UUMSB Walks in the Berkshires - 2011 Season
Our walks celebrate the beauty and diversity of the Berkshire / Taconic landscape. The walks are offered from spring through fall, and we explore the diversity of our natural communities through the seasons. This is our 5th season! We meet at 12 noon in the parking lot of the Claire Teague Senior Center in Great Barrington (see directions) after our 10:30am Sunday service (or come to the service!). We hope you will join us!
Sun 5/29 – Kennedy Park, Lenox. Hike around this absolutely beautiful park which offers mature forest communities and views over the Berkshire valley. Wildflowers, ferns, Hermit Thrushes, Scarlet Tanagers, etc. Nesting season in progress, bird songs. BRING BINOCULARS!!!
Sun 6/19 – Diane's Trail, Monterey. Bob Rauch and Jon Greene will lead this walk in a beautiful trail through the Gould Farm forest.
Sun 7/17 – Appalachian Trail a la Downing, Monterey. Start at Diana’s and Dennis’ place, hike the AT on East Mt toward the shelter, come back for a BYOEverything (except for the grill) Barbecue. Or just come for the barbecue somewhere around 3 to 3:30pm.
Sun 8/28 – Sage's Ravine, Mt. Washington. This ravine (pictured above) is one of the prettiest places in all the Berkshires – a cool, deeply shaded hemlock and hardwoods ravine with a fast-flowing mountain stream and a series of small waterfalls and deep pools. Just the place to be in a hot summer day.
Sun 9/18 – Steepletop and Harvey Mt., Austerlitz, NY. A walk and poetry sampler around Edna St. Vincent Millay’s estate, including the Poetry Trail. Followed by an optional hike up to nearby Harvey Mt.
Sun 10/16 – AT to Tyringham Cobble, Tyringham. The AT first follows a boardwalk and bridges across a beautiful, large floodplain meadow, then enters the woods and eventually takes us to the summit of Tyringham Cobble, with great views of the town and valley below.
Sun 11/13 – Basin Trail, Lee. The woods after leaf-fall, old mill pond, observation platform with beautiful view of the beaver pond and wetlands. This has become our traditional place to end our walk season.
Meet: After 10:30am Sunday service, we’ll have lunch and leave no later than 12noon from parking lot of Claire W. Teague Senior Center, Great Barrington (see directions).
Bring: TRAIL SNACKS & WATER, good shoes, enough layers for early and late season.
Other: Walks are easy to moderate if you are familiar with walking in trails with typical uneven footing, about 2-3 miles, 2-3½ hours. PLEASE NOTE: Ending times are hard to pinpoint. If you come with a tight schedule, please be prepared to return to your car separately.
Leaders:
Dona Burdick 413-717-1665 djbhiker20022000@yahoo.com
Jose Garcia 518-392-2163 redtailedhawk@taconic.net