2100' contour at the summit's northern end, right on the border between the two towns.

Curiously, the trailhead for this hike was on Treadlemire Hill Road in yet another town, Middleburgh. The opening section of the trail was a little muddy, but once I was fully in the shade of the woods, it turned to firmer ice. The trail took one very steep turn, then spit me out on the summit plateau. Here I hiked through alternating pine-hemlock forests over very hummocky terrain, passing a lean-to as I headed north in search of the benchmark.

Open forests near the trailhead under a dusting of snow.

The somewhat less open pine forest on the summit plateau.

Thankfully, the benchmark wasn't hard to find at all. While the Long Path split off to the east, a well-used herdpath continues north to the benchmark, marked by a green symbol spray-painted on a tree. After a short hike along the trail, I arrived at the benchmark and the highest point of two towns. I had to brush snow off the marker itself to expose it, and I stopped in the lovely snow-draped woods for a moment to enjoy the highpoint.

Directions to the benchmark spray-painted on an maple tree.

The summit area. Snow made this peak even more beautiful than it would be in the summer.

USGS benchmark Babcock 2, partially covered in snow.

There was a lean-to near the summit that I checked out for awhile before heading off. Descent was mostly straightforward, although some of the steeper icy areas had to be taken slow for safety. Soon I was back at the car, warming up my hands before moving on to grab some more town highpoints before the end of the year.