Pharaoh Lake
Where: Pharaoh Lake
When: 8/4/00-8/6/00
With: Bill & Tom
When: 8/4/00-8/6/00
With: Bill & Tom
It had been a while since the last Ritz Brothers hike so we began to make plans. Bill suggested Pharaoh Lake, near Lake George and in the same general area as another hike we'd done. We considered going in from the area we'd been at before, but were unsure of the condition of the access road so we decided to take a different route.
The plan was for a two-night trip, Friday & Saturday, so I took a half vacation day and drove directly to Bill's from work. I arrived around 2PM and found no one there, but Tom showed up shortly, followed by Bill & Dad. Bill's car was in the shop and Dad had been giving him a ride. We discussed cars and agreed to take Bill's Caravan for the size. The gear was loaded in and we were on our way, but the van started bucking immediately and it was evident that it wouldn't be going anywhere soon. Fortunately Bill spotted Deb heading in the other direction so we did a U-turn, went back to Bill's, switched to Deb's van and were on the road again.
The drive up was a straight run up the Northway. Despite reports of bad traffic, we only ran into one tie-up along the way and were at the trailhead fairly quickly. The access was via a long dirt road that ended at a state campground by a lake and the trail departed from there. A sign at the camp entrance warned of skunks. We spoke briefly with the ranger, who directed us to the appropriate parking area. We parked, packed up and started walking.
It was an easy hike to our first night's destination, Grizzle's Ocean. A small pond named because it was the favorite backwoods water spot for some local character. The hike took maybe an hour, leaving us with plenty of light to find a campsite. A man and his son (and their tent) occupied a lean-to at the site so we looked for other spots. We found one possibility nearby, but Bill saw something better when he circled to the other side of the pond and looked back to see a rock outcropping.
We passed another group of campers as we made our way to the rocks, then climbed up to check out the site. It was elevated, with a small open area and some views up and out over the water. Trails led down to the water's edge and some possible pond-side tent spots, but we decided to stay up top though tent sites were tough to find up there. I had my Hennessey hammock (its first overnight use) so I just needed a couple of trees, but Bill & Tom had to do a good bit of searching to find places to set up their shelters. They did manage to settle in though and we were set for the night.
Dinner preparations began almost immediately. I boiled water with my new Dragonfly stove and we all had freeze-dried meals while battling swarms of hungry mosquitoes. The recent reports of West Nile virus in the area made us a bit uneasy, and we spent the evening in headnets, with as little exposed flesh as possible.
It was a good night for camping, with good stars and even some meteors. It was a bit cold though, which was a problem for Tom, who hadn't brought a sleeping bag. I was okay, though I had to get up in the middle of the night to slide my pad under my sleeping bag to cut down on the heat I was losing.
We made a quick breakfast in the morning, took care of our morning duties, then hit the trail again. It turns out the trail was right at the base of the cliff where we'd camped. Bill had noticed it while taking care of his morning "duty." The path started with a long wet crossing of a swamp on a narrow board walk which dipped below the water's surface in several spots, then the trail went into the woods and headed on a downhill run. We noticed lots of orange newts in the moist earth along the way.
The path took a sharp turn at a marshy area, circled the swamp and soon ended at the shore of Pharaoh Lake. We were right near a long peninsula where we'd hoped to camp and we quickly made our way out on to it. A lot of fallen trees obscured the beginning of the access trail, but we pushed through them and found ourselves at a beautiful cleared site near the base of the peninsula. We dropped our packs there, then explored out to the tip. There was another spot out there, but it was too small for the three of us so we went back and set up camp at the first site.
We debated plans for the day and considered trying to make a day hike up Pharaoh Mountain, but decided to just relax for awhile. Just then we heard voices and noticed a group of folks on the shore trail coming our way. We hoped they weren't coming to the peninsula but they did. A couple of guys at first, then another guy and two girls, all complaining. Long hike. Don't make us go on. We tried to convince them that there were no other sites to be had on the peninsula, but they went out anyway and claimed the spot at the tip, setting up their radios and coolers and tearing down trees to make tent space. Damn. We made a point of claiming territory by hanging out at some rocks between our two camps and just generally were pissed off at them. In the end though we decided they weren't all that bad...live & let live, etc.
The rest of the day was spent hanging out. We fished, we swam, and we jumped off rocks. Bill & I went exploring, looking for other sites but didn't find anything. Bill & Tom claimed an aluminum boat tied up at the shore and made some birchbark paddles for it. We also watched the kids as they partied their way through the day. At one point two of them (a guy and a girl) put on lifejackets and proceeded to swim all the way across the lake.
We all fished on & off, but no one caught anything significant. Bill & Tom tried paddling the boat out to where they saw some loons diving and made some casts in there, but didn't have any luck.
Toward the end of the day I cooked up some tortellini with smoked salmon for dinner and Bill & Tom provided some homemade wines. Later we took the boat out again and tried one more round of fishing, again without any success. We did get some entertainment however from our neighbors, as one of the guys sat in the water and puked all evening. We returned to the campsite, built a nice fire, then headed to bed. It was another cool night, with great stars and loons calling on the lake. I slept with the fly off my hammock, enjoying the view of the sky.
A wonderful fog rolled in with the dawn and we enjoyed its beauty. We got in a little more fishing, took some great pictures, then had breakfast, packed up and walked out the way we'd come.
More pictures
The plan was for a two-night trip, Friday & Saturday, so I took a half vacation day and drove directly to Bill's from work. I arrived around 2PM and found no one there, but Tom showed up shortly, followed by Bill & Dad. Bill's car was in the shop and Dad had been giving him a ride. We discussed cars and agreed to take Bill's Caravan for the size. The gear was loaded in and we were on our way, but the van started bucking immediately and it was evident that it wouldn't be going anywhere soon. Fortunately Bill spotted Deb heading in the other direction so we did a U-turn, went back to Bill's, switched to Deb's van and were on the road again.
The drive up was a straight run up the Northway. Despite reports of bad traffic, we only ran into one tie-up along the way and were at the trailhead fairly quickly. The access was via a long dirt road that ended at a state campground by a lake and the trail departed from there. A sign at the camp entrance warned of skunks. We spoke briefly with the ranger, who directed us to the appropriate parking area. We parked, packed up and started walking.
It was an easy hike to our first night's destination, Grizzle's Ocean. A small pond named because it was the favorite backwoods water spot for some local character. The hike took maybe an hour, leaving us with plenty of light to find a campsite. A man and his son (and their tent) occupied a lean-to at the site so we looked for other spots. We found one possibility nearby, but Bill saw something better when he circled to the other side of the pond and looked back to see a rock outcropping.
We passed another group of campers as we made our way to the rocks, then climbed up to check out the site. It was elevated, with a small open area and some views up and out over the water. Trails led down to the water's edge and some possible pond-side tent spots, but we decided to stay up top though tent sites were tough to find up there. I had my Hennessey hammock (its first overnight use) so I just needed a couple of trees, but Bill & Tom had to do a good bit of searching to find places to set up their shelters. They did manage to settle in though and we were set for the night.
Dinner preparations began almost immediately. I boiled water with my new Dragonfly stove and we all had freeze-dried meals while battling swarms of hungry mosquitoes. The recent reports of West Nile virus in the area made us a bit uneasy, and we spent the evening in headnets, with as little exposed flesh as possible.
It was a good night for camping, with good stars and even some meteors. It was a bit cold though, which was a problem for Tom, who hadn't brought a sleeping bag. I was okay, though I had to get up in the middle of the night to slide my pad under my sleeping bag to cut down on the heat I was losing.
We made a quick breakfast in the morning, took care of our morning duties, then hit the trail again. It turns out the trail was right at the base of the cliff where we'd camped. Bill had noticed it while taking care of his morning "duty." The path started with a long wet crossing of a swamp on a narrow board walk which dipped below the water's surface in several spots, then the trail went into the woods and headed on a downhill run. We noticed lots of orange newts in the moist earth along the way.
The path took a sharp turn at a marshy area, circled the swamp and soon ended at the shore of Pharaoh Lake. We were right near a long peninsula where we'd hoped to camp and we quickly made our way out on to it. A lot of fallen trees obscured the beginning of the access trail, but we pushed through them and found ourselves at a beautiful cleared site near the base of the peninsula. We dropped our packs there, then explored out to the tip. There was another spot out there, but it was too small for the three of us so we went back and set up camp at the first site.
We debated plans for the day and considered trying to make a day hike up Pharaoh Mountain, but decided to just relax for awhile. Just then we heard voices and noticed a group of folks on the shore trail coming our way. We hoped they weren't coming to the peninsula but they did. A couple of guys at first, then another guy and two girls, all complaining. Long hike. Don't make us go on. We tried to convince them that there were no other sites to be had on the peninsula, but they went out anyway and claimed the spot at the tip, setting up their radios and coolers and tearing down trees to make tent space. Damn. We made a point of claiming territory by hanging out at some rocks between our two camps and just generally were pissed off at them. In the end though we decided they weren't all that bad...live & let live, etc.
The rest of the day was spent hanging out. We fished, we swam, and we jumped off rocks. Bill & I went exploring, looking for other sites but didn't find anything. Bill & Tom claimed an aluminum boat tied up at the shore and made some birchbark paddles for it. We also watched the kids as they partied their way through the day. At one point two of them (a guy and a girl) put on lifejackets and proceeded to swim all the way across the lake.
We all fished on & off, but no one caught anything significant. Bill & Tom tried paddling the boat out to where they saw some loons diving and made some casts in there, but didn't have any luck.
Toward the end of the day I cooked up some tortellini with smoked salmon for dinner and Bill & Tom provided some homemade wines. Later we took the boat out again and tried one more round of fishing, again without any success. We did get some entertainment however from our neighbors, as one of the guys sat in the water and puked all evening. We returned to the campsite, built a nice fire, then headed to bed. It was another cool night, with great stars and loons calling on the lake. I slept with the fly off my hammock, enjoying the view of the sky.
A wonderful fog rolled in with the dawn and we enjoyed its beauty. We got in a little more fishing, took some great pictures, then had breakfast, packed up and walked out the way we'd come.
More pictures
